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Strawberry and Rhubarb Crumble

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Fresh rhubarb from the Market

With the RCFM now open and running every Thursday during the summer, there are tons of varieties of fresh fruits and vegetables available at vendors’ tables. I ran across strawberries and rhubarb and was given the idea for a strawberry and rhubarb crumble! Not familiar with rhubarb, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but the end product was sweet, tart and all around delicious!

I followed Smitten Kitchen’s recipe but cut my ingredients in half. Below is the original recipe which yields 4 to 6 servings.

Topping Ingredients:
1 1/3 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons Demerara sugar (or turbinado sugar aka Sugar in the Raw)
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
Zest of 1 lemon

Filling Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups rhubarb, chopped into 1-inch pieces
4 cups strawberries, hulled and quartered
1/2 cup sugar
4 tablespoons cornstarch
Juice of 1 lemon
Pinch of salt

Instructions:

1. Heat oven to 375°F.

2. Prepare topping: In a mixing bowl, combine flour,
baking powder, sugars and lemon zest and melted butter.

 
3. Mix until clumps form. Refrigerate until needed.

4. Prepare filling: Mix rhubarb, strawberries, lemon
juice, sugar, cornstarch and salt in an oven dish.

5. Take topping ingredients and cover filling evenly with topping.

6. Bake for 45 minutes, or until crumble topping is
golden brown and fruit is bubbling beneath.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Arts and Crafts on Market Day

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Tie Dye for Father's Day!

Visitors to the RCFM get the opportunity to see and visit many vendors with a variety of goods ranging from food to knick knacks. On top of enjoying the park, listening to live music and hearing stories behind the people and community, special events take place every week.

This last Thursday we were excited to celebrate Father’s Day with a tie dye craft table complete with cut out paper ties and food colouring. And as the sun came out that afternoon, kids were able to get creative and decorate the market walkway with their own chalk creations.

Little visitors chalking it up

Rain or shine, the market is open and running so make sure you drop by this coming Thursday from 3pm to 7pm for another fun and interactive activity for the young’uns!

Lemon Squares for Dad

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Instead of the typical boxed chocolates,socks, or a tie, make your Father’s Day present a little more unique this year and add a personal, homemade touch. I snagged this recipe off Allrecipes Lemon Square Bars Recipe but added a bit more lemon to the suggested servings for that extra zest. This recipe only takes about an hour, a nine by 13 inch deep-dish pan, mixing utensils and the following ingredients:

Crust:
1 cup softened butter
1/2 cup white sugar
2 cups flour

Filling:
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1/4 cup flour
3 lemons, juiced

I made half the amount this recipe called for only because I wanted to taste test my creation before presenting it to my dad, so the pictures displayed below are my modified quantities.

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Mix the ingredients for the crust, the butter, white sugar and flour together in a mixing bowl.

3. Press the mix into your deep-dish pan.

4. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until firm and golden.


5. Mix the ingredients for the filling, the eggs,
white sugar and lemon juice together in a mixing bowl.

6. Pour the filling over the baked crust.

7. Bake for 20 minutes.

8. Allow to cool before cutting into squares.


9. Add confectioner’s sugar for a finished touch.

From my first attempt, I ate about half the pan as soon as the squares came out of the oven. They had a nice, crunchy crust that had the right amount of sugar along with the confectioner’s sugar on top, and the added lemon juice (the original recipe asked for two lemons) in the filling countered the sweetness with more zing. I was surprised by how moist the lemon squares stayed after baking. This was by far one of the easier desserts to make without breaking the bank or mussing up the kitchen and is a definite must-bake for Father’s Day.

 

June 14: Father’s Day

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We are so pleased that the sun came out last week in time to help us celebrate the opening of our 2012 season. If you missed last week, why not join us 3 – 7 this Thursday in beautiful Tipperary Park where about 40 vendors will be offering fresh produce, hand made one of a kind crafts, amazing delicious foods, and lots of fun!

