Saturday Farmers' Market Vendor Feature: The Masala Shop

Saturday Farmers’ Market Vendor Feature: The Masala Shop

By nicole ma on September 11, 2019

Saturday Farmers’ Market Vendor Feature: The Masala Shop

This week’s feature is The Masala Shop! They sell hand-mixed spice mixes that are sure to spice up your life (and your food)! We interviewed Susheela, the owner of The Masala Shop, and asked her some questions about how she started her business and how she makes her spice batches. Cumin to the market this week and chat with her about her favourite recipes and how to use different spices!

Susheela at her booth!

How did you start selling spices?

People would come over and eat at my house and then they would ask me for the recipe. When I started rattling off the list of spices, they would kind of glaze over and say that they don’t have those or that they haven’t heard of those. So, I started making little batches of spice so they can take it home and make it. Then people told me that I should start doing this!

How long have you been selling your spice mixes for?

I started in 2013 but I took a break because I was here at the UBC Farm Practicum at the time. I got sidetracked by farming but then people kept wanting my spices so I started again last year.

What are your most popular spices?

The two that I’ve got here: the Butter Chicken and the South Indian Curry because they’re the most versatile.

Can you give us a rundown of the different spices you sell?

I’ve got around 20 on a list I’m going to create at some point. But the ones I have now are the South Indian Curry (which can be used on anything), the Bengali Potato Masala, the Kofta Kebab (for meat like ground meat, grilling meat, etc), the Susheela’s Butter Chicken, the Jimmy’s Feast Biryani, a Souvlaki one, and Masala Chai (and even the chai has like 8 different spices within)!

What’s your favourite dish to make?

Right now, seasonally, we do green moong bean with dill (and we use so much dill we end calling it “dill vegetable” or “dill bhaji” or Shepuchi bhaji – Maharastrian Style instead of moong)! It’s soaked, cooked moong, dill with green chilies, lime- I’m salivating as I say this- and I use the South Indian Curry. It’s really nice for the summer because it’s hot and cool at the same time and it’s also vegetarian!

There’s more ways to use the spices on her website here as well!

Is there anything you want people to know about your shop?

It’s like having a Spice Mistress working directly for you! I roast everything myself and mix everything. Hopefully I’ll be growing a lot of these myself on my own farm soon but I try to source organically and make sure the spices are ground within a week of market.

How long does it take for you to make a batch of spices?

Sometimes it takes me a long time- I try to get whole spices as much as possible because it’s fresher. With things like ginger, I like to keep whole dried ginger instead of ginger powder so I can control how fine or coarse the spice is ground as well.

Where else can you be found other than the UBC Farm Saturday Farmers’ Market?

At Granville Island and soon to be online. I’m also hoping to set up a little business shop over on Granville Island as well!

For more details, check out their website, their Facebook, their Instagram, or shoot them an email at masalamistress@gmail.com! The Masala Shop can be found at the UBC Farm Saturday Farmers’ Market on the following dates: Sept 14, Sept 28, Oct 12, Nov 2, Nov 23. Remember to stop by before you run out of thyme!

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Japanese Pickles

By Salloum on September 9, 2019

Japanese Pickles

About this Workshop

Learn the art of making Japanese-style pickles! In this workshop, participants will learn how to make traditional Japanese Nukazuke pickles as well as Asazuke (quick pickles). Nuka is the Japanese word for rice bran. When brown rice is “polished” to make a whiter rice, every grain of rice is slowly rubbed so that some of the outside bran comes off. What you are left with is a sawdust-like substance that is the rice bran, aka Nuka.

Nuka has many uses in Japanese cuisine, one of which is making pickles. Vegetables that are pickled using Nuka are packed with probiotics. In this hands-on, beginner-friendly workshop, participants will get to make and enjoy two different types of Japanese pickles using, cucumber, daikon radish or/and seasonal vegetables available. All of the food prepared in this workshop will be vegetarian (some of store packed ruka has eggshells) and gluten free.

