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Activities and News
| Spring 2011
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Join our Chapter! 
What is Slow Food?Support good. clean and fair food. Annual membership is now $25 annually. |
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From the Board
Spring
is here in Southeast Washington. Our wildflowers may be fleeting, but
geens and asparagus herald the bounty of produce we can enjoy in
upcoming months. And of course, don't forget, Spring barrel tasting! We
have some great events lined up. Join us in an advanced screening of
"Truck Farms" at the Richland Library. View the movie then meet with
local resources to figure out how you can grow you own "truck" farm.
Spend a morning learning how to build a raised bed garden to
harvest fresh greens and vegetables. Puzzled about those greens? Join us
in a cooking class to learn how easy they are to prepare. Interested
about wine? Learn about wine in a relaxed, fun class with passionate,
down to earth professionals. And of course, we have asparagus! Join us
for our 2nd annual asparagus tasting. No where else in the world
will you get a chance to taste the amazing variations in asparagus!
Yours in the pursuit of good, clean and fair food,
Stephanie Greene
Board Chair, SF Southeast Washington
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 Farm to School Investigation
By Angela Kora
Slow
Food supporters Alan Schreiber, Nathan Finch, and Angela Kora toured
Chiawana High School's school cafeteria courtesy of Mary Nowak, head of
Pasco school district nutrition and food services. The goal of the tour
was to find out more about how school cafeterias operate and look for
opportunities to get more local foods in schools.
Informational
and interesting, the tour highlighted some of the features of the new
school's cafeteria, including the multiple salad bars and the many
dedicated staff that support the food preparation efforts. Feeding the
thousands of students daily is by no means a small task; logistics,
cost, and time are some of the primary barriers to sourcing more local
foods. While receptive to new ideas (like testing asparagus on the
salad bar), overcoming these barriers will require coordinated efforts,
and likely will take many small steps before significant change is
possible.
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Plant A Row Taking Root in the Tri-Cities
By Nathan Finch
The
Tri-Cities have seen the demand for food assistance increase well over
30% this year with more than 50% of those in need being children and the
elderly. The Plant-A-Row for the Hungry program encourages anyone who
enjoys gardening to plant a little extra to donate to local food banks.
Plant-a-Row is also working with Slow Food and other community members
to develop school and community gardens to aid in the effort.
There
has been a great deal of support over the past few months to help
increase access to fresh, locally grown, nutritious produce and with
your help we can make an impact in the community. Produce may be brought
to Second Harvest at 810 E. Chemical Dr. in Kennewick from 8 a.m. to 4
p.m., Monday through Friday. You may also take your produce to the food
bank nearest you. Your donation will be weighed and you will receive a
Plant-A-Row receipt, allowing a $1.50-per-pound tax deduction. To learn
more about Second Harvest and Plant-A-Row, please visit
www.2-harvest.org or contact Nathan Finch at (509) 585-3924 or plantarowtc@firstharvest.org.
Slow down, feed yourself and help feed your neighbors.
How you can help:
- Plant an extra row in your garden for the hungry.
- Volunteer to help plant or work in a school or community garden.
- Help with gleaning from local farms.
- Be part of the planning committee.
- Donate vegetable seeds, tools or gloves.
- Encourage your friends, church or business to participate.
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Recipes: Spring Green
By Becky Cooper
A
friend once pointed out to me that willows are the first trees to turn
green in earliest Spring. Ever since, I've noticed it seems to be
true. The pale, yellowish green of the willows is followed just a
few weeks later with the darker greening of the countryside, until
finally it is, undeniably, Spring.
As a Winter CSA box recipient, I find that green things show up a lot on my blog. This year I discovered a recipe for mustard greens in ginger-garlic cream, and another for an amazing dish made with kale. I came up with three different ways to use my CSA braising greens.
