Andrea the Gastronaut

The following was in my inbox:

Enter a Carrot Fest Contest, take a hands-on workshop, and more!

Here’s the latest on what’s coming up at Everdale!

Cob Construction Workshop

Date: Saturday, August 21^st
Time: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Cost: $92 Click here to Register
Location: Everdale Farm, Click here for directions

Cob and various mud-straw building techniques is a free form technique that can create beautiful organic shapes and lines, which has been used for thousands of years. This introduction will start you on your journey to building undulating benches, flowing walls, sculptures, load bearing walls and other features for your home and garden with all natural materials. We will cover how to test your soil, how to mix cob, how to stack it into load bearing monolithic structures and various cob building techniques to turn a pile of mud into a thing of beauty.  This is a very hands on workshop so be prepared to get muddy!

Build your own Cold Frame Workshop

Date: Saturday, August 28^th
Time: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. OR 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Cost: $125 Pre-registration required:
Register for the morning session or Register for the afternoon session
Location: Everdale Farm, click here for directions

Extend your garden growing season with a modular cold frame built by you to take home at the end of the workshop. Join Kyla Dixon-Muir, an experienced four-season gardener, and learn how to get your garden growing anew for the fall and be ready to harvest greens from October, through winter, and into spring. This workshop is hands-on: if you can handle a screwdriver, staple gun, and drill, you can do it! All plans, materials, hardware, tools, and safety gear will be provided. See www.riverdalemeadow.ca for examples of Kyla’s easy cold frame systems in action.

Carrot Fest!

Date: Saturday, September 18^th, 2010
Time: 12 pm to 5 pm
Admission: $5 for adults, kids are FREE!
Location: Everdale Farm, click here for directions

Carrot Fest is Everdale’s fall harvest celebration and bales of farm fun that showcases the rich diversity of the local community. This year we have lots of entertainment and activities planned, including two great contests you can enter!

Crazy Cooky Carrot Contest

Do you grow carrots on your farm or in your garden? Be sure to keep hold of those wonky looking carrots and enter them for your chance to win!

Farmers and home gardeners alike are encouraged to enter by bringing their carrots with them to the event. All carrots will be judged by our panel and the one deemed most bizarre in shape and appearance will win!

Culinary Creation Carrot Contest

Do you enjoy cooking or baking?

Show off you culinary skills by entering a carrot dish into this contest. The only criterion is that carrots must be a main ingredient in the dish. Desserts, side dishes, snacks, entrees, anything qualifies!

Bring your prepared dish to the event, which will be judged on site by our panel, and the winner will be announced during the afternoon.

More Information

Our website is being updated often as Carrot Fest details are confirmed. For more information and the latest news about the event Click Here and check back regularly

Volunteering

We are looking for volunteers to lend a hand at Carrot Fest. There are lots of different roles, from welcoming visitors to running harvest games and everything in between! If you are interested in volunteering or would like more information, please contact Jennifer Lennie at jennifer@everdale.org or 519-855-4859 x101.

Eat well, be well.

events Everdale Farm, workshops

Conscious Food Festival

A celebration of local food and sustainability, the Conscious Food Festival is the first-ever Canadian collaborative event to help promote the growing sustainable food movement while introducing thousands of people to food that it local, natural, healthy and delicious.

Graze guilt-free on sustainable, Ontario-grown produce and treats from local chefs while enjoying everything from live music or cooking demos to debates and seminars on this growing movement.

Highlights:

• Meet & mingle with the farmers who feed our city, and some of Ontario’s top chefs
• Taste local sustainable wines and beers and chat with the producers
• Learn about the merits of grassfed beef and how innovative cattle ranchers can reduce their environmental impact
• Challenge yourself to taste the difference between local sustainable ice cream made with real ingredients, and a name brand ice cream made with modified milk ingredients, oils, stabilizers, and preservatives
• Listen to leading speakers on sustainable food
• Enjoy an authentic curry from the war of 1812 cooked over an open flame with vegetables from Evergreen and Fort York’s onsite garden while you explore the Fort
• Live Music, a Kidzone featuring recycled craft making and Fruit & Vegetable based paints

Saturday and Sunday 11am-7pm. Fort York.
Tickets: $18 in advance online, or $23 at the gate (cash only). Admission price includes 5 food/drink sample tickets.

