salmon

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• UAF Cooperative Extension Service offers online resources for home canners

Salmon ready for canning in jars (Photo courtesy of University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service)

Salmon ready for canning in jars (Photo courtesy of University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service)

Did you catch a lot of fish this summer and now you want to can some of them to eat this winter? Do you want to make salmonberry preserves with all those lush, ripe salmonberries you picked this week?

The University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service recently launched a series of interactive online demonstrations called “Preserving Alaska’s Bounty.” Want to learn how to can salmon using jars? Click on the link and you are taken to a page with photos and short descriptions mixed in with video clips to show you how to can your fish. There is an introduction and sections on equipment, preparation, packing, canning, cooling and storage. There also are links to additional resources.

If you want to learn about making jams and jellies, there’s an online demonstration on that topic. There also are demonstrations about canner basics, acidity, canning fish using cans, canning wild meats in jars and in cans, and more. Jeff Fay from the UAF Cooperative Extension Service said there also are DVDs that cover some of the same topics, and more titles are expected to be added to the site in the next year or two.

If you do a little bit of surfing around the UAF Cooperative Extension Service’s Web site, you’ll find all kinds of how-to materials. There are materials on gardening, recipes, home construction, food safety, winterizing your house and other topics.

If you can’t find what you need on the UAF Cooperative Extension Service site, other state land grant universities have their own version of the Cooperative Extension Service and most of their materials are available for download off the Internet. One of the attachments below is to a handout from the Iowa State University Cooperative Extension Service about how to freeze a variety of fruits and vegetables to maintain freshness and nutritional value.

Click here to go to the “Preserving Alaska’s Bounty” page on the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service Web site

Click here to go to a catalog of available DVDs from the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service

Click here to go to the main page for the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service

Click here to open an Adobe Acrobat PDF file of a handout on freezing fruits and vegetables from the Iowa State University Cooperative Extension Service

A batch of fruit is ready to be canned in jars (Photo courtesy of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service)

A batch of fruit is ready to be canned in jars (Photo courtesy of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service)

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• Saturday’s Sitka Farmers Market leads into National Farmers Market Week

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This Saturday’s second Sitka Farmers Market of the season will serve as the perfect lead-in for National Farmers Market Week next week.

The Sitka Farmers Market takes place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 1, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Hall (235 Katlian St.) and in the adjoining parking lot owned by the Baranof Island Housing Authority. Recently U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack proclaimed Aug. 2-8 of this year as the 10th annual National Farmers Market Week.

“Farmers markets are good for everyone,” says Stacy Miller, Executive Director of the Farmers Market Coalition, a non-profit organization supporting farmers markets across the country. “They are good for your health, good for your community and good for the economy. Not to mention, farmers markets offer the freshest foods from America’s most entrepreneurial farmers and they preserve our country’s agricultural traditions.”

“The Sitka Farmers Market offers unique varieties of fresh, nutritious food at the peak of flavor, creates a vibrant community gathering place, and provides the opportunity for learning about healthy life choices and local products,” says Linda Wilson, Sitka Farmers Market Co-Coordinator.

The Sitka Farmers Market started last year as a project from the 2008 Sitka Health Summit. We hosted three successful markets last year, and this year we have five on the schedule with Saturday’s being the second of the summer. Even though the Sitka Farmers Markets are new, they’ve quickly become community gathering points whenever they’re held, and ANB Hall is packed with people.

The Sitka Farmers Market features about 20-25 vendors each market who sell locally grown produce, locally harvested fish and locally made arts and crafts. Local musicians perform on the stage inside ANB Hall and in the jam tent outside, local cooks make ready-to-eat dishes and there are activities for the children. The Sitka Farmers Market is the only farmers market in Southeast Alaska authorized to accept WIC vouchers, which can be used by WIC-eligible families to purchase produce.

Booths are available for Saturday’s market for a nominal $5 each, but the emphasis is on locally produced food and arts and crafts. For more information about this week’s market, contact Linda Wilson at 747-3096 (nights) or lawilson87@hotmail.com, or contact Kerry MacLane at maclanekerry@yahoo.com.

Click this link to learn more about the Farmers Market Coalition and why farmers markets are becoming more important in America.

The Gimbal Botanicals booth at the July 18 first Sitka Farmers Market of the season.

The Gimbal Botanicals booth at the July 18 first Sitka Farmers Market of the season.

Cindy Westergaard sells plants at the July 18 Sitka Farmers Market

Cindy Westergaard sells plants at the July 18 Sitka Farmers Market

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• New photo galleries posted on Shutterfly

Shoppers look for deals at the first Sitka Farmers Market of the summer on July 18, 2009.

