Sprouts seeks volunteers for January - March 2010

Interested in volunteering in Sprouts' cafe/grocery store or helping to whip up delicious organic soup and baked goods in Sprouts' kitchen? We are looking for some committed students to help round out our volunteer team next semester.

Sprouts would simply not exist without all the hard work put in by our volunteers, and in return for their commitment, all active volunteers receive a two year Sprouts membership, free lunch on shift, as well as 15% off of all in-store purchases (that means you get to buy everything at cost!). Sprouts volunteers develop transferable job skills and have the opportunity to take part in a group of dynamic and engaging students at UBC who are dedicated to improving food security and making healthy, delicious, organic food available to the entire campus community.

The following weekly shifts are still available in store. Please email volunteer coordinator James at sprouts.hr@gmail.com if you are interested and available for one of these shifts. Include some information about yourself such as interests, work experience, and why you would like to volunteer with us.

Monday:
9am – 12pm
10:30am – 1:30pm
11am – 2pm
1:30pm – 4:30pm

Tuesday:
9am - 12pm
12pm - 3pm
12pm – 2pm

Wednesday
9am – 12pm
11am – 2pm
12pm – 3pm
1:30pm – 4:30pm
2pm – 4:30pm

Thursday
9am – 12pm
10:30am – 1:30pm
12pm – 3pm

The following weekly shifts are still available in the kitchen. Please email kitchen coordinator Jess at ubcsprouts.kitchen@gmail.com if you are interested and available for one of these shifts. Include some information about yourself such as interests, cooking experience (it's fine if you don't have any!), and why you would like to volunteer with us.

Sundays:
1pm – 5pm (or part thereof)

Tuesdays:
3pm – 7pm (or part thereof)

We look forward to hearing from you!

Hi beautiful folks!

This week's recipes were inspired by our one and only Renee Wild, who is currently studying the one and only Shakespeare.

Hence - Taming of the Stew.

Yes, it tasted as epic as it sounds. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:
Oil
Onions
Beans
Chipotle peppers
Salt
Pepper
Corriander
Tomatoes
Potatoes
Turnips
Broccoli

Instructions:
Cook vegetables. Spice to taste. Sit back with a bowl and read some William Shakes.


Then we really went Wild (get it?) with our quinoa salad, creating....RAINBOW! REINVENTED!

...it too was amazing.

Ingeredients:
Quinoa
Salt
Pepper
Lemon/lime juice
Cilantro
Yellow Peppers
Tomatoes
Onions

Instructions:
Cut the vegetables. Season to taste. Sit back with a bowl and think of how awesome rainbows are.



Check back in a bit for pictures, you might be in them;).

We'll be back in a couple weeks, and we hope to see your beautiful faces and reusable containers then!


xoxo-
Community Eats

Local Food...Local Resources

If attending Community Eats lunches has given you not only a taste for vegan soups and stews, but also a desire to learn more about food and food system issues, check out one of these local organizations and events for more information, resources and food-related events:


Slow Food Vancouver "Slow Food is a non-profit, eco-gastronomic member-supported organization that was founded in 1989 to counteract fast food and fast life, the disappearance of local food traditions and people’s dwindling interest in the food they eat, where it comes from, how it tastes and how our food choices affect the rest of the world." (Slow Food Vancouver website) Check out the upcoming event in December to celebrate Terra Madre Day.


The Tyee - An independent online newspaper, from BC and for BC, the Tyee promotes media democracy and often has interesting articles on a variety of different topics. Right now, you can read about local food history in a series called "Eat Your History". Find out why a certain variety of potato was "outlawed" in BC and lots of other tasty tidbits of info on local food. The series is edited by the author of 100-Mile Diet, James MacKinnon.


Farm Folk City Folk - "FarmFolk/CityFolk Society is a non-profit society that works with farm & city to cultivate a local, sustainable food system. We develop and operate projects that provide access to & protection of foodlands; that support local, small scale growers and producers; and that educate, communicate and celebrate with local food communities." (Farm Folk City Folk website) Find out more in this informative video, Food Democracy, produced locally by Thomas Donovan.

Food Connections Symposium - On November 25, Metro Vancouver is hosting an all-day symposium in Coquitlam; you can still register online to attend and have a say in the priorities being set for a Regional Food System Strategy.