Harbourfront Centre’s Hot and Spicy Food Festival

The Hot & Spicy Food Festival brings sizzling culinary, music, film and dance offerings on the lakefront at Harbourfront Centre.

Culinary events kick off with the return of the International Iron Chef Competition, where gourmet chefs from around the world show off their skills with secret ingredients and top culinary creativity. This year’s competitors include Chef Kevin Zink from New Mexico, Toronto Chef Joshna Maharaj (Winner of the Longo’s Canadian Iron Chef Competition) and Chef Jorika Mhende from Turks & Caicos.

I wish I could spend all weekend there but I’m not even sure if I’ll have a chance to go.

Evergreen Brick Works Wild Blueberry Festival

Sponsored by the Wild Blueberry Association of North America. Featuring our favourite bright blue berry, the Wild Blueberry Festival will be packed with cool events all day long.

Highlights include:

• Blueberry tasting
• Blueberry pie Bake-Off with celebrity judges and fabulous prizes
• Tasty treats at the Slow Food bake sale
• Blueberry pizzas
• Ontario-grown Blueberries for sale by the farmers
• Chefs in attendance include: Chris McDonald (Cava, XOCOCAVA), Brad Long (Food Network’s Restaurant Makeover, Veritas restaurant, My Place Pub), Anthony Rose (The Drake Hotel), Martin Kouprie (Pangaea), Buddha Dog and others!
• Delicious fruit wines by Southbrook Wines.
• Live music.

Sunday from 11am-4pm. Find out more!

Have a great weekend, everyone.

Eat well, be well.

events

While at T&T Supermarket down on Cherry Street last weekend I picked up a postcard for the Downtown Waterfront Night Market.  Times are 6pm-midnight Friday and Saturday 5pm-10pm Sunday, THIS weekend, August 6-8.

Highlights

• Main stage – 2 evenings of world cultural performances
• Over 60 vendor booths
• Cooking Demonstrations
• Evening Glow car show on Saturday
• Outdoor food extravaganza
• Prize giveaways

If the location is a challenge for you, there are shuttle buses from six downtown locations, all TTC accessible, including City Hall, Chinatown, Harbourfront and Union Station.

I might check it out on Saturday night.

Other food events this weekend

The Toronto Festival of Beer (Exhibition Place), Taste of the Danforth and the Toronto Turkish Festival (Yonge Dundas Square). I’ll skip the Taste of the Danforth, might make it to the Festival of Beer on Sunday, and Saturday afternoon might see a visit to the Turkish Festival. My current plan for Saturday includes a visit to Culinarium because I have an afternoon appointment in the neighbourhood. I’m rarely over there.

In other news

The Eglinton location of The Healthy Butcher (@healthybutcher on Twitter) will be giving out free pastries from The Sweet Escape (@sweetescapes). I may or may not go. I also may or may not be eating vegan/raw this weekend up until Sunday dinner.

Either way, there will be some good eating this weekend and as a result of it.

Eat well, be well.

events

First off, excuse the lack of advance notice of this event. I drafted this post yesterday (different headline, obviously) with the intention of publishing it yesterday but for some reason (got distracted?) didn’t. It occurred to me when I woke up a short while ago that I couldn’t remember if I’d posted it or not and kind of thought not. Food Day only entered my radar earlier this week.

I don’t normally post press releases verbatim. This is going to be a first:

Government of Canada Celebrates Food Day and the Best Food on Earth

OTTAWA, ONTARIO–(Marketwire – July 29, 2010) – Food Day, July 31, 2010 is a perfect opportunity to recognize Canadian farmers’ hard work and dedication to producing the best food in the world. This Saturday marks the 8th annual national celebration of Canada’s culinary excellence, from farm to fork.

“Canadian farmers produce the best food in the world and we’re not shy to say it,” said Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz. “What better day than Food Day to celebrate Canada’s hard working farm families and their important contribution to our economy, our country, and the health of consumers at home and around the world.”