Shoppers look for deals at the first Sitka Farmers Market of the summer on July 18, 2009.

There have been a couple of new photo albums posted on the Sitka Local Foods Network page on Shutterfly (a photo-sharing site). There is an album of photos from Saturday’s first Sitka Farmers Market of the 2009 summer. There also is a photo album of photos from 2008 events, and an album of historical photos from 1898 to the late 1920s (used with permission from the Sitka Historical Society and Museum).

Click this link to go to the Shutterfly site where there are some new photo albums posted.

Sarah Williams shows off a hat she made to sell at the Sitka Farmers Market.

Sarah Williams shows off a hat she made to sell at the Sitka Farmers Market.

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• Alaska Dream Salmon wins first Table of the Day Award

Julie Jordan of Alaska Dream Salmon receives the Table of the Day award from Kerry MacLane for the first Sitka Farmers Market of the season

Julie Jordan of Alaska Dream Salmon receives the Table of the Day award from Kerry MacLane for the first Sitka Farmers Market of the season

Julie Jordan of Alaska Dream Salmon receives the “Table of the Day Award” from Sitka Farmers Markets co-coordinator Kerry MacLane after the season’s first market on July 18. The Sitka Local Foods Network selected her table — which featured three varieties of fresh salmon and rock fish caught on the F/V Saturday — to receive the $25 cash prize, an Alaska Farmers Market Association tote bag, a selection of locally grown herbs and a certificate of appreciation. An identical prize package will be awarded to a deserving vendor at each of the four remaining Sitka Farmers Markets. The second market of the season takes place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 1, at Alaska Native Brotherhood Hall.

Keep your eye on this site, because a photo gallery from the first Sitka Farmers Market of the season will be posted later this week.

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• Eight fun facts about Saturday’s first Sitka Farmers Market

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1. The first of five scheduled Sitka Farmers Markets this summer takes place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, July 18, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Hall on Katlian Street.

2. More than 20 local vendors will be selling fresh veggies, fish, art and more.

3. The Gajaa Heen Dancers will be selling fry bread as a fundraising project for the group. Other ready-to-eat food includes black cod, crepes and fresh oysters.

4. Live music will be provided by the Sitka Blues Band inside the hall. Also, an open jam session will take place under a tent outside — all musicians are welcome.

5. Registered participants in the state’s Women, Infants and Children (WIC) supplemental nutrition program can exchange $5 vouchers for fresh produce from one of several approved stands. The Sitka Farmers Market is the first market in Southeast Alaska authorized to process WIC vouchers.

6. The children’s craft activity this market focuses on healthy eating and is called “eating by the colors.” Please bring the kids!

7. Creating the Sitka Farmers Market was selected by Sitka residents as a top community health priority at the 2008 Sitka Health Summit.

8. This event is sponsored by the Sitka Local Foods Network, Alaska Native Brotherhood/Alaska Native Sisterhood, Baranof Island Housing Authority, Sitka Conservation Society, the Alaska Farmers Market Association and the SEARHC Health Promotion and Diabetes Prevention programs.

Musicians play in the jam session tent

Musicians play in the jam session tent

Grilling black cod collars from the Alaska Longline Fisherman's Association

Grilling black cod collars from the Alaska Longline Fisherman's Association

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• ANSWER Camp prepares for 2009 students

ANSWER Camp teachers Adriana Rodriguez, left, Alberta Demantle, Jordan Baumgartner, Collauna Marley and Chohla Moll prepare sockeye salmon for the smoker Wednesday night so it will be ready when the students arrive in Sitka on Friday.

ANSWER Camp teachers Adriana Rodriguez, left, Alberta Demantle, Jordan Baumgartner, Collauna Marley and Chohla Moll prepare sockeye salmon for the smoker Wednesday night so it will be ready when the students arrive in Sitka on Friday.

Seventh and eighth grade students from all over Alaska will be arriving in Sitka this week for the 12th annual Alaska Native Student Wisdom Enrichment Retreat, commonly known as ANSWER Camp, a 12-day residential program for Alaska Native students sponsored by the Southeast Regional Resource Center (SERRC) out of Juneau.

Students at the ANSWER Camp stay at Mt. Edgecumbe High School in Sitka for two weeks of intensive science, math and cultural experiences as they explore traditional methods of food preservation. ANSWER Camp takes place from July 17-30, and it is free to the 75-80 students lucky enough to be selected from several rural Alaska communities to participate in the program. A U.S. Department of Education grant pays for the students’ transportation to and from Sitka, their housing and food.

