Wanderlust and Words

I admit! I have been overly optimistic when setting my monthly themes. It’s the end of January and 3 of my books about Portugal and tiles/mosaics are still unread, so I’ve decided to lower the bar this month.  Hodge podge is a Nova Scotian casserole that relies on seasonal vegetables to make a simple but delicious one-pot meal. It sounds like a great way for me to make use of some of the local root vegetables that are currently in my fridge. And I’ll try to do the same when making my book choices by emphasizing the books that are already on my bookshelves, both physical and virtual.  I am longing for tropical climates and lush, green gardens so I plan to read a travel book and a book of gardening stories. I’m also looking for some simple wisdom so plan to reread either Winnie the Pooh or The Wind in the Willows. I’ve found some gardening programs on Acorn TV and hope to explore history and evolution of the British garden from the 17th to the 20th century with Monty Don....

“Stories by privileged middle-class white people line the shelves of every bookstore, exhibiting their authors’ access to travel, to eating for leisure, and to publishers, as they stumble their way through various food discoveries. These stories do not interest me. The stories I really want to know are those from voices I never hear: the non-white women staking their claims to the food traditions of their heritage; the recipes that have sustained communities for generations, migrating from across the world and taking on new lives.” ( Yvonne Maxwell )  In Bibi’s Kitchen  Food tells a story – of people, land, and culture. In Bibi’s Kitchen by Hawa Hassan with Julia Turshen tells the story of food in 8 East African countries that front the Indian Ocean. For each country, the authors provide a brief overview of the country’s history, economics, geography, and culture. But the most interesting part of each chapter are the interviews with grandmothers (bibi) who talk about the foo...

“Many people say they enjoy the winter, but what they really enjoy is feeling proof against it.” – Richard Adams  Local News  I was so sorry to hear that Chef Jenni had lost her sense of taste and smell due to Covid – I do hope it’s only temporary. Nic Miller, Tales from Topographic Kitchens , talks about the importance of taste and smell , moving beyond the realm of food to encompass, memory, imagination, and beauty. She provides a list of additional resources on the importance of taste and smell and what is often discounted until it is lost.  Order a 3-course Valentine’s Day dinner from Trent at Scratch Provisions . Proceeds will support programming for student parents at Nutana Collegiate.  Second Harvest is Canada’s largest food rescue organization. In Saskatoon , they’ve partnered with the Saskatoon Public Schools Foundation to distribute food to families in need. You can support their efforts by encouraging local food businesses to contribute their surplus f...

“It may be that you yourself are not luminous, but you are a conductor of light” – Arthur Conan Coyle, The Hound of the Baskervilles  Local News  CHEP’s annual Empty Bowls Fundraiser has gone takeaway and virtual! Each participant will receive a pottery bowl, locally prepared soup, artisan bread, and dessert to eat while enjoying an online program. Ticket price is $100 for a meal for two persons. A $50 tax receipt will be issued with each ticket purchase.  Both Dad’s Organic Grocery and Safeway are selling locally grown organic flour from One Organic Farm in Waldron, SK. At 40,000 acres, it’s the largest organic farm in Canada. One dollar from every product they sell goes to Charity: Water to support sustainable water projects.  The Night Oven Bakery has an ever-shifting spectrum of macaron flavours. This month it’s citrus time with Grapefruit Crème Brûlée, Orange Rosemary, Lemon Meringue, Key Lime Pie, and Pear Crumble.  Sunday night is lasagna night at Hea...

“The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.” – W.B. Yeats   In the Kitchen  The Incas were the first grind peanuts , but John Harvey Kellogg was the first to obtain a patent for peanut butter in 1895. Kellogg promoted peanut butter as a “healthy alternative to meat, which he saw as a digestive irritant and, worse, a sinful sexual stimulant.” In present-day North America, peanut butter is ubiquitous and has even been used to test for asymptomatic Covid in testing for a severe loss of smell.  From tech-savvy grocery shopping to hard kombucha – Dan Clapson, Eat North, looks at food trends for 2021 .  Food for Thought  The French spend 2 hours and 11 minutes eating each day. Italy, Greece, and Spain aren’t far behind at 2h05m, 2h04m, and 2h02m respectively. Canada (1h04m) and the United States (1h01m) are at the very bottom of the list . The positions are reversed when you consider obesity – Americans are in 16th position, w...

“The potato’s dual status as a tool of the modern state and as an emblem of the historical agency of ordinary people”  Feeding the People: The Politics of the Potato by Rebecca Earle presents an overview of the history of the potato. But it does far more than that. Earle's analysis of the role politicians and economists play in directing our dietary choices applies today and to all our food options, not just the potato. It’s a complicated topic. On the one hand, we don’t like government telling us what to eat. There was outrage when the mayor of New York tried to ban the sale of extra-large soft drinks . On the other hand, we do want government to make sure our food is safe to eat (checking for and recalling products contaminated by listeria , for example). The interplay between politics, economics, and diet becomes even more complicated when examined from a historical perspective.  “Potatoes . . . are something like Spanish truffles, aside from being a bit bigger and not as ...

“Hope smiles from the threshold of the year to come whispering ‘It will be happier’.” (Alfred Lord Tennyson)  Local News   I’m really enjoying the Swedish baked goods from Seven Tastes (virtual Saskatoon Farmers’ Market , formerly Frangipani Foods). The cardamom buns are fresh, soft, and have so much yummy cardamom flavour, while the tosca buns are topped with syrupy clusters of almond, hazelnut, and honey.  Doug Reichel Wine Marketing is offering guided wine tastings . There are two available on his website incorporating conversations with the winemakers. You can also request your own.  Angela Senenko, a sommelier at the Eighth St. Co-op liquor store, has provided a list of 8 winter-friendly beers from across Saskatchewan .  Oat milk grown, produced, and packaged in Saskatchewan will be on Co-op grocery store shelves by the summer.  Wild About Saskatoon is hosting an online conversation around  Indigenous food sovereignty and prairie cities  fr...

2021 – a new year that will hopefully include new travel opportunities. In the meantime, I’ll be combatting the cold and ice of January in Saskatchewan with an exploration of Portugal’s history and azulejos and a side serving of mosaics.  I visited Spain in 2009 and 2011 and was blown away by the ceramic tiles – from Valencia’s Estació del Nord , to the alcazares in Sevilla and Cordoba , to Gaudí ’s fantastical architecture.  It made me all the more eager to visit Portugal where the azulejos (ceramic tiles) have gained a world-wide reputation. Portugal’s azulejos date back to the 13th century. They can now be found throughout Portugal, both indoors and outdoors, in private homes and public buildings.  On my trips to Spain, I saw a number of really lovely Roman mosaics. The Palacio Lebrija in Sevilla had a large collection paving most of the main floor. Archaeologists have recently uncovered a large 5th century mosaic floor in the Cotswolds, which puts paid to the theo...