Wanderlust and Words

Women  In 19th century Great Britain, the artists and scientists were expected to be men. And yet, women found a way to contribute. Margaret Rebecca Dickinson produced a remarkable collection of dried plants and detailed wildflower watercolours that became a valuable addition to a natural history museum’s collection. Do take a look at her work as we wait impatiently for spring flowers in Saskatoon!  Our Bodies, Ourselves was first published 50 years ago. It was influential in the lives of so many women , myself included.  Food Equality  Reinventing Food Banks and Pantries: New Tools to End Hunger by Katie Martin is aimed at people working in food banks who want to improve the system: “ What if our success is measured not simply by the pounds of food we distribute but by the reduction in people who need our services? Or the number of people who are connected to additional services? Or the number of people who make fewer trade-off decisions between paying for foo...

Local News   It’s easy to forget how much work goes into growing and preparing food for sale. And Covid has made things even tougher. One farmer tells me he is spending an extra day to day and a half a week preparing vegetables to sell at the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market in order to comply with health authority requirements. Where does he find the extra time in what must already be a jam-packed growing season!  Trent at Scratch Provisions makes great pies with lots of imaginative flavours (e.g. harissa lentils and cauliflower; balsamic pickled beet, ricotta & sunflower seed). My family enjoyed his vegetarian Thanksgiving pies this weekend - lots of holiday spices and the tang of fresh cranberries. In fact, we enjoyed them so much, we're ordering more.  I’m really enjoying the sour leaf cabbage rolls from Kapusta & Kake at the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market Cooperative – rich, tangy, lots of flavour. Wally Satzewich says their borscht is the best he’s ever tasted. Th...

Local News  If the lingering snow and cold is making you long for summer, be sure to follow Robyn at Toon Town Tomatoes  and start growing your own tomatoes. Learn to brew beer at home with Garrett Pederson, head brewer and co-founder of 9 Mile Legacy. The virtual class will use a Kolsch kit from Paddock Wood Brewing, modifying it with the addition of specialty grains and a variety of hops to transform it into a summery New England IPA. Sandra Walker, author of The Path to Wild Food: Edible Plants and Recipes for Canada , is sharing some of her recipes on Wild About Saskatoon’s Facebook page . First up is Cattail Pollen Biscuits . Jenn Sharp has put together a list of small local food businesses , many of which offer pick-up or delivery. A more comprehensive list of food resources in Saskatoon during Covid is available here. Regina’s Merawine is now producing the Vincompétant podcast . They’ll be talking about wine and food and the restaurant industry. Give ...

Local Happenings  The Saskatoon Food Bank & Learning Centre is holding its  annual community barbeque at the Garden Patch from 3-7 pm , Aug. 14 . There will be facepainting, games, and family activities. Recipes  Here are some interesting takes on how to dress up a baked potato . A topping of slow-cooked leeks or wrapped in seaweed and roasted sounds good to me. Food for Thought  The strange science inside your sourdough uncovered in Belgium’s sourdough library : “What is clear is that sourdough starters, and the bread made with them, represent human manipulations of the evolution of microbial communities. We channel the growth of particular members of these communities by raising or lowering the temperature of our dough, by feeding starters more or less frequently, and by giving them different kinds of flour.” Eating and drinking in Africa’s largest slum – in pictures. “Not only do these ‘compostable’ bowls not actually biodegrade, they end up...

Local Happenings  The Saskatoon Food Bank is in urgent need of baby food and baby formula . If you choose to donate in person, powdered Similac is the preferred option. Check out the new vendors at the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market. Treasure House Bakery is selling traditional Mexican pastries on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Bannock Heart is offering bannock on a stick . I am incredibly fortunate to be enjoying a wide range of fresh fruit and vegetables that aren’t yet available in Saskatchewan – there were locally grown shelling peas at the market today as well as delicious strawberries. But Saskatoon isn’t completely left behind as its greenhouse growers are all hard at work. Grandora Gardens is selling cucumbers and hopes to have grape tomatoe s for Easter, while Kaleidoscope Vegetable Gardens transplanted their spinach a couple of weeks ago and the radish seeds went in the ground this past week. Floating Gardens has heated greenhouses so they already have beet greens...

Learn and Play Café  Two young women are opening a kid-friendly café at 441-34th Street East.  Learn and Play Café  will have food both adults and kids will enjoy, organized activities three times a day, and classes, such as yoga and painting, that parents can enjoy alongside their kids. It sounds like fun. Prairie Sun Moves to Broadway  Prairie Sun Brewery hopes to move a microbrewery and restaurant onto the former site of the Farnham Block by this winter. Tsampa  You don’t have to head to India to eat tsampa. Daybreak Mill sells traditional tsampa made from their own barley that that is sprouted, roasted, and blended with rolled barley flakes and just a touch of Himalayan Sea Salt. The Dalai Lama starts his day with tsampa mixed with tea and butter made from yak’s milk (cow’s milk butter can be substituted if you don’t have a handy neighbourhood yak). Piece a’ Pizza  Una Pizza & Wine was packed last Monday evening. I enjoyed the pizza...

