May 28, 2025 Good Food Box Newsletter

Feature Farmer

Mason Street Farms, on the edge of town at 1015 Balmoral Ave, will be providing organic mixed greens to many of our bags again this week. Once you eat these you’ll want to stock up on more. Learn more about this fresh picking farm here:  https://www.victoriaediblenursery.com/

They also sell organic eggs, have a nursery for starter plants and other produce  greens like arugula, chard and more.

This Panzanella Salad is one of our favourite salads. It exudes summer! Tossing with your summer greens is a great way to extend this dish for a larger crowd and reduce costs. It will be mouth watering with Mason Street Farms mixed greens! This is one of those salads that can make gluten free home made croutons taste good. (If you’re gluten free you’ll know what I mean, gluten free isn’t known for it’s tasty bread. Though if you happen upon some GF sourdough to make croutons with, they’ll take this dish over the top! Click here for the recipe link.

Cookie Rookie’s Cucumber Tomato Salad pops with this lemon pepper olive oil dressing. Click here to go directly to the recipe link.

Splash of Taste describes Tzatziki as one of those staple dips that has more flavour than you’d expect and is low effort – good for spreading, scooping or dolloping onto almost anything. It can be served with a fancier meal or pulled out of your lunch bag as you take a break from the busyness of your day. It’s better with fresh herbs but in a pinch dried will also suffice. No mint, ask a neighbour if you can help them prune their overgrown patch (it happens faster than you can blink) or skip this ingredient…though it’s a lovely addition. Click here for the full recipe.

There are still a few chilly nights to be had and this vegan lentil mushroom still will both fill you up and warm you. Better Home Base shares that lentils contain 18 grams of protein per cup – adding a great addition to a meatless Monday dinner plan. Leftovers make a great lunch too! Mushrooms also contain selenium, something we often hear many are lacking in their diet, yet such an important mineral for our health. Click here for the full recipe.

Not sure what to do with your eggplant? A Pistou is a versatile recipe that can be tossed into soups, a salad, pasta, rice, quinoa or even whipped up in the food processor or blender as a dip – it’s roasted caramelized flavour makes it a delicious topping on crusty bread. Find Wellness Sleuth’s guide to Pistou and their recipe here.

Bok Choy & Mushroom Stir Fry by Grow Green Yard is a quick and easy, versatile weeknight recipe which makes it easy to use up those veggies that might be starting to go soft in your crisper – like carrots, celery, snap peas, leafy greens or even thinly sliced turnip. Click here to find the full recipe.

What’s in the bags this week?

Standard ($30.00): *BC early nugget potatoes, LE BC cucumbers,  BC Cremini mushrooms, BC cherry red tomatoes, BC red pepper, banana, org. Altualfo mango, org. Romaine lettuce

Standard Plus ($40.00): org. Jewel/Garnet yams, *BC early nugget potatoes, green cabbage, org. carrots,  bananas, org. BC red cherry tomatoes, BC red pepper, org. BC Cremini mushrooms, org. Altualfo mango, Gatton Farm org. *bok choy, org. Romaine lettuce

Sustainable ($40.00): green cabbage, org. Jewel/Garnet yams, Altualfo mango, BC Cremini mushrooms, Northstar Organics cucumber, black kale and chives, Gatton Farm org. bok choy, Mason St. Farms org. lettuce mix

Cultural ($30.00): org. Jewel/Garnet yams, BC red pepper, green cabbage, North Star Organics eggplant, org. bananas, org. BC cherry tomatoes, Gatton Farm org. *bok choy, org. Romaine lettuce

Staples ($30.00):  *BC early nugget potatoes, green cabbage, org. carrots,  bananas, org. red cherry BC tomatoes, LE cucumber, Pink Lady apples

Fruit ($25.00): Pink Lady apples, Pineapples, org. Altualfo mango, cantaloupe, org. banana

BC – Only ($30.00): BC early nugget potatoes, org. BC Cremini mushrooms, org. Gatton Farm *Bok Choy, Mason St. Farm org. *lettuce mix, North Star Organic *black kale, BC Cherry Red tomatoes, BC red pepper, BC LE cucumber

*local, BC, organic

***Note: Some items may change due to circumstances out of our control but the value of the box will always remain the same.

Wet Weather Reminder — Bring your cloth bags or totes! Don’t forget to bring along your reusable grocery bags or totes to avoid the soggy demise of our paper bags if you’ll be hitting the elements on the way home. Even just getting to the car during this soggy season could be lethal for your produce — we want it to make it all the way home — not playing a game of 10 pin on the sidewalk!

Get Growing

Peppermint gone rogue in your garden? Make extract – easy peasy! 

Follow this link: https://www.facebook.com/reel/1009391934614688

Come get your hands dirty this Thursday, May 29th when we fill our new beds with compost & plants!

Due to a leaky underground pipe we sadly had to demolish our previous garden beds, but with thanks to @hatchetnseed we have some smart new beds that need replanting!

Drop in any time between 10am- 4pm.

Snacks & drinks will be provided, along with tools & gloves. Please bring a water bottle & come prepared for the weather~ it’s a hot & sunny south facing area!

Bring a friend, or come & make a new one

#gardening #volunteer #community #communitygardens #greenspaces

Are you in your Beekeeping era? Or you’re just interested in learning? Join us at Fairfield Flourist Fest for a free Beekeeping workshop hosted by the Capital Region Beekeeping Association

Keep updated on our website for the workshop schedule!

https://fairfieldcommunity.ca/fairfield-flourish-fest/

Swap out seeds that you have too much of with new seeds for you to try growing! Drop by the Seed Swap station at Fairfield Flourish Fest to find some cool new seeds to add to your garden

Date: Saturday, June 7th
Time: 11:00am-3:00pm
Location: Robert Porter Park

https://fairfieldcommunity.ca/fairfield-flourish-fest/

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Have you signed up yet? Registration for fall workshops is now open! Learn something new this year and get nerdy about the world of world beneath your feet and more! View all workshops and register through the link in our bio https://compost.bc.ca/get-involved/public-workshops/

Connecting in Community

Join Braefoot Community Association for their 15th annual family fun event, where they’ve planned plenty of games and fun activities for your child—and you could win fantastic prizes! Spend a few hours with your family here and have fun at this free community event. Their amazing vendors have lined up even more prizes for you to win, so don’t miss out. Let’s make it a day to remember!

RSVP now and score an extra entry for our awesome draw. But wait, there’s more! Just by showing up, you’ll automatically grab another entry. Double the chances, double the fun!

RSVP here: https://mailchi.mp/braefoot/family-fun-day-2025

Saturday – June 7, 2025 | 11 AM – 1 PM

1440 Harrop Rd, Victoria (V8P 2S5)

This is a FREE Event

Research shows that kids and adults who spend more time in nature are happier and healthier. PaRx is breaking ground as Canada’s national, evidence-based nature prescription program.PaRx is an initiative of the BC Parks Foundation, driven by health-care professionals who want to improve their patients’ health by connecting them to nature. Featuring practical resources like quick tips and patient handouts, its goal is to make prescribing time in nature simple, fun and effective.