Flavourful Saskatoon, February 24, 2020

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 cheese from The Little Market Box, The Bulk Cheese Warehouse, Odla, Prairie Meats, SaskMade Marketplace, The Pig and Pantry, and Churchill’s British Imports.

Eating for Health 
One of my housesitting responsibilities in Quillan is maintaining the kefir. I haven’t found a store-brand kefir that I like in Canada, but I happily drink homemade kefir while I’m in Quillan, and I think it’s helping to settle my innards, which tend to react badly to constant changes in food and water when I’m travelling. A Healthline article says there are 9 health benefits of kefir that are supported by research. These include powerful probiotic and antibacterial properties. It’s low in lactose so a useful source of calcium if you’re lactose-intolerant.

Eating a Mediterranean diet (rich in fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes, olive oil and fish and low in red meat and saturated fats) for a year boosts the types of gut bacteria linked to 'healthy' ageing (an increase in the types of bacteria previously associated with several indicators of reduced frailty, such as walking speed and hand grip strength, and improved brain function), while reducing those associated with harmful inflammation in older people, according to a 5-country research study.

Let’s Do It! 
Port O’Bristol is striving to produce zero-waste wine. The wine is produced in Portugal following organic, biodynamic principles. The wine barrels are shipped to the UK on sail-driven cargo ships where the wine is bottled in reclaimed espumante or champagne bottles. Waste cooking oil fuels the delivery vehicles and the company uses and buys no plastic.

Flavourful Saskatoon is a weekly Monday feature. I also post articles about food that is good, clean and fair; travel; and books. You may also enjoy EcoFriendly Sask profiling Saskatchewan nature/environmental initiatives and events. 

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