February 12, 2016 by Charles Bingham

• Quick and Easy Thai Cooking class to raise funds for William Stortz portrait

Want to learn how to make quick and easy Thai food in less than one hour from ingredients you can buy at your local grocery store or grow in your garden?

Longtime Sitka resident Nancy Knapp, a health professional who spent many years in Thailand and Laos, will teach this class, which takes place from 5:30-7 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 23, at the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen (inside the First Presbyterian Church, 505 Sawmill Creek Road). Students should bring three containers to the class, one each for rice, tom kha gai, and kaeng penang moo. Students will take home dinner for two people to eat later. These dishes will be non-vegetarian, but tofu or tempeh can be used to replace the chicken or pork when cooking.

William Stortz

This class will serve as a fundraiser to purchase a portrait of William Stortz, painted by Sitka artist Steve Lawrie. William Stortz was one of the three people who died in the August 2015 landslide, and the portrait will hang in the new art gallery bearing his name in the city offices. William was working as the city building inspector when the landslide happened, and before that he spent many years working for the facilities department at the SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC). There also will be a donation can where people can donate, and Nancy Knapp will donate her instructor fee to the cause.

Space is limited to 10 students, so please register early. You can register by clicking this link (you will pay by cash or check at the class). Registration ends at noon on Sunday, Feb. 21, so the instructor has time to purchase supplies. The class fee is $30 per student (not including a possible materials fee split between students), and students will pay by cash or check at the class. Email sitkakitch@sitkawild.org for more information.

The Sitka Kitch was a project of the 2013 Sitka Health Summit, and the project is coordinated by the Sitka Conservation Society, in partnership with the Sitka Local Foods Network. The Sitka Kitch can be rented to teach cooking and food preservation classes, by local cottage food industry entrepreneurs who need a commercial kitchen to make their products, and for large groups needing a large kitchen for a community dinner.

In addition to this special class, the Sitka Kitch is offering a winter Cooking From Scratch class series taught by local chefs in February and a Basic Culinary Skills class series taught by Westmark Hotel executive chef Kathy Jones in March. The Basic Culinary Skills series is designed to help people who want to find work in the restaurant or catering fields improve their kitchen skills (these classes also will be open to people who want to improve their home cooking skills).

February 12, 2016 by Charles Bingham

• Scenes from the second winter Cooking From Scratch series class — Ancient Grains and Gut Health

Amaranth, spelt, millet, quinoa, farro, teft, barley and Kamut® were among the topics of the Feb. 15 second class of the Sitka Kitch‘s winter Cooking From Scratch series — Ancient Grains and Gut Health.

Taught by local internal medicine specialist and former chef Dr. Julien Naylor, students learned how these ancient grains can be used in everyday cooking and how they can improve a person’s gut health (reducing cholesterol, adding fiber, reducing diabetes and heart disease risks, etc.). The students made a variety of dishes using these grains, then sat down to a meal.

This was the second of a series of four winter Cooking From Scratch classes at the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen in February. The first class was making homemade pasta taught by chef Edith Johnson on Feb. 1. The other two classes are:

Sauces and Dressings — 6-8:30 p.m., Monday, Feb. 15, taught by Kathy Jones (executive chef at the Westmark Sitka and Dock Shack). This class is focused on preparing homemade sauces and dressings to help you lower your food costs and increase flavor. Registration closes at noon on Feb. 13. (NOTE: We canceled this class on Feb. 13 because we didn’t reach our minimum number of students.)
Homemade Empanadas — 6-8:30 p.m., Monday, Feb. 29, taught by Barbara Palacios (sous chef at the Westmark Sitka). A favorite food of Latin America, Barbara will draw on her Chilean background to teach this delicious homemade empanada class. Empanadas can be savory or sweet, and filled with meats, vegetables or sweet ingredients. In this class, students will make salmon (baked) and/or cheese (deep-fried) empanadas. Registration closes on Feb. 27.

Each class costs $20, plus a food and equipment fee split between students (usually about $5-$10). All of the classes will be taught at the Sitka Kitch, which is located in the First Presbyterian Church (505 Sawmill Creek Road). To learn more about each class, click the class titles above (which will take you to our registration page; you pay with cash or check at the class, with checks made out to the Sitka Conservation Society).

Since class size is limited, we ask anybody who can’t make the class to please let us know so we can let someone from the waiting list into the class. Registration for each class closes at noon the Saturday before each class so supplies can be purchased (except for the ancient grains class, which closes on Saturday). If we don’t have enough people sign up, we may have to cancel the class, so please register early.

For more information about the winter Cooking From Scratch class series, please email sitkakitch@sitkawild.org. Also, watch for information soon on our Basic Culinary Skills class series in March, which is designed to help people who want to find work in the restaurant or catering fields improve their kitchen skills (these classes also will be open to people who want to improve their home cooking skills).

