The food swap: Food, fellowship and fun

INDIANAPOLIS - Just like fashion swaps, food swaps are beginning to pop up all over the country, as more of us realize that socializing, sharing, recycling and reusing things are good ways to save money and live richer lives.

This edible swap trend is one that is close to my heart, mostly because it involves cooking and eating. It’s also a great way to get folks together to trade homemade concoctions, recipes, and homegrown produce while building communities.

You can keep it low-key by getting together with friends. You can go bigger and plan a neighborhood swap. Or you can go really big with a citywide event. The more the merrier, right?

More on hosting your own food swap

My first swap with Indy Food Swappers was nothing less than inspiring. When the event got under way, everyone set up their items, mingled and tasted one another’s creations, and lightheartedly plotted their swapping strategy.

The joyous madhouse that happened when swap time came was so much fun. Everyone furiously traded and made deals and laughed with each other. When all my baked goods were finally swapped, I breathlessly took stock of what I had succeeded in acquiring. Jellies, jams, preserved jalapeños, homemade Imperial Russian Stout, and much more filled up my take-home bag. In all, it was a pretty successful swap experience.

It’s not uncommon for food swaps to also be a venue for learning. Speakers’ topics can include lessons in urban farming, composting, and basic food swap etiquette. The Indy event had similar topics, but included a demonstration and discussion with Kate Payne, author of The Hip Girl’s Guide to Homemaking. Payne shared with us the joys of pickling and canning our own food.

Check her out.

Payne is credited with starting the food swap trend when she held a food swapping party in her Brooklyn apartment. The New York Times heard about it and the rest is history.

Food swap take-aways:

• Practically free
• Made new friends
• Opportunity to network
• Learned something new
• Ate a lot of good food

If you think you might want to attend a food swap or plan your own event, check out the Food Swap Network for how-tos.

 For more on food, recipes and dining, check out twinklevanwinkle.com.

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Twinkle VanWinkle was born in a small town in Mississippi. A life-long lover of music, media and food, she grew up following those three things along her path. She has almost 20 years of professional cooking under her apron strings, feeding thousands of friends, family and other folks while working in restaurants and bakeries in Oxford, Miss. She baked 300 apple pies for the “Oprah Winfrey Show” and appeared on “The Best Of...” in the same year. Along with producing dynamic entertainment content for LIN Media, she is a mother, musician and social media fanatic.