ANSWER Camp makes math and science instruction more meaningful for the students by linking traditional Alaska Native values to western scientific principles. The program prepares middle school students from rural Alaska to enter high school, and it helps make science and math come alive for the students as they learn how even traditional cultural activities such as preserving subsistence foods are affected by science and math.

While the students prepare salmon, they will do tests to see how different brine mixtures affect the taste (chemistry). They also will learn how to preserve berries, seaweed and medicinal plants. The students will learn biology by studying critters, and they will gather different plants to study botany. ANSWER Camp has helped steer many students toward science and health careers later in life.

This is one of several camps in the Sitka area that teach people about traditional foods from Southeast Alaska. The Sitka Native Education Program (SNEP) hosts several events during the summer, as so do Sitka residents John and Roby Littlefield at their Dog Point Fish Camp. The Alaska Native Sisterhood camp in Sitka also hosts traditional foods camps at Dog Point Fish Camp.

Click here for more information about the Alaska Native Student Wisdom Enrichment Retreat, commonly called the ANSWER Camp, sponsored by the Southeast Regional Resource Center (SERRC).

Chohla Moll grabs some sockeye salmon out of the brine mixture so she can hang it in the smoker.

Chohla Moll grabs some sockeye salmon out of the brine mixture so she can hang it in the smoker.

Sockeye salmon hangs from the racks in the smoker.

Sockeye salmon hangs from the racks in the smoker.

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• First Sitka Farmers Market is this Saturday

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The first of five Sitka Farmers Markets this summer will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. this Saturday, July 18, at the ANB Hall. The Sitka Blues Band will provide music inside the hall and other local musicians are welcome to join an open jam session outside the hall. The children’s activity focuses on healthy eating and is called “eating by the colors.”

Over 20 local vendors will be on hand to sell, barter or trade fresh vegetables, herbs, teas, flowers, berries, plants, salmon, art and more. Ready-to-eat food includes grilled black cod, crepes, fry bread and more. Additionally, there will be information on home gardening and building your own greenhouse. The Sitka Farmers Market is the first farmers market in Southeast Alaska authorized to accept WIC vouchers.

For more information, contact Linda Wilson at 747-3096.

Checking out the first 2008 Sitka Farmers Market

Checking out the first 2008 Sitka Farmers Market

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• Sitka to host five farmers markets in 2009

SitkaFarmersMarketSign

Sitka to host five farmers markets in 2009

The Sitka Local Foods Network will host a series of five Sitka Farmers Markets this summer on alternate Saturdays starting July 18. These markets will give Sitka residents a chance to buy and sell locally produced food and crafts.

The Sitka Farmers Markets take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on July 18, Aug. 1, 15, 29 and Sept. 12, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Hall and the adjacent Baranof Island Housing Authority-owned parking lot (between the waterfront and Katlian Street). The markets feature local seafood (fresh, frozen and cooked and ready to eat), locally grown and harvested fruits and vegetables, live entertainment, locally brewed and roasted coffee, kids’ activities, music, local arts and crafts, and a variety of other items gathered or made in Sitka. We emphasize local products and lots of fun.

“In 1970 there were only 340 farmers markets in America, and by 2006 there were more than 4,385. I think this dramatic growth is attributed to the many layers of social and economic benefits these markets offer,” said Doug Osborne, a health educator at the SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC). “Last year, several participants said Sitka’s markets were among the highlights of their summer.”

Sitka Farmers Market Co-Coordinator Kerry MacLane has participated as a vendor at many public markets over the last 20 years. He said, “Farmers markets are a great place to spend a Saturday morning with your neighbors, enjoying healthy and tasty local produce, hot coffee and fresh-cut flowers. The Sitka Farmers Markets also are great for people who want to sell and eat locally caught fish.”

The Sitka Farmers Market started as a community project from the 2008 Sitka Health Summit. This event is sponsored by the Sitka Local Foods Network, Alaska Native Brotherhood/Alaska Native Sisterhood, Baranof Island Housing Authority, Sitka Conservation Society, the Alaska Farmers Market Association and the SEARHC Health Promotion and Diabetes Prevention programs.

Vendor fees are just $5 per market, with both indoor and outdoor table options available. We are the first farmers market in Southeast to accept WIC coupons. To learn more or to sign up for a table, contact Sitka Farmers Market Co-Coordinator Linda Wilson at 747-3096 evenings or e-mail lawilson87@hotmail.com.