Wanderlust and Words

Local News   Congratulations to Beth Rogers and Thayne Robstad for Hearth being named one of Canada’s top 100 restaurants . Wonderful recognition for a wonderful restaurant – definitely where I head for a special meal.  Living Sky Café has added a mini grocery to their restaurant on 3rd Avenue. Good news for people who live in the downtown area and have been without a local grocery store since 2004.  Food for Thought  I read a [long] article about the future of BC as a world wine centre . What it boils down to is marketing – and I find that extremely discouraging. “The problem with British Columbia is not its wine—today, just about anyone is capable of producing the good stuff. . . . a large part of what makes a region is how that wine is positioned, for locals and for tourists.”  Restaurants and food writers strive for authenticity. And yet, how do we define authentic ? Anthony Heard’s halloumi-style cheese is not the halloumi you get in a supermarket or a del...

Local Happenings  The Saskatoon Farmers’ Market Co-operative has moved into its new home at 2600 Koyl Avenue (#11 bus or free parking). Look at all that space – no more overcrowded aisles or limitations on how many vendors can move inside on cold days! Library of Things has made free cloth bags for market customers to use. Help yourself! Be sure to take a look at the murals. They are the work of a regular market customer and were carefully moved out of the old building and into the new one. Five years ago Hal Jadetske, Red Barn Dairy , bought an organic farm, built a pasteurization/processing plant, and purchased some goats. “So, retirement involves milking the goats twice a day every day and processing the milk and then off to the farmers market which I have been a part of for the last 2 ½ years. The Saskatoon Farmers Market is a wonderfully diverse group of people who all have a passion and dedication to what they bring to the market every week and along with th...

Local Happenings Sample some great coffees at Venn Coffee Roasters from 1-2 pm , Feb. 29 . Email bear@drinkvenn.com to reserve a spot. The Friendship Inn frequently runs low on breakfast food items, such as brown sugar, jam, peanut butter, and pancake mix, as well as other items, such as frozen vegetables, gravy mixes, and juice boxes. Donations can be dropped off 7 days a week between 7 am and 3 pm . The U of S and the City of Saskatoon are collaborating on a number of research projects. Rachel Engler-Stringer will work with the City of Saskatoon to find ways to prevent surplus food from food-based businesses from ending up in the landfill by studying and providing information to these businesses on how to donate. The Saskatoon Food Council will coordinate the project. If you’d like to buy Saskatoon Spruce’s cheese at the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market, contact them . They still haven’t decided whether or not they’ll return. In the meantime, you can pick up some of their chee...

The Christmas tree has gone up by the war memorial in Clifford where I’m currently staying and I’m looking forward to going out for a walk every evening as different residents are taking to turns to decorate their windows as a living Advent calendar . This has put me in the Christmas spirit so here are some suggestions for supporting local when you purchase drinks this Christmas. Christmas Spirits  Black Fox Farm & Distillery’s liqueurs sound yummy – raspberry, honey ginger, and sour cherry. Lucky Bastard Distillers has everything from Christmas orange vodka to seabuckthorn & wildflower honey liqueur and bitters. You have three options for cider. Crossmount Cider Company has a winter variety pack that includes ginger apple, winter spice, and crisp and gold. Purchase your cider from Prairie Sentinel Bottleworks and you’ll be helping to support endangered species. Petrofka Orchard has soft apple cider. Living Sky Winery has fruit wines, liqueurs, and cider. Th...

There are lots of public markets in the United Kingdom but far fewer farmers’ markets and they are usually only held once a month. So I was delighted that my one Saturday in the Lincoln area was the date for the Lincoln Farmers’ Market . Warning! Lots of pictures to provide possible inspiration for Saskatoon Farmers’ Market vendors. You can’t beat the Market’s location between Lincoln Castle and Cathedral! It’s a small market and there was only one farmer selling vegetables, but there were all sorts of other interesting items. There were two stands selling Lincolnshire and other British cheeses. One was also selling fresh unpasteurized milk from the cows on their farm. Autumn Harvest was selling mushrooms – fresh, dried, powdered, in soup, in risotto mixes, and more. They were also selling enormous pine cones from a tree on their land so you could harvest your own pine nuts. There were fresh and dried apples from the 130-year-old, organically-mana...

Great lunch at Stokes Lawn Cafe with a pot of delicious oolong tea Local Happenings Saskatoon Spruce is offering holiday gift boxes with 3 flavours of their traditionally handcrafted raw milk cheese that has been aged on northern Saskatchewan spruce. The three flavours are Original Caerphilly style cheese, Applewood Smoked, and 9-Mile Angus Oatmeal Stout (new!). Watch the award-winning food waste documentary, Just Eat It , at the University of Saskatchewan, Dec. 6 at 10 am. Registration is required . The Saskatoon Farmers’ Market Co-operative has voted in favour of moving to a new location on Koyl Avenue near the airport. It’s an opportunity to put down roots with a long-term lease after all the uncertainty of the last few years. The Co-operative's last day at its current location is Dec. 22. It may take a few months to prepare the new site during which time they'll be holding pop-up markets on Saturdays. Some good coverage this past week in local media for Saman...

Local Happenings  Dennis Skoworodko of Our Farm will teach you how to make sauerkraut in a fermentation workshop at MakeSpace from 9:30-11 am , Oct. 26 . Celebrate Hallowe’en Mexican style with Pan de Muerto from the Mexican Bakery at the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market. Or, enjoy a kiss of strawberry or Saskatoon berry jam with one of their Besos. I’m delighted that Dad’s Organic Market is now carrying some Miyoko’s vegan cheeses made from fermented cashew cream. They’re the best of the bunch in my opinion, especially the smoked and aged farmhouse cheeses. Of course, you may prefer a regular dairy cheese. In which case, I highly recommend Saskatoon Spruce ’s cheese. Be sure to try the smoked variety, which has lots and lots of flavour. Have you tried Black Fox Farm & Distillery ’s haskap gin? It incorporates haskap berries from boreal forests around the world. A percentage of the profits goes to the Saskatchewan branch of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society...

