Tag Archives: eat crickets

Crickets Make Your Trail Mix a Hopping Experience

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Pack some protein in your trail mix by adding in some insects

What do you put in your trail mix? Nuts? Dried Fruit? Crickets?

Yup. That’s right, I said ‘crickets’.

Nick Hiebert, Founder of Ecotone Foods out of Manitoba, has created a delicious twist on an old trail tradition. He has popped roasted crickets, mealworms and super worms into a trailmix along with dried fruit like cranberries and blueberries, and an assortment of nuts and seeds.

Those who are curious and adventurous tasted the crunchy mix and quickly discovered that the bug laden power food is as delicious as it is nutritious. Cheryl Holmes, the reporter for CTV News in Winnipeg, happily crunched a big spoonful of the super snack.

So, what does Ecotone Foods have to do with Next Millennium Farms? Good question.

Next Millennium Farms supplies Ecotone Foods with their scrumptious insects for their trail mix. Click on the video in the article and check out 1:26-1:50 to hear Ryan Goldin, co-founder of Next Millennium Farms, talk about part of the process that is used to provide us with our crunchy critters.

I love trail mix. It is actually one of my daily standards, especially now that I’m making a concerted effort to eliminate unhealthy snacks from my diet (those that are the culprits know who they are!).

I blend in some raw sliced almonds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, unsweetened coconut, and cranberries. So, after this article came out, I asked some other Next Millennium Farms team members how long they think it will be until food made with insects is the norm- not ‘specialty’ or ‘niche’ or ‘novelty’.

I say 1-2 years.

Hopeful? Maybe… Anyone care to make a wager?

#InsectProtein #CricketFlour #Entomophagy

BBC’s ‘From Our Own Correspondent’ Talks About Eating Crickets and Next Millennium Farms

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Next Millennium Farms on BBC

Sian Griffiths, reporter for BBC’s “From Our Own Correspondent”, talks candidly about eating crickets, her visit to the cricket farm and worm farm of Next Millennium Farms in rural Ontario, and meeting the Goldin Brothers, Jarrod, Darren and Ryan, the co-founders of the company.

Click to listen to the podcast, and scrub to 4:45, to hear Griffiths talk about the impact that eating insects can have on global food security as well as the nutritional and environmental benefits of eating insects.

Griffiths points out that 2 billion people on this planet already consume insects as their main source of protein; from Asia to Africa, to South America. She bravely tries the ginger cookies made with cricket flour, and the brownies made with cricket flour, (and states how delicious they are!) but passes on the chocolate covered mealworms.

Maybe next time, Sian!

#InsectProtein #CricketFlour #Entomophagy

 

 

 

 

 

Eat Insects at the Incredible Edible Festival

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Eating insects at the Incredible Edibles Festival

Do you live in Ontario, and are looking for something fun to do tomorrow? Maybe you want to take a little drive, eat some great food, listen to amazing music, and listen to some fantastic speakers?

Check out Campbellford, on Saskatoon Avenue, there will be a large food festival, called the Incredible Edibles Festival. Derek Sedgwick of Next Millennium Farms will be there with great tasting crickets, mealworms and cricket flour for sampling and purchasing, and at 1:30 pm, he will be speaking about how eating insects is a great way to get protein, iron, essential amino acids and calcium into your diet in a delicious and easy way.

Hope to see you out there!

Eat Insects at the Bug Bistro

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Eat Insects at the Bug Bistro

Bug Bistro. Yup, that’s what I said. Get your edible bugs right here at Next Millennium Farms’ own Bug Bistro. Eating insects has never been more delicious or easier for you to start or continue doing!

We have a bunch of different flavors for you to choose from: honey mustard, barbeque, sea salt and pepper, fire and brimstone and Moroccan spice. You can also choose between crickets or mealworms. If you’re not sure if you prefer crickets to mealworms, or the other way around, you can try our assorted snack pack which gives you both crickets AND mealworms, and a sample of all the flavors. With the assorted pack of 6 2 gram bags, you get barbeque, fire and brimstone and sea salt and pepper mealworms, and Moroccan, honey and mustard and barbeque crickets.

All the insects are cooked to perfection so they are crispy and crunchy, which makes them the snack that you want to reach for at any time of day- pre or post workout, the mid-morning nibble or the 3:00 pm snack attack.

