August is Awesome.

This past weekend we had a couple of wonderful events in the garden - a 'Gourmet from the Garden' workshop on Saturday morning, and a Kids' Fun Day on Sunday. I'd write about them, but they say a picture is worth a thousand words....

Local-food guru and chef David Tombs and his assistant Alamu Durand, of Terra Restaurant (326 Victoria St), came to teach a workshop on cooking straight from the garden on Saturday morning. David first walked through the garden with us, talking about the different vegetables available there and their respective uses in dishes. Who knew you could make pesto with nasturtium leaves?!
David then proceeded to whip up his own incredible 'Kamloops' version of Singapore Slaw, a recipe that uses a number of locally-grown veggies but was developed by a Toronto chef. Purple cabbage, tomatoes, green onions, grated carrot, nasturtium petals, and kale all went into the salad, then were doused with a delectable nectarine vinaigrette. Fresh, local, deeelicious!! (And I've heard hints that a version of this salad may be featured on their September menu...)
Thank you, David and Alamu!
(Find out more about Terra Restaurant on their facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/terrarestaurantkamloops)

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On Sunday we held a day for the kids at our newest garden, at McDonald Park on the North Shore. The kids enjoyed many activities, including 'build-your-own sprouter', 'guess-that-vegetable' (bottom photo), plant-a-seed, a colouring booth, and facepainting with Krystal Williams of KAtypical Services. We also had some incredible farmers market snacks available - and check out those amazing edible flowers (second photo from the bottom) that Shelaigh picked right there at the McDonald Park garden!!
A huge thank you to donors:
Fratelli Foods, Nature's Fare, Thistle Farm, Rubinsons' Farm, Sweet Berry Farm, Benchland Orchards, and Kazy Farms.

Our last event of August is coming up this Saturday - a local food challenge potluck at noon in the downtown Public Produce garden. Bring your best local-food dish with a copy of the recipe, a plate and some cutlery, and your appetite of course! Prizes available for local ingredients used in a creative way.

See you in the garden!!