Agriculture is a vital part of Canada’s growing and modern economy as it drives eight percent of our Gross Domestic Product. The industry is responsible for one in eight of jobs and last year its contribution to trade was more than $40 billion.

The Government of Canada has played a proactive role in promoting the world-class agriculture products that come from Canadian farms. In addition to leading dozens of trade missions to expand international markets for Canadian farmers, Minister Ritz has broken down trade barriers in important markets such as Russia, Hong Kong, Colombia and most recently China.

At home, Minister Ritz has hosted a breakfast together with Canadian farm leaders and high profile chefs at the Calgary Stampede and the 2010 Vancouver Olympics where they spread the word about the delicious, healthy and quality Canadian foods to international and domestic media.

Paired with strategic international market development, these events help tell the great story of Canadian food and pave the way for increased international demand to boost the bottom line for Canadian farmers.

“On Food Day and every day of the year, everyone is encouraged to cook, grill and savour Canada’s safe, high-quality food,” said Minister Ritz. “Our Government will continue to maximize every opportunity to highlight Canadian agriculture because increased international trade delivers benefits to all Canadians.”

For more information about Food Day 2010 visit www.foodday.ca.

Message from the Minister

On Food Day Canada – this Saturday, July 31 — I encourage everyone to use the finest ingredients grown and raised by Canadian farmers and savour Canada!

Our Government takes every opportunity to highlight the top quality food that our farmers produce because we know consumers at home and around the world will enjoy it. We are always working to promote Canadian food and agriculture products, knowing that increased international trade stimulates economic growth and delivers benefits to all Canadians.

Chances are, no matter where you are in the world, a Canadian food product or one made with Canadian ingredients is close at hand. People around the globe are now starting to recognize Canada for producing world-class food and we are hard at work to bring those products to their doorstep.

What better day than Food Day to celebrate Canada’s hard working farm families and their important contribution to our economy, our country, and the health of consumers at home and around the world?

On Food Day and every day of the year, everyone is encouraged to cook, grill and enjoy Canada’s safe, high-quality food.

Thank you farm families! Bon Appétit!

Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz

Check out how restaurants are celebrating.

See what the Toronto Star and the Ottawa Citizen say.

Follow FoodDay on Twitter.

How will I celebrate? I’ll be at Wychwood Barns for Foodprint Toronto, the second in a series of international conversations about food and the city.

Eat well, be well.

events

Image credit: Sarah B. Hood*

Wednesday, July 28, 7-9pm.

Cost: $25/person (preregistration is required)
25 Bellevue Avenue.

There’s so much fresh, local, delicious fruit coming up now, wouldn’t it be great to be able to savour it all-year-long?  Learn how to make and can your own jam so you can enjoy the tastes of summer goodness throughout the winter.

Go here for more information about the workshop series and for the link to register.

This workshop is part of the Jewish Urban Homesteading Workshop Series, presented by Kavanah Garden and Makom.

Open to all! You don’t have to be Jewish to attend.

Coming up in the Jewish Urban Homesteading Workshop Series:

Herbal Salve Making 101 (August 25)
Pickling 101 (September 15)
Seed Saving 101 (October 20)
Beer and Kombucha Brewing 101 (November 17)

*The image above is from Sarah Hood’s blog. Photo is three types of strawberry jam that Sarah made while she writes a book about canning.  The one on the left was made from a recipe given to her by Risa of Kavanah Garden.

announcements, events Kavanah Garden, Makom

Next week, Sunday July 25, watch delis duel for dollars!

The battle for smoked meat supremacy in Toronto is heating up! Join The Stop for a fundraiser that will have chefs from Caplansky’s, Goldin’s and The Stockyards go head-to-head in a battle to produce the best smoked meat sandwich. Go, taste and vote for your favourite.

Admission is free. Food and drink available for purchase. All sandwiches $3; lemonade and iced tea $3; beer $5. All proceeds go to The Stop.

The Stop Community Food Centre strives to increase access to healthy food in a manner that maintains dignity, builds community and challenges inequality. They believe that healthy food is a basic human right and recognize that the ability to access healthy food is often related to multiple issues and not just a result of low income. Learn more.