Green Cycle City Farm  Green Cycle City Farm has just joined the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market. They’ll be selling a range of vegetables they’ve grown in the city, without chemicals, and transported to the Market by bicycle. They say they are “passionate about sustainability and committed to keeping our operations as green as possible from packaging to transportation.” Fresh Local Tomatoes? Yes, Please!  The best kind of news! Grandora Gardens says there may be cherry tomatoes at next weekend’s Farmers’ Market. City-wide Food Drive, May 5  The Saskatoon Food Bank and Learning Centre is hosting a city-wide food drive on May 5 . Most wanted items are infant formula, whole-grain pastas and cereals, canned fruits and vegetables, canned beans and meat, 100% fruit juice, hearty soups and stews, and gluten-free foods. How Organic Wine Finally Caught On  The demand for organic food has grown exponentially, but the same can’t be said for organic wine. The situ...

Romaine Calm & Party On, Dec. 6  The City Centre Food Co-operative is hosting a burger & beer fundraiser on Dec. 6. Celebrate Canadian Winemaking, Dec. 16 Sample wines from Nova Scotia to British Columbia on Dec. 16 at Co-op Wine Spirits Beer. Clearcut Coffeehouse, Martensville  Clearcut Coffeehouse is opening on Wednesday, Nov. 22, in Martensville. They’ll be serving Wild Serendipity Food's  scones, macarons, and a soup. Ecobain Gardens Expands Ecobain Gardens will be launching 3 new products over the next 3 weeks – potted herbs, bare root, and larger clamshell basil products. They’ve also taken over distribution of their products to ensure that they’re fresher. My favorite - pain au raisin! Rethinking Food Drives Food drives seem like a good idea – but are they really? “Put yourself in the place of a food bank that has just accepted an anarchic 40-pound box of random food from an office fundraiser. It’s got pie filling, Kraft Dinner, be...

Earth Bound Bakery Changes Hands Oh, Trent. You brought great organic bread and pastries to Saskatoon. Thank you – and have fun in your new adventures! Venn Coffee  There’s a new coffee shop just off Broadway. The door and patio for Venn Coffee (803 Dufferin Avenue) are in the alley between Amigos and Bike Doctor. They’re serving Scandinavian-inspired pastries researched and executed by Night Oven Bakery . New in Saskatoon  Here are some more new places that sound like they’d be worth checking out. Lynn’s Road Petals ‘n Edibles is selling locally grown flowers at the Ideas Inc. market around the corner from the Saskatoon Farmers' Market. Hometown Diner on 20th Street is serving all-day breakfast and lunch. There are some new ice cream places as well – Fable Ice Cream on Avenue H and The Wholesome Roll (check out their alcohol-spiked ice cream at Silver’s Local Market ). Designing Dignity in Food Banks  The Toronto Vegetarian Food Bank “was fo...

Congratulations Congratulations to Black Fox Farm and Distillery! Their Oaked Gin Barrel Two was recently crowned the best cask gin at the World Gin Awards . Imprint Plant-Based Foods   Imprint Plant-Based Foods is a new initiative by a young vegan couple who weren’t finding enough plant-based options in Saskatoon stores so started experimenting and making their own. Pleased with the results, they’ve started selling their products. I tried their cashew-based cheese alternative this weekend and really enjoyed it. It’s smooth and creamy and spreads well on bread or crackers. The original hickory-flavoured product is mild with just the right amount of flavour. The taco-flavoured one has a bit of zip – I’m looking forward to trying it on baked sweet potato. You can also purchase burgers and sausages. World Disco Soup Day, Apr. 29 Soup and dance – less waste and less hunger. The Slow Food Youth Network is promoting World Disco Soup Day on Apr. 29. Disco Soup started 5 years a...

Lily Festival at Black Fox Farm and Distillery Festival of India, July 23 The Hindu Society of Saskatchewan is holding a Festival of India from 5-8 pm , July 23, in Meewasin Park. There will be a parade, dance and theater performances, henna artists, and vegetarian food. Everyone is welcome. Vodka Options Regina’s Birmingham Vodka & Ale House has opened a branch in Saskatoon at 109-810 Circle Drive East. Hungry Kids The Salvation Army’s Food on the Move program expects to feed lunches to over 8,000 kids this summer when there are no school lunch programs. Lunch will be delivered to 12 locations: White Buffalo Youth Lodge, Ashworth Holmes Park, A.H. Browne Park, Dr. Seager Wheeler Park, Archibald McDonald Park, Mount Royal Park, Pleasant Hill Park, St. Mary's Wellness Centre, St. Andrew's Park, St. John's School Park, Broughton Park, and Optimist Park. Earth Bound Bakery's garden is coming along nicely From Food Bank to Food Centre “Wow!’ is...

