Monthly Archives: April 2014

30 04, 2014

Family Food Foraging by Dora Fitzgerald

By |2018-05-30T19:57:22-07:00April 30th, 2014|Categories: Food Program|0 Comments

It is wonderful to think about the foods that are growing all by themselves which will make a great snack as we are out for a walk. Sheep sorrel and miner’s lettuce come to mind often found close to a path. Their tender leaves and lively taste are fun to discover and nibble. Not to rain on this feast, but a word for attentiveness: many of us, me included, walk with our beloved dogs along these paths. Dogs are such great companions, and, as you’ve noticed, they do have a habit of lifting their legs or having a quick squat now and then. Keep that in mind when you pick your snack.

Your garden will also give you tasty food at this time of year, not necessarily from the stuff that you planted but from the weeds that come up all by themselves. Chickweed, dandelion greens and pepper grass are often ripped out to make way for our own plantings, but they are delicious and nutritious greens to enjoy by themselves or added to whatever salad we might be preparing.

A picnic idea, for totally biodegradable plates to eat from, (no dishes to wash when you are finished), use skunk cabbage leaves. Don’t get carried away and try to eat your plate. The only part that is good medicine is part of the root, but that takes a lot of drying and processing, so for now just enjoy your single use, entirely expendable green plates.

 

30 04, 2014

Feeding a Community by Alison Colwell

By |2018-05-30T19:53:50-07:00April 30th, 2014|Categories: Community Meals, Food Program|0 Comments

The Food Program’s “Soup for Seniors” project began a number of years ago when we were looking for a way to provide easy, locally made meals for our seniors. In the first year volunteers came together once a month and made big batches of soup, which we’d freeze and distribute to any senior that wanted them. Whenever possible we use local ingredients from our island farms.

Over time, we’ve become more “professional”! We still make the soup, but we’ve expanded our menu, and now we also make simple meals such as: shepherd’s pie, mac and cheese, Indian butter chicken, beef bourguignon, turkey pot pies and lasagna to name a few. We’re always perfecting our recipes and trying out new dishes. Everything is frozen in one- (or two– depending on your appetite) serving size, oven-ready foil containers.

The soup and meals are available at the Lions Walking Group on Tuesday mornings, and anytime, by meeting me at the South Hall. (Feel free to call me—2363—I’m often there, and you can pick up meals anytime.) The cost of the project is covered by the suggested price of $5 a meal or bowl of soup. We appreciate all those that can pay, as that covers the costs for those that cannot. So feel free to stock your freezer with tasty, locally made-ready-made meals and soups.

A couple of years ago, when we realized that people would be happy to join us, the kitchen crew, for lunch, we opened up the Hall for “Soup and Bread” lunches. And lots of you do come and eat with us. Which is fun for us, and helps raise more funds for a great program. Soup’s always hot and the bread is fresh out of the oven.

So if you are free for lunch on April 28th, come join us at the Hall from 12:30 till 1:30. We’ve got some great soup, fresh bread, all cooked by some amazing volunteers. And if you want to come cook with us—we can always use extra hands.

30 04, 2014

Soil and Compost Workshop

By |2018-05-30T19:51:21-07:00April 30th, 2014|Categories: Food Program, Growing (Garlic Co-op, Greenhouse, Gleaning Project), Workshops|0 Comments

The Food Program will hold a Soil and Compost Workshop on Sunday, May 11th from 10:30am-12:30. Barry New and Roger Pettit will lead a discussion and demonstrations about the soils we encounter on Galiano.

The topics covered will include soil of Galiano and sampling suggestions for you to try at home. There will be many ideas to improve any soil with organic methods without a big outlay.

Topics covered:

Soils of the Allotment

Soils of Galiano

Soil Health & Soil testing

Organic Techniques and Soil Amendments

Adding Fertility with Composts and other materials

Water Conservation techniques

We will have the results of our soil testing for the allotment site and soil sampling suggestions for you to try at home.

The workshop will take place at the new allotment site on the Lions Field. This is the area behind the ball field and Health Care Centre. The newly formed Galiano Allotment Society is developing this garden site on land that has been recently cleared and fenced, and the workshop will include an introduction to the allotment site.

Come with a sample of your own soil to be viewed by the “experts”.

Sliding scale $10-$15

30 04, 2014

CORE Hunter Education Class – Saturday, April 26

By |2018-05-30T19:44:20-07:00April 30th, 2014|Categories: Food Program, Workshops|0 Comments

The Food Program is hosting Ken Cameron, instructor, on Saturday, April 26 to teach the Conservation Outdoor Recreation Education (CORE) course, a program for BC residents who are 14 years of age or older. It covers conservation, ethics, law and regulations, first aid and survival in the wilderness, firearm safety, and animal and bird identification. This course is required in order to get a hunting license.

There is still space available—Contact us if you’re interested in registering!

30 04, 2014

Introduction to Cheese Making – Friday May 23rd

By |2018-05-30T19:40:52-07:00April 30th, 2014|Categories: Cheese Club, Food Program|0 Comments

Join cheesemaker David Asher Rotsztain as we explore the fascinating realm of cheese. David will demonstrate and explain the techniques for making three basic styles of cheese: paneer, yogourt cheese and camembert, an aged rennet cheese. These lessons will provide a solid foundation for those interested in making cheese at home, or anyone who wants to know how their cheese is made.

The workshop will emphasize a ‘natural cheesemaking’, with a focus on simple, DIY methods that are well suited to the home kitchen. David will also discuss the topics of raw milk, rennet-free cheeses and dairy ferments. At the end of the workshop, we will feast on our freshly made cheeses.

Friday, May 23rd from 1pm-4:30pm. Cost of the course is $30 – $40 sliding scale. Please bring cheese-friendly snacks.You must RSVP to Alison if you want to attend. Email: galianofoodprograms@gmail.com

What to bring: a container or two to take home fresh made cheese and some dairy cultures.

David Asher Rotsztain is an organic farmer and farmstead cheesemaker on Mayne Island on the west coast of BC. He picked up his cheesemaking skills from various teachers, including a Brown Swiss cow named Sundae on Cortes Island. David offers cheesemaking workshops with many food security-minded organizations around the Salish Sea including Lifecycles Society in Victoria, the UBC Farm in Vancouver, and the Foxglove Centre on Saltspring Island.

Check out guerrillacheese.wordpress.com for photos of David making cheese.

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