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Take a spring fling with asparagus
Farm Life, FarmLife

Take a spring fling with asparagus

The season is very short so make sure you enjoy some asparagus while it’s here

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This year, May arrived suddenly, without fanfare, but with enough warmth for bare arms. Like many Prairie gardeners relieved to finally — and abruptly — exit winter, I spent the sunny first day of the month cleaning up my garden beds. To my delight, I found furled red knobs in the rhubarb patch, and sprigs […] Read more
Canadiana classics — Part 2: Rhubarb, a great spring fever tonic
FarmLife, Fruit/Vegetables

Canadiana classics — Part 2: Rhubarb, a great spring fever tonic

Most Prairie gardens have a patch of rhubarb and it is one of the first plants to emerge in the spring

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Most Prairie gardens have a patch of rhubarb and it is one of the first plants to emerge in the spring

Few ingredients say “Canada” — or spring — as insistently as rhubarb. Rhubarb thrives in cool climates and is among the first plants to emerge in spring. My mom has a rhubarb patch, like most Prairie gardeners. She can’t keep up with it once it hits its stride, so I am the lucky beneficiary. The […] Read more
Was the planting of lentils by an early immigrant family the forerunner of today’s crops?
Farm Life, FarmLife

Was the planting of lentils by an early immigrant family the forerunner of today’s crops?

First We Eat: In 2020 Canadian-grown lentils generated over $2 billion in export sales

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In 1923, Jirys Ya’qūb Sallūm kissed his wife and young sons goodbye in the town of Qar’awn, located in the Biqa’ Valley, in the French protectorate of Lebanon and Syria. Speaking only Arabic, he travelled to Canada to work for a relative who had a farm in southwestern Saskatchewan. He wanted a safer home for […] Read more
Why do we cook?
Farm Life, FarmLife

Why do we cook?

First We Eat: Cooking needn’t be just a chore we do every day – it could help us improve our metal health and well-being

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When bad news hits or good news shows its smiling face, I head to the butcher block and start chopping. When my neighbour or my kids visit. When we need comfort. When Dave remembers another in his wonderfully long list of our anniversaries. The reasons we cook are many, and often have nothing to do […] Read more
Vietnamese pho.
Farm Life, FarmLife

Southeast Asian foods — Part 1: Vietnamese pho

First We Eat: There’s a good selection of Vietnamese ingredients in many stores as they strive to serve a large refugee population

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We are so fortunate in Canada to have arrivals from around the globe to teach us about seasoning our tables. Lucky for us, food is one of the best tools for welcoming people and sharing experiences. The foods of Southeast Asia — Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam — are worlds apart from what those of us […] Read more
Jyubeen’s version can be made with palak (spinach), mustard greens, amaranth, chard, or other greens. The creamy paneer is spooned into the spinach mixture at the last minute, where it melts into the sauce. Serve with basmati rice. Serves 4.
Farm Life, FarmLife

South Asian favourites — Part 3: Vegetables take centre stage

First We Eat: The combination of warm spices and vegetables makes for tasty cuisine

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I moved to Vancouver from rural Saskatchewan when I turned 18, landing in an Edwardian house with two roommates on the East Side. I’d grown up on my Germanic mother’s honest meat and spuds, but the West Coast was a popular destination for immigrants, and I lucked into a South Asian enclave — shops and […] Read more
To find locally raised lamb, read the menu at your favourite restaurant and ask who supplies the kitchen, visit independent butchers or farmers’ markets, and browse the internet using key words like “local lamb” and your province’s name.
Farm Life, FarmLife

South Asian favourites — Part 2: Learning to love lamb

First We Eat: Lamb consumption is on the rise in Canada so it may be easier to find a local producer

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My Saskatchewan-raised mom never served lamb while I was growing up. She hadn’t eaten it as a child or young woman, and as a result, I didn’t learn to love lamb until I was in my 30s and living in Calgary. Sheep have been a presence in Alberta since the late 1800s, when thousands of […] Read more
South Asian favourites — Part 1: Pakoras
Farm Life, FarmLife

South Asian favourites — Part 1: Pakoras

First We Eat: To start off, try these vegetarian appetizers — fritters served with chutney

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When I told her I thought I was a changeling, my mom laughed out loud. “With those eyes? Those cheeks? That chin? You are the spitting image of your Aunt Lila.” It’s true. In the mirror, I see my family staring back, just as when I look at my sons, I see my dad’s face. […] Read more
Umami dates back to 1907, when a Japanese chemist discovered that kombu seaweed formed crystals of glutamate — an abundant amino acid — for a taste neither sweet, sour, salty or bitter, but savoury, rich and meaty.
Farm Life, FarmLife

Becoming a better cook — Part 2: The taste of umami

First We Eat: This Japanese word has various translations such as ‘savoury’ or ‘deliciousness’

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The four tastes — sweet, salty, sour, bitter — underpin every dish we eat. Smart cooks reach routinely for a bit of honey, a smidgeon of salt, a splash of lemon, or a drop of bitters to balance a dish, and fat too, like butter, oil, or whipping cream. Asian and Latin cooks add pungent […] Read more
Becoming a better cook — Part 1: By the book
Farm Life, FarmLife

Becoming a better cook — Part 1: By the book

First We Eat: A list of food books that explain the ‘hows’ and ‘whys’ of cooking

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My son recently served me a meal of spatchcocked (butterflied) chicken. It was sensational, crisp and juicy. “Butterflied is the only way I roast a whole bird anymore,” he told me. Then I watched as he made brownies. His recipe was more complex than mine, and he spent longer on the process. They were addictive, […] Read more

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