Once a month, turn off all your unnecessary electrical appliances and your lights. Pull out some candles and a knife and engage in electricity-free "cooking". It may sound like a nightmare not being able to use the blender to dice the onions, or the mixer to knead the dough, but these are all very doable tasks, and the processes can be extremely invigorating.

That said, participation in this event does not have to be about finding peace, serenity or restoration, nor does it have to be about Earth Hour. One could use this "Hour" to get used to becoming less dependent on electricity, or as a time to prepare the week's frozen dinners, or simply a time in the month to catch up with neighbours over a home-cooked meal. The possibilities are endless, and the benefits abundant.

So if you're interested, the rules are as such:
1. Your preparation environment should be as electricity-free as possible. Music or TV in the background are discouraged, unless they are self-winding.

2. Create a recipe that requires no electrical tools to prepare, except when cooking. (ie you can use an electrical stove to cook the food, but electrical blenders and handmixers during preparation is against the rules)

3. Your "Earth Hour" does not have to be an hour, nor does it have to be at night. You can start with half hour or even 15 minutes and work your way up.

4. In your entry, add a link to this event's URL.

5. Submit your entry to blackcealt[at]gmail.com. The email should have the following:
* Subject line: LOKO [Month][Year] eg. LOKO April 08
* In the body of the email:
- Your name
- Your city, state, country location
- Your food blog name
- Link to your event entry
- Name of your recipe
- The duration of your "Earth Hour" aka prep time
- Picture of your entry attached
You don't need a blog to participate; non-bloggers can still email the above information and I will include it in the round-up.

6. There is no limit to the number of entries you wish to submit.

7. The deadline for 'LOKO April 08' is midnight April 28th, 2008. I will post the round-up by April 30th, 2008.