Eat Out
From nature walks with Andrew Weil to tasty feasts like a beachside oyster barbecue, a visit to Hollyhock, the educational retreat centre on Cortes Island, can be a life-changing experience. In the Hollyhock kitchen, a commitment to organic growing and using local ingredients whenever possible stacks the cooking philosophy with integrity. Moreka Jolar, former head chef at Hollyhock and co-author of Hollyhock Cooks: Food to Nourish Body, Mind and Soil, will host a five-day workshop called “The Passionate Cook” at the retreat this summer on meal planning, knife skills, and how to create a balanced vegetarian diet. The course is $455 (meals and accommodation extra), so start saving your pennies. And book early, because space is limited. hollyhock.ca [1]

Check Out
Like Santa’s elves getting ready for Christmas in late November, you can bet the folks at East Vancouver Farmers Market Society are clocking late nights in preparation for the Trout Lake market, opening May 17. And, like small children, Eastside foodies are counting the sleeps—even if they got their fix all winter long thanks to the very successful Winter Farmers Market every other Saturday at the WISE Hall. But Westside folks didn’t have it so easy. And unless they’re willing to cross that magic east-west divide and journey to Trout Lake, they’ll have to wait until June 1 for the Kitsilano market to open. By then, the Riley Park market will be mere sleeps away from its opening June 4, while West End market groupies will get their first fix June 7. eatlocal.org [2]

Eat In
Tea oil is the oil of choice in China and Japan for everything from stir-fries and tempura to setting the hair of sumo wrestlers. And now Treasure Green invites you to try its Camellia Tea Oil right here in Vancouver. High in antioxidants, tea oil also has a very high smoke point—240 C—which means it can withstand high-heat frying. It’s also believed that oils that go past their smoke point may contain more free radicals, so tea oil pulls double duty in both contributing to a smoke-free kitchen and possibly reducing your risk of cancer. So the next time you feel like cranking the blue flame for a quick stir-fry—or slicking back the hair of your favourite sumo—a bottle of Treasure Green should do the trick. Available at Whole Foods, Capers, Stong’s Market (4560 Dunbar St.), and treasuregreen.com [3].

Trish Kelly lives and eats in Vancouver. She likes sumo fashion, arriving to market fashionably early, and retreating with a good book. At her request, SharedVISION donates Trish’s freelance fee to a local food-focused non-profit organization. This month’s recipient is RainCity Housing and Support Society (raincityhousing.org).