Flavourful Saskatoon, August 6, 2012

It’s looking good! Saskatoon’s first vegetarian restaurant, cooking classes for university students, and a sustainable gourmet feast 

At Last! A Vegetarian Restaurant
Turning the Tide bookstore is opening a cafe with a tentative opening date of August 10 in the old Encore (Cava) space in the Ideas Inc. building adjacent to the Saskatoon Farmers' Market building.

The yet-to-be-named café will be a 'pop-up' for 3 months to give the workers’ cooperative a chance to get their feet wet at both running a cafe and functioning as a workers' cooperative. They will be serving vegetarian and vegan food with a focus on local, organic ingredients and excellent taste.

Sustainable Gourmet, September 22
The Saskatchewan Environmental Society is hosting their annual fundraising dinner on September 22 at the Saskatoon Club. All the main ingredients are grown by local producers. Candace Savage is the keynote speaker.

Start from Scratch – Saskatoon-style
Start from Scratch has been offering 10 weeks of free, hands-on cooking classes to University of Calgary students since January 2011. Dan Clapson is now expanding the program to include his home town of Saskatoon. The course is designed to show university students how easy it is to prepare a quality, home-cooked meal – and have fun in the process.

Mogul Divaan
Renee Kohlman, aka sweetsugarbean, had a meal at the Mogul Divaan on 22nd Street last week. She says they have a good selection of yummy Pakistani food and suggests ordering from the menu rather than having the buffet. Their online menu included a good variety of vegetarian dishes. (Thanks, Renee!)

Organic Farming on the Prairies 
The second edition of Organic Farming on the Prairies will be available this fall from the Saskatchewan Organic Directorate. Additional resources will be available online. Contact SOD for additional information.

Wallnuts Catering, Regina
@thekyleguy recommended the take-out meals from Wallnuts Expressive Catering, Regina, as gifts at times of birth or mourning. He also sent me a link to an article in the Regina Leader Post.

I like the fact that Laurie Wall, the owner, makes all her dishes from scratch. On Tuesdays, you can deliver your empty crock pot in the morning and pick it up full of something tasty in the evening. And her Christmas cake and pumpkin maple breakfast bread are so popular that she ships them across Canada. (Thanks, Kyle!)

LEED for Food?
LEED is a voluntary green building certification program. The US Healthful Food Council has recently released a similar certification program for restaurants, caterers and food service providers. Responsible Epicurean and Agricultural Leadership (REAL) will award points to restaurants that use nutrition best practices, such as organic and local foods, restricted dietary offerings, fresh fruits and vegetables, free-range meats, and moderate or multiple portion sizes. The entire menu, rather than just a few menu items, will be expected to meet key nutrition standards. They hope this will help businesses attract customers who are looking for healthy, nutritious meals. (Thanks, Mike!)

Seaweed Snacks 
I’ve been enjoying munching on seaweed snacks because they are low-cal and healthy. But they may not be so healthy for the people harvesting the seaweed. A recent study of female seaweed farmers on the island of Zanzibar identified serious health problems and low income. The researchers hope that they can identify ways to improve the situation as it has implications for thousands of poor households worldwide.

Flavourful Saskatoon is a weekly Monday feature. I also post regular profiles of culinary entrepreneurs, new restaurants and new food products.

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