A Teaspoon of Turmeric

This beautiful organic Ontario rhubarb was given to us by Susan Schroeter of Lean on Me Nutrition (Holistic Nutritional Counselling) in Oakville, Ontario. Susan grows her own rhubarb and was gracious to share some with Arvinda

Whole Foods Market continually offers interesting seminars on everything from healthy eating and cooking naturally, to uber body care au natural. I love going to these seminars whenever I get the chance since they make me feel I’ve taken a bigger step forward towards better health, and I feel motivated to try new ingredients outside my comfort zone. Best of all, most of them are free!

Last week I went to the Home Canning Workshop to brush up my ‘preserving’ skills! A few years back when I was doing my Masters degree in Environmental Studies, I had a group project in Ecological Economics with the objective to address the mass importation of out-of-season fruits and vegetables into the Toronto region. Despite the fact Southern Ontario is a highly productive agricultural area, the majority of the produce consumed by Ontarians is imported and is especially true of out-of-season and climate-specific fruits and vegetables. Since the time of project in 2006, this of course has dramatically improved with the opening of more local markets and with retailers favouring local foods.

As part of the project, our task was to develop a series of solutions to solve the problem at hand. Canning, preserving and pickling came out on top as a great way to avoid purchasing produce (like tomatoes) during winter months when they are useless and taste like cardboard. It’s no wonder my Italian friends insist on canning their homemade tomato sauce every September. This usually takes place in the garage in huge batches!

A guide to home preserving.

Our group was thinking of running a series of canning workshops for singles. Would you go to a Boy Meets Girl ‘Jamming Session’ if you were single? We never did get around to it, but the idea seemed novel at the time!

Fast forward to 2010 and with all of my good intentions to get canning, I still hadn’t gotten around to it. When I met up with my friend Rossana in May, she was already planning her homemade Italian tomato sauce cook-off! So timing of Whole Foods Market’s sponsored Home Canning Workshop could not have been better!

Lavender Infused Strawberry Freezer Jam

Hosted by Chef Emerie Brine of Bernardin, we made a series of super, easy jams including Lavender Infused Strawberry Freezer Jam and a Strawberry Balsamic Preserve. And with some good luck, I was the winner of a Bernardin All-In-One Starter Kit (the starter kit is perfect for the first-time canner like me). I think this was meant to be!

I won the Bernardin All-In-One Starter Kit -- perfect for first-timers!

So this inspired my Curried Peach Rhubarb Chutney:

Ingredients:
3 organic rhubarb stalks, washed, trimmed and cubed
3 organic peaches, cubed
¼ cup raw cane sugar
1 tbsp. vinegar
2 tsp. Arvinda’s Madras Masala
½ tsp. sea salt

Simmer and reduce.

Method: In a heavy bottomed pot combine above ingredients and cook on medium low for 20 minutes. Serving suggestions: Serve this sweet and spicy chutney as a condiment on a cheese platter or alongside any Indian meal.

Arvinda's Madras Peach Rhubarb Chutney

Alternatively, try Rootham’s delicious Black Pepper Lime Chutney, which is in my pantry as we speak. This chutney is spot-on and I especially enjoy it with a vegetarian Indian meal. I came across Rootham’s Gourmet a few years back when I was working on a project on Canadian food products. Founded in the early 80s, Rootham’s line of innovative preserves and jams were naturally featured since they were using local, seasonal produce from a backyard garden. There are so many delicious varieties to try, but for an Indian meal definitely go with Rootham’s Black Pepper Lime Chutney.

Rootham's Black Pepper Lime Chutney is perfect for an Indian meal.

For canning tips and recipes visit: www.Bernardin.com. Last year at the annual Feast of Fields Bernardin gave out a delicious jar of homemade salsa to attendees. If you plan to make it out this year, I hear they’re planning on another goodie giveaway!

Strawberry Balsamic Jam

A teaspoon of: The Temper Trap. Listening to: Sweet Disposition.

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