New Site, New Media

Hello, friends.

It's been awhile since you've seen us in this space, though out in the real world we have been working hard on a number of things. We have been continuing to work locally for the Slow Food USA national initiative Time For Lunch, having eat in events and writing our congresspeople. We have been meeting with farmer's markets and local purveyors to help spread the word about Slow Food and plan slow food tasting events. And we've been looking ahead into 2010, planning movie nights, seminars, dinners, membership drives and picnics.

Another thing we've been doing is beefing up our online presence. To that end, we've decided to get our own dedicated URL:

http://www.slowfoodwestchester.org

We love blogspot and we're grateful for the chance it gave us to build a web identity. But now there are more things we need and want to do than we can do here. So, if you've come to this site to learn all about Slow Food and Slow Food Westchester, that's great, but click on the link above and find us at that new address. And if you're enough of a fan to have this page bookmarked, thank you! Thank you, but please update the link.

One more thing: we're on Twitter, too! Turns out Slow Food Westchester is too long for a Twitter handle, so we're:

http://twitter.com/SlowFoodWchstr

We love to get followed, and we follow back!

Thanks for visiting, and see you at the new sites.

Happy (slow) holidays,
Slow Food Westchester

A WINTER CSA

Dear Friends and Gardeners: (Past & Present)

SunRaven has become a winter distribution site for Winter Sun Farms. Now that autumn has descended upon us, it is time to think about extending the wonderful summer bounty to over the course of winter. Winter Sun Farms has been busy preserving our local harvest to provide us with great tasting local produce for the winter months. This is a good opportunity for us to have easy access to wonderful local organic vegetables.

By joining our distribution site at SunRaven for a Winter Share you will not only get delicious food, but you will help Winter Sun Farms achieve their larger mission of creating a more regional, fair and sustainable food system.

Winter Sun Farms has been rapidly growing in the Hudson Valley and New York area by establishing Winter Markets in New Paltz, Vassar and Beacon. Our location is their first in Westchester County. Their other satellite distribution locations are in Saugerties, Woodstock, Brooklyn, and New York City (8 locations). Please let your friends know about this opportunity and let us know of your interest as soon as possible.

The cost is $124.00 for 4 distributions, one in December, January, February, and March. Each produce package will be delivered to SunRaven and consist of 6-7 items. Winter Sun Farms preserves the produce by freezing, canning or cold storing as in the case of its root vegetables. Below is a list to give you an idea of what your share would look like, but of course, it is subject to change...as mother nature always has a say in the share.

ITEMS:

4 Jars Heirloom Red Tomatoes 28oz

1 Jar Carolina Gold Yellow Tomatoes 28oz

2 Packages Pepper Mix (Rainbow or Five Farm) 13.5

1 Package Yellow and Green Summer Squash 16oz

2 Packages Whole Raspberries 5oz

2 Packages Whole Blueberries (or Blackberry) 8oz

2 Packages Broccoli Florets 9.5oz

2 Packages Green Beans 12oz

1 Packages Broccoli 16oz

2 Packages Butternut Squash Puree 16oz

3 Packages Fall Greens Mix 9.5oz

1 Package Edam me 8oz

1 Package Cauliflower 9.5oz

Fresh

1 Package Carrots---root cellared 2lbs

1 Package Potatoes---root cellared 5lbs

2 Packages Pea Shoots---1/3 lb

1 Package Onion--- root cellared 2lbs

26-28 items in Total —6-7 items per drop off.



Your commitment will include a return e-mail to me stating your interest and a check made out to Winter Sun Farms. Please send to:

Kathryn Dysart c/o

SunRaven

501 Guard Hill Road

Bedford, NY 10506



. Or..... We can now pay on-line. Check it out...

Go To: www.wintersunfarms.com

Click: Hudson Valley

New Paltz, NY

Enter Website

Click: Become a Member (red bar on left)

Scroll down to SunRaven/ Bedford, NY

Click: SunRaven/ Bedford, NY



If you decide to pay on-line, please let me know. The delivery dates and times have not been established yet. I'll let you know as soon as I know.

We look forward to hearing from you and are very excited to be able to offer this healthy winter food supply. Thanks again for your interest and participation.

