A century ago, Canada was at war. The battle for Vimy Ridge took place on April 9 to 12, 1917, during which 3,600 Canadians lost their lives and thousands were wounded. Back in Canada, families supported the war effort in many ways, including in their kitchens. They were encouraged to be frugal, eliminate kitchen waste, […] Read more
Make an old-time Strawberry Pudding
Prairie Palate: The recipe first appeared in a newspaper in 1918
Edible flower gardening
Flowers not only look good in the garden, lots of them make great eating
Some people prefer to grow flowers and some people prefer to grow good things to eat, but me, I like to do both at once. Edible flower gardening. Here are good reasons to eat flowers: Flowers taste good. Think of peppery nasturtiums, tangy tangerine marigolds, sweet red clover and the blossoms of herbs. Flowers are […] Read more
Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
In honour of my Irish grandmother here’s a traditional potato recipe
Since St. Patrick’s Day is nigh upon us, I dedicate today’s musings to my grandmother, Josephine O’Hara. Or, as I knew her best, Grandma Jo. Grandma Jo was proud of her Irish heritage. So proud, that dinner on St. Patrick’s Day was akin to Christmas or Easter. In other words, a feast. There would be […] Read more
Prairie version of the French salade nicoise
Using leftovers of baked northern pike made a very ‘nice salad’
One day, my husband came home with a leg of deer under his arm, cleaned, wrapped and frozen. I made venison stew flavoured with juniper berries and thyme. Another day, I answered a knock at the door to find a friend, box in hand, offering me a moose roast and two breasts of grouse. The […] Read more
Mexican pork carnitas
There’s lots of oranges and limes available now so this is a perfect time to make this
I remember the first time I picked an orange. Not from the produce section. Not from a fruit bowl. Not from the recesses of my Christmas stocking. Picked an orange from a real orange tree. I remembered it today because I just picked an orange and the smell took me back to the first time […] Read more
Juniper berries — tasty addition to venison stew
Prairie Palate: These are perfect added to any stew made with wild ingredients but also go well with beef
One crisp winter day I set out to pick juniper berries at a local park. I planned to make bigos, an old Polish stew, for a dinner party that week, for which juniper berries are a traditional ingredient. Being both frugal and old-fashioned, I decided to forage the junipers in the wild, or at least […] Read more
Got winter blues? Try sprouting some greens
Sprouts are delicious and packed with nutrition and only take a few days to grow
My green thumb gets a little twitchy in wintertime and there’s only one cure. I start a little garden on the windowsill, planting to plate in just five days. Yes, I am speaking of sprouts. Delicious, nutritious and green. It is well documented that sprouts are more nutritious than the seeds themselves and, in some […] Read more
The mysterious potato
Once thought of as toxic, it's now the most consumed vegetable in North America
One summer day I was picking potato bugs in my little patch of community garden when a young mother came along with a babe in a stroller and another on the way. She asked what I was doing and a conversation ensued: Her: “Where do you get the potatoes?” Me: “I got these potatoes from […] Read more
Is the farm a healthier place to grow up on?
Prairie Palate: Get Well Soon Meat Loaf
As we head into the winter cold season, I am feeling quite smug. I rarely get colds. I have no allergies and a stomach as impervious as a cast iron pan. I attribute the healthy state of my immune system to growing up on a farm. Mucking about in the garden, eating bugs and dirt, […] Read more
Well done, medium, rare or… raw?
Prairie Palate: Steak Carpaccio
My friend Joanne said she would not eat raw lamb, and that was fine with me. So while everyone else at the table made adventurous forays to try the lamb, she watched bemused. When they liked it, she looked puzzled. And when the bowl was almost empty, she finally picked up a piece of pita […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
