Sitka Kitch

by

Sitka Kitch offers Rainforest Recipes AIP Pizza class with Kate DesRosiers on Thursday, Dec. 12, and/or Saturday, Dec. 14

Do you have an auto-immune disease such as celiac disease or diabetes? Kate DesRosiers, who has Type 1 diabetes and operates Rainforest Rose Creations at the Sitka Farmers Market, will teach a Rainforest Recipes class on how to make AIP (Auto-Immune Protocol) pizza at the Sitka Kitch this month.

Kate will offer this class twice at the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen (located at the Sitka Lutheran Church kitchen, 224 Lincoln Street, enter back door through alley off of Harbor Drive). Her first offering will be from 6-8 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 12, and the second offering from 3-5 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 14. Depending on student registration, she may end up teaching the class once or at both times.

Over the past 29 years of living with Type 1 diabetes, Kate has experimented with and tested out hundreds of lower carbohydrate food and recipes. She focuses on gut balance and foods that work best for her body for optimal health and feeling good in her own experiences with auto-immune chronic illness. In addition to operating Rainforest Rose Creations, Kate also instructs weekly Zumba classes and is a skin care consultant with Rodan + Fields.

The auto-immune protocol (AIP) diet is a food-based approach to eliminating unwanted inflammation in a person’s body.  Kate DesRosiers offers this class for those interested in learning more about the AIP diet and recipes, as well as for those simply interested in a healthier, gluten- and dairy-free, delicious alternative to pizza. Students will make a pizza “crust” and add assorted toppings that are gut-friendly.

The registration deadline is 11:30 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 9, for the Dec. 12 class, and at 11:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 12, for the Dec. 14 class. Space is limited, so register early to secure your place in the class. We need at least eight students to register and pre-pay to make this class happen. The class costs $40, which is part of our new all-inclusive fee system (you no longer have to pay a class fee to register, then a separate food/supply fee). You can register and pre-pay using credit/debit cards or PayPal on our EventSmart page, http://sitkakitch.eventsmart.com (click on class title). For those wanting to pre-pay with cash or check, please call Chandler O’Connell or Clarice Johnson at Sitka Conservation Society (747-7509) to arrange a payment.

For more information about the class, contact Jasmine Shaw at 747-9440. We do offer one potential scholarship spot per class for people with limited incomes, so long as we have enough students registered to make the class happen. Contact Chandler at SCS for more details about the scholarship. This class is a fundraiser for the Sitka Kitch.

Students should enter the Sitka Lutheran Church through the back entrance (through the alley off Harbor Drive by the old Bev’s Flowers and Gifts location). The door on the right should be open for students to enter. Please do not park in the church’s back parking lot. Please use the public parking lots off Harbor Drive.

The Sitka Kitch also has a new class cancelation policy. If you register for a class, then find out you can’t attend, please email us at sitkakitch@sitkawild.org and we may be able to help fill your slot through our waiting list. If you cancel from the class at least five days in advance (eg, by Wednesday the week before for a Monday class), you are eligible for a partial refund of your class fee, minus $5 for processing (in this case, $35). If you need to cancel with less than five days advance notice, there is no refund.

by

Sitka Kitch to host Oyster Shucking 101 class with Renée Trafton on Dec. 3

Have you harvested some fresh oysters in Southeast Alaska, but don’t know how to shuck them? Did you buy some fresh oysters, but want to learn new ways to prepare them?

Join Beak restaurant chef/owner Renée Jakaitis Trafton for the Sitka Kitch‘s Oyster Shucking 101 class from 6-8:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 3, at the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen (located at the Sitka Lutheran Church kitchen, 224 Lincoln Street, enter back door through alley off of Harbor Drive).

In this class, Renée will teach basic oyster shucking technique, safety precautions, accompanying sauces, and cooking with oysters. She will discuss various aspects of this tasty bivalve and then demonstrate how to safely shuck an oyster. After shucking, participants will eat some raw oysters to taste with cocktail sauce and mignonette, and then participants will learn to make Oyster Rockefeller.

The $40 class price includes an oyster knife, eight oysters, sauces, recipes, and ingredients for Oyster Rockefeller. The registration deadline is 11:30 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 1. Space is limited, so register early to secure your place in the class.

We need at least eight students to register and pre-pay to make this class happen. The class costs $40, which is part of our new all-inclusive fee system (you no longer have to pay a class fee to register, then a separate food/supply fee). You can register and pre-pay using credit/debit cards or PayPal on our EventSmart page, http://sitkakitch.eventsmart.com (click on class title). For those wanting to pre-pay with cash or check, please call Chandler O’Connell or Clarice Johnson at Sitka Conservation Society (747-7509) to arrange a payment.

