Flavourful Saskatoon, August 3, 2020

Colourful "candy" from Grandora Gardens

Local News
There is such an abundance of locally grown and produced food at the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market on Koyl Avenue at this time of year: chanterelle mushrooms, goat milk, padrón peppers, Mexican wedding cookies, green beans, peaches, tomatoes, kale. . . . Shop in person at the main market on Saturdays and Sundays, at the Stonebridge pop-up market on Wednesdays, or order online. Fill your fridge with local goodness while supporting the local economy!

For the ultra-deluxe version of a fudgsicle, head straight to Beppi’s for a milk chocolate gelato – so good!

From research, dentistry, software, and film to restaurant owner and food producer, the story behind Beppi’s Gelato, Botté Chai Bar, Aria, and High Key Brewing Co.

I spent a very pleasant couple of hours on a patio by the lake at the Glen at Crossmount Cider Company sampling a flight of their ciders. Shelley, my sister in law, was keen on the Cider & Black with black currant accents. My brother Andrew and I preferred the citrussy, hop-infused one as it was the driest.

The Future of Restaurants 
Do you think restaurant owners are rich? Think again – “95.8 percent of revenue for Canadian restaurants goes to covering their costs.” Future options could include larger kitchens and smaller dining rooms to devote more space to take-out, meal kits, and provisions. We may eat out less and pay more with dynamic pricing depending on the popularity of the time slot. My concern is that chains will survive but small independents won’t, especially as government financial assistance has not been helpful in addressing the needs of restaurateurs.

The perfect summer afternoon activity - The Glen at Crossmount

The Future of Agriculture
How will agriculture change? Here are two out-there possibilities:

100% Montreal wine from grapes grown in 4 rooftop vineyards

“Researchers have found that if we started growing wheat in stacked vertical farms instead of the field, we could generate 600 times more of this grain than traditional farming methods do—all while freeing up huge amounts of land from agriculture.” BUT “The cost, both financially and energy-wise, of artificially lighting up the interior of a vertical farm so that crops can photosynthesize, is enormous.”

Food for Thought
A family in London spent the lockdown in their country home, “using the opportunity in quarantine to reconnect with the land . . . . they were learning to restore vintage fabrics; to scavenge for Lungwort; to dye balls of linen; to make salted dandelion flower fritters from the garden. . . . If you have the space you can grow your own seedlings and vegetables from germinating offcuts, and if you have the time you can painstakingly nurse your baby sourdough starter to strong, bubbly health—large gardens and swathes of personal time being two things that most normal, lower-middle or working-class people do not have. . . . Self-reliance “is aspirational, while messy social imbrication and communal need are disregarded, if not derided.” 

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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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