About the Instructor

Kimiko Suzuki loves sharing her passion for locally sourced, simple and delicious dishes. Born and raised in Wakayama, Japan, she enjoyed the freshness, sweetness and richness of vegetables picked from her grandfather’s garden plot and learned true home-style Japanese cooking techniques in her mother’s kitchen. Kimiko also teaches at Cook Culture and Well Fed Studio and a food writer for Vancouver’s local Japanese language newspaper – Shinpo.

Date and Time

DATE Wednesday, October 9th | 6:00 – 8:00 pm (2 hours)

Location

UBC Farm

3461 Ross Drive, Vancouver BC

Cost

$60 Standard ($53 Student) + GST

Register for this workshop

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Fall Pies from Scratch

By Salloum on September 8, 2019

Fall Pies from Scratch

About this Workshop

Fall flavors are full gear, it’s your chance to wow your crowd at Thanksgiving this year! In this class, we will see how to make easily 3 different pies, fall flavored, and you’ll get your try at rolling dough and preparing your own apple pie to take home! Here is what we will cover:

Demonstration of how to make the best pie dough from scratch
Demonstration of Pecan Pie
Make an easy Pear Tarte Fine with puff pastry
Make your own Apple Pie with Lattice Top – please note you will take this pie home to bake in your oven (not enough ovens to bake onsite).

Please bring your own pie dish! And you get to taste everything that is made during the class and take home your own Apple Pie and any leftover. We recommend you have dinner before or after the class, as it is an all dessert event!)

About the Instructor

Valetine (Aka Tartine of Tartine & Maple Cuisine) is a French cook who’s passionate about cooking and baking. She teaches mostly French food cooking and baking classes- both in your home, and around the Vancouver area! Trained in France in culinary skills, she has worked for catering events in prestigious Champagne mansions and in Paris at various locations including Hotel Ambassador. Valentine is now a full time cooking instructor in addition to a personal and private chef. Tartine & Maple’s mission is to demystify French food and address other food myths- making cooking fun and accessible for all!

Date and Time

DATE Tuesday, October 8 | 5:30 – 8:30 pm (3 hours)

Location

UBC Farm

3461 Ross Drive, Vancouver BC

Cost

$78 Standard ($68 Student) + GST

Register for this workshop

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The Rise of Mega-companies in the Global Food System: Implications for Justice and Sustainability

By Salloum on September 7, 2019

The Rise of Mega-companies in the Global Food System: Implications for Justice and Sustainability

Tuesday, October 8, 2019 from 12:30PM-2:00PM

A shrinking number of ever larger “mega-companies” command enormous influence over the global food system. The Liu Institute for Global Issues is hosting a talk with Jennifer Clapp discussing this issue.

In this talk, Jennifer Clapp for a talk about the current status of corporate consolidation across the global agrifood system, its key drivers, and the implications of this trend for the future of food systems more broadly. She argues that a complex mix of technological, financial and policy factors have encouraged growing concentration in the sector in recent years, and discusses current policy proposals to address it.

Jennifer Clapp is a Canada Research Chair in Global Food Security and Sustainability, and a Peter Wall Institute for Advanced Studies International Visiting Research Scholar from the School of Environment, Resources and Sustainability at the University of Waterloo, Canada. She has published widely on the global governance of problems that arise at the intersection of the global economy, the environment, and food security. Her most recent books include Speculative Harvests: Financialization, Food, and Agriculture (with S. Ryan Isakson, Fernwood Press, 2018), Food, 2nd Edition (Polity, 2016), and Hunger in the Balance: The New Politics of International Food Aid (Cornell University Press, 2012).

This event is co-hosted by: The Centre for Sustainable Food Systems, Global Reporting Centre, The Peter Wall Institute for Advanced Studies,

and the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs (SPPGA).

