Elderflower and early Spring Harvest

I have been impatiently awaiting the harvest season, and can officially say that it has started!

Doug and I have been collecting elderflower blossoms to make some kind of beverage with. When you have a brother who works at a U-Brew, the options are almost limitless. Two years ago we made a sparkling wine, and this year we are thinking maybe a liqueur. Thanks to Randy for sharing his recipe with us. He used this one, but said he added a little more sugar and kept it at a cooler temp.

Other things that are out right now are spruce buds, also used for making beverages (My brother made a prize winning Spruce tip beer last year).

In the garden we are eating greens, especially Kale, arugula, and lots of Rhubard, which is so delicious stewed up or in coffee cakes or crisps (AKA crumbles).

Ch-Ch-Ch-Chia!

Did you know that chia, in addition to it's ability to give fur to ceramic animals is also a wonderful food!?

On a whim, we ordered 5 lbs of it, and then needed to figure out how to cook with it.

Our biggest success thus far is chia pudding. Chia seeds have tons of fiber, calcium, omega 3's, they are 20% protein, and also have lots of essential minerals. This recipe is also vegan and raw, great for those hard to please potluck throwers.

2 ripe bananas mashed
1 can coconut milk
6 Tablespoons chia seeds
sprinkle of salt
sprinkle of cinnamon
drizzle of maple syrup
shredded coconut adds nice texture if you have it.

blend together with whizzer, blender, food processor or patient fork, leave for a little while to allow the chia seeds to acclimatize (they start to resemble tiny tapioca). I find it tastes best when left over night. decorate with banana slices if you have them. Delicious and nutritious. You can also watch the you tube video that inspired my new favorite food.

Also, just in case you need to see that chia pet video again, here it is. Here is a link to info about chia and 10 recipes (though I haven't tried them yet).

Salt

I am starting to learn about salt. I have an audiobook entitled "salt a world history" that I got from the library and just got this link to a great website that clarifies the different harvesting techniques for various kinds of salt. Seems like there is a good potential for people here on Haida Gwaii to produce their own sea salt, and this is one product idea we have been toying with at the HGCC. I am bouyed by the fact that they are alredy producing salt on Vancouver Island at Vancouver Island Salt co.

My Market

I have spent months telling people about how there is a market among urban foodies for venison, and for the adventure of catching them. This week I was validated by an article in the Globe and Mail, passed along to me by a friend which is written by one such foodie. Thanks Micheal!

Check out the article, and related ones here.

Gardeners Growing Community

I am visiting Vancouver for a week and this city is proving to me that they can be green, lush and full of the possibility of community, especially when it comes to gardening. I was told about an article on the cover of today's Vancouver Sun discussing the work of a block's worth of gardeners who have banded their back yards together in Vancouver east side to create a kind of co-operative mini farm including bees, group compost, chickens and lots and lots of food. Read it here. They have also created a 2 page manual for others who wish to start gardening in their back yards, or with their neighbours. It is linked to in the article.

There is also an article about the Dunbar Harvest festival!

All this really reminds me of something that I started learning about while working with SPEC, that is, the idea of the Transition Town Innitiative, as promoted by Village Vancouver and known more broadly though the transition network. To learn more check out this Ted talk with Rob Hopkins

What can I say, I'm hometown proud. But I'm still going back up North.

Wood Heat

Seems strange to be writing about heating when it seems like North America is engulfed in a Heat wave. Even here in Haida Gwaii it is smoking hot.

Still, we all know it won't last, and I have been thinking about the wonders of wood heat, both as heating in the forms of amazing cast iron ovens and also for baking. The people I am staying with just returned from France and are inspired to build a community wood fire oven for people to be able to come and bake bread in. I Think it's a great idea, like a community garden but for bread. As of right now there is no reliable source of good bread here in Queen Charlotte, so seems like it could work.

I also just heard a podcast from deconstructing dinner where they spoke with the folks from Speerville Flour Mill who have a portable Panyol wood fire oven which they use to demonstrate the amazing breads their flours can make. Apparently just about everything you cook in these things turns out great.

Jaime Oliver on Ted

This Ted Talk with Jaime Oliver is more than worth watching. A friend sent me this link. I love it when people do that, makes my day to think that something like this made someone think of me that's an amazing compliment.

Fat of the Land

Amazing blog I just found out about, has recipe ideas and inspiration for local eating. Check it.

The Japanese Solution to getting kids to eat healthy

What the World Eats

I just rediscovered an article which I first saw when someone forwarded it to me and then I saw again while flipping through an old copy of Time magazine. It is a photo essay (which is drawn from a book called "Hungry Planet") showing what families in different countries eat, and how much it costs them. It's pretty interesting to take a look at. I think I will use it with my grade 5 class in an attempt to get them thinking about the factors that contribute to our food choices and what influences our attitudes and decisions regarding healthy lifestyles, things like family, peer, media, or how much we can afford to pay for food, or what is available at the grocery store.

Eat Local

As many of you know I have spent some time working on organic farms, some in Quebec, and more recently at Fraser Common Farm in Aldergrove. This year I helped out a little at the Farmer's market which takes place on Saturdays from May to October beside the Trout Lake Community Center in East Van. If any of you have never been to the Farmers market and are interested in local food issues I would urge you to check them out. The Christmas market is a really great place to pick up nice local presents, if you are into that sort of thing, it is December 20th at the wise Hall on Victoria Drive. For information about farmers markets, what available, where they are when they are etc, please check the website at http://www.eatlocal.org/. Another great resource is Farm Folk City Folk. They are "a non-profit society that works with farm & city to cultivate a local, sustainable food system" and have lots of resources.

Food in Schools

Jamie Oliver has some things to teach school cafeterias.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFkAszCA9dI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkht3noIK0E&feature=related