A slideshow of photos from the ancient grains and gut health class is posted below.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

February 10, 2016 by Charles Bingham

• UAF Cooperative Extension Service offers Certified Food Protection Manager class by videoconference March 3 in Sitka

Wednesday, Feb. 17, is the registration deadline for a certified food protection manager workshop being taught on Thursday, March 3, by University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service. This is an all-day statewide class that will be offered by videoconferencing to Fairbanks, Palmer, Juneau, Petersburg, Sitka, Craig, Angoon, Klukwan, and Tenakee.

A certified food protection manager (CFPM) is responsible for monitoring and managing all food establishment operations to ensure that the facility is operating in compliance with food establishment regulations.

A CFPM is knowledgeable about food safety practices and uses this knowledge to provide consumers with safe food, protect public health and prevent food-borne illnesses. Alaska regulations require food establishments to have at least one CFPM on staff.

This course takes place from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. (with a half-hour lunch), and participants will take a computer-based exam at the end of the class. The reason the deadline is two weeks before the class is to guarantee course materials reach all the students in time for the class. The cost is $200, and the course will be taught by Julie Cascio of Palmer. Students can register here.

The Sitka videoconference for the class will take place in Room 110 at the University of Alaska Southeast Sitka Campus. To learn more, contact Jasmine Shaw at the Sitka District Office of the UAF Cooperative Extension Service at 747-9440, or contact Kathy McDougall at (907) 474-2420 (Fairbanks number) or kmmcdougall@alaska.edu. Note, this class is taught in English but textbooks are available in Korean, Chinese and Spanish, just contact Kathy at least three weeks before the class.

Also, the ServSafe book ($60) and certification exam ($75) now are available online, if people want to order the book and study independently without taking the class. Just go to this website and purchase the book and exam items.

February 8, 2016 by Charles Bingham

• UAF Cooperative Extension Service, Alaska Sea Grant team up to offer online course on the specialty food business

Are you interested in starting a specialty food business? The University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service and the UAF Alaska Sea Grant program are teaming up to offer a five-class online course about how to start a specialty foods course in March.

The class is only available online and it will be from 5:30-8 p.m. on March 1, 3, 8, 10 and 15. You must attend all five classes during the times they are offered. The course costs $50 and is limited to the first 25 who register from around the state. More details about the class and its technology requirements can be found here. The instructors will be Quentin Fong of the Alaska Sea Grant program and Kate Idzorek of the UAF Cooperative Extension Service.

This course is intended for individuals interested in starting and operating a specialty food business to sell foods under the DEC Cottage Foods Exemption, a temporary DEC permit, DEC-permitted food production businesses to sell wholesale in Alaska or DEC-permitted Mobile Food Units (food trucks). This course is NOT intended for individuals starting or operating a restaurant or starting an interstate or international wholesale food business. It is for people who want to make specialty food products, such as jams and jellies, handmade chocolates, salsa, pickled fish, or operate a food truck. Many specialty food products are perfect for selling at the Sitka Farmers Market.

To register online, go to http://bit.ly/ces-workshops. For more information, contact Kate Idzorek of the UAF Cooperative Extension Service at 1-907-474-5391 (Fairbanks number).

February 2, 2016 by Charles Bingham

• Scenes from the first winter Cooking From Scratch series class — Homemade Pasta

Spaghetti, fettuccini, farfalle, and pappardelle were among the topics of the Feb. 1 first class of the Sitka Kitch‘s winter Cooking From Scratch series — Homemade Pasta.

Taught by local chef Edith Johnson, students learned how to make a basic egg, olive oil and flour pasta recipe, then learned about the different types of pasta and how they are used.

This was the first of a series of four winter Cooking From Scratch classes at the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen in February. The other three classes are:

Ancient Grains and Gut Health — 6-8:30 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 9, taught by Dr. Julien Naylor (an internal medicine specialist and chef). This class is focused on how to prepare ancient grains and include more of them in your diet to improve gut health. Registration closes on Feb. 6.
Sauces and Dressings — 6-8:30 p.m., Monday, Feb. 15, taught by Kathy Jones (executive chef at the Westmark Sitka and Dock Shack). This class is focused on preparing homemade sauces and dressings to help you lower your food costs and increase flavor. Registration closes on Feb. 12.
Homemade Empanadas — 6-8:30 p.m., Monday, Feb. 29, taught by Barbara Palacios (sous chef at the Westmark Sitka). A favorite food of Latin America, Barbara will draw on her Chilean background to teach this delicious homemade empanada class. Empanadas can be savory or sweet, and filled with meats, vegetables or sweet ingredients. In this class, students will make salmon (baked) and/or cheese (deep-fried) empanadas. Registration closes on Feb. 26.