For more information about the class, contact Jasmine Shaw at 747-9440. We do offer one potential scholarship spot per class for people with limited incomes, so long as we have enough students registered to make the class happen. Contact Chandler at SCS for more details about the scholarship. This class is a fundraiser for the Sitka Kitch.

Students should enter the Sitka Lutheran Church through the back entrance (through the alley off Harbor Drive by the old Bev’s Flowers and Gifts location). The door on the right should be open for students to enter. Please do not park in the church’s back parking lot. Please use the public parking lots off Harbor Drive.

The Sitka Kitch also has a new class cancelation policy. If you register for a class, then find out you can’t attend, please email us at sitkakitch@sitkawild.org and we may be able to help fill your slot through our waiting list. If you cancel from the class at least five days in advance (eg, by Wednesday the week before for a Monday class), you are eligible for a partial refund of your class fee, minus $5 for processing (in this case, $35). If you need to cancel with less than five days advance notice, there is no refund.

by

Check out the November 2019 edition of the Sitka Local Foods Network newsletter

The Sitka Local Foods Network just sent out the November 2019 edition of its monthly newsletter. Feel free to click this link to get a copy.

This month’s newsletter includes short articles about how to join our board of directors, about our 2020 sponsorship program, and about #GivingTuesday on Dec. 3. Each story has links to our website for more information.

You can sign up for future editions of our newsletter by clicking on the newsletter 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. Don’t forget to like us on Facebook, like our Sitka Farmers Market page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter (@SitkaLocalFoods).

by

Thank you to everybody who donated to the Sitka Local Foods Network through Pick.Click.Give.

The Sitka Local Foods Network recently received its check for 2019 Pick.Click.Give. donations from when Alaskans filed their Permanent Fund Dividend applications.

We received $1,300 from 25 donors (after service fees, the check was for $1,209). We want to thank everybody who donated this year. Your contributions will help us in our mission to increase the amount of locally harvested and produced food in the diets of Southeast Alaskans.

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, Sitka Community Gardens, matching dollars at the Sitka Farmers Market for SNAP/WIC beneficiaries, the sustainable use of traditional foods, the Sitka Community Food Assessment, the Sitka Food Summit, and a variety of other projects designed to increase access to healthy local foods in Sitka. This year we hosted the second annual Sitka Food Business Innovation Contest to try and encourage more food entrepreneurs in Sitka.

We will be participating in the 2020 Pick.Click.Give. program, so you can donate when you file for your 2020 PFD. The 2020 PFD application period opens on Jan. 1, and runs through March 31. Only those Alaskans who file for their PFDs using the electronic application will be able to contribute to more than 600 nonprofit organizations from Alaska through Pick.Click.Give. This is a good way to support your local community.

Again, we thank you for your support. If you missed donating through Pick.Click.Give. or want to send in a donation so you can use it as a 2019 income tax deduction, you can mail a check to us at Sitka Local Foods Network, 408-D Marine Street, Sitka, Alaska 99835. For more information about our organization, contact SLFN board president Charles Bingham at (907) 623-7660 or sitkalocalfoodsnetwork@gmail.com.

by

Sitka Kitch offers Rainforest Recipes with Kate DesRosiers class: Samoa coconut carob cookies on Nov. 16

November is Diabetes Awareness Month, and Kate DesRosiers, who has Type 1 diabetes and operates Rainforest Rose Creations at the Sitka Farmers Market, will teach two diabetes-friendly dessert classes this month at the Sitka Kitch.

Kate will teach students how to make delicious Samoa coconut carob cookies in her second class, from 3-5 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 16, at the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen (located at the Sitka Lutheran Church kitchen, 224 Lincoln Street, enter back door through alley off of Harbor Drive). Her other class is Nov. 2.

Over the past 29 years of living with Type 1 diabetes, Kate has experimented with and tested out hundreds of lower carbohydrate food and recipes. She focuses on gut balance and foods that work best for her body for optimal health and feeling good in her own experiences with autoimmune chronic illness. In addition to operating Rainforest Rose Creations, Kate also instructs weekly Zumba classes and is a skin care consultant with Rodan + Fields.

In this class, we will learn step-by-step how to make two types of easy to digest cookies, including delicious Samoa coconut carob cookies. Whether you are focusing on healthier recipes or just looking to expand your social network of those geared toward health and wellness, this class might just be for you.

The registration deadline is 11:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 14. Space is limited, so register early to secure your place in the class. We need at least eight students to register and pre-pay to make this class happen. The class costs $40, which is part of our new all-inclusive fee system (you no longer have to pay a class fee to register, then a separate food/supply fee). You can register and pre-pay using credit/debit cards or PayPal on our EventSmart page, http://sitkakitch.eventsmart.com(click on class title). For those wanting to pre-pay with cash or check, please call Chandler O’Connell or Clarice Johnson at Sitka Conservation Society (747-7509) to arrange a payment.

