HELLO and welcome to Lionel & Hetta! My name’s Alex, and I’m from the prairies of Canada. Growing up in Saskatchewan is underrated. With golden landscapes, the lush boreal forest, and over 150,000 lakes, this province has no shortage of natural beauty.
I’m from Saskatoon; a small city with a growing population that yearns for stimulation by way of art, music, and food. We’ve been referred to as the “Paris of the prairies”, though I’m not sure how that came to be. I like to think we’re our own brand of wonderful. Growing up, I certainly didn’t appreciate my home with the same eyes I do today, but it’s common practice for a kid to dream. Thanks to those wide eyes (and a childhood-worth of competitive dance), I had the privilege to move to New York to study and complete a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance and a minor in business.
LIVING IN NEW YORK CHANGED ME. It became the hub that connected me to the rest of the world; consequently, turning me into a total wonder junkie, and lover of travel and adventure. Since moving, I’ve had the opportunity to travel to India, Europe, and Central America, all of which hold some of my most cherished memories. But absence truly does make the heart grow fonder…and my heart rests in the prairies.
After completing my degree, I decided to move home. What I didn’t realize at the time, was that after identifying as a dancer for nearly 20 years, I would lose a piece of myself in the transition. It wasn’t until I was reintroduced to my mom’s home-cooked meals, that I realized how much I loved and missed the ideals by which I was raised. You see, my mom grew up on a farm, which was purchased by my grandparents, LIONEL AND HETTA, in the 30’s. You know, that dirty decade where everything was dried up and nothing grew? They managed to keep their farm running, despite the serious lack of fruitfulness, pay it off in the 40’s, and live there for the rest of their lives. My mom spent her childhood working on that farm, until she eventually moved to Saskatoon to study at the University of Saskatchewan. Lionel and Hetta passed before my time, but I’m pretty sure I get to see glimpses, every day, of the types of people they were.
My mom is one of those people who doesn’t know how to stop working. While my dad worked from home, shopped for groceries, and drove me and my two sisters to and from dance seemingly 150 times a week, my mom worked 14 hour days and still managed to come home and cook a four-course meal. And those meals were legendary. In our house, food was at the center of all things good, and we ate the way she did on the farm. Since much of her family continued to farm, we always had access to meat of the highest quality. Every year, my parents had their standing order for half a steer, home-grown chickens and pork, and freshly picked eggs. My mom’s Saturday trips to the farmer’s market were a staple, and her meals always showcased the beautiful produce she got her hands on. Nothing was wasted.
It should come as no surprise that after moving home, I REDISCOVERED MYSELF THROUGH COOKING. And in a world where quality is often second to quantity and cost, my partner, Evan, and I are intentional in all of our choices. We make a conscious effort to move towards a more environmentally friendly and ethical way of living, and while nobody is perfect, we work every day to broaden our awareness and create new sustainable habits. These fundamentals are what initially sparked this blog, and six months after I began setting my idea into motion, my dad was diagnosed with stage-four brain cancer. We spent countless hours researching alternative options in addition to conventional treatment, learning overwhelming details about the positive and negative impacts of different foods, often with regards to the way they were produced. In the end, we discovered the incredible impact that food-sourcing can have on your general well-being. For this reason, we are huge advocates of a diet that includes organic produce and oils, grass-fed/pastured/organic animal products, and almost all things made from scratch. I do not follow a diet that eliminates any one food group, but I try to use the healthiest and least processed version of all ingredients, with a definite emphasis on buying local.
It’s not just the cooking, nor is it the eating. It’s every delicious detail, from picking out the perfect chicken to chatting with the farmer who provided it. It’s the lingering walk that takes me slowly through the farmer’s market, and the trip to a friend’s home for two-dozen farm eggs. The process of cooking, from beginning to end, connects us to so many people, and the product of cooking can feed our most precious relationships. I love to cook; I’m not a cook. I don’t consider myself a foodie, but an advocate for great food. I BELIEVE IN COOKING WITH INGREDIENTS I CAN BE PROUD OF AND SHARING THE BEAUTY IN THE DETAILS.