As I’ve said here before, The Stop is close to my heart. I’ve been fortunate to not use their services, but I live one block from Wychwood Barns and community is important to me. I appreciate the work that The Stop does and support them when I can.

Because this is a duel, I want to see swords and chain mail. Maybe a cod-piece? (Er, maybe not – unless “cod piece” means “piece of cod”, and this isn’t a fish ‘n’chips duel.)

See related post at the Save the Deli blog.

events Caplansky's, Goldin's, The Stockyards, The Stop, Wychwood Barns

[Note: I wrote most of this on Thursday but got distracted and didn't post it until a couple of days later. The post wrote itself while I was there. I love when that happens. Unfortunately it won't type and post itself too.]

Evergreen farmer’s market

Last week Evergreen Brick Works opened a satellite location of their farmer’s market, located just east of Bay Street between Adelaide and Temperance, happening weekly through September 2.

View Larger Map

The first week (last week, July 8th) it was mostly artisans with few farmers selling produce. Executive Chef Brad Long from Veritas and My Place Pub – aka my west-end home that I don’t visit often enough – was there, playing sous chef to chef Kellen. They were making and serving two varieties of tostadas: Pulled pork and mixed mushroom, both topped with rhubarb salsa. With my fistful of change I bought the mushroom. I enjoyed the earthiness of mushrooms as well as the texture: Chewy, with bite. Mushrooms are actually one of my favourite meat “substitutes” for texture. Try it in chili.

It was great to see so many people there, most of them likely people who work in the Financial District. That first week two of my favourite women in food were there: Arlene Stein of Evergreen (formerly of Hart House), and Rebecca LeHeup from the Ontario Culinary Tourism Alliance.

This week there were a couple more farmers, more artisans and a bigger crowd. Veritas was gone (boo) but in its place were Buddah Dog and Hanks Wine Bar. Buddah was selling their grilled local hotdogs (it’s what they do) and Hanks was offering a pulled pork sandwich, smoked Ontario pickerel nicoise salad and a burger from Cumbrae Farms.  I bought  a container of peaches ($4) and a container of apricots ($5). I’m thinking that the peaches can go on the grill at the BBQ party that I’m attending this weekend, though I’m not sure if it’s a grilled fruit kind of crowd.

Suresh from Spotlight Toronto tweeted when it opened, noted the carrot beet quinoa salads, local apricots, peaches and cherries (oh my!), sweet treats, Hanks, mushrooms from Fun Guy Farm (he’s at all the markets), and prepared foods from provenance.

Joel blogged about his visit to the market this week within hours in his Market Diaries.

Tasty Thursdays

I opted not to eat at the farmer’s market this time, instead checking out the offerings at Nathan Phillip’s Square for week 1 of Tasty Thursdays, happening weekly from this week through August 26. Located two blocks from my office near University and Dundas, I’d walked through it on my way to Bay and Adelaide. Tasty Thursday is a collection of restaurants selling food at kiosks. It raises their profile and brings them a lot of lunch traffic on Thursdays.  Taste TO was there around noon. Suresh was there too, an hour earlier.

I bought two veggie burger sliders ($5 for 2 or $3 for 1) from Chuck and Co. It was refreshing to see vegetarian/vegan options, as most of the offerings in the square were meat with a number of restaurants selling pulled pork. Their vegetarian burger is a blend of black beans, mixed vegetables and spices on a ciabatta bun. I had lettuce and tomato, hold the onions), mustard and ketchup and was looking forward to eating it. I really wanted to like them, which I realize a strange thing to say because who eats something wanting to not like it? They were disappointingly dry, almost like saw dust but not quite, but I won’t judge the restaurant based on Tasty Thursdays. I don’t think that temporary kiosks are the ideal conditions for food. While inner devil’s advocate says that restaurants should make what works under those conditions, I did go closer to the end of the event. Maybe things were fresher closer to 11. Chuck and Co. gets points for offering the veggie sliders even if execution lacked. When I took a look at their menu (of which they had copies available as marketing material – points for that too, every restaurant should have takeaway promo material) I was impressed by their burger offerings. I definitely want to visit the restaurant and try the burgers on their home turf.

