Zaube Wild Food Festival Celebrates Its 10th Anniversary
On 5 September 2006, the Zaube Wild Food Festival will celebrate its 10th anniversary. This year, under the theme “Source of Strength”, the festival will once again bring together nature and culinary professionals and enthusiasts at Zaube Manor Park, by Lake Lejas and Lake Augšezers.
As every year, the Zaube Hunters’ and Anglers’ Club will delight visitors with treasured family recipes and has prepared a special surprise for this year’s anniversary celebration.
One of this year’s new offerings will be “Meadow Meat”, presented by Cēsis Meat Processing Plant as part of the “Natural Meadow Product”( Dabisko pļavu produkts) brand. The animals are fed on a diverse range of wild plants, which contributes to higher-quality meat. By purchasing these products, consumers also support the preservation of natural meadows.
Another new initiative is “Northern Lands Code” (Ziemeļzemes kods), a gastronomic tourism network bringing together local flavour creators, hosts and tourism entrepreneurs from Northern Vidzeme. At the festival, visitors will have the opportunity to meet the initiative’s producers and taste their products.
The festival will also offer vegetarian dishes prepared by “Gardā pupa”, as well as authentic Uzbek cuisine. Visitors will be able to taste Zaube-brewed beer, enjoy quality coffee and a wide selection of teas, as well as delicious confectionery.
The festival programme will feature a cooking masterclass with Ingmārs Ladigs, a fermentation workshop by “Labas saknes”, and a special activity for children, who will have the opportunity to make their own pizza.
Several competitions will take place as part of the festival. Visitors can participate in the sweet and savoury preserves competition “Source of Strength in a Jar” by bringing their own 700 ml jar of homemade preserves to the festival.
The Young Chefs Movement (Jauno pavāru kustība) will organise a live-fire cooking competition. The competition focuses on cooking over an open fire, closely connected with products from Latvian farmers and home producers. It celebrates seasonal produce and the ancient culinary tradition of being close to fire, nature and local food heritage.
The competitors’ creations will be evaluated by a jury featuring well-known Latvian personalities Māris Olte, Gundega Skudriņa and Mārtiņš Sirmais. Visitors will also have the opportunity to taste the dishes prepared during the competition.
The festival programme will include a wide range of activities and creative workshops for families with children. The uplifting atmosphere will be created by the band Rahu the Fool, the brass band Tālavas taurētājs, the Savanna dance group, and line dancers from across Latvia.
Admission to the festival is free of charge.