Date and Time

Tuesday, October 8 2019 | 12:30PM – 2:00PM

Location

XʷΘƏΘIQƏTƏM (Place of Many Trees) at The Liu Institute for Global Issues | 6476 NW Marine Drive

Register for FREE!

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Eat Think Vote

By melanie kuxdorf on September 6, 2019

Eat Think Vote

Eat Think Vote is a non-partisan campaign run in federal election years by Food Secure Canada to make food an election issue. It will be an opportunity for constituents to hear directly from candidates and ask tough questions about how their platforms address community issues related to (but not limited to) food security, food justice, healthy food, and more.

Eat Think Vote, Vancouver-Quadra

October 4, 2019, 6:30-8:30pm

Kitsilano Neighbourhood House

305 W 7th Avenue, Vancouver

Click here for details and registration.

Bring your most pressing food questions for the candidates. Check out Food Secure Canada’s policy backgrounders for inspiration.

This event is co-hosted by: The Centre for Sustainable Food Systems, Kitsilano Neighbourhood House, and the Public Health Association of BC. The event is moderated by Prof. Hannah Wittman (CSFS Academic Director, currently on study leave).

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Market Recipe Blog: Baked Ratatouille (99% Farm Fresh!)

By noni nabors on September 5, 2019

Market Recipe Blog: Baked Ratatouille (99% Farm Fresh!)

You can find nearly all the ingredients for this dish (aside from salt, pepper and olive oil!) at our Saturday market. This magical moment of September bounty won’t last forever, so feel good about indulging in food as local and fresh as can be while it’s in season! This is a great potluck item to bake ahead and broil before serving. It shines at the center of your plant with a simple salad, and pairs magically with roast chicken or herb-infused shell beans for a protein boost. Whatever way you eat it, the aroma will fill your kitchen and have you giving thanks for these perfectly paired plants. What can go wrong when you begin with tomato, garlic and basil?

Note: Be sure to choose veggies of roughly the same size and slice to the same thickness. This helps ensure a consistent cooking time and cohesive presentation.

Baked Ratatouille

Recipe (adapted from Victoria McGinley)

1 medium onion, peeled and sliced
4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
2 medium-large zucchini (try one green and one romanesco for variety!), sliced 1/4″ thick
2-3 medium heirloom tomatoes in different colours, sliced 1/4″ thick
1-2 small Chinese eggplants, sliced 1/4″ thick
1 tbsp tomato paste
Extra virgin olive oil
Pinch crushed red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
Your choice of cheese (check out The Haltwhistle Cheese Company and Tesfa Farms for a recommendation at our Saturday market!)
Fresh basil, julienned

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400F.
In a medium skillet, heat 2 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and cook until they begin to soften. Add half the garlic, red pepper flakes, and season with salt and pepper. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally. Lower the heat if you notice the onions are browning too quickly.
Stir in tomato paste and mix until onions are evenly coated. Transfer onion mixture to the bottom of your baking dish, and drizzle with an additional tablespoon of olive oil.
Begin arranging your sliced veggies in the dish, alternating by colour. You can stack them in rows, or arrange them in a circle beginning with the outer ring. Sprinkle the remaining garlic over the veggies. Season with salt and pepper, and drizzle with more oil.
Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake for 40 – 60 minutes, until the mixture is bubbly and the vegetables are tender. Remove from oven. Turn broiler on high. Layer shaved or sliced cheese on top of veggies, then bake underneath broiler until cheese browns. Remove from over, and let sit for a minute. Garnish generously with freshly chopped basil, and serve!

Pick up produce at any of our three weekly markets: Tuesdays 4-6:30PM at the UBC Farm, Wednesdays 11:30AM-1:30PM at the UBC Bookstore, and Saturdays 10AM-2PM at UBC Farm. Learn more about our produce and browse other recipes in our Market Recipe Blog. Recieve regular market recipes from our newsletter here.

