As leaves start to fall and I swaddle my garden in rows of spun plastic to protect it from night frosts, I am exploring my family connection to gardening. Perhaps it’s because I feel a little alone sometimes, a spur way out on the family tree with little connection to roots that lie in other countries and cultures.
Gardening in the blood? Read More »
Raspberries, blueberries, crowberries and cranberries: being on Yukon time means planning your weekends around where to pick once the – dare I say it? –
The light returns to the Yukon long before the heat and we’re still in the prime season of huge oscillations in temperature between day and
Sowing the Seeds of Spring Read More »
The warm winds of spring have brought with them the promise of little green shoots popping out of their seeds to generate the stuff of
I was making a carrot cake this week for one of the Jack Russell’s birthdays (he gets the carrot ends, we get the cake, seems
What’s the Appeal? Read More »
It struck me a couple days ago that I have gotten out of the habit of baking, and was missing having nibbly bites about for
If I were to search out the exact opposite of local, homegrown food, I would pass through the security gates at an international airport. The
The circle is often used as a symbol of perfection. The delicious combination of sweet or savoury filling and flaky pastry at its best when
Jennifer Tyldesley has spent her life behind the controls of aeroplanes: in the Air Force, flying search and rescue and most recently for Air North.
Better When It’s Bitter Read More »
You know that thing you’ve had for years and haven’t been quite willing to part with, though you haven’t yet discovered its particular niche? Mine
Tools of the Trade Read More »
Hippocrates alluded to the gut as the source of all our ills, and Katherine Belisle, a health practitioner in Whitehorse, couldn’t agree more. Working in
I’ve Got a Gut Healing About This Read More »
I extracted a small tub of raspberries from the freezer yesterday, comforted to see it near overflowing with the season’s harvest. Though saskatoons and blueberries
Ok, so when I hear the words “pelvic floor” the folks I think of are pregnant women and the elderly. It’s also a term that
One of the fun things about fermented foods is passing on bits to others, knowing they will grow and spread like a great idea. It
I’ve put a lot of miles under me this spring between Victoria, B.C. and the Klondike Valley, and had thought I would be riding the
Know Thy Microclimate Read More »
“‘…but gracious me! It’s getting light! Good night, old Turnip-top, good-night!’ A nod, and he was gone.” So ends the sixth canto of
Don’t Turnip Your Nose Read More »
Ah, arnica. Renowned for its power to soothe sore muscles, sprains and bruises, and a common gateway drug into the wonderful world of the do-it-yourself
Yes, a new form of torture has been developed, involving an unrelenting repetition of a single passage from the Myth of Sisyphus – what? C-A-M-A-S?
When I first began eating wild mushrooms, I was studying squirrels. I watched which mushrooms they picked to stash in trees, and figured that whichever
What Not to Eat: Water Hemlock Read More »
Nitrates, nitrites, nitrous… makes me think of big industrial fertiliser companies, laughing gas, and that wheee sound the cars in videogames used to make when
Curing without killing Read More »
Pike are notorious for being boney. As a child, I developed an intense fear of choking on fish bones. Not from any horrendous experience, but
Festival season is in full swing, and every weekend sees crowds descending on another Yukon community for a bit of all-night sun revelry. My personal
I was visiting a friend down on Lewes Lake last week and was delighted at the profusion of blue and pink lining his driveway. Wild
Well I hope that sundrenched stretch wasn’t summer. It was glorious, hot, and beautiful — what a tease. I’m sitting inside with the rain lashing
Arriving home after time away, without stopping by the grocery store, may seem overly optimistic, but I was rewarded by finding the freezer just as
Returning home after traveling can bring culture shock that’s just as discombobulating as that experienced when heading off to the far side of the globe.
Learning from the Locals Read More »
The title is a misnomer. Perhaps it is ironic, but I’m not literary enough to remember the nuances of such terms. At any rate, it
Im-mead-iate Satisfaction Read More »
I was having dinner with a neighbour the other day and she asked me if I needed any dried greens. She was referring to turnip
In February I had the privilege of running a workshop on cheese-making for the Learning Lions, a homeschooling group that meets out at the Mt.
