forage

It’s the dead of winter! There may not be a lot of snow on the ground, but it is the dead of winter when it comes to eating locally. We are a couple weeks away from the green houses coming on line and we are as far as we can get from the last cucumber they had back in December. With the longer daylight and the warmer temperatures I find myself craving fresh, crispy and light flavoured things. In reality, the ground is still frozen and we are 3 months away from the May long weekend planting frenzy. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining, it’s just tough coming to grips with the reality of our Calgary seasons. In a couple weeks Gull Valley will be back with butterleaf lettuce, cucumbers, and green peppers. Then they’ll add the colored peppers, eggplant and their tomatoes! Oh, the tomatoes. Have you had a decent one since December? Then we’ll see the asparagus from Edgar Farms, then the cherries, early lettuces, and then our incredibly short summer season. So it’s not all bad right now. We just have a couple more weeks to get through and then it’s all looking up from there!

Here’s the menu for this week:

Monday - Chicken Tamale Pie

sunworks farm chicken, beans, tomato sauce, and peppers topped with cornmeal biscuit crust $12

Tuesday - Roast Berkshire Pork

broek pork acres berkshire pork leg rubbed with garlic and rosemary served with mashed potatoes $13

Wednesday - Roasted Vegetable Lasagne

root vegetables and squash layered with our fresh pasta, fairwinds farm goat’s ricotta and cheese $13

Thursday - Chicken Paprikash

sunworks farm chicken in a hungarian paprika and sour cream sauce with egg noodles $13

Friday - BBQ Bison

slow roasted buffalo horn ranch bison in a saskatoon berry bbq sauce served with a soft roll and coleslaw $13

This Week’s Soup – Mulligatawny $7

This Week’s Stew – Turkey White Bean Chili $8

Something Sweet – Fudge Brownie $4

February 19^th, 2008

Hello All,

Hope you all had a great long weekend! A couple things for this short week… There is very little distance between the field and the food prepared at Forage. For the most part this keeps our prices fairly stable because they aren’t affected by a frost in Florida or a crop failure in South America. Lately though the entire globe is feeling the effects of a shortage of wheat. Basically there is a shortage of supply and this is being compounded by a shift from wheat to corn for ethanol production. For us, it has meant a huge increase in the cost of our Organic flour. When we opened Forage a short 7 months ago, we were buying flour for $24 a sack. Our latest order came in at $39 and Tony from Highwood Crossing figures we might see $50 in the near future. As a result, we have made some slight increases to pricing. So far the wheat shortage has only affected our flour and chicken prices (organic wheat is part of the feed for Sunworks Farm chickens), but we’ll keep you informed as the market responds.

Last I heard, there were just a few tickets left for the Broek Pork Acres Berkshire Porkfest next Tuesday night. Go to www.slowfoodcalgary.ca for details on how to get tickets. This weekend is also another meeting of our Terra Madre group and I’ll report on that to the website sometime next week.

Here’s the menu for this week:

Tuesday - Chicken Rigatoni

sunworks farm chicken, penne, tomato sauce, spinach topped with bechamel and cheese $12

Wednesday - Curried Vegetables

our famous chick peas, cauliflower, and carrots in a curried tomato cream sauce served with basmati rice $12

Thursday - Bison Meatloaf

buffalo horn ranch bison meatloaf with saskatoon berry bbq glaze and potato and celery root gratin $14

Friday - Roast Organic Chicken

sunworks farm organic chicken roasted until golden, served with mashed potatoes and gravy - $38 whole $25 half $14 quarter

This Week’s Soup – Chicken Noodle $8

This Week’s Stew – Beef Chili $8

Something Sweet – Mom’s Chocolate Cake $4

We use a lot of product from Sunworks Farm located Northwest of Camrose and it is because of them that we are so committed to local and sustainable agriculture. Ron and Sheila Hamilton are leaders in the field of certified organic livestock and poultry and we started to use their product after we were paired with them for a Slow Food Feast of Fields. About a decade ago, in response to some health issues, the Hamiltons attended a holistic farm management course and that changed the way they look at farming. They now produce organic chicken, duck, turkey, pork, beef, bison, and lamb using pasture management and humane and organic practices. A trip to their farm really shows how simple it is to raise great tasting animals. Give them grass, sunshine and water and let nature look after the rest.

Here is the menu for this week:

Monday - Chicken Lasagna

sunworks farm chicken, roasted mushrooms, fresh pasta made in house, tomato sauce, cheese $13

Tuesday - Pepper Steak Casserole

thin slices of roast hoven farms organic beef, potatoes, onions, and peppers topped with gouda $13

Wednesday - Roasted Squash Risotto Cake

roasted winter squash risotto cake served with braised cabbage and chard $12

Thursday - Valentine’s Day - Chicken Pot Pie

sunworks farm chicken, potatoes, carrots, and peas in herb white sauce with biscuit top and spinach salad $14

Friday - Grilled Chicken Sausage

sunworks farm chicken rosemary sausage slathered in tomato sauce served with rice $12

This Week’s Soup – Chicken Noodle $8

This Week’s Stew – Bison Stew $9

Something Sweet – Carrot Cake With Cream Cheese Icing $4

Do not miss out on the French Onion Soup this week! We have roasted organic beef bones from Hoven Farms to make beef stock, slowly caramelized onions from Broxburn Garden (yes, Alberta onions), toasted our own apple cider rye, and shredded Sylvan Star gruyere and gouda. Heat the soup, top with the rye, smother with the cheese and place under the broiler for gooey rich goodness!

Also this week we are adding a baked egg casserole to our freezer selection. It is forage sourdough, Sunworks Farm chicken chorizo, peppers and onions, and cheddar all baked with egg and cream. These are perfect for breakfast or even dinner.

Here’s the menu for this week:

Monday - Minute Steak

hoven farms minute steak smothered in mushroom cream sauce with rice $13

Tuesday - Chicken Burrito

sunworks farm chicken, black beans, and cheddar wrapped in a tres marias flour tortilla with red rice $13

Wednesday - Vegetable Tagine

chick peas, carrots, potatoes, and cauliflower with moroccan spices served with cous cous $11

Thursday - Shepherd’s Pie

hoven farms organic beef, corn, carrots, and peas topped with herb mashed potatoes $12

Friday - Roast Chicken

sunworks farm organic chicken roasted until golden, served with mashed potatoes and gravy

$38 whole $25 half $14 quarter

This Week’s Soup – French Onion $8

This Week’s Stew – Grilled Chicken Sausage Stew $9

Something Sweet – Lemon Chiffon Cake $4