Alberta Open Farm Days: Leaman Exchange

 

A replica of the family's gas station, owned by Cecil Sharman

The Sharman family has lived in the Wildwood area for nearly 100 years, on Leaman Road, located just 15 minutes West of Wildwood, Alberta. 8 years ago, Leanne Sharman, Grandaughter of Cecil Sharman, purchased a farm on Leaman Road with her husband David Scott, and together with their family created a hobby farm they named Leaman Exchange. 

Alberta Open Farm Days: Farmer's Market Tour

  One of my favourite aspects of summer is the abundance of locally grown fruits and vegetables.  It's not uncommon for me to take the 3 hour road trip simply to visit some of my favourite markets.

Jerk Chicken

  This summer I volunteered for The Wild Mountain Music Festival.  The weekend was inspiring for a lot of different reasons.  I left with new friends, new experiences, and an intense craving for jerk chicken.   

Alberta Open Farm Days: Violet Gardens & Greenhouse

Campfire Compote w/ London Fog Whipped Cream

A few weeks back Sarah and I camped out at Wildhorse Lake for a couple of nights.  Being as how we were so close to town and had vehicles to store our coolers in at night, we were able to do a little gourmet camp cooking that weekend.

On Saturday, I went back into town for a friend’s housewarming party, and at Sarah’s request, I grabbed some rhubarb from her yard on the way back.

When I got back to camp, Sarah got to work chopping up the rhubarb, and I grabbed some raspberries from my cooler.  We added some brown sugar and butter she had brought, and stewed it all over the fire.  While Sarah worked on the compote, I grabbed a mason jar, and got to work on the London Fog Whipped Cream, using ingredients I had brought for coffee, and an Earl Grey Tea bag.  The result was one of the best desserts I have had in awhile, let alone camping. 

This compote would work well on top of French toast, pancakes, toast, or as a crustless pie/crumble, which is how we ate it that night.

Edible Cookie Painting

It’s no secret that in addition to cooking, I am also a huge fan of art and creativity. This recipe is the perfect example of when two of my favourite pastimes combine. 

Mozza Stuffed Meatballs

Meatballs are quite delicious on their own, but add adding a river of cheese to the centre of them really steps them up a notch.