If you belong to or know of other local organizations who educate and advocate for food systems issues in BC and the Vancouver area, please feel free to comment and share!

- Patty Hambler, ADED 501 Practicum Student

Hello lovely Community Eaters!

In honour of the clocks going back an hour, giving more time for studying, cramming, stressing, and all the other good stuff that comes with school on the weekdays and more time for dancing, drinking (hot chocolate) and various other shenanigans that come with the weekend, your devoted Community Eats cooks decided to create a dish inspired by this change, "Fall Back Lentils". An extra hour of life?!...Hellz yeah.

Fall Back Lentils

Ingredients:

Lentils
Onions
Eggplant
Tomatoes
Potatoes
Mushrooms
Oil
Salt
Pepper
Oregano
Thyme
Basil
Rosemary
Curry Powder
Cinamon
Clove
Nutmeg
Fennel Seed

Directions:
Cook the vegetables, add spice appropriately; serve hot and revel in the joy of your extra hour.

Community Eats: So Much More than a Free Lunch

If you are already a regular Community Eats participant, you know how tasty the vegan lunches are and how busy this regular event has become on campus. Every second week, the lineups in the basement of the SUB attest to the success of this innovative initiative.

Tasty food aside, you may not be aware of some of the food systems issues that Community Eats wants to get you thinking and talking about...

Food waste and food security are two of the top reasons that Community Eats was started. Every day, restaurants and grocery stores across Canada throw out literally tonnes of decent food. There are some great programs, like Quest Food Exchange, that try to address this food waste issue. Community Eats wants to do its part, so volunteers collect food from grocery suppliers that would normally get thrown out, helping to reduce the greenhouse gases (namely methane) that get released when food ends up in landfills.

Community Eats also wants you to think about another type of food waste: disposable containers that get used at fast food outlets. Styrofoam and plastic are two of the most common and contribute to the substantial amount of waste that comes from the food industry. Be sure to remember your reusable container when you come to a Community Eats lunch... you could even go a step further by bringing one to other food outlets on campus as most are happy to fill up your container instead of using a disposable one.

To find out more about food waste and sustainability initiatives on campus, check out: http://climateaction.ubc.ca or www.sustain.ubc.ca.

Food security is a complex issue that has many layers. Community Eats, along with other great initiatives on campus, such as the Sprouts, UBC Farm and Agora Eats Cafe, are working on addressing food system and food security issues at UBC. If you are new to the food security discussion, check out this resource http://www.ryerson.ca/foodsecurity/. If you are more advanced, feel free to comment on this blog: Why are initiatives like Community Eats an important part of our food system?

Stay tuned for more blog posts from Patty Hambler, ADED 501 student and guest blogger.

Bonjour blog-readers!

Today was yet another Community Eats success, serving Chilly Chile Chili (get it!?), roasted carrots/peppers, steamed green beans, rice, bread, apples and grapes. ...amazing?
I think so.

Even more amazing? -

a)That the recipe for the kick-ass chili is below and

b)That Community Eats is happening again in just two weeks! Whilst on the topic...

We're currently looking into making CE a weekly event, and the only thing stopping us is finding someone who'll take on the responsibility of being the head of it (ie. coming up with recipes, taking the lead in the kitchen, etc). The fantastic Renee Wild is currently in charge, but sadly she can't do it every week.
...interested?
I KNOW you are;)...email communityeats@gmail.com.


CHILLY CHILE CHILI

Black turtle beans
Red onions
Carrots
Tomatoes
Potatoes
Yellow/orange/red peppers
Rosemary
Oil
Cumin
Jalapeno peppers
Salt
Pepper
Oregano
Tumeric
Thyme

Directions:

Sautee oil, onions and jalapeno peppers until tender.
Add salt, pepper, cumin, oregano, rosemary, tumric and thyme.
ADD TOMATOES.
MIX. (and let simmer).
Add beans, potatoes and carrots. Add a lil' water.
COOK.
Add peppers + spices to taste.
COOK. (till done).