Over the last few years I’ve been gathering the components for a makeshift “solar system”, relying heavily on generous donations from friends for parts. Many
Tools of the trade Read More »
Seasonal eaters, whether they are gardeners, foragers, or locavores reading the labels at the grocery store, know that the lean time of year isn’t during
Sprouted Buckwheat “Aioli” While the buckwheat is certainly non-traditional, this spread or dip has the garlic and oil that give Aioli (think ail + oli)
As the days lengthen and I embark on ever-longer forays out into the world, I remember wistfully the easy goal of foraging. Foraging itself is not effortless, but during the snowless seasons
Nourishing The Heart Read More »
Is it really true, is another holiday season has come and gone? So much anticipation, preparation, anxiety or eagerness, and then once again time plays
Keeping Hold Of That Festive Spirit Read More »
Ah, Christmas — the time of year when magazines abound with recipes promising taste sensations derived solely from rainbows and snowflakes. At least that’s my
The Proof is in the Pudding Read More »
Superlatives aside, I did just finish a pretty amazing sandwich. First, let me describe the creation that, to date, is the pinnacle of my gustatory
Second Best Grilled-cheese Ever Read More »
In chapter six of A.A. Milne’s classic, Winnie the Pooh, Eeyore has a birthday. Miserable to begin with, and sure to become so again soon
Happy Birthday Eeyore Read More »
The first snow is a long-anticipated event for me. It is not only eagerness, but also apprehension, that keeps me company on my tenterhooks. Either
A Day in the Woods Read More »
The rain was turning to slush against the windows of the plane as we scooted down the tarmac a few weeks ago, on its way
If our external environment is a reflection of what is happening within, I must be going through a deep transformation. My little cabin is filled
Yesterday the sun sank behind the mountains at the same moment as the final round of applause burst forth from the tents lining the roundabout
Clandestine Crabapple Caper Read More »
I was re-routing some electrical cables through some bushes the other day, and what did my little eye spy? Not one, but two beautiful Agaricus
Off The Beaten Path Read More »
Ah the glory days of a Northern summer!It’s the few short weeks when I take the covers off of the garden beds (always ready to
Home writ large and small Read More »
My lack of birding skills used to be a secret shame. When it did come out, it was with an embarrassed acknowledgment that despite a
I feel a bit like Gollum. I am squatting on my haunches, slurping delicious juices from my fingers as I delight in a fresh pike.
In approximately 100,000 years since we began to speak, we’ve classified and described plants. Carl Linnaeus devised a system of naming using two Latin names
I was shopping at my local free store the other day when I stopped in the middle of a wave to a fellow browser. He
The Return of Salad Season Read More »
I walk the woods to remember and discover. I remind myself of what this land, and learn what new surprises it has in store this year.
Easy Does It: reconnaissance is a necessary part of successful foraging Read More »
An incessant beeping. I become aware of a pillow, and the sound becomes my alarm clock. I silence the offending device with more luck than
The Days Are Just Packed… Read More »
I was in the grocery store the other day with a friend. Picking up a bag of winter produce she said, “I wonder if they
It Looks Like a Tomato… Read More »
Cat McInroy has experience wielding a spatula, though she doesn’t consider herself a professional chef. But the numerous weddings, parties and dinners she has catered
Eating seasonally teaches long-term thinking I love watching tomato seedlings poke their tiny shoots out of the soil, eagerly seeking sunlight — or UV light
Taking The Long View Read More »
“Spring has sprung,” cries my body as it soaks up the sun streaming through my window at two o’clock on a glorious March afternoon. It
I delight in winter travel, especially once the snow pack has settled. It’s early this year, and I’m already able to break away from the
When I first arrived in Kluane as an aspiring biologist, it seemed fitting that I would land in the place where the famous lynx-snowshoe hare
Ecologically-inspired Cuisine Read More »
When Ione Christensen invited me into her home to talk sourdough, I could tell she’s done this before. I hadn’t gotten passed “Nice to meet
Senator, Mayor, Sourdough Wafflemaker Read More »
Midwinter is rife with tradition. Celebrating, tolerating, or avoiding family gatherings and their associated rituals is part of many people’s December, whether they ascribe to
And a Grouse, in a Pine Tree Read More »
For much of this week the smell of hanging meat has been lingering in my nostrils, and my hands are abnormally soft. That’ll be because
Still the Moose Remains Read More »
With the beauty of the fall colours comes an increase in the ever-present danger of frost. For some, this is evidence of a balance between
To Frost or Not To Frost Read More »
Contrary to popular belief, mushroom hunting does not have the risk factor of Russian roulette. In fact, with a little knowledge and some common sense,
Puffballs, Boletes, Meadow Mushrooms, Oh My! Read More »