Sincerely,

Kathryn

SLOW FOOD NEWS Around the Area

September 26 (Saturday)
PIGHAMPTON, the Fourth Annual Slow Food NYC/East End Pig RoastEvent Description: Join us at PIGHAMPTON, the fourth annual Slow Food NYC/East End Pig Roast on Saturday, September 26th at 6:30 PM (rain or shine) at the Hayground School in Bridgehampton. It doesn't get much more local than this..Karen Rivara's Raw Bar of Peconic Pearl and Mystic oysters and local clams, Harry Ludlow's Bridgehampton Fairview Farm heritage breed pigs, roasted low and slow by Foody's own "Pig Master," Chef Bryan Futerman, and, of course, the great wines of Paumanok Vineyards, on the North Fork, poured by winemaker, Kareem Massoud.

Proceeds from this event will support the programs and activities of Slow Food NYC and Slow Food East End.

Location: Hayground School - 151 Mitchell's Lane; Bridgehampton, South Fork, Long Island [Map]

Time: 6:30 pm - 9:30 pm

Tickets: Slow Food Members - $95 / Non-members - $115

Tickets Available ONLY on-line at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/78553

October 3 (Saturday)
SLOW U: Coffee – Good, Clean, and Fair

Event Description: NYC coffee roaster, Dallis Coffee, and NYC coffee consultant, TampTamp Inc., will host a special Slow U seminar on coffee.

Learn from these NYC coffee experts, Anne Nylander, of TampTamp, and Teresa von Fuchs, of Dallis, how coffee is grown, sourced, and processed while delving into the social, political, and economic complexities of the global coffee trade. Anne and Teresa will discuss the environmental impacts of coffee and show how your coffee choices can support small, traditional, sustainable coffee farms and the families who work them.

In addition, while sampling some of Dallis’ finest, sustainably produced coffees, Teresa and Anne will demonstrate professional tasting techniques and explain evaluation criteria.

Location: Think Coffee – 248 Mercer St, (btwn. 3rd and 4th Sts.), Manhattan [Web Site]

Time: 10:00 am to 12:30 pm

Tickets: Slow Food Members - $20 / Non-members - $25

Tickets Available ONLY on-line at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/82412

November 8 (Sunday)
Nose to Tail Eating: Lamb Butchering - Demo, Tasting, and AuctionEvent Description: See Master Butcher Rudi Weid break down the carcass of a 110 lb sustainably and humanely raised lamb (straight from the pastures of Three Corner Field Farm in Shushan, N.Y.) into primals, sub-primals, and, ultimately, into roasts, chops, and miscellaneous cuts, like organ meat and stewing meat. In the age of "boxed" and vacuum packaged meat, this is a truly unique opportunity.

As Master Butcher Rudi wields his knives from head to hind quarter, he will discuss each section, muscle, and cut and you will enjoy another lamb, roasted, seared, and grilled, accompanied by New York State wine specially selected for the occasion. When Rudi is done, you will have opportunity to bid on cuts to take home. (Cash and checks will be accepted.) Proceeds from this event will benefit the Slow Food NYC Harvest Time program of good food education at schools in East Harlem, on the Lower East Side, and in Williamsburg.

Location: The Institute for Culinary Education (ICE) - 50 West 23rd St.; Manhattan [Web Site]

Time: 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm Tickets: Slow Food Members - $55 / Non-members - $75

Tickets Available ONLY on-line at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/76318

(Note, please DO NOT contact ICE about tickets for this event. )

Other Community Events

September 17 (Thursday)
The Sustainable Agriculture Investment ConferenceEvent Description: Creating a sustainable food system requires capital.

Join investors, agriculture and food entrepreneurs and government officials at the inaugural networking and investment conference for the sustainable agriculture industry.

For more information, visit www.newseedadvisors.com/conference

Register Here: www.newseedadvisors.com/registration

Location: Marriott Financial Center - Manhattan

Time: 8:00 am - 6:00 pm



September 20 (Sunday)
il Buco sixth annual "Sagra del Maiale" Pig RoastEvent Description: On Sunday, September 20th, il Buco will celebrate its 15th anniversary while hosting its sixth annual outdoor Pig and Apple Festival. Chef Ignacio Mattos and staff rise before the sun and start a bonfire on Bond Street, where they slow-roast a 200 lb heritage breed Ossabaw Pig. Additional dishes include their renowned Porchetta Panini, apple pork sausages, farmers market panzanella, wild arugula, and apple ricotta fritters. Many of il Buco's local farm producers will be in attendance at the event.

$20 for all menu items. Alcoholic beverages including Red and White Wine, Prosecco, Lambrusco, and Wolffer Estates Apple Wine will be $10 per beverage. Beer will be $6.

il Buco will keep in line with its commitment to the environment by using only biodegradable and compostable paper goods, cutlery and drinking cups during the festival.

