The irony that most of what we write about is rooted in much tradition and some of our `newest`topics are about 100 years old and the fact that we share it globally on technology that has truly blossomed in the last 5 years with it`s roots just over 40 years. It’s like having a flying car that’s powered by horses.
I really enjoy all sort of statistics and am always curious about what brings people to our site. It’s neat to think beyond our simple apartment and imagine where visitors are coming from and it’s quite neat to see the different search terms that pop up seasonally. It’s fascinating to see the search terms change with the seasons. I sometimes feel like we’re farming posts!
Late August and September bring a lot of people for tomatoes. Most want to know how to preserve tomatoes but some are looking for prices, quantities and that type of thing. It’s rare that people arrive here searching those terms any time but late summer or early fall.
Until now.
We’ve had a trend of people arriving looking for tomatoes by the bushel, what types of tomatoes to use for canning and how to can them. All sorts of things that amount to looking for our best tomato tips. It’s more than a few random searches – enough that make me think tomatoes have come in to season somewhere else in the world. I’m inspired, curious and want to know who’s canning tomatoes right now. We haven’t seen the likes of a fresh summer tomato in months (though I did have some green ones recently that were cellared).
Searching dehydrated articles are also on the rise – and for us this makes sense. Using our dehydrator uses about the same amount of electricity of a lightbulb but creates the heat of an oven (even though it’s at a lower temperature, our oven is insulated and does not allow a lot of heat to expose while the dehydrator is not and tends to project it’s heat).
People searching for ways to preserve crab are on the increase in the last 4 days and cakes (including a Bon Jovi Cake) are also hot right now. I suppose the cake isn’t seasonal but the number of recent searches are notably higher than typical.
Pulled pork (especially in a slow cooker) and vegetarian split pea soup are also bringing more guests than normal.
Joel Bukiewicz (an artisanal knife maker in Brooklyn, NY) must have drawn attention lately because he’s a hot topic (and another Joel).
Winter CSAs in Toronto are a predictable reason people are coming while creamed peas on toast are a year-round favourite.
For whoever it was that was looking for a “rumtopf giveaway,” you best keep looking because you’re not getting ours. 
It’s a humble reminder that ‘seasonal’ and ‘local’ are so obviously personal that it can actually be difficult to remember that our world is so obviously larger than what is right there in front of our faces.
What are you looking for? We’d love to know what you’d like to see here – ideas for posts are always welcome and with the Holidays and some travel coming, the more ideas the merrier.
Joel, not sure if you are open to such a topic cause I know your moose meat is a precious commodity as you may not have received a lot of meat after dividing it all up among the hunt group. But what if you made gourmet moose sausages, pepperettes??? Then dry or smoke them, charcuteterie? I would be more than happy to assist with research on the topic and assist with the process shopping, prep, making and smoking/drying.
I’m looking to make some infused liquor and syrups for my bartender brother as Christmas gifts. I’d love to read recipes for your favourite boozy canning concoctions.
I spent most of last winter dealing with a mild cracker-making obsession. I’d love to hear your experiences with using dried ingredients in the dough.