The position is part-time (16 hrs/week) from February-October, and Fo57th is seeking 3-4 apprentices in total. Besides a wealth of education, apprentices will receive a weekly box of seasonal veggies.

Application deadline: February 1st, 2012

Please submit your application to Tess and Karen at farmerson57th@gmail.com with answers to the following questions:

• What’s your motivation for wanting to apprentice with Farmers on 57th?
• How does this apprenticeship fit into your future plans?
• What is your gardening and/or food growing background?
• Are you able to commit for the entire growing season? Do you foresee any obstacles to fulfilling this commitment?
• What other relevant skills do you have?

Photo courtesy of mgsimpson999 on Flickr Creative Commons.

In this three-hour session that emphasizes safe canning practices, participants will learn how to make jams and pickles using a boiling water bath canner. The principles of pressure canning, and other preservation techniques, will also be discussed.
The workshop will consist of a presentation followed by hands on canning session in which participants have the opportunity to make both a jam and make pickled carrots using local, seasonal ingredients. Registration includes all supplies and participants will take home a jar of preserves. Cost: $30 (plus $1.74 registration fee,) materials included.  For more information and to register visit the eventbrite registration page.

Knitting it together: an introduction to knitting - Wednesday, November 30th, 6pm-9pm.

In this introductory course on knitting, participants will learn the basics of knitting from the materials required, to reading a pattern. Spend the evening casting on and off, learning the art of knit and pearl. Cost: $25 (plus $1.61 registration fee), knitting supplies included!  Please note there are no refunds for cancellations. For more information and to register visit the eventbrite page. Please note that space is limited to 11 participants. Growing season workshops do sell out fast, so make sure to purchase your ticket early.

Photo courtesy of Dyanna on Flickr Creative Commons.

]]> http://friendsoftheubcfarm.wordpress.com/2011/11/04/november-growing-season-workshops-seasonal-canning-and-knitting-what-fun/feed/ 0 friendsoftheubcfarm Pickled Carrots 3 365.176 http://friendsoftheubcfarm.wordpress.com/2011/11/04/farmade-ketchup-recipe-is-here/ http://friendsoftheubcfarm.wordpress.com/2011/11/04/farmade-ketchup-recipe-is-here/#comments Fri, 04 Nov 2011 22:26:14 +0000 Admin http://friendsoftheubcfarm.wordpress.com/?p=4146 ]]> Nancy’s organic, homemade ketchup was all the rage at this year’s 9th Annual FarmAde.

This recipe should yield about 4 litres, which may be a lot for singles or couples. However, because it is time consuming, this quantity is probably worth the time and effort. Ideally, the tomatoes, onions and garlic should be organic, as they were for FarmAde.

• 12# of fresh, ripe tomatoes
• 3# of yellow onion
• 1 head of peeled garlic
• 2 cups of apple cider vinegar
• ¼ cup each of honey, molasses and brown sugar (molasses has a pretty distinct taste, so it can easily be substituted for more honey or sugar)

• 1 tablespoon each of dry mustard powder, all spice, black pepper and cayenne pepper (this gives it a bit of a kick and can be adjusted according to taste)
• 1 teaspoon of ground cloves
• 3 tablespoons of salt
• 1.5 to 2 cups of tomato paste

Wash, core and chop  the tomatoes, peel and rough chop the onions and mince the garlic.

Put these 3 ingredients in a large, heavy bottom pot and sweat on low heat until the tomatoes break down.

Add the apple cider vinegar and simmer until the onions and garlic (and tomatoes) have softened completely (about ½ an hour).

Add the sweeteners and the seasonings and simmer for an hour, stirring occasionally, being you sure you don’t scorch the pan.

Remove from heat, transfer to another large container and let mixture cool.  Don’t bother washing the pot, you’ll need it again!

It is at this point that you can go to the trouble of straining out all the seeds and skin for a more sophisticated ketchup, but Nancy does not do this.  Personally, she prefers it  rustic, which is how it was prepared for FarmAde.

Taste for seasonings and sweetness and see how thick your mixture is, once cooled.

Transfer small batches of ketchup to a food processer and blend until smooth.

Tomatoes & onions have varying degrees of water and the thickness of your ketchup is personal taste.  It is at this point where you would add as much or as little tomato paste to achieve the desired degree of thickness.

Once you have added the paste, pour ketchup back into the pot and simmer on very low heat for about ½ hour.

Depending on how quickly you plan on using up the ketchup, you can either pour it into sterilized  canning jars to about an inch from the top, or just put it into clean glass containers and give some to your friends!  It will keep for about two to three weeks like this in the fridge.

The application deadline for the UBC Farm Practicum in Sustainable Agriculture is fast approaching! We are accepting applications until Sunday, October 30. We hope to have a response for all applicants by the end of December 2011.

About the Practicum:

2011 Practicum students processing onions for storage.

Established in 2008, this part-time (600 hour), 8-month practicum offers instruction and daily work experience in small-scale sustainable farming. In a balanced, hands-on learning approach, students work alongside staff in the greenhouse, gardens, fields, and orchard. Students attend complementary lectures, demonstrations, and farm visits, and participate in a variety of practical and reflective educational activities. Direct marketing activities are also a key part of the experience. The practicum has been designed as a beginning point for aspiring growers, educators and agricultural professionals.

Students come from all backgrounds and are expected to be passionate about pursuing a career in sustainable agriculture. A certificate of completion will be issued to students who fulfill the practicum requirements. Further, we support our graduates to make connections within the BC agricultural community, and to seek out mentors to learn with following Sowing Seeds. Although the Practicum is not yet registered as a Credit Course, UBC students can enroll in the program as a Directed Study and receive partial reimbursement for the cost of the program.

For more information, please see the Practicum page on the UBC Farm website.

Come celebrate the end of the 2011 season at our Harvest Festival! On October 22nd, our last Saturday market of the season, we invite you to come out to the Farm to stock up on storage veggies for the winter or take home a carved pumpkin just in time for Halloween. Join us for a day filled with activities, including:

- Pumpkin carving competition (win a Cinderella pumpkin!)
- The Great Marrdini: A Magician at the Market (weather pending)
- Face painting & Children’s colouring corner
- Special spooky children’s farm tour at 11am
- Complimentary apple cider
- Hot prepared food from Coma Food Truck
- And live, local music!

We hope to see you out on the 22nd to wrap up this year’s harvest season with fun times at the farm.

We will have more walkabouts throughout the year. Please join us to learn more about all that the UBC Farm has to offer while breathing fresh air – rain or shine!

The UBC Farm Heritage Orchard was designed, grafted and planted as a student Directed Study beginning in 2005.  A sanctuary for apple culture, the orchard is composed of ~120 trees, including ~70 varieties of apples and a handful of plums.  2011 marks our first year of significant harvest for market sales and the orchard is producing gorgeous apples. Come visit this urban agricultural gem for tours with UBC Farm staff who care for the orchard on SATURDAY October 15!  Meet at the UBC Farm entrance gate. No UBC Farm orchard tours will be offered on Sunday.

For more about the UBC Farm Orchard, check out this older post on the blog .

What a wonderful time of abundance and hunkering down!  Come on out to the UBC Farm Pumpkin Patch and bring home a Jack O Lantern, Sugar or Baby Pumpkin – stop by, the gates are open from 9am-5pm Tuesday through Saturdays.  And of course our campus and farm markets are offering fabulous fall produce in many shades and tastes of green, orange, red, yellow,  and blue!

Enjoy a virtual UBC Farm fall walkabout through these pictures, and hope to see you soon.  With warmth and community!