Bigos (Polish stew)

Bigos — a Polish stew made for sharing

Perfect for a cold winter meal and gets better as it’s reheated

Nouvelle cuisine has its place, but I prefer food with a long and storied history, especially when the recipe and story come from a dear friend. But this recipe does not begin in her kitchen. It begins on a winter road trip along the Crowsnest Highway between Alberta and British Columbia. After a long day […] Read more

cake

Prairie Palate: Getting tired of zucchini yet?

Make some cakes with them – perfect from the freezer or eating warm from the oven

When my husband and I got married 20 years ago, we had one pre-nuptial agreement, at his insistence: that I would never plant more than six zucchini at a time. Talk about tough love. Zucchini is my favourite summer vegetable, for a number of reasons. It grows quickly, it’s lush and attractive, the flowers are […] Read more


We find the taste of dehydrated tomatoes batter than canned ones.

Storing food for the winter — here’s what works for us

Our preferred methods are dehydrating the tomatoes and freezing the spaghetti squash

This past summer was definitely busy. We had the pleasure of hosting a seven-year-old and a nine-year-old boy from Alberta, and they helped watch our year-old grandson while his mom ran the post office. As I don’t like to use the water canner with young children underfoot, I used our dehydrator for the tomatoes. Really […] Read more

Daniel Tomelin, 54, holds a Painted Serpent cucumber grown on a trellised vine in his Kelowna, B.C. garden. From tip to tip this monster of a cuke measured an astonishing 112 cm (44-1/2 inches) in length. Read what else the Singing Gardener has to say in this connection.

Painted Serpent cucumber — this one’s a whopper

Singing Gardener: Plus, more on carrot and sugar cough syrup

Celebrating Thanksgiving Day now past, is an annual noble event that we Canadians enjoy each October with family and friends. For many folks it encompasses the entire weekend. Next, a lot of households anticipate preparing for Halloween, especially where young children are involved. Europeans of earlier times observed an autumn festival that included feasting on […] Read more


Thoughts of upcoming election bring thoughts of Dief’s dinners

Thoughts of upcoming election bring thoughts of Dief’s dinners

John Diefenbaker was a proud Prairie boy and his mother was an excellent cook

Since we’re in the midst of a federal election campaign, I’m thinking of John Diefenbaker’s dinner. The Dief was Canada’s 13th prime minister and a proud Prairie boy… especially proud of his mother Mary’s good Prairie cooking. Diefenbaker was born in a small town in Ontario in September 1895. In 1903, when he was seven, […] Read more

Enjoying apfelstreuselkuchen 
in a café in Berlin.

In search of apples — anything with apples

This fruit brings back fond memories of growing up on the farm

In Berlin, I left the hotel early one morning in search of coffee and apples. Anything with apples. Wandering the neighbourhood, I found a sunny little bakery on a leafy street near the Brandenburg Gate. It had a tiny sidewalk patio with four tables and a plethora of potted plants. Best of all, a sign […] Read more


Eating well for a happy farm team

Good food can increase productivity, improve efficiency, and keep those workers coming back

In July I had the fun and privilege of joining 30 farm women in a cooking experience at the Kansas City Culinary Center. In teams of six we cooked meals for low-income families and also heard how two farm women, Karmen and Kerri Mehman of MBS Family Farms make 40 freezer meals that feed a […] Read more

See recipe for this Vinegret below.

Searching out my farming roots in Russia

Prairie Palate: Since childhood I had dreamed of this and finally the opportunity came


My farming ancestors came to Canada from Russia in the 1890s and, ever since I was a child, I dreamed of visiting their village on the Dnieper River. That opportunity came in April. Despite the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, which is unfolding east of the Dnieper, I made a trek to the little village […] Read more


Greek salad and meatballs

Making a pilgrimage in Greece

Prairie Palate: Wheat was more than a food here but a symbol of life itself

For more than 2,000 years ancient Greeks made a pilgrimage to the temple of Demeter, the goddess of farming. A few weeks ago, I did, too. Today, the temple is in ruins, but it is possible to walk the stone streets, run your hand over ancient walls and contemplate the importance of farming in Greek […] Read more

man and women inspecting a side of pork

All-natural meat producer ahead of the times

Pine View Farms beef, pork, poultry, lamb, specialty meats and eggs are prized by Saskatoon chefs

They were “all natural” before “all natural” was cool. Kevin and Melanie Boldt have been giving conscientious meat consumers locally and naturally raised meat options for almost two decades. The Osler, Saskatchewan farmers have made a conscious commitment to ethically raise pasture-grazed and vegetarian-fed animals in a stress-free environment that does not include the use […] Read more