EEEEEEENJJJJJJJJOOOOOOOYYYYYYYY.

xoxo Community Eats

Harvest Dahl

Helllo friends,
Hopefully you all made it out today. The recipee for today is a jumble of veggies and spices, hope liked it.
Here it is: Harvest Dahl
Ingredients:
onions
eggplants
tomatoes
carrots
potatoes
yellow/red/orange peppers
curry paste
tomato paste
salt
pepper
ginger
curry powder
cumin
coriander
tumeric
paprica
garam masala
oil
thyme
lentils

Directions:
Heat opl. Fry onions until tender. Add spices, tomato paste and curry paste. Add eggplant and tomatoes. Cook for a bit. Add lentils and some water, cook. after about 20 minutes add carrosts, peppers and potatoes. Cook. Serve and enjoy.

Have a happy Thanksgiving! Love,
Community Eats

Community Eats round 2

Hello all,
Just a reminder that Community Eats will be happening again this Friday (October 9th) starting at 11:30am. Hope to see you all there.
Enjoy the sun while it last,
Community Eats

Hello friends,
Hopefully you all had the chance to stop by this school year's first Community Eats feast. Thanks to all those who came out, it was amazing to see so many happy people eating. Remember to mark Friday, October 9th on your calendar as the next Community Eats.

Here are the recipes from yesterday:

Rumble in the Jungle Ratatouille:

Tomatoes
Eggplant
Yellow peppers
Onions
Garlic powder
Tomato paste
Vegetable stock
Salt
Pepper
Cayenne
Thyme
Canola oil

Heat oil. Add cut up onions and brown. Add cut up eggplants and yellow peppers. Let simmer. After about 15 minutes, or when everything is getting nice and soft, add tomatoes. Throw in garlic powder, salt, pepper, thyme and cayenne. Stir. Add in water, tomato paste and veggie stock. Let it cook until you can't wait any longer. Enjoy.

Parsnip fries (formerly known as Torpedo Turnips...)

Parsnips
Oil
Salt
Pepper
Thyme
Cayenne

Cut parsnips into fries. In a large bowl mix with oil(enough to coat), salt, pepper, cayenne and thyme. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes or until golden brown.

Can't wait to feed you all again!

Community Eats Returns!

Hello all-
Welcome back to another glorious September. Good news- Community Eats returns to Sprouts this Friday (September 25th) ready for another year of delicious and highly nutritious lunches. Like last year, a vegan lunch will be served starting at 11:30am (and going until the food runs out) for anyone and everyone. Just bring a reusable container (this means no styrofoam or borrowed plates from any of the SUB’s food outlets) to the beautiful Sprouts café and receive your scrumptious by donation lunch. Hope to see you all there!
In other news Sprouts has a new website at http://ubcsprouts.ca/-check it out.

Sprouts AGM and Invitation to "South of the Table" Events

Hi everyone,

1.A message from Jeremy, Store Coordinator at Sprouts:

Hello Friends,
This is just a reminder about tomorrow's AGM at 6:30 in the store. We'll look back at our past year, look to the future, vote on some constitutional amendments, and confirm next year's board - all while enjoying some refreshments provided by Sprouts. Come even if you haven't volunteered.

Our end of year liquidation is still going strong. In addition of what's in the bulk bins, you can buy our baking ingredients at cost. Over the next couple of days, these things will be showing-up in pre-weighed bags. Drop me a line if you want to learn more about what we have kicking around.

Cheers
Jeremy.


2. As mentioned last week, Community Eats has been working with the class of Geography 495 to create awareness about translocal food sovereignty. Here are some more events that are being organized collaboratively under the name "South of the Table"...

"Geography 495 is a community service learning course at UBC focusing on the promotion of local, ethical community food production in Vancouver and Oaxaca, Mexico. The seminar is taught by Juanita Sundberg in collaboration with the Women's Cooperative Margarita Magón from Oaxaca, CIPO-RFM, CIPO-VAN, the Wilderness Committee, and Sprouts at UBC.

Wednesday April 1st, 7pm: South of the Table Beer Night at The Gallery LoungeAvoid the line-up at “The Pit” and come share a drink with us!
The Gallery Lounge in the SUB,
7pm until last call!
Film showing of "Un Poquito de Tanta Verdad", music and maybe even dancing.

Thursday April 2nd, 7pm: South of the Table Coffe House at Rhizome CafeRhizome Cafe, 317 East Broadway (at Scotia St.)
7pm - 9:30pm
Join us for live music, great discussion, and a jam session to wrap everything up!
$5-10 suggested donation (no one turned away)

Stay tuned for our final food sovereignty awareness event to be held on Saturday, April 25, more details to come.