After walking away I found that La Cocina De Dona Luz was selling ceviche. I like ceviche and will have to check it out next week if they’re there or visit the restaurant, located mere blocks from my home.

Food… yum

With the Evergreen Brick Works Bay/Adelaide Market and Tasty Thursdays the options for downtown outdoor eating have gotten more numerous. I don’t think I’ll be packing a lunch on Thursdays for the rest of the summer.

See what Tasting Toronto said about both events.

events Everygreen Brick Works, local, Tasty Thursdays

Wednesday, June 23, 7-9pm

141 Markham Street
Cost: $25/person (preregistration is required)

Discover how to turn your vegetable scraps into nutrient-rich soil! Join us as we learn the basic science of composting, the difference between backyard composting and the greenbin system, and how to keep your very own worm composter!

This workshop is part of the Jewish Urban Homesteading Workshop Series, presented by Kavanah Garden and Makom: Creative Downtown Judaism.

Open to all! You don’t have to be Jewish to attend.

For more information please contact Risa at 416-805-8382 or risa@torathateva.org.

Coming up in the Jewish Urban Homesteading Workshop Series:

Jam Making and Canning 101 (July 28)
Herbal Salve Making 101 (August 25)
Pickling 101 (September 15)
Seed Saving 101 (October 20)
Beer and Kombucha Brewing 101 (November 17)

Click here for more information or to register.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Composting 101: How and What to Compost (benway.net)
• How To Pick An Ideal Compost Bin For Your Garden (stepbysteptips.com)
• Natural Organic Fertilizer: Turn Your Kitchen Waste Into Fertile Garden Soil (backyardgardeningtips.com)

announcements, events

Organic Gardening 101: Planning & Planting

On Wednesday, April 28 from 7-9pm, discover how to grow your very own Garden of Eden! This workshop will address the basics of planning and planting your own urban food garden. Pre-registration is required.

Click here for more information about the workshop series and for the link to register.

Part of the Jewish Urban Homesteading Workshop Series presented by Kavanah Garden and Makom.

All are welcome! You do not have to be Jewish to attend.

Fourth Annual Strawberries and Asparagus Festival, call for volunteers

Open Call for Vendors, Volunteers, Partners and Sponsors for this year’s Strawberries and Asparagus Festival happening on Saturday June 12 in Cedarvale Park.

What began as a neighbourhood barbecue as a celebration of the anniversary of the Spadina Expressway is now in its fourth year and growing. Strawberries and Asparagus is now a spring harvest celebration that incorporates renewable energy, live music and green living. This family event will include free food, festival fun, live music, solar stage, solar cooking, green gardening and the “Inorganic Market” with activities for children all day and a Yoga and Zen Zone.

Find the event invitation and the event group on Facebook. You’ll find more information about volunteering on the group page.

Mentioning the Spadina Expressway made me think of The Shuffle Demons song Spadina Bus, and The Shuffle Demons are feel-good music, so here it is  for your viewing and listening pleasure. Chair dancing is encouraged. Let this be a good start to your Monday.

The original video

Video from last summer’s performance at Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto, which I was at, but this isn’t my video. Mine isn’t consistent from start to finish- though I did get some great video of the walkabout for which they are known. It was an awesome time. It was also an attempt to break the world record of number of sax players.

Eat well, be well.

announcements, events

Toronto event announcement

A Taste for Life is a restaurant-based fundraiser helping Fife House provide supportive housing and support services for people living with HIV/AIDS.

A Taste for Life originated in Ottawa in 1999 when Bruce House, Fife House’s counterpart in the nation’s capital and The Snowy Owl AIDS Foundation successfully collaborated with 10 local restaurants.

Patrons were invited to spend a special evening in their favourite establishments and each restaurant agreed to donate a portion of the evening’s gross revenue from all food and bar sales, excluding taxes, to the charities.

It’s simple:

1. Book a table at one of the participating restaurants across the GTA.
2. Enjoy a fabulous dinner with family, friends, business associates.
3. The restaurant will donate a percentage of the cost of your meal to Fife House.

Good food for a good cause!
See Fife House’s website for participating restaurants and make a reservation today!

Eat well, be well.
(And help others be well.)

announcements, events