Since class size is limited, we ask anybody who can’t make the class to please let us know so we can let someone from the waiting list into the class. Registration for each class closes at 5 p.m. the Friday before each class so supplies can be purchased (except for the ancient grains class, which closes on Saturday). If we don’t have enough people sign up, we may have to cancel the class, so please register early.

The Sitka Kitch was a project of the 2013 Sitka Health Summit, and the project is coordinated by the Sitka Conservation Society in partnership with the Sitka Local Foods Network. The Sitka Kitch can be rented to teach cooking and food preservation classes, by local cottage food industry entrepreneurs who need a commercial kitchen to make their products, and for large groups needing a large kitchen for a community dinner. To learn more about how to rent the Sitka Kitch, please go to the website at http://www.sitkawild.org/sitka_kitch.

A slideshow of photos from the homemade pasta class is posted below.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

January 30, 2016 by Charles Bingham

• Check out the February 2016 edition of the Sitka Local Foods Network newsletter

SLFNNewsletterFebruary2016screenshot

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

This edition of the newsletter has brief stories about our annual meeting and potluck dinner on Feb. 11, a variety of new education opportunities, a Sitka Farmers Market meeting on Feb. 17, and how you can donate to the Sitka Local Foods Network through the 2016 Pick.Click.Give. donation program through the Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend application. 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.

January 27, 2016 by Charles Bingham

• Please join us Feb. 17 to discuss changes to the Sitka Farmers Market

The Sitka Local Foods Network has some changes in store for the way it runs the Sitka Farmers Market, and we want you to be a part of those changes and we want to hear your input.

We’re hosting an informational session, a Q&A if you will, at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 17, at the Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine Street, parking off Spruce Street). The meeting should run for about an hour.

The gist of the meeting is that there are two challenges the Sitka Farmers Market needs to overcome for the 2016 season:

How can we make the Sitka Farmers Market financially sustainable?
Historically we have avoided holding Sitka Farmers Markets on Chelan Produce days. Chelan Produce has changed its schedule, so how can we best adapt our schedule?

We will have a short presentation, followed by Q&As and discussion. Anyone interested in the Sitka Farmers Market is welcome.

Traditionally farmers markets are run by the vendors who benefit from them, so please come and let your thoughts be heard. We value your input and want to empower you to create a successful market together. And we will have snacks.

For more information, email sitkalocalfoodsnetwork@gmail.com.

January 24, 2016 by Charles Bingham

• Sitka Kitch to offer Basic Culinary Skills classes in March for those seeking restaurant work

Chef Kathy Jones holds up a fresh king crab.

Are you seeking work in the restaurant or catering industry this summer but feel you need to beef up your skills? The Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen will offer a series of four Basic Culinary Skills classes in March designed to help you develop the skills you need to work in the field.

These classes will be taught by Kathy Jones, executive chef at the Westmark Sitka Hotel and the Totem Square Inn. They are modeled after a similar basic culinary skills program Chef Kathy knows from Indianapolis offered by a food relief nonprofit called Second Helpings.

The classes take place from 6-8:30 p.m. on each Monday in March (March 7, 14, 21, and 28) at the Sitka Kitch, which is located inside the First Presbyterian Church (505 Sawmill Creek Road). Each class costs $25, plus a small materials fee. There is a $20 discount for those students who register for all four classes and pay at the first class. To learn more about each class, click the class titles below (which will take you to our registration page; you pay with cash or check at the class, with checks made out to the Sitka Conservation Society).

Since class size is limited, we ask anybody who can’t make the class to please let us know so we can let someone from the waiting list into the class. Registration for each class closes at 5 p.m. the Friday before each class so supplies can be purchased, or the class can be canceled if not enough people sign up, so please register early.

Basic Culinary Skills 1 — 6-8:30 p.m., Monday, March 7, this class will focus on basic kitchen sanitation, beginning knife skills and basic kitchen tools.
Basic Culinary Skills 2 — 6-8:30 p.m., Monday, March 14, this class will focus on basic cooking techniques, basic nutrition, and sauces, soups and stocks part 1.
Basic Culinary Skills 3 — 6-8:30 p.m., Monday, March 21, the class will focus on sauces, soups and stocks part 2, salads, and measurements.
Basic Culinary Skills 4 — 6-8:30 p.m., Monday, March 28, the class will focus on poultry, meats, and the Alaska DEC safe food handler’s card.

The Basic Culinary Skills class series is supported by a grant from the Northwest Farm Credit Services rural community grant program.

In addition to the Basic Culinary Skills class series, there still are spots open in the Sitka Kitch’s winter Cooking From Scratch series of classes in February. All of the classes are open to the general public.

For more information about the Sitka Kitch and the classes, please email sitkakitch@sitkawild.org. You also can go to our class registration page at https://sitkakitch.eventsmart.com/ to see all of the available classes (click on the class titles to register).