For more info send us an email at geo495foodfight@gmail.com."

That's it for now, stay tuned for a year-end wrap up and the announcing of our new Community Eats Director for 2009/2010.

Happy April!

Heather

Special (and Last) Community Eats Lunch Tomorrow!

Hi everyone,

Tomorrow will be our last Community Eats of the school year! This lunch is a special collaboration with the class of Geography 495, CIPO-Van and our special guest cook Doña Vicky.

Some of you may remember the Community Eats/Geography 495/BC CASA collaboration last year with the film about Canadian mining companies in Guatemala. This year's theme for this unique class is "Trans-local Approaches to Food Sovereignty & Social Justice: connecting communities in Mexico & B.C. through Community Service Learning." Doña Vicky is the coordinator of a woman's co-operative in Oaxaca who is visiting Vancouver to share and trade knowledge with us in our collaboration. We are very thankful to Doña Vicky for her collaboration and expertise on this special meal.

The special Mexican menu will be Caldo de papa con Arroz Rojo y Frijoles / Potato Soup with Mexican Rice and Beans.
Friday March 27, 11:30am - 1:30pm (or until the food runs out) in Sprouts, SUB basement.
This lunch will be a fundraiser for our collaboration with CIPO-Van and we will be asking for a donation (minimum $2) to cover our costs and raise some funds for this project.

Members of the Geography 495 class will be at the lunch tomorrow, as well as Doña Vicky, and we hope that you will come and enjoy the food that we have prepared for you.
Bring a container, a fork and a friend.

Thanks so much for your continued support this year, until next semester!

Heather

P.s. If you are interested in getting involved in CE next year, please send me an email at communityeats@gmail.com.

Shepherd's Pie Recipe and Discussion Group

Hi friends,

Here is Adrick's recipe for the Shepherd's Pie that we all enjoyed at Community Eats today. Also, below is an announcement about a discussion group that some friends of Community Eats are holding at Sprouts on Monday.

Have a good weekend,

Heather and CE

1. Vegan Shepherd's Pie Recipe

Mashed Potatoes:

four large potatoes
three medium sized yams
knob of butter (or) tbsp olive oil
splash of soy milk
salt and pepper

Cut yams/potato into chunks, boil until soft, adding the yams a little bit later than the potatoes, as they cook faster. Drain. Mash with oil/butter and soy milk, add salt and pepper to taste. Spread half of mash on a pie plate or deep dish baking pan. Reserve second half for the crust.

Filling:

2 cups dry lentils, cooked
tomato, uncooked

Garlic
Onion
Pepper (any colour, maybe not green)
Eggplant
Zucchini
Mushroom
Oil

Spread cooked lentils on the mashed potato base, toss in diced fresh tomato.

Spread the diced vegetables on a baking sheet. Toss with oil, salt, pepper, oregano, rosemary, and thyme. Bake 20 minutes at 350F, until crispy and soft on the inside.

Spread the roasted veg on top of the lentil/tomato layer. Press down with a spatula. Add the remaining mash, spread on top as a sandwich layer. Bake at 350F for 40 - 50 minutes, until the filling is heated through and the crust is golden!

Enjoy with wine, beer, cider and good company on a winter's eve!

2. The Pleasure in Eating Discussion Group

Come share your thoughts and ideas about what it means to "eat with pleasure" in a discussion group facilitated by two fellow UBC students.

In a safe and comfortable environment, we will be exploring how to rediscover food's purpose in our lives amidst the confusing messages we often encounter in our society.

When: Monday, March 16th, 5:30-7:00pm
Where: Sprouts (SUB basement, room 66)

Light snack and tea to follow.

Spots are limited. Please RSVP by Friday, March 13th to:
thepleasureineating@gmail.com

We hope to see you there!

Sprouts is out of debt and in need of new leaders

Hi CE peoples,

Below is some exciting news from Sprouts, and a call out to find dedicated and involved people to run the show next year.
But first, some exciting news for CE - we are having a Community Eats Strategic Planning Meeting. If you are interested in helping out more with Community Eats next year or if you just have some good ideas for where our organization should go, please send me (Heather) an email at communityeats@gmail.com. What comes out of the meeting on Monday will be posted here to keep you all up to date.