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Saturday Farmers’ Market Vendor Feature: Tal A’xin – Maya In Exile Garden

By nicole ma on September 4, 2019

Saturday Farmers’ Market Vendor Feature: Tal A’xin – Maya in Exile Garden

This week’s featured vendor is the Tal A’xin: Maya in Exile Garden, who sell Maya ancestral crops (the Three Sisters: corn, beans, and squash) among others as well as arrangements of beautiful flowers at the UBC Farm Saturday Farmers’ Market. In 1986, five Maya families came to Canada as refugees from Guatemala. Now, in order to share and keep Maya culture and farming traditions alive for future generations, which revolves heavily around the planting of corn, they work the land at the UBC Farm. We were able to interview Maximo Morales, one of the members of the Maya Garden and hear about the story behind the garden.

How did the Mayan Garden come to be and where did the crops originally come from?

We came from Ixtahuacan to Canada and started the Mayan Garden a long time ago, even before the garden was at UBC. Afterwards, we made a friend at UBC who said we had a chance to work with the UBC Farm and to apply for a project plot. So in 2000, the garden was established at the UBC Farm and we started bringing seeds over from Guatemala to plant here. Some of the seeds grew and some didn’t.

What kind of produce do you grow and sell from Guatemala?

We grow a variety: amaranth (bledo), apazote, hierba mora, beans, corn, squash and more.

Francisca Sales Ortiz

What type of recipes or dishes do you make using these ingredients?

We eat mostly the amaranth and hierba mora. We like to use it in ensalada tradicional (traditional salad) and an assortment of cooked dishes.

If you’re interested in learning more about Maya cooking, the members of the Maya in Exile Garden also host public workshops on cooking traditional Maya meals. Find out more information here.

What do you want to share with visitors?

We want people to know about how we cultivate and plant the vegetables here, and how to eat and prepare something different. It takes a lot of time to cultivate our plants because we try to keep the same growing practices like what we did in Guatemala.

Is there anywhere where people can go to find more information about the Maya Garden?

There is a page on the UBC Farm about the Mayan Garden (here). You are also welcome to come and visit us!

The Maya in Exile Garden will be at the UBC Farm Saturday Farmers’ Market until their last day on October 26! To get volunteer at the Mayan Garden or to learn more, check out the UBC Farm page and their Facebook page.

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Bird Survey – Vancouver Natural History Society

By Salloum on September 1, 2019

Bird Survey – Vancouver Natural History Society

We welcome people with all levels of birding knowledge to join in the Nature Vancouver monthly bird survey around the UBC Farm. All that is required is an interest in birds! Bring binoculars if you have them.

The monthly survey takes from two to four hours, depending on weather conditions and how many birds we see. The route walked circles the perimeter of the fields and through the forest trail. For further information see the Nature Vancouver website www.naturevancouver.ca under Ongoing Nature Walks.

The number of bird species observed over the past ten years of surveys is close to one hundred species. To view a list of bird species by month go to the eBird Canada website, under BC Hotspots, Vancouver UBC-South Campus Farm.

Survey Dates:

Surveys are scheduled the third Sunday of the month. Surveys start at 9:00am in late fall and winter, and start at 8:00 am in spring, summer and early fall. Arrive on time as the gate will be opened only at the start of the survey. Late arrivers will unfortunately find the gate locked.

Meet at the gate at 9:00 am for October 21, November 18, and December 16 in 2018. For 2019, the 9:00 am start dates will be on January 20 and February 17.

For 2019 spring and summer, meet at the gate at 8:00 am for March 17, April 21, May 19, June 16, July 21, August 18, and September 15.

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Saturday Farmers’ Market Vendor Feature: UBC Farm Practicum Stall

By nicole ma on August 28, 2019

Saturday Farmers’ Market Vendor Feature: UBC Farm Practicum Stall

This week, we’re featuring the UBC Farm Practicum market stall, which sells produce grown by amazing practicum students who are learning more about farming and how to grow and sell their own food. Come by their stall to pick up some groceries and hear more about their stories! Want to know more about the practicum program and hear about Rylan’s (a current practicum student) experience? Read on!