  Local Happenings  Bottles of Sentinel Bottleworks ’ cider portray images of Saskatchewan’s endangered species and they’re donating $1/litre sold to Nature Saskatchewan, which works with landowners to protect critical habitat of endangered species. Sentinel Bottleworks raised over $1,000 between June 1 and July 15. You can find their cider on tap at various local restaurants. It’s on sale at Sobeys, Metro, SLGA, and soon at Co-op liquor stores. Faith Bohn has started a stuffed cookie business that she hopes will provide employment for people like her sons with Down syndrome . Alberta Flavour is helping large institutions increase their purchases of local food as well as filling some of the gaps between farmer and purchaser. Quebec is forging its own cheese identity. Here are just a few Quebec cheeses . Food for Thought  An apple a day keeps the doctor away by promoting healthy intestinal bacteria. And organic apples are best of all as they harbour a m...

Shopping  River Layne Chocolate Couture recently opened a storefront at #39 – 1736 Quebec Avenue. The individual chocolates and bars are works of art and taste delicious too! (photo credit: River Layne) The Saskatoon Co-op Liquor Store on 8th Street has a wide range of wine, both Canadian and international. I was thrilled to find a large assortment of Parés Baltà organic, biodynamic wines made by women winemakers. I was treated like royalty when I visited their vineyard near Barcelona several years ago. NatureCity Festival  May 21-26 is the 7th annual NatureCity Festival with over 60 events organized by 50 different organizations – what an achievement! Here are a couple of food-based events. I’ve listed a number of other interesting events on EcoFriendly Sask . See you at the Festival! The Path to Wild Food – 1-2:30 pm, May 24  Look for edible wild plants, from licorice to sarsaparilla, with Sandra Walker, an ethnobotanist. NatureCity Beer Release...

Local Happenings Doug Reichel Wine Marketing will introduce you to 5 wines from 5 different French wine regions at 7 pm , Apr. 17, at Metro Liquor. Speaking of French wine, I've been drinking wine from the wine region closest to me – Ventoux . Now that's one I've never seen in a Canadian liquor store! And I'm in Provence so I'm making sure I drink at least a little rosé . I’ve heard good things about the wine selection at the new Co-op Wine Spirits Beer at 2010 8th Street East. Here are a few of the upcoming tastings at the 8th Street location : Apr. 13 – Wines of Germany & Austria Apr. 17 – Mad about Malbec May 8 – Medeiros wines with Figueira de Chaves, the winery’s co-owner City Perks is now accepting wholesale cake orders . Pretend you’re having a party, order an entire cheesecake, and indulge! I’m looking forward to trying Spruce Cheese once I’m back in Saskatoon. It’s great to have two different locally produced cheese products avail...

Saskatoon Spruce Cheese  I’m thrilled to learn about a new cheesemaker in Saskatoon and looking forward to trying his raw milk Caerphilly-style cheese that has been aged on spruce boards for at least 60 days. Saskatoon Spruce cheese is available at the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market, Bulk Cheese Warehouse, and The Cure. Nosh Is Closing  I was so disappointed to learn that Nosh Eatery & Tap is closing at the end of January. It’s been my family’s go-to place for birthday celebrations and other special occasions. It was well-made, beautifully presented food that just happened to be vegetarian/vegan (see photos above and below). And we could choose from the entire menu rather than a handful of specially designated items. New Owners for Calories  Calories restaurant has new owners! After 23 years, Rémi Cousyn has sold the restaurant to Taszia and Karan Thakur. It’s good to know that they plan to continue to support seasonal food and local suppliers. Transitio...

Bow Barley Showcase, Jan. 26  Local craft brewers have been collaborating with crop scientists and farmers to grow a barley that meets all their needs. The brewers will be presenting their Bow Barley beers at a showcase on Jan. 26 at Winston’s English Pub . Edible & Medicinal Plants of the Prairies, July 19-21  Edible Landscapes Permaculture Designs & Consulting in Regina is offering an 18-hour course from July 19-21 in sourcing and growing local edible and medicinal plants . Make Your Own Cream Cheese You can make your own cream cheese with a Cultures for Health starter kit available at Dad’s Organic Market. My brother tried it out and said it isn’t too much work, tastes good, and spreads easily. You can choose whether you want a low- or high-fat version and whether or not you want to add flavourings. Making a Difference  Former City Councillor Tiffany Paulsen showed her kids how individuals could make a difference by buying groceries for people w...

My first full day back in France was a Sunday and there was a huge outdoor market just a few blocks down the street from where I was staying in Chartrons, Bordeaux. I spent several happy hours there (in the sunshine!) exploring all the different offerings and wishing I could buy bags and bags of lovely products. The Chartrons market isn’t a farmers’ market, so I spent some time deciphering why I rated it so highly. First of all, there were a significant number of local producers. I was very impressed to be able to buy wine (not the one pictured above) from Château Grand Brun in the Haut-Médoc (an area better known for large wineries with a rich, international audience). The grapes are picked by hand and the wine is sold at several local markets as well as online. It’s a lovely wine and they emphasized that they grow it, produce it, and sell it. The wine is classified as a Grand Cru Artisan and has won a number of awards. Another vendor was selling fresh goat (and ...