Stay tuned for an in-depth email about positions that need filling for Community Eats next year...there are lots! Also, head to Sprouts today to get some free Terra Bread, courtesy of Community Eats' dedicated volunteers!

Heather Russell
Community Eats Director
communityeats@gmail.com

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hello friends of Sprouts,
Today, Martin and Sophie (the president and treasurer) were going over our budget for last moth and we can now announce that we are officially out of debt!!!

For those of you who don't know, when Sprouts reopened as a café in January 2008, we had $48,000 of debt. With the help of the AMS and the UBC community, we were able to eliminate our debt in just over a year. (In fact, we were only open for 9 months of that year.) This debt has been a bit of an albatross for us, so with this debt out of the way, Sprouts can only continue to grow.

We are going to continue to re-invest our profit into developing educational initiatives on campus, such as our workshops, but if you have any suggestions for us about what to do with this profit, e-mail us at ubcsprouts@gmail.com.

Also, keep your ears (or your facebook) peeled for info on the upcoming party we're going to have to celebrate this milestone. It will most likely happen by the end of the month so that our Katimakid can be there.

On a more important note, we need people to staff next year's executive board - the people who organize everything Sprouts-related. Go to http://www.ams.ubc.ca/clubs/nfc/help.html and have a look at the positions; they're a bit different from this years'. Applications are due March 15th, so get cracking! If you have any questions, doubts or concerns about any of the positions, don't hesitate to contact us.

Cheers
Jeremy, Sprouts Store Coordinator

hey all you UBC foodies...

Check out some other UBC food-related initiatives:

UBC Dollar Project Recipe Contest:
http://ubcdollarproject.blogspot.com/search/label/Announcements

Student Kitchen Project:
http://studentkitchenproject.blogspot.com/

Recipe for Winter Eggplant Dahl

Adrick has shared his recipe for the meal that we all enjoyed today - an eggplant dahl.

Ingedients:
2 onions, diced
3 medium tomateos, diced
1 large eggplant, chopped
2 cups dry lentils, pre-cooked
4 potatoes, cubed and par-boiled
oil
spices (cumin, curry, cardamom, ginger, chili, paprika, pepper and salt.

How:
Start with oil - add cumin, ginger and chili until oil heats up and becomes aromatic.
Add onions - cook until translucent. Add tomato and remaining spices, cook until it becomes like a paste. Add eggplant, cook until softened/browned. Add pre-cooked lentils and potatoes, simmer until tender and perfect (add extra spice/salt if needed).

Enjoy!

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Exciting Updates!

The blog has a new fun layout, and a form on the right hand side where you can now subscribe to our mailing list.

We have been a little lacking in the email communication this semester, but hopefully this new google group mailing list will make it much easier.

Here's h0w to subscribe to our new list:
1. type your email address in the form
2. click on the link that will be sent to your email
and voila you will soon receive emails to keep you up to date

We are hoping to have a big meeting and work party some time soon, to create some new promotional materials. Everyone is invited and we would love to see lots of people come out to help! More details to come...

Another pressing issue these days is the future of Community Eats. Many of our collective members will not be around next semester, so we are looking to find some dedicated individuals who want to take more initiative in the future.
Send Heather an email at communityeats@gmail.com if you are interested in becoming more involved in the fall or if you have any exciting ideas or things that you would like to see happen.

Also, Terra Breads are back every Friday at Sprouts, courtesy of Community Eats volunteers!

See you all for lunch next week!

CE Lunch Today

It's been two weeks, so we're back again. Hope to see you for lunch, same details as always!

Friday January 30; 11:30 - 1:30 (or until the food runs out!)
In Sprouts, SUB room 66
Bring your own container and utensils
Pay-what-you-can, suggested donation of $1

Community Eats is back!

Our first lunch of the semester will be served tomorrow, details are below. On the menu is a delicious roasted veggie shepherds pie, bagels, and fresh fruit. Hope to see you there!

Friday January 16; 11:30 - 1:30 (or until the food runs out!)
In Sprouts, SUB room 66
Bring your own container and utensils
Pay-what-you-can, suggested donation of $1

We really need more people to help us out with food collection. We'd love to meet you! For more details about how to get involved, email our fearless Volunteer Coordinator communityeats.volunteers@gmail.com or check out:

http://communityeats.blogspot.com/2008/02/get-involved-volunteering-with.html