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.

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.

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.

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.

Scenes from the Cooking From Scratch Winter Morning Creations class at the Sitka Kitch

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kitch_logo_mainStudents learned how to make a variety of fried and baked pancakes from around the world during the Winter Morning Creations Cooking From Scratch series class held Monday, Dec. 5, at the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen.

The Winter Morning Creations class was the third of three classes in the Fall 2016 Cooking From Scratch series at the Sitka Kitch, which is located at First Presbyterian Church (505 Sawmill Creek Road). The three classes are taught by Lisa Sadleir-Hart, a registered dietitian and health educator. The classes were designed to help Sitka residents learn how to expand their culinary skills while also eating healthy foods and stretching their food dollars.

platewithkrupsolatkesandswedishpancakeThe Winter Morning Creations class taught students how to make a Finnish baked pancake called Krupso, the Eastern/Middle Eastern potato pancakes called Latke, Swedish pancakes, and Strata, a baked bread, kale and egg dish.

The first class in the series, on Nov. 14, taught students how to make homemade yogurt with non-fat powdered milk. The second class in the series, on Nov. 28, taught students how to make whole-grain breads using the Tassajara bread technique.

make-and-take-classThe Sitka Kitch will host a Holiday Make and Take class with Nickie Knight from 6-8:30 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 12, where students will learn how to make a variety of organic bath and body products using essential oils (such as body butter, luxurious sugar scrub, lip balm and holiday cheer room spray). This class will cost $20, plus a supply fee of about $15. This class currently is full, but you can email Nickie at nickie@essentialwellnessak.com to see if she has a waiting list in case someone cancels.

We’re also putting together a Cooking Around The World class series for this spring, so watch for updates once details are confirmed.

A slideshow of scenes from the Winter Morning Creations class can be found below.

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Scenes from the Cooking From Scratch whole-grain breads class at the Sitka Kitch

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kitch_logo_mainStudents learned how to make whole-grain breads using the Tassajara technique during the second Cooking From Scratch series class held Monday, Nov. 28, at the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen.

The whole-grain breads class was the second of three classes in the Fall 2016 Cooking From Scratch series at the Sitka Kitch, which is located at First Presbyterian Church (505 Sawmill Creek Road). The three classes are taught by Lisa Sadleir-Hart, a registered dietitian and health educator. The classes are designed to help Sitka residents learn how to expand their culinary skills while also eating healthy foods and stretching their food dollars.

breadandbreadbookThe Tassajara bread technique, which also was taught last year, is a virtually fool-proof way to make whole-grain breads. It was developed at a monastery in California, and there have been books detailing the technique. In addition to proofing a loaf of whole-wheat bread (so it’s ready to bake at home), the students also learned about a variety of whole grains that aren’t commonly used in the United States but are rich in flavor and nutrition.

The third Cooking from Scratch class will focus on winter morning creations (registration link), featuring baked and fried pancakes from around the world. It will be taught at 6-8:30 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 5. This class is new this fall, and it will teach students how to make a Finnish baked pancake called Krupso, the Eastern/Middle Eastern potato pancakes called Latke, Swedish pancakes, and Strata, a baked bread and egg dish. The first class in the series, on Nov. 14, taught students how to make homemade yogurt with non-fat powdered milk.

The Cooking from Scratch series goal is to teach basic cooking skills using high-quality ingredients, and to help Sitkans take back their kitchens and reduce their food budgets. Interested individuals can register at https://sitkakitch.eventsmart.com/ (click on the event title to register, and use our PayPal feature to pay for the class). We need at least eight students registered for each class to guarantee they happen.

revised2cookingfromscratch2016flierClass size is limited, so register early. The cost is $27.50 per class, plus a food/supply fee that will be divided among registered participants. The registration deadline is late on the Friday night before each class. For more information about the class series, call Lisa Sadleir-Hart at 747-5985.

In addition, the Sitka Kitch will host a Holiday Make and Take class with Nickie Knight from 6-8:30 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 12, where students will learn how to make a variety of organic bath and body products using essential oils (such as body butter, luxurious sugar scrub, lip balm and holiday cheer room spray). This class will cost $20, plus a supply fee of about $15. We’re also putting together a Cooking Around The World class series for this spring, so watch for updates once details are confirmed.

A slideshow of scenes from the whole-grain breads class can be found below.

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Check out the December 2016 edition of the Sitka Local Foods Network newsletter

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The Sitka Local Foods Network just sent out the December 2016 edition of its monthly newsletter. Feel free to click this link to get a copy.

This month’s newsletter includes short articles about our #GivingTuesday campaign on Nov. 29, a request for new board members, an update on two food-related Sitka Health Summit projects, 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.

