Flavourful Saskatoon, May 26, 2014

Beer on the Patio, May 31
Prairie Sun Brewery is opening a patio for the summer months with a gourmet grilled cheese menu. There’s a patio opening party on May 31, but the menu is very meaty. Prairie Sun Brewery has added a barbecue grilled cheese entree and vegetable sides to their menu.


Odd Couple Restaurant
Word of mouth says that Odd Couple Restaurant, 220 – 20th Street West, is opening this week. They’ll be serving Cantonese cuisine.

Wine & Beer Tastings
The Saskatoon Co-op Liquor Store in Blairmore holds regular tastings. The schedule is available online. They have a monthly beer tasting event (next one is June 11) as well as wine tastings (Crazy About Cabernet, May 30; Wines of the Italian Islands, June 13).

Olives
I bought a container of mixed olives at Riversdale Deli this week. They’re delicious! Finally a source for good olives!

Pasta
I’m looking forward to trying Prairie Bella Gourmet Pasta (Saskatoon Farmers’ Market). They had fettucine, gnocchi, and sauces on Saturday. Prairie Bella uses as many local, organic products as possible, including flour from Daybreak Mill.

Eat Your Greens
Spring! And the market is full of wonderful fresh greens (including asparagus). Here are a few that caught my eye:

Japanese Hakurei turnips (Kaleidoscope Vegetable Gardens) – Hakurei turnips are mild and sweet, so you can eat them raw in a salad or lightly steamed. Plus you can eat the greens.

Callaloo (Floating Gardens) – Callaloo is a Caribbean dish. The main ingredient is a leaf vegetable – sometimes amaranth, sometimes taro or water spinach. And there are several different recipes. Or you can just eat the greens.

Living Lettuce (Grandora Gardens) – Pick the outer leaves first, and your plant will keep producing fresh greens for several months.

Out and About in Saskatchewan
I've added a new page to my website - Out and About in Saskatchewan.

Rethinking School Lunch
Rethinking School Lunch: A visual guide linking food, culture, health, and the environment is a new school guide from the Center for Ecoliteracy and National Geographic. It covers everything from rethinking school lunch to interviewing elders or newcomers about what they ate in different times and places. It’s part of a growing collection of activities and lesson plans on the Center for Ecoliteracy’s web page and coincides with the National Geographic’s 2014 series on the future of food.

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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