As
a true vegetable fan, I'm ridiculously pleased every time I look into
my CSA box. It's fun to find or develop a recipe that showcases
the wondrous flavors and colors of our fresh, local vegetables, or
vegetables from the market.
But the crowning glory of the Winter
CSA is the asparagus that arrives in our boxes in the Spring. I'm
looking forward to an asparagus, avocado and arugula salad, and to using my CG ranch chickens and CSA fennel and asparagus in my glorious Spring Chicken Pot Pie.
Let your vegetables be your guides, and happy cooking! |
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Upcoming Events
Truck Farm Viewing Party
April
9, 2011, 2:30-4:30 pm (film lasts ~ 1 hour and will start at 3 pm).
Richland Public Library, 955 Northgate Dr, Richland, WA 99352. Ph: (509)
942-7454
$ 3.00 donation or $2.00 + 1 can of food (proceeds to benefit 2nd Harvest and Slow Food Southeast Washington
- Raised Bed Workshop and Spring Greens Cooking Class
Saturday,
April 16, 2011, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Heavenly Hills Harvest Farm, 762
South Emerald Road, Sunnyside, WA 98944, (509) 840-5600, www.heavenlyhillsharvest.com,
COST: $40 per person for the entire event (includes a farm fresh
lunch). $15 for workshop only. RSVP to Merritt at horseheavenfarma@live.com A portion of the proceeds to benefit Slow Food SE Washington.
Date TBD - Check Our Facebook Page for more information.
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Daven Lore Winery...Some Wineries are More Local Than Others
By Stephanie Greene
Recently
I found myself having a pleasant slow food lunch prepared by winemaker
Gordon Taylor and his assistant Adrienne Mills at Daven Lore Winery.
Chatting over spanikopita, freshly baked flat bread, and a salad of
turnip greens from Heavenly Hills Harvest Farm, I was happy I
volunteered for the task of writing this review.
Daven
Lore winery is owned by Gordon Taylor and his wife, Joan Davenport, a
soil scientist at Washington State University. They've been making wines
for their own enjoyment since 1984. Lucky for us, Daven lore Winery
became a bonded wine facility in 2005. Talking to Gordon I was struck by
the thought that some wineries are more local than others. Not only
does Gordon source grapes from the Horse Heaven Hills and Snipes
Mountain AVA, all within 30 miles of the winery, but they distribute
their wines mainly on the East side. If you frequent the Richland or
Prosser Farmer's market you've probably seen Gordon in his Australian
outback hat selling wine. The winery produces 1000 cases a year, and
focuses on blended red wines. Try their Recovery Red, available in a
refillable bottle at the Farmer's market, Bonnie Vine and Gifts in
Prosser, or Cheese Louise in Richland.
Aridsol
Red is named for the desert soils common to the 5 vineyards which
produced the grapes. The blend includes merlot (32%), Cabernet Sauvignon
(34%), Malbec (17%) and Petit Verdot (17%). You can expect berry jam
flavors of blackberry and raspberry with caramelized cane sugar notes.
Red pomegranate fruit complemented by the peppery note of nasturtium
flowers also comes through. For a small winery they offer a number of
varietals. Along with Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah, they
produce Cabarnet Franc, Mourvedre, Malbec, Durif (Petit Syrah) and Petit
Vardot. They also make a wonderful Syrah Forte. Buy the less common
varietals early. They're frequently sold out by June. Having Thai food
or seafood? Try the Estate Rose, Dry Riesling or Sweet Riesling.
Give
Gord a call if you would like to visit the winery (509) 781-0557. You
can also go to their web site www.davenlore.com and join their wine club
or get on their mailing list to be notified of upcoming releases. After
having a wonderful lunch and sampling Daven Lore wine, I can report
back to you that not only is Daven Lore winery truly local, but Gord,
Joan and all their helpers truly embody the values of the slow food
movement. And of course, they make wonderful wine. Cheers!
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Contact Us!
Visit www.slowfoodsewashington.org We are also on Facebook! |
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