For more information about the class, contact Jasmine Shaw at 747-9440. We do offer one potential scholarship spot per class for people with limited incomes, so long as we have enough students registered to make the class happen. Contact Chandler at SCS for more details about the scholarship. This class is a fundraiser for the Sitka Kitch.

Students should enter the Sitka Lutheran Church through the back entrance (through the alley off Harbor Drive by the old Bev’s Flowers and Gifts location). The door on the right should be open for students to enter. Please do not park in the church’s back parking lot. Please use the public parking lots off Harbor Drive.

The Sitka Kitch also has a new class cancelation policy. If you register for a class, then find out you can’t attend, please email us at sitkakitch@sitkawild.org and we may be able to help fill your slot through our waiting list. If you cancel from the class at least five days in advance (eg, by Wednesday the week before for a Monday class), you are eligible for a partial refund of your class fee, minus $5 for processing (in this case, $35). If you need to cancel with less than five days advance notice, there is no refund.

by

Sitka Kitch offers Rainforest Recipes with Kate DesRosiers class: Date caramel carob “AIP Twix” bars on Nov. 2

November is Diabetes Awareness Month, and Kate DesRosiers, who has Type 1 diabetes and operates Rainforest Rose Creations at the Sitka Farmers Market, will teach two diabetes-friendly dessert classes this month at the Sitka Kitch.

Kate will teach students how to make a date caramel carob “AIP Twix” bar n her first class, from 3-5 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 2, at the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen (located at the Sitka Lutheran Church kitchen, 224 Lincoln Street, enter back door through alley off of Harbor Drive). Her other class is Nov. 16.

Over the past 29 years of living with Type 1 diabetes, Kate has experimented with and tested out hundreds of lower carbohydrate food and recipes. She focuses on gut balance and foods that work best for her body for optimal health and feeling good in her own experiences with autoimmune chronic illness. In addition to operating Rainforest Rose Creations, Kate also instructs weekly Zumba classes and is a skin care consultant with Rodan + Fields.

In this class, Kate will teach a recipe for those who are addicted to candy bars but need to cut down on sugar? Looking for healthy yet delicious snacks? Whether you are focusing on learning healthier recipes, or just looking to expand your social network of those geared towards health and wellness, this class might just be the one for you. In this class we will learn how to make Kate’s famous date caramel carob “AIP Twix” bar.

The registration deadline is 11:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 31. Space is limited, so register early to secure your place in the class. We need at least eight students to register and pre-pay to make this class happen. The class costs $40, which is part of our new all-inclusive fee system (you no longer have to pay a class fee to register, then a separate food/supply fee). You can register and pre-pay using credit/debit cards or PayPal on our EventSmart page, http://sitkakitch.eventsmart.com(click on class title). For those wanting to pre-pay with cash or check, please call Chandler O’Connell or Clarice Johnson at Sitka Conservation Society (747-7509) to arrange a payment.

For more information about the class, contact Jasmine Shaw at 747-9440. We do offer one potential scholarship spot per class for people with limited incomes, so long as we have enough students registered to make the class happen. Contact Chandler at SCS for more details about the scholarship. This class is a fundraiser for the Sitka Kitch.

Students should enter the Sitka Lutheran Church through the back entrance (through the alley off Harbor Drive by the old Bev’s Flowers and Gifts location). The door on the right should be open for students to enter. Please do not park in the church’s back parking lot. Please use the public parking lots off Harbor Drive.

The Sitka Kitch also has a new class cancelation policy. If you register for a class, then find out you can’t attend, please email us at sitkakitch@sitkawild.org and we may be able to help fill your slot through our waiting list. If you cancel from the class at least five days in advance (eg, by Wednesday the week before for a Monday class), you are eligible for a partial refund of your class fee, minus $5 for processing (in this case, $35). If you need to cancel with less than five days advance notice, there is no refund.

by

Check out the October 2019 edition of the Sitka Local Foods Network newsletter

 

The Sitka Local Foods Network just sent out the October 2019 edition of its monthly newsletter. Feel free to click this link to get a copy.

This month’s newsletter includes short stories wrapping up the 2019 Sitka Farmers Market season and Running of the Boots, an article about the Sitka Farmers Market earning top honors for Alaska in the American Farmland Trust’s Farmers Market Celebration contest, and an invitation to join the Sitka Local Foods Network’s board of directors. Each story has links to our website for more information.

You can sign up for future editions of our newsletter by clicking on the newsletter 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. Don’t forget to like us on Facebook, like our Sitka Farmers Market page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter (@SitkaLocalFoods).

by

Scenes from the Sitka Kitch’s class, ‘Bees, Pollinators, and Honey, Oh, My!’

Students at the free Sitka Kitch class, “Bees, Pollinators, and Honey, Oh, My!” on Friday, Sept. 20, learned about the importance of bees in pollinating local plants.

