Spring Puces Pop

Come join me in celebrating one whole year of 100% ferments at Spring Puces Pop!

The event takes place this Saturday and Sunday, June 9-10, from 11-6pm in the basement of St-Enfant Jésus Church at the corner of St-Dominique and St-Joseph.

This time around, I'm bringing along the usual suspects, like kimchi, curtido, and sauerkraut for all of your bbq-ing needs, but will also have a limited supply of seasonal specialties, like a beautiful Giardiniera di Primavera (asparagus, radishes, chives, wild horseradish), Lebanese turnip pickles, and miso-fermented carrots! Come by to taste if you're curious...

posthumous pickle party

Fig. 1. Simcha, photographer unknown.

It won't make dill pickle season come any sooner, but please check out this film featuring the late Simcha and Fanny Leibovich and their famous sour dills.

Made in Montreal in 2006, it was released sometime ago but was news to me. It's dubbed in French, but don't let that stop you...

a wild embrace

Fig. 1. Left to right, wild experiments: dandelion bud capers with coltsfoot flowers, blushing ramp bulbs, and fiddleheads with ramp greens.

From faraway forests to nearby back alleyways, spring has sprung.

Thanks to Elisabeth for her gifts from the woods!

guru encounters in california

Fig. 1. San Francisco by sea.

I spent the second half of January in Northern California, one of my new favourite places in the world.

Berkeley, California is home to Cultured Pickle Shop, and I spent a week there scrubbing beets, mixing sauerkraut, filling jars, and grilling master-pickler Alex Hozven about her ascent to pickle stardom.

I also wandered around sunny San Francisco for a few days. Naturally, I made the pilgrimage to Tartine bakery, home of Chad Robertson, the author of my sourdough bread bible. I braved the line-up, feasted on my delicious purchases, and glimpsed the master (see here for glamour shots).

Figs. 2 & 3. It wasn't just about the food.

I ferment, you ferment, we ferment

Montrealers! I will be leading a Fermentation ABCs workshop at Dépanneur le Pick Up on Tuesday, March 27, 8pm. 


We'll talk about the craft and get our hands dirty. Plus, everyone will leave with two different vegetable mixtures to ferment at home, plus a yogurt sample to get you started with dairy fermentation!


To sign up, contact lepickupevents@gmail.com .

 


Come one, come all!

be mine.

"Torshi Left", or Lebanese pickled turnips, made a highly appropriate appearance on the eve of Valentine's day. This latest Culture Club offering is hot pink, crunchy and delicious. Made with love.

Extra! Extra!

At the beginning of January I sat down with writer Natasha Pickowicz to talk about lacto fermentation (and winter coping strategies!). Here's her article for the Montreal Gazette. That's not me in the photo, it's Leyla Majeri, home-fermenter extraordinaire.