Focus on fall: Time to try that favorite recipe

National Cooking Day Sept. 25

Sept. 18, 2024

Grab an apron and dust off that cookbook or find your favorite family recipe.

While others prefer to eat at a restaurant, order takeout or place an order for delivery, many enjoy cooking at home or view it as a necessity these days.

Michiganders don’t have to go far to get a few main ingredients for home cooking.

Local farms make Michigan the second most agriculturally diverse state in the U.S., according to the Michigan Farm Bureau:

• Approximately 95% of Michigan farms are family owned.

• Michigan’s agricultural industry also contributes more than $104.7 billion to the state’s economy and employs nearly one million people (almost 25% of the state’s workforce).

“Farming is essential to Michigan,” said Enbridge’s Lauren Brown, a community engagement advisor who’s based in the Upper Peninsula.

“We are known across the U.S. for our dairy, soybeans, cherries and apples. Our farmers lead the way in helping to put food on the table.”

 

“Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline makes a lot of basic necessities possible, from the farming equipment that helps produce food for Michigan tables, to the fuel for delivery trucks that carry groceries to your local store. The products carried in Line 5 also make medicines possible as well as eyewear, computers and cell phones. The pipeline is really important.”

—Lauren Brown, Enbridge’s community engagement advisor in northern Michigan

The raw material to manufacture farming equipment relies on the natural gas liquids and light oil transported through Enbridge Line 5 in the Straits of Mackinac. The pipeline also provides fuel for farming equipment and processing machinery, as well as for trucks that deliver the food to supermarkets, restaurants and homes.

“Michigan farming is among the many industries supported through Line 5,” said Brown.

“Michiganders in general rely on the continued safe operation of Line 5, including propane used for grilling and cooking, which generally increases during the fall and winter.”

On the heels of the Sept. 22 official start to fall, Michiganders can join others in marking National Cooking Day. For the eighth consecutive year, National Cooking Day is Sept. 25 and offers a few ways to celebrate:

1. Cook a favorite meal or try your hand at a new recipe.
   
   
2. Throw a potluck party in which everyone brings their own favorite home-cooked dish.


3. Cook with a friend or family, and share your favorite traditions and comfort food.

Find additional information on National Cooking Day here.