The class was taught by former Sitka resident Christi (Wuerker) Henthorn, who now lives in North Carolina and runs 20 or so bee hives as a side business. Christi also taught the students some basics about beekeeping and some of the challenges faced by bees from chemicals and urban growth. After the class the students had a chance to taste a wide variety of honey types from when the bees are near certain types of plants.

Adrienne Wilber, a Sitka resident who started beekeeping this year, attended the class, and Christi showed some of her bees in a jar and a honeycomb from one of Adrienne’s bee boxes.

Some scenes from the class are in a slideshow below. Also, click here for a link to her PowerPoint presentation (as a PDF document) is below.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

by

Scenes from the Sitka Kitch’s ‘Cooking With Wild Mushrooms’ class on Sept. 13

Students learned how to identify, clean, and cook a variety of wild and cultivated mushrooms during the Sitka Kitch’s “Cooking With Wild Mushrooms” class on Friday, Sept. 13, at the new Sitka Kitch location in the Sitka Lutheran Church. This class was a fundraiser for the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen.

This class was taught by Beak Restaurant owner/chef Renée Jakaitis Trafton and University of Alaska Southeast Sitka Campus assistant professor Kitty LaBounty, who teaches an annual mushroom identification class at the university in September. After a quick primer on how to identify and clean mushrooms from Kitty, Renée taught students a variety of recipes so they can use their foraged finds.

The next class at the Sitka Kitch is a special free class, “Bees, Pollinators, and Honey, Oh, My!,” from 7-9 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 20, at the Sitka Kitch, which is located inside the Sitka Lutheran Church. This class will be taught by former Sitka resident Christi (Wuerker) Henthorn, who now lives in North Carolina where she keeps bees. Brinnen Carter of the Sitka National Historical Park will assist Christi.

The registration deadline for the bees and pollinators class is 11:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 18, so register now since space is limited. Even though this class is free, we are asking for people to pre-register so we know how many people are coming.

Most Sitka Kitch classes now cost $40 per person, which is part of our new all-inclusive fee system (you no longer have to pay a class fee to register, then a separate food/supply fee). You can register and pre-pay using credit/debit cards or PayPal on our EventSmart page, http://sitkakitch.eventsmart.com (click on class title). For those wanting to pre-pay with cash or check, please call Chandler O’Connell or Clarice Johnson at Sitka Conservation Society (747-7509) to arrange a payment.

For more information about this class and future classes, contact Jasmine Shaw at 747-9440. We do offer one potential scholarship spot per class for people with limited incomes, so long as we have enough students registered to make the class happen. Contact Chandler at SCS for more details about the scholarship. These classes are fundraisers for the Sitka Kitch.

Students should enter the Sitka Lutheran Church through the back entrance (through the alley off Harbor Drive by the old Bev’s Flowers and Gifts location). The door on the right should be open for students to enter. Please do not park in the church’s back parking lot. Please use the public parking lots off Harbor Drive.

The Sitka Kitch also has a new class cancelation policy. If you register for a class, then find out you can’t attend, please email us at sitkakitch@sitkawild.org and we may be able to help fill your slot through our waiting list. If you cancel from the class at least five days in advance (eg, by Wednesday for a Monday class), you are eligible for a partial refund of your class fee, minus $5 for processing (in this case, $35). If you need to cancel with less than five days advance notice, there is no refund.

A photo slideshow of scenes from the Cooking With Wild Mushrooms class is posted below.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

by

Sitka Kitch to host free class, ‘Bees, Pollinators, and Honey, Oh, My!’, on Sept. 20

Learn the basics of bees, pollinators and honey in this special, free Sitka Kitch class, which takes place from 7-9 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 20, at the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen.

Christi Henthorn

This class will be led by former Sitka resident Christi (Wuerker) Henthorn, with assistance from Brinnen Carter of Sitka National Historical Park. The class features a short PowerPoint, a Q&A, and some honey tasting. “I will NOT be focusing on discussing becoming a beekeeper, but will answer questions,” Christi said.

Christi lived in Sitka from 2008-2014, when she worked at SEARHC, and now resides in North Carolina, surrounded by BEES!  Although just a side gig, she currently manages 20-plus hives and is very active with the Granville County Beekeepers Association.  Christi is currently working on her Master Beekeeper Certificate through the North Carolina State Beekeepers Association and enjoys talking about bees and pollinators to pretty much anyone who will listen.

Even though this is a free class, we ask people to pre-register so we have an idea how many people plan to attend.

For those who haven’t been to the Sitka Kitch since we moved last year, we now are located in the Sitka Lutheran Church kitchen. Please enter through the back entrance, through the alley off Harbor Drive that runs next to the former location of Bev’s Flowers & Gifts. Please use public street parking and don’t use the small parking lot immediately behind the church.

For more details, contact Chandler O’Connell at 747-7509 or Jasmine Shaw at 747-9440.