Food Tripping: A Self-Drive Southern Alberta Food Tour

• Broxburn Vegetables & Cafe

  5 90008 Range Road 210

  What began as a humble u-pick operation in 1994, Broxburn has grown into a thriving produce farm and nourishing café spot. Dedicated to the most natural techniques of growing peppers, tomatoes, kale, onions, eggplants, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, and a variety of other vegetables with the least amount of chemical intervention possible, Broxburn Vegetables are easy to spot (and smell) as the quality and care that goes into each piece of produce is exceptional and fresh.

  On the farm, everything is utilized to its full potential and they recycle and reuse as much as possible to reduce waste. For example, water runoff from the greenhouse is used to water the strawberries in the field; coconut husk (“coco”) that grows the hydroponics in the greenhouse is used in the field as mulch for the strawberries and raspberries, and the clippings off peppers are fed to their chickens. 

  The Broxburn motto is ‘from plant to plate’ and this is best realized in their on-site café where delicious home-cooked food utilizing farm ingredients is served. They incorporate fresh produce from the greenhouses, field crops, and other local suppliers into their meals, creating an authentic farm-to-table experience.

  Informational greenhouse tours are available to the public during Alberta Open Farm Days. On any other day, a visit to Broxburn is a family-friendly experience with a little something for everyone, and a must-stop on your southern Alberta food tour. Pick some fresh strawberries from the field, meander through the adjacent flower greenhouse, pick up some fresh veggies from the store and finish with a bite at the cafe!

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• Prairie Hill Farms

  105078 Range Road 211

  The incomparable haskap berry is a lesser-known berry that is filled to the brim with antioxidants. The name comes from a Japanese word meaning “berry of long life and good vision”. With thin skin, it is known as a berry of longevity and is popular to use in baking.

  Haskap berries come from varieties native to northern boreal forests in Asia, Europe, and North America. They like the climate of southern Alberta and the bushes grow by the acre on small farms. The Vandenberg family, who are eager to share the health benefits of the fruit, created Prairie Hill Farms to not only grow haskap berries but also to process them into various items. Haskap jam, BBQ sauce, berry juice, and more are all available at their storefront.

  Their 40 acres of haskap fields provide a plethora of products in their retail store, however, they also carry fresh baked goods, as well as local produce, honey, and eggs from nearby farms.

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• Crystal Springs Cheese

  102008 Range Rd 222

  If you’re like us and haven’t met a cheese yet that you don’t like, then a visit to Crystal Springs Cheese is a real treat! They are family-owned and operated, international award-winning cheese makers with humble beginnings right in southern Alberta.

  Not only do they raise their own dairy cows, but they also pump the milk over to the adjacent cheese factory to produce varieties of cheese like feta, gouda, and cheddar, as well as yogurts. All are for sale in the retail cheese store that also sells locally sourced wine and beer, ice cream cones, and a selection of local and imported dry goods (including many hard-to-find treats from the Netherlands!).

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• Broek Pork Acres

  104068 Range Road 22-5

  Broek Pork Acres specializes in raising pork the old-fashioned way. A true mom-and-pop endeavour, this local family farm focuses on quality rather than quantity, specifically raising Heritage Breed Berkshire Pork (which is known as the “Kobe beef” of the pork world).

  Not only are the pigs tended with care, but they are each broken down by hand in their farm processing facility – resulting in a superb piece of pork full of juiciness, tenderness, and rich marbling. The Broek Pork farm represents the true pasture-to-plate process, from growing and raising the animals to their slaughtering, processing, and marketing directly to customers.

  They also have a retail space to visit and purchase their products onsite. Most likely it will be a member of the family that greets you to tell you all about their pork that has no fillers, no added water, and no GMO ingredients. Sample some of their products and bring some home to really taste the true difference of family farm pork.

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• Little Gem Winery

  Range Rd 23-4

  It may be surprising to hear that southern Alberta has delicious fruit wine, but it does indeed! Haskap berries make up the main ingredient in the wines produced by Little Gem Winery. Showcasing two reds (one aged in oak), a rosé, a crisp cider, and a dessert wine, the haskap flavour comes through strong in all five. Put together in a humble facility, when the batches are ready, each bottle is placed by hand to be corked, labels are adhered by hand, and packaged carefully.

  Collectively, the group that forms Little Gem has been farming in Nobleford, Alberta, for three generations, working hard to build what they have. With a focus on letting the natural notes of the haskap berry shine brightly through, they use low intervention methods from the very beginning instead of using excessive sulphites or other additives, they also avoid overprocessing their wine. The result? A fruity wine that still retains the haskap berry sweetness mixed with different levels of fermentation and carbonation depending on the wine of choice.

  Little Gem doesn’t sell its wines onsite, but you can find its products at a variety of places in the Lethbridge area.

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This story has been adapted from an original article available at: https://roadtripalberta.com/southern-alberta-food-tour/.