Wanderlust and Words

Kalissa Regier’s great great grandfather emigrated from West Prussia in the late 1800s and established a farm near Tiefengrund, a Mennonite settlement due north of Saskatoon. The family has farmed in this area ever since. Kalissa didn’t originally plan to become a farmer. She moved to BC to study music, but part-time restaurant jobs led her to think more and more about food. She realized that the grain and other crops grown on Saskatchewan farms were not simply commodities to be sold on the world market. Agriculture was all about feeding people nutritious food. As a farmer, she could play a key role in the world of food. Shortening the Gap Kalissa and her parents weren’t interested in industrial agriculture with its focus on exports of high output commodity crops that feed into a chain of large multinationals. Their goal was to maintain family farms, increase rural development, and protect the land. They began the transition to growing organically and started focussing on smal...

Foodie news and events in and around Saskatoon – spring greens, Easter baskets, raspberry canes, and food security   Spring Greens There are more fresh products every week at the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market. Goodlife Greenhouses had basil, chard, spinach, lettuce and dehydrated tomatoes. Floating Gardens had baby bok choy, eggplants, cherry tomatoes, Chinese chrysanthemum. Grandora Gardens has lettuce and cucumbers. And I’m sure I’ve missed some items. Three cheers for spring!   Make Your Own Easter Basket, March 29 Create an Easter Basket filled with delicious locally made products on March 29 from 6:30-8:30 pm at SaskMade Marketplace . Build a custom-made gift basket, sample some treats and take advantage of the in-store specials. Gardenscape, March 30 – April 1  You’ll find lots of friends at Gardenscape , including Ag in the Classroom, Bedard Creek Acres, Garlic Garden of Yorkton, Over the Hill Orchards, Premala’s Spicy Sensations, Saskatchewan Fruit Gro...

Foodie news and events in and around Saskatoon – fair trade, Spanish wine, human library, eat local - cook local, bison and ziplines  Fair Trade, March 21/22 Michael Zelmer, Fairtrade Canada ’s Director of Communications, will be speaking in Saskatoon this week: 7 pm, March 21 – How Fair is your Fair Trade? – presentation and fair trade fair (The Refinery) 3-4:30 pm, March 22 – Co-operative Solutions: How the Fair Trade and organic coffee markets support forested ecosystems on Nicaraguan coffee farms – Centre for the Study of Cooperatives Lecture Series (Prairie Room, Diefenbaker Building, UofS) Human Library, March 24  You can check out a book with a difference on Saturday, March 24, 10:30 am to 5 pm , at the Saskatoon Public Library. Rather than physical books, the Human Library is an opportunity to talk to individuals who have experienced social prejudice or stereotypes. Here are two examples: Arati, Spicing Up Saskatchewan – an immigrant who began her ...

Food matters. It sustains life and is at the heart of our families and communities. And yet, far too often, we take food for granted. We expect our supermarkets to be filled to overflowing with an abundance of food of every kind. We grab a sandwich as we continue to work at our computers. Writing about food began as a whim but has developed into a passion. I have met farmers, producers and restaurateurs who give their time, their skill, their energy to producing food that not only tastes wonderful but is beautiful to look at, safe and healthy to eat, and sustainable. I delight to see Saskatoon’s and Saskatchewan’s food culture evolving. At one time, it was almost impossible to buy artisan cheese. Now we’re making it right here in our province. We have an ever-growing array of locally-produced specialty food products – from apple cider vinegar and wild mushrooms to hemp hearts and camelina oil. We have restaurants specializing in local, seasonal foods. We have local wine distribut...

Foodie news and events in and around Saskatoon – raspberry chipotle, mystery crisps, olive oil, and health store expansions  Grandora Gardens   Grandora Gardens has returned to the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market with fresh lettuce and cucumbers. They were offering samples of their newest product - raspberry chipotle sauce – very tasty. Grandora Gardens is on Twitter - @grandoragardens Health Food Store Expansions Herbs n Health (Broadway Avenue) and Dad’s Organic Market (8th Street) have announced that they are expanding and will be nearly doubling in size. They’ve both introduced new websites as well. I'm looking forward to lots of new health food products. Oliv Tasting Room The Oliv Tasting Room will be opening shortly on Broadway Avenue. The founders have an olive farm in South Africa and a store in Moose Jaw. According to their website, the store offers a personal tasting experience of over 60 flavours of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. It’s not very practical...

Foodie news and events in and around Saskatoon – wild rice, fair trade sugar, hot cross buns, and food lies and illusions  Rusty’s Wild Rice  I was delighted to meet a new vendor at the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market this weekend. Russ Cameron of Rusty’s Wild Rice is selling certified organic long grain wild rice grown in northern Saskatchewan. He is also selling wild rice/whole wheat flour pancake mix and wild rice flour. According to their website, Aboriginal peoples in eastern Canada harvested wild rice as an important food source long before it was introduced locally. Wild rice seeds were introduced into Saskatchewan in the 1930s as a way to increase the population of muskrats and ducks for improved hunting. Saskatchewan is now Canada’s largest producer of naturally grown wild rice. If you follow the link for more information , you will discover a school curriculum unit on Wild Rice as part of the series Rekindling Traditions: Cross-Cultural Science and Technology...