Chock-full of protein, essential amino acids and iron, these cricket and mealworm snack packs from Bug Bistro can be enjoyed right out of the pack and down the hatch, or sprinkle them on your favorite salad, burrito, or sandwich.

The other cool thing about this snack, is that for those of you who have fussy kids, who barely eat foods with protein and iron (mine were like that for many years, and it used to drive me absolutely crazy), your kids will absolutely love these- they’ll be their new favorite snack, and you’ll always say, “yes”, because they are nutritious, delicious, and low in calories and fat.

If you’ve never tried eating insects before, this is a great way for you to get started. Don’t be scared. You’re doing yourself (and the planet) a favor.

Let us know which ones are your favorites!

Soft Ginger Cricket Cookies

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Ginger Cookies with Cricket Flour

These are the ginger cookies that dreams are made of! Absolutely irresistible to anybody fond of ginger and melt-in-your-mouth cookies.

Includes 1g of cricket protein per cookie

Makes 24 cookies

Ingredients

  • ½ cup cricket flour
  • 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
  • ¾ tsp ground cinnamon
  • ½ tsp ground cloves
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ¾ cup butter, softened
  • ¾ cup white sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 5 tbsp brown sugar
  • 3 tbsp molasses
  • 1 tbsp orange juice
  • 2 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp white sugar

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350F
  2. Combine first group of dry ingredients, flours, spices, baking soda and salt.
  3. In a second larger bowl, cream together butter and white sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, brown sugar, molasses and orange juice.
  4. Gradually stir the dry ingredients into the butter and sugar mixture. When mixed place in refrigerator for 20 minutes to set the dough.
  5. Mix 2 tbsp brown and 1 tbsp white sugar together in a small bowl or on a small plate. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and then roll in the sugar. Place the sugared cookie balls on a parchment lined or ungreased cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. Flatten very slightly.
  6. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until bottom and edges are a light golden brown. Allow cookies to cool for 5 minutes before removing from the cookie tray.
  7. Store in an airtight container or freeze them for future friends and family treats!
  8. Warning, place cookies out of sight out of mind as they have a tendency to call to all nearest sweet tooths!

 

Moroccan Summer Salad with Citrus Ento-Dressing and Roasted Wax Worms

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Summer Moroccan Salad with Citrus Ento-Dressing and Crispy Wax Worms

This perfect summer salad and its bright citrus ento-dressing made with cricket flour, is easy, fresh and delish for any occasion. The roasted wax worms From Next Millennium Farms add wonderful crunch and bring all the flavor needed with no extra spicing necessary. A great salad to add zip and zing to those family bbq’s and potlucks we all love!

Makes 8-10 servings

Ingredients:

Citrus Ento-Dressing with Cricket Flour

Makes approx 8 oz dressing

  • 1 large navel orange
  • 1 lime
  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp cider vinegar or rice vinegar
  • 1 tbsp minced ginger
  • 1 tsp honey
  • ½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
  • ½ tsp Moroccan spice
  • 1 tbsp cricket flour

Chopped Moroccan Salad

  • 2 cups chick peas, cooked and cooled, or canned and rinsed
  • 2 cups grape tomatoes, sliced in half
  • 2 cups cucumber, seeded and diced
  • ½ cup red onion, minced
  • 1 yellow pepper, diced
  • 4 cups shredded cabbage, red or yellow or a mix of both.
  • ¼ to ½ cup roasted Wax Worms

Directions

  1. Using a knife, remove outer peel from both the navel orange and lime leaving the flesh exposed and no pith (the white stuff). Carefully segment and remove each section of orange and lime flesh and place into a blender.
  2. Add the remaining dressing ingredients to the blender and blend on high for 15-20 seconds. Set aside.
  3. Combine chick peas, tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, pepper and cabbage in large bowl.
  4. Pour Citrus Ento-Dressing over salad and mix. Place in refrigerator to marinade until ready to serve.
  5. When serving, place plain roasted wax worms in a small dish on the side for adding to each salad served and sprinkle a few on top of your main dish.
  6. Enjoy!

 

Introducing: Geoentomarian

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Eat Bugs, Help Heal the Planet

So, you’re on a first date.

You’re at some nice restaurant with tons of atmosphere, and you’re trying to get to know the person sitting in front of you; trying to look like you’re not really trying.

You ask each other questions about your past relationships, hobbies, habits (good and bad), and then you ask, “So, are you a Geoentomarian?”

At this point in time, no one would be able to answer that question because no one knows what that means, except for the few of us who work at Next Millennium Farms.