 

A thank you to those people who donated to us through Pick.Click.Give.

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We recently received a check from Pick.Click.Give. for donations from the 2016 Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend (PFD) community giving program. This year there were 42 donors giving the Sitka Local Foods Network $2,800.

Thank you. We appreciate your support for our mission to increase the amount of locally produced and harvested food in the diets of Southeast Alaskans.

This was the third year the Sitka Local Foods Network participated in the Pick.Click.Give. program, which allows people to donate in $25 increments to their favorite statewide and local 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations when they file their PFD applications. When you choose to donate part of your PFD to the Sitka Local Foods Network, you support the Sitka Farmers Market, St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm, education programs about growing and preserving food, the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen, community gardens, the sustainable use of traditional foods, the Sitka Community Food Assessment, the Sitka Food Summit, the Fish-To-Schools program, and a variety of other projects designed to increase access to healthy local foods in Sitka.

Unfortunately, due to a clerical snafu, we will not be participating in the 2017 Pick.Click.Give. program. We hope to be back for 2018, though.

You still can donate to the Sitka Local Foods Network, even if we’re not in the 2017 Pick.Click.Give. program. To donate, send your check to the Sitka Local Foods Network, 408 Marine St., Suite D, Sitka, Alaska, 99835. Our EIN is 26-4629930. 

11-29-2016givingtuesdayOn Tuesday, Nov. 29, we will launch our second annual #GivingTuesday fundraising campaign. Giving Tuesday is a day set aside to donate to various causes you care about after the consumer-oriented Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday events. Our Giving Tuesday campaign will take donations through Dec. 31, for those wanting another donation for tax purposes.

You also can make an online donation through our Razoo.com crowdfunding page. Please let us know if you need a receipt for tax purposes. The Sitka Local Foods Network now has a Bronze rating from the GuideStar Nonprofit Profile Service, and we are listed with the Benevity Causes Portal used by larger corporations for employee giving programs. For more information about donating, you can send an email to sitkalocalfoodsnetwork@gmail.com.

Sitka Local Foods Network launches its second #GivingTuesdayAK online fundraiser

 

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Most people have heard about Black Friday, Small-Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday, three consumer-oriented days geared toward shopping for the holidays. But have you heard about Giving Tuesday, which takes place on Nov. 29 this year?

Giving Tuesday, also listed at #GivingTuesday (known as #GivingTuesdayAK in Alaska), is a day for people to celebrate generosity and give to worthy nonprofits who support the local community. This year, the Sitka Local Foods Network is launching its second Giving Tuesday online fundraiser to help us meet our mission of increasing the amount of locally produced and harvested food in the diets of Southeast Alaskans.

When you donate to the Sitka Local Foods Network you support us as we host the Sitka Farmers Markets during the summer, grow food at the St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm communal garden, and teach people about gardening and food preservation through our education program (which includes a garden buddy/mentor program for beginning gardeners). We also help with other local-food-related projects in town, such as Fish To Schools (which puts more locally caught seafood in school meals), our fruit tree project (where we got more community apple and cherry trees in town), the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen, or the Sitka Community Food Assessment (which gave us baseline data on food security issues in Sitka).

It’s easy to donate to our Giving Tuesday fundraiser through our secure donation page hosted by Razoo.com (an online site that collects donations for nonprofit organizations). The minimum donation through this site is $5, but we appreciate whatever you can give. A donation of $10 can help us purchase some seeds or work gloves, while a gift of $100 can buy wood, soil and seeds to build a raised garden bed. While #GivingTuesday launches on Nov. 29 this year, our #GivingTuesday donation page will accept gifts through Dec. 31 in case you need some charitable write-offs for tax purposes.

We just received our Pick.Click.Give. donations for 2016, $2,800 from 42 donors, and we thank all those people who chose to share part of their Alaska Permanent Fund Dividends with us. Unfortunately, the Sitka Local Foods Network will not be in the 2017 Pick.Click.Give. program due to a clerical snafu. We hope to return to the program in 2018.

For those who prefer to donate the old-fashioned way, you can send a check to the Sitka Local Foods Network, 408 Marine Street, Suite D, Sitka, Alaska, 99835. For those looking for end-of-the-year tax deductions, we are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and our EIN is 26-4629930. Please let us know if you need a receipt. We hold a Bronze level rating with GuideStar.org, and we also are listed with Benevity.org (a site where employee donations to nonprofits sometimes are matched by larger corporations).

We thank you for supporting local foods in Sitka, Alaska. Your donation is greatly appreciated. If you need more information about our organization or a receipt for tax purposes, you can email the Sitka Local Foods Network board of directors at sitkalocalfoodsnetwork@gmail.com.