Practicum students Rylan and Emil

What do you sell here?

It’s a large variety of things- right now, we have carrots, beets, zucchinis, summer squash, peppers, tomatoes, and we’re going to have more coming in eventually. Oh, and flowers of course!

Can you give us an overview of practicum program?

The practicum program is a year long program. Basically what we do is we come in, take classes and work on the farm to gain life experience and real work experience with a farm and learn the science and techniques behind the actual process of farming and how to do it sustainably. We have different professionals and experts that come in and teach us and we go on educational field trips! It’s a very broad program that encompasses a lot of aspects.

What’s your favourite part of the practicum program?

My farm-ily! We have such a great group of people here. Honestly, it’s helped me grow a lot as a person. I was expecting to just come here to gain skills but I have grown so much as an individual as well; I think all of us have. I think that was actually, while unexpected, the biggest takeaway.

Is there anything you want people to know about the stall and the program?

That we exist! No, but actually know that there are people out there who are passionate about farming, and not to lose hope. Things are looking bleak but I’ve seen a lot of awesome people who are looking to do really great things in the future of farming and in the future of sustainability. I’ve had the pleasure of being in class with them and it gives me hope for the future.

Can you tell us more about the upcoming Open House?

We are super excited and nervous. We’re so proud and want to show our pride to people and have them as enthusiastic to join the practicum next year as we were about doing it this year! It was such a great time and hopefully people get to experience that.

The Open House will be happening on Saturday, September 14th at the UBC Farm Saturday Farmers’ Market during the Fall Fair from 12pm – 2pm. Come and learn more about the program, meet staff and current students, get the opportunity to ask questions and tour the farm from the perspective of the Practicum program! No registration is required.

The UBC Farm Practicum stall can be found at the UBC Farm Saturday Farmers’ Market every week until September 14th! To learn more about the UBC Farm Practicum program or if you’re interested in applying, click here! Applications for the 2020 Practicum will open between September – October.

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Market Recipe Blog: Khoresh Bademjan (Eggplant Stew)

By noni nabors on August 22, 2019

Market Recipe Blog: Khoresh Bademjan (Eggplant Stew)

Eggplants and tomatoes, members of the nightshade family along with tomatillos and peppers, enjoy a boon in late August! Savor them together in this vegetarian edition of Khoresh Bademjan, a soft stew with a sweet tang that will get you excited for the warming flavours of fall to come.

Khoresh Bademjan (Eggplant Stew)

Recipe (adapted from Persian Mama)

4 Chinese eggplants
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 cup yellow split peas
2 large yellow or white onions, thinly sliced
2 large fresh tomatoes, diced
3 tablespoon butter or neutral oil
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Pinch of cayenne pepper
2-3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup hot water

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450F.
Peel eggplants and cut in half lengthwise. Toss eggplants in a large bowl with vegetable oil. Arrange eggplants on a non-stick baking sheet, and bake for 25 minutes. Without removing the baking sheet, broil eggplants for an additional 2 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
While the eggplants are in the oven, wash and drain split peas. Add to saucepan and cover with water by 1 inch. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring peas to a boil, then reduce heat to medium low and cook until peas are tender. Drain and set aside.
In a nonstick skillet sautée the onion over medium low heat in butter or oil until golden brown.
When onions turn golden add turmeric and continue to sautée. Add tomato paste, cayenne, cooked split peas and salt and pepper to taste. Continue sautéeing over low heat, stirring often, for 3-4 minutes.
Add pomegranate molasses, diced tomatoes, and lemon juice to the skillet and bring to a boil.
Add baked eggplants and return dish to a boil. Cover and cook on medium low for 23-30 minutes, until the eggplants are tender and flavorful. Thin sauce as desired by adding hot water in 1/4 cup increments.
Serve over cooked rice or Tahdig.

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