A Geoentomarian is simply someone who eats insects to help better the health of our planet. Broken down, it’s “geo”, for the Earth, “entomo” for insects, and “arian” someone who engages in something.

The day will come, and we’re hoping sooner than later, when this question will be mainstream- just one question on a list of many to help you get to know someone better, or for someone to use as they describe themselves, as in, “I run, do yoga, and I’m a Geoentomarian.” But at this point in time, we are just launching the term, Geoentomarian into the stratosphere, hoping that it will gain as much momentum as Vegan, Vegetarian, Humanitarian, or Environmentalist.

Thank you to Nutritional Anthropologist, Nicole Kilburn, and those at I Am Eco Warrior .

Read, the article, share with friends, post to your fave social media outlet, and let us know, Are you a Geoentomarian?

I am.

 

Eating Crickets and Next Millennium Farms in the News

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Next Millennium Farms Raises Crickets for Human Consumption

Sarah Deeth, reporter for The Peterborough Examiner (Ontario) and The Toronto Sun, wrote this informative and introspective article about the vision and mission of Next Millennium Farms.

The vision statement of Next Millennium Farms is simple:

Next Millennium Farms will be recognized as a world leader in providing protein alternatives in the form of the finest organic and world-class insect proteins with great tasting products and recipes.

We will be perceived as a leading light – the world authority - in the dissemination of insect farming methods and the marketing of insect protein.

We will be respected world-wide, for leading the protein revolution with our esteemed values of integrity, trustworthiness and accountability, in everything we say and do.

And, likewise, the mission statement is equally as simple:

  • To make an important contribution in the feeding of an estimated world population of 9 billion people in 2050.
  • To establish a new paradigm of perception and desirability as we motivate people across the globe to consume insect protein.
  • To achieve excellence in entomophagy with the production, harvesting and distribution of the highest quality of insect protein.
  • To create a global awareness of the relevance and socio-political impact of each person’s protein carbon footprint.
  • To provide graded feed alternatives to farmers producing healthier and certifiable organic fish and chicken.

Deeth does a remarkable job of highlighting the goals of Next Millennium Farms, while telling a wonderful pictorial story of the Goldin’s of Next Millennium and how they do what they do. Please remember when you read the article to comment and share!

Basil, Baguette and Bocconcini Cricket Appetizers

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Basil, Baguette and Bocconcini Cricket Appetizer

This appetizer is a summer staple when basil is fresh in our garden. The aroma of the balsamic and basil combined with the crunchy roasted crickets and fresh baguette is irresistible. Although the insects are front and center, this is a great whole-bug dish for first-timers who are ready to move on from insect flours and try something a little more visual.

Note: Ingredient amounts have not been specified because no matter how many you make there’s always a request for more and these can be thrown together in a pinch!

Ingredients

  • Fresh Baguette
  • Fresh Basil
  • Olive Oil infused with garlic
  • Balsamic vinegar
  • Bocconcini cheese (small, mild, mozzarella cheeses the size of an egg)
  • Roasted crickets – approximately 1/4 to 1/3 cup
  • Sea salt
  • Chimichurri spice available at The Epicentre

Directions

  1. Slice bocconcini into 1/4 inch circles and set aside, 1 per appetizer
  2. Slice baguette into small circles 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick and then arrange on a platter or tray.
  3. Take fresh basil and place a leaf on each piece of baguette, if leaf is large then cut in half covering most of the baguette. Top each appetizer with a slice of bocconcini.
  4. Mix together olive oil and some balsamic vinegar and whisk until combined. Generously drizzle over all the appetizers you have prepared.
  5. Place roasted crickets in a separate small bowl and drizzle very lightly with olive oil. Add a pinch of sea salt and a dusting of chimichurri spice or any other spice that may strike your fancy. Give a gentle and quick toss- I usually use my fingers given the lightness of the crickets.
  6. Place a small amount of crickets on top of each appetizer and serve up something truly tasty.
  7. Note: always make a couple on the side due to the impossible task of making this recipe without having at least two before you serve it to the guests!

 

Which Bugs are Edible?

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According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations there are an estimated 1 462 species of recorded edible insects in the world.

Included in this list are:

  • Globally, the most common insects consumed are beetles
  • Caterpillars
  • Bees
  • Wasps
  • Ants
  • Grasshoppers
  • Locusts
  • Crickets