Music this week is crowd favourite Ron Ulrich. Our music at the market is sponsored by the great people at the Heritage Grill. Be sure to check out the kids area – this week we are offering tie dying – a fun Father’s Day themed craft that experiments with colour mixing.

As well, as we are pleased to host a very special guest this week: local author, JJ Lee.

Just in time for Father’s Day, JJ Lee, fashion columnist and author of critically-acclaimed work of non-fiction, The Measure of a Man: The Story of a Father, a Son, and a Suit, will be setting up a Sartorial Help Booth at the market. For a donation but no less than a nickel, of course, JJ will help you with your menswear conundrum. You’ll get the same quality advice he prescribes every month to readers of The Vancouver Sun. Proceeds go to our local food bank.

JJ will also read from his book and is available to sign yours. Copies of the newly released paperback edition are available to purchase.

The Measure of a Man was declared one of the best memoirs of 2011 by The Globe and Mail. Amazon.ca, Kobo, and The Globe and Mail also made it one of the top books overall for 2011. It was a finalist for the 2011 Governor-General’s Literary Award for Non-Ficiton, a finalist for
the 2012 Charles Taylor Prize for Non-Fiction, and a finals for the Hubert Evans Award for Non-Fiction presented by the 2012 BC Book Prizes.  Described by The National Post as “touching and inquisitive . . . [a] striking and accomplished blend of humour, information and pathos. . . . [a] thoughtful and intermittently provocative memoir.”

You can reach the market via transit by taking the 106 bus or the Skytrain to Columbia Street Station and walking to the market at 4th and Royal. Parking is available in the neighbourhood for free along Royal Avenue, Queens Avenue, or at City Hall’s lot after 4:30. Please respect our neighbours.

Bringing your bike? Cyclists can drop bikes off to the fine folks at our info desk for safekeeping.

A list of all vendors attending the June 14 market is  below, but remember to check back for cancellations and updates! This list is current as of June 12.

Produce

Dairy

Honey

Meat & Fish

  • Outwest Ranches – beef raised locally and fresh eggs
  • Port Hardy Seafood – BC caught fish and prawns
  • Rockweld Farm – BC frozen chicken and chicken products including eggs
  • Sawmill Bay Shellfish Company – family run shellfish farm, growing oysters, mussels, clams, and scallops on the waters near Read Island BC
  • Sleeping Mountain – organic turkey

Bread & Baking

Delectable Treats and Prepared Yummies

Local Crafters

 

 

Community Event: Wild Rice Patio Pig Roast

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Wild Rice is extremely excited to announce their patio grand opening on Saturday, June 23!

It is a  Luau-themed event, so join in on the festivities with your aloha gear. Dinner service starts at 7:30pm and the after party begins at 9:30pm.

To titillate all the senses, guests can enjoy the  view of the River  from the newly opened patio and take in the intoxicating aroma of roasting  pig. What’s more, you can and listen and dance to live music at the after party.

Wild Rice's Dining Area (picture provided by Wild Rice)

For $20 per person you get roasted pork with the trimmings and a glass of sangria. If that doesn’t satiate your cravings, the regular menu will also be available.

Wild Rice's Bar and Lounge (picture provided by Wild Rice)

This event is by reservation only, so make sure you save your spot early. To reserve, call Wild Rice at 778-397-0028, email lisa@wildricebc.ca, or visit the restaurant in person at 122 – 810 Quayside Drive.

Like their grand opening in January, Wild Rice will collect a suggested $5 donation at the door with the proceeds going to the New West food bank. Come support a great cause, dine with a gorgeous view and enjoy an evening outside with your friends.

 

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Land Acknowledgement

Our market is grateful to operate on the unceded land of the Qayqayt, Kwikwetlem, and other Halkomelem speaking Peoples. We acknowledge that colonialism has made invisible their histories and connections to the land. We acknowledge the incredible gift this land is to our market and BC Agriculture. We commit to the ongoing work of decolonization and allyship.