Local Delicious

I’ll admit that, as a single gal, I quite often purchase the vegetables I plan to eat and then, a week or so later, clean out the fridge, removing the vegetables that never made it to the table. I realize that it’s a waste. Really I do, but what am I going to do with mushy, expired vegetables?

A sign at the Coquitlam Farmers’ Market a while ago has ended all that:

“Hand-weeded fields”

What? Somebody has spent hours on their hands and knees weeding their field so I can have quality produce?? I now rarely chuck produce (and save some dough in the process), even the bits that don’t work in soup.

Here are some clever ways to end the waste and save those people’s knees!

• Wiggly carrots: clean them up, wrap them in foil, adding butter (or olive oil for the vegans among us), salt and pepper, and place them on the BBQ. Ten minutes later, beautiful, sweet carrots emerge.
• Wilty spinach: Heat up your favourite soup, place the spinach at the bottom of the bowl and ladle over the soup. The spinach adds zillions of nutrients to your soup, and you won’t care that they’re not at their most crisp!
• Mushy berries: I cannot handle the mouth feel of mushy berries (like a 5-year old, really) and often end up blending them up and adding them to toast (with a bit of sugar), cake, or ice cream.

Do you have any veggie-savers to share? Leave a comment below.

Check out the pics my friend Peggy sent from the Gabriola Island weekend Farmers Market.

“Check out this lettuce I bought this AM at the farmer’s market: the blackest I’ve ever seen! It’s not really red on the outer edges – it truly is black, and neon green at the center.”

Thanks for the delicious pics!

Check out your local farmers market for funky food that tastes amazing.

I think the face of farming is changing.

I was in a little town outside Cleveland, OH recently and took in the weekend farmers market. It was a small event by booth numbers, but bustling, and in talking with many of the vendors it became clear that it was also a highly successful event. It usually takes several years to pick up a following, I was told, but the Chagrin Falls Sunday farmers market was an instant success when it started last year and was immediately profitable for the farmers involved.

I spent some time chatting with various vendors and was intrigued by what I found. First, there are lots of old farms and experienced farmers in the area. At one booth, the second and third generation of farmers with a 50+ year old farm was manning the booth. That is a lot of history right there! Another family affair had two generations and 12 years behind their banner.

In contrast, I also met a couple of young, newbie farmers. One with only a year and another with two years behind them respectively. Kelli at Hanley Homegrown particularly stood out, both with her enthusiasm and her innovation. She’s growing assorted greens. And making delicious, unique jams. And making shopping bags from old t-shirts (we share an interest in the concept of reuse before recycle). Oh, and when the appropriate greens start popping up, she’ll be putting bundles of herbs together and selling them in soon-to-be salsa packages.

Kelli stood out not only because of her energy and creativity, it was also her fresh approach. I’m a marketing specialist by trade — well, really, it courses through my veins and I can’t stop myself — and I couldn’t help wondering what kind of havoc she’s going to wreck on the staid, old produce-piled-on-tables image some people have of farmers markets. And I smile. It’s about time.

See, Kelli is her target market. Like her contemporaries she’s young, engaged, creative and knows what she wants: local, delicious, healthy, sustainably farmed food. I suspect she’s going to make that happen.

Sometimes when I wander the farmers market I see interesting food, but I’m not always sure how to cook it or how to incorporate it into my menu plan.

Pork lover, foodie, and newly launched food blogger Chris Flett of The Hanging Pig instead let his finds at the local farmers market inspire his culinary capers.

After a recent visit to the Vancouver West End Farmers Market, Flett’s inspiration for a fabulous-looking pork roast came from the dried fruit and fresh herbs he found there. His most recent post, Minor Surgery on a Major Pork Roast, shows step by delicious step instructions on the making of a feast.

Pork lovers of the world unite.

Are your leafy greens running out? Vancouver Farmers Market has the perfect place to stock-up for the rest of the week.

Come to the new Main Street Station Farmers Market, starting this Wednesday from 3pm to 7pm. It is located near the very urban, yet surprisingly beautiful, NE corner of Main and Terminal.The 90-year old Pacific Central Station forms the backdrop while Thornton Park sprawls out in front. Visit your favourite vendors and listen to music as you pick up something on your way home from work.

Conveniently located on SkyTrain’s Expo Line, this market is close to multiple bus routes and driving thorough fares. Parking is available near the site. Ask about their bicycle delivery service!

More information: www.eatlocal.org

The Centre for Sustainable Food Systems at UBC Farm and the 100-Mile Diet Society are celebrating the Farm’s first market of the year and the official launch of the Vancouver 100-Mile Diet Foodshed Map.

Saturday, June 13
9:00 am – 1:00 pm
UBC Farm, 6182 South Campus Road Map

Mark Bomford, UBC Farm Program Coordinator and Kelly Kuryk, Foodshed Project Coordinator will be speaking about the unique collaboration between the 100-Mile Diet Society and the Centre for Sustainable Food Systems at UBC Farm, synthesizing action, research and education.

As the only working farmland within the city of Vancouver, the UBC Farm is an urban agrarian gem, featuring a landscape of unique beauty and productivity. Currently, it is highlighting how sustainable agricultural techniques can reduce the negative impact of the food system on climate change and the environment.

Everyone welcome! Fun for the entire family, including farm tours, live music, a 100-mile pancake breakfast cooked by local chefs, fresh, local produce, garden tool sharpening (bring your tools!), bike tune-ups, local artisans, baked goods, children’s activities, and more.