Month: January 2017

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Scenes from the Jan. 21 Sitka Kitch Cooking From Scratch class on homemade tortilla-making

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kitch_logo_mainStudents learned how to make homemade flour tortillas during the Cooking From Scratch homemade tortilla-making class held Jan. 21 at the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen.

The class was taught by Elvia Torres, who teaches reading and formerly taught home economics at Blatchley Middle School. She demonstrated her mother’s traditional tortilla recipe, and also showed students what good and bad tortillas look like.

The Sitka Kitch is finalizing the dates and times for two upcoming class series this spring. Cooking Around The World will feature five classes (two in February and three in April) where different cooks will teach students how to make dishes from Morocco, Chile, Austria (strudel), Turkey, and Thailand. The other series is tentatively called Food As Medicine, which will be taught by Sitka nutritionist Holly Marban over five or six Mondays in March (National Nutrition Month) and April. Watch the Sitka Kitch page on Facebook or our online registration page to see when these classes are scheduled.

A slideshow of scenes from the homemade tortilla-making class follows below.

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Check out the January 2017 edition of the Sitka Local Foods Network newsletter

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The Sitka Local Foods Network just sent out the January 2017 edition of its monthly newsletter. Feel free to click this link to get a copy.

This month’s newsletter includes short articles about our annual meeting and potluck dinner on Feb. 4, a request for new board members, an update on the Southeast Alaska Farmers Summit on Feb. 24-26 in Haines, and info about some upcoming classes at the Sitka Kitch. Each story has links to our website for more information.

You can sign up for future editions of our newsletter by clicking on the registration form image in the right column of our website and filling in the information. If you received a copy but didn’t want one, there is a link at the bottom of the newsletter so you can unsubscribe. Our intention is to get the word out about upcoming events and not to spam people. We will protect your privacy by not sharing our email list with others.

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Registration open now for Southeast Alaska Farmers Summit on Feb. 24-26 in Haines

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Share lessons learned and techniques for overcoming challenges of commercially growing food in Southeast Alaska; learn specific skills, technology, and research that contribute to commercial farming success and efficiency; connect with new and experienced farmers to build an inspiring network.

Early bird registration is now open for the Southeast Alaska Farmers Summit 2017, the second biennial summit designed to bring together experienced and aspiring commercial growers and support agencies. The summit will be held Friday through Sunday, Feb. 24-26, at the Chilkat Center in Haines. A discounted registration rate is available to attendees who register on or before Friday, Jan. 20. Travel and registration scholarships are available.

The conference will feature presentations from experienced commercial growers and support agencies, and topical discussions and panels to share resources and lessons learned. Speakers include Doug Collins, Extension Faculty and Soil Scientist with Washington State University’s Small Farms Program; Megan Talley, Farm Manager and Educator at Alaska Pacific University; and experienced farmers from Southeast Alaska; among others.

“This will be an opportunity for commercial growers of Southeast Alaska to learn from each other, find opportunities to collaborate, and build a network that can leverage everyone’s efforts,” said Lia Heifetz, Local Food Director for Southeast Alaska Watershed Coalition. “Many resources will be shared over the course of the weekend – from financial planning for small farms to innovative solutions for soil building, policy implications for agriculture, and much more.”

Other topics to be addressed at the Southeast Alaska Farmers Summit include:

  • On Farm Food Safety
  • Building your Farm Community
  • Planning for a CSA
  • The Future of Seed Saving in Alaska
  • High Tunnel Applications and Innovations
  • Electric and Walk-in Cold Storage for your Farm
  • Biomass Heated Greenhouses and Aquaponics
  • Per Foot Crop Values for Market Sales
  • Using Local Amendments to Improve Soil Quality
  • Fruit Trees and Grafting Techniques
  • Policy and Initiatives
  • Building a Future of Farming with Internships and Education
  • Business Planning and Farm Finances

For more information and to register for the conference, please visit this website, http://www.alaskawatershedcoalition.org/safs2017/, or contact Lia Heifetz at lia@growsoutheast.com.

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Sitka Local Foods Network to host annual meeting and potluck on Saturday, Feb. 4

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The Sitka Local Foods Network will host its annual meeting and potluck dinner from 5-7 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 4, at the Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine St., parking off of Spruce Street).

Participants are encouraged to bring a dish featuring local foods to share, and please bring your own utensils (note, this is a non-alcoholic event). This event is a good event to attend for people who want to learn more about the Sitka Local Foods Network and what we do around town.

Attendees will hear about project updates, plus the current board will vote on by-law changes. We will introduce our new board members for 2017, and we will confirm the election of our officers. We also have a couple of openings on our board, and people wanting to learn more about joining can click this link for info and applications.

Individuals interested in learning more about the Sitka Local Foods Network can email sitkalocalfoodsnetwork@gmail.com to learn about our projects and volunteer opportunities.

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Sitka Kitch to host Cooking From Scratch class Jan. 21 on homemade tortilla-making

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kitch_logo_mainLearn the basic fundamentals of how to make homemade tortillas from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Jan. 21, at the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen (505 Sawmill Creek Road, inside First Presbyterian Church).

This class will be taught by Elvia Torres, a teacher at Blatchley Middle School who in May 2016 joined several others in Sitka to complete the Safe Home Food Preservation Certification course from the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service. Elvia will share her mother’s traditional recipe, and she will demonstrate what good and bad tortillas look like.

tortillasongriddleThe cost for this class is $15, plus a food/supply fee split between the members of the class. Space is limited at the Sitka Kitch, so register early. Students should prepay for the class through the Sitka Kitch online registration site, http://sitkakitch.eventsmart.com, using PayPal. If you need other payment arrangements, contact Chandler or Clarice of Sitka Conservation Society at 747-7509 to pay with cash or check. To qualify for a refund, please notify us at least three days in advance if you need to cancel. The registration deadline is 5 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 19. Please email sitkakitch@sitkawild.org with any questions.

Also, keep an eye out for the announcements of two upcoming class series this winter/spring — Cooking Around the World (featuring a variety of instructors demonstrating how to cook international dishes from February through April) and Food As Medicine (taught by dietician Holly Marbán during National Nutrition Month in March). Details are coming soon.