Horchata Mexicana La Taqueria Mexicana , Saskatoon Farmers’ Market, will be serving horchata throughout the summer months. Fruit & Spice & Everything Nice D.A.M.N. Fine Foods are now selling their spicy fruit preserves at the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market. International Coffee Culture Interested in learning more about coffee culture in cities around the world? Then you may want to subscribe to Drift magazine . Contact Daryl Grunau, Vector Coffee Company , to be part of a bulk order. Composting Workshops Saskatoon’s Compost Coaches are offering a free hour-long workshop on different composting options, including trench composting, mulching, vermicompost and bokashi fermentation at 7 pm , July 14 , at the Cliff Wright Library. You can build a compost tumbler at 6 pm , July 20 , or a vermicomposting bin at 10 am , July 23 , at the Saskatoon Food Bank ’s Garden Patch. Composting – Take Your Pick From lasagna compost to vermicompost, find out which method will work bes...

Warman Farmers’ Market, May 5  Warman Farmers’ Market will be reopening for the season on May 5. They’re located in the City Hall Parking Lot, Thursdays from 2-6 pm. Beer Fest, May 7 Louis’ on the University of Saskatchewan campus switched to serving only Saskatchewan-made craft beer this year. They’re hosting a Sask Beer Fest on May 7 with over 30 local beers . Blazing Star Wildflower Seed Company, May 7  Blazing Star Wildflower Seed Company will be at the Saskatoon Farmer's Market every Saturday and Sunday during May and June with their heirloom tomato plants, native wildflower plants, and native wildflower seeds. Women on the Go, May 14 Women on the Go is offering a South Sask Sampling Tour , with the first tour on May 14. They’ll be visiting Last Mountain Distillery, Over the Hill Orchards, and Rebellion Brewing. Karma Conscious Café & Eatery I had a delicious lunch from Karma Conscious Café & Eatery on Friday. A large slice of Victoria sponge ...

The Saskatoon Food Bank and Learning Centre (SFLBC) receives over 12,000 requests for food a month. Almost half the respondents to a 2014 client survey said they pick up a food hamper every two weeks. Over 60% have been using the Food Bank hamper program for more than two years. Shocking statistics in a city that prides itself on urban growth and prosperity. When the Saskatoon Food Bank opened its doors in 1983 , I’m sure they thought it was a temporary fix for a short-term problem. That hasn’t proven to be the case ( almost a third of Saskatchewan's single-parent families can't afford healthy food ), and the SFLBC’s services continue to evolve to better meet the needs of their clients and to address the underlying causes of hunger and poverty. They’ve expanded their programs to include literacy and work experience programs, cooking classes, urban agriculture, a clothing depot, and advocacy. The SFBLC held an open house in February and I was intrigued by some of their ...

Saskatoon Food Bank’s Garden Patch  In 2014, the Saskatoon Food Bank’s Garden Patch grew over 30 varieties of vegetables and produced 17,000 pounds of produce . Volunteer now to form a team and adopt a plot to plant, weed and harvest in the summer. Backyard Garden Sharing If you’ve got a garden you can’t use or are itching to turn the soil but don’t have a space, contact Jared Regier, coordinator of CHEP’s Backyard Garden Sharing Program . Espresso & Lavender  Riversdale Delicatessen has an excellent selection of cheese. There are at least six kinds of Pecorino, but the cheese that caught my fancy was the Espresso & Lavender . It’s a subtle flavour (you don't have to like coffee!) and I really enjoyed it. Not cheap but worth it. Vending Machine Beans Affordable food was hard to come by in some of the poorer neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Santiago, Chile, until a small company started distributing vending machines full of bulk staples , such as r...

Reading is one of the true pleasures in my life and I read voraciously. Here are a handful of my favorite books from 2014. Business  Ice Cream Social: The Struggle for the Soul of Ben & Jerry’s For entrepreneurs and business owners, there’s an ongoing struggle between making a profit and contributing to society. Ice Cream Social discusses how Ben & Jerry's evolved, how they tried to involve employees, use their buying power to make political changes, and run an ethical business. In the end, they sell the business to Unilever, but they persist in their efforts to run an ethical business – a fascinating and optimistic book. Decisive: How to Make Better Choices in Life and Work Chip and Dan Heath write awesome books, informative and eminently practical. I started using their suggestions before I had finished reading this book. Jony Ive: The Genius Behind Apple’s Greatest Products  If you’re curious about how Apple products are designed, here’s your ans...