January 21, 2016 by Charles Bingham

• UAS Sitka Campus offers ‘Flora of Southeast Alaska’ course as a hybrid

Salmonberries await picking near the entrance to Sitka National Historical Park

A newish biology class by University of Alaska Southeast Sitka Campus associate professor Kitty LaBounty will itself be a “hybrid”, and it’s back for its second year.

The DNA of most traditional botany classes is to gather students around a table of samples and look at them in a face-to-face classroom setting. By offering Flora of Southeast Alaska as both a local and distance-delivery (eLearning) class, students from anywhere can get up to speed on how to identify the common native trees, shrubs and herbs of southeast and south central Alaska. Local students can participate in the lectures on campus, while students across Alaska can see the imagery online and hear the lectures either live or via digital recording.

Flora of Southeast Alaska is a one-credit, seven-week workshop. The focus will be on identification of common species and attaining an understanding of their place in the ecosystem of Southeast Alaska. Students will discover how these plants interact with other plants and animals, and how humans use these plants for food, fuel, medicine, or simply enjoyment.

In addition to illustrated weekly lectures, there will be written exercises and “check for understanding” activities. The class is available to any student without prerequisites. It does not count as credit toward a biology major at UAS.

Professor LaBounty brings her lifelong passion as a gardener and scientist to this topic, along with more than 25 years experience working on plant identification for state, federal and nonprofit agencies in Alaska.

The class will meet from 5:30-7 p.m. on Thursdays from Feb. 25 to April 30 — with time off for spring break. The cost is $187 for local students and $227 for eLearning (distance) students.

For more information, contact Kitty LaBounty at UAS Sitka Campus. 747-9432. To register, call 747-7700. or toll-free, 800-478-6653.

January 20, 2016 by Charles Bingham

• It’s time … get ready for spring vegetable gardening with classes from the Sitka Local Foods Network

Thinking about your garden, especially with our warm winter weather? It’s time to mark your calendars with several upcoming Spring 2016 garden classes offered by the Sitka Local Foods Network Education Committee.

These classes will cover a variety of topics, from gardening basics and choosing what veggies to grow in Sitka to extending your gardening season, composting and seed-starting. But wait, there’s more. There’s also a class on abundant landscaping, plus classes on growing rhubarb and potatoes. Some of the classes have limited space and require preregistration, so sign up early. Most of the classes are free, but we accept donations. There is one class with a minimal materials fee.

We will be adding more classes to this list as they become available, so check the website for updates. We plan to post individual class announcements as we get closer to the actual class dates.

And now, here’s the list of classes so far:

Vegetable Gardening 101 — 6:30-8 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 27, at Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine St., parking off Spruce St.), teacher Michelle Putz, class tailored for beginning gardeners, no preregistration required.
Choosing What Veggies to Grow in Sitka — 6:30-8 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 10, at Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine St., parking off Spruce St.), teacher Lori Adams, class tailored for beginning gardeners or gardeners new to Sitka, no preregistration required.
Extending Your Gardening Season — 2 p.m., Saturday, March 12, at the Perry Edwards/Michelle Putz home (131 Shelikof Way), teacher Kerry MacLane, the class will explore various methods for protecting your plants and lengthening the growing season, no preregistration required.
Starting Vegetable Seedlings Workshop — 6:30-8 p.m., Wednesday, March 23, at Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine St., parking off Spruce Street), teacher Jennifer Carter, learn how to start seedlings and go home with a tray of planted seeds, space limited, $10 materials fee, preregistration required.
Abundant Landscaping — 2 p.m., Saturday, April 2, at Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine St., parking off Spruce St.), teacher Jud Kirkness, a hands-on approach to the “9-layer forest garden” methodology, no preregistration required.
Growing and Fertilizing Rhubarb — 9 a.m., Saturday, April 9, at the Perry Edwards/Michelle Putz home (131 Shelikof), teacher Michelle Putz, no preregistration required.
Everyone Can Compost — 6:30-8 p.m., Wednesday, April 20, at Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine St., parking off Spruce Street), teacher Jennifer Carter, learn the basics of composting your own soil, no preregistration required.
Growing Potatoes In Sitka — 9 a.m., Saturday, April 23, at the Perry Edwards/Michelle Putz home (131 Shelikof), teacher Michelle Putz, no preregistration required.

In addition, we’ll be launching our new downtown teaching garden as we get closer to growing season and all of those classes will be open to the public. Feel free to help the Sitka Local Foods Network education committee plan new programming at its next monthly meeting, from 6:30-8 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 28, at the Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine Street, parking off Spruce Street).

For more information or to sign up for classes requiring preregistration, contact Jennifer Carter at 747-0520 or 1-850-491-2666 (cell).

• Spring 2016 garden education classes from the Sitka Local Foods Network (opens as PDF)