More info at ilbuco.com/media/events_news

Location: il Buco - 47 Bond Street (btn Lafayette and Bowery), Manhattan

Time: 1:00 pm - 9:00 pm



September 20 (Sunday)
Poppy Tooker at Stone Barns

Event Description: Visit the Stone Barnes Center for Food & Agriculture as they welcome New Orleans Slow Food Leader Poppy Tooker to celebrate her book Crescent City Farmers Market Cookbook that showcases the best of classic Creole and modern regional cooking.

After Hurricane Katrina, Poppy spent every waking moment raising money, working with farmers, fishers and market organizers to bring the farmers’ markets back into the community.

Poppy will demonstrate a delicious gumbo and sign copies of her book, which will be available for sale.

More info at www.stonebarnscenter.org/

Location: Stone Barnes Center for Food & Agriculture, Pocantico Hills, NY [Directions]

Time: 1:00 pm - 2:30 pm



September 30 (Wednesday)
Panel Discussion - The Changing Role of American FarmersEvent Description: Over the past decade, our relationship to food and how it’s grown has transformed. But what about our relationship to the people who grow it? There is hope in the legions of new, young, and urban farmers cropping up around the United States, and yet overall, our country’s agricultural community is shrinking by the day. How is the role of farmers in our society and in our lives shifting? And what still needs to change?

Moderator Lisa Hamilton, author of the recently published “Deeply Rooted: Unconventional Farmers in the Age of Agribusiness,” will be joined by organic pioneer Fred Kirschenmann, a Distinguished Fellow at the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University and President of Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture in Pocantico Hills, New York; the New York Times’ Verlyn Klinkenborg, author of “The Rural Life”; and New York farmer Mary-Howell Martens.

Admission is free.

More info at mcnallyjackson.com or call 212-274-1160

Location: McNally Jackson Books - 52 Prince St. (b/t Lafayette & Mulberry)

Time: 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm

TIME FOR LUNCH in Tarrytown

SLOW FOOD WESTCHESTER’S TIME FOR LUNCH EAT-IN ON LABOR DAY


On Labor Day, Monday, September 7, between 4-6 p.m at Washington Irving School in Tarrytown, parents and politicians, kids, school board members and senior citizens will come together for a Slow Food Westchester “Eat-In.” Slow Food USA's “Time for Lunch” is both a local get-together and a national campaign that will send a message to Congress, as it considers reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act this fall, that it is time to support real food in schools. Just $1 in additional funding per day per child could dramatically improve the food that children eat in school.

Join Slow Food Westchester for an afternoon of freshly-made appetizers and desserts, games for children, a soccer match, music for all, and an opportunity to meet fellow rivertowns residents and your local legislators to begin a conversation about school food and why it matters. There will also be time to sign a national petition, to learn more about school lunch policy, nutrition education and what each of us can do on a local and national level.

We will be joining 250 other “Eat-In's” from each of the fifty states. Together, we can have a good time while sending a powerful message to Congress that it is time to give the 30 million children who eat lunch in school every day food that tastes good and is good for them. By giving schools the resources they need, we can build a strong foundation for the health of our children and our nation's future. Sharing food is how we can begin.


What: Time for Lunch National Eat-In
When: Monday September 7, Labor Day
Time: 4 – 6 p.m.
Where: Washington Irving School, Rte. 9 Broadway in Tarrytown


For more information about Slow Food Westchester's “Time for Lunch” event, please contact: Linda Viertel at 631-0087, or Slow Food Westchester Co-Chair, Jan Frasier Maltby, at 631-0105 after September 1.

MUSHROOMS AT THE BURNS

Know Your Mushrooms
Sept. 2 at 7:30

Filmmaker Ron Mann (Grass) cooks up a tasty stew of mushroom arcana seasoned with astonishing facts (did you know the world's largest organism is a five-mile-long fungus?) and eccentric characters. Using goofy animation and original music by the Flaming Lips, Know Your Mushrooms is a funny, informative tribute to the wild mushroom and the cultural experiences—mind-expanding and otherwise—attached to it. Best Feature, NYC Food Film Festival.

Q&A: Gary Lincoff, who is featured in the film, is one of the nation’s best known mushroom experts. He is the author of the National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mushrooms.

ANNOUNCING - TIME FOR LUNCH

A Special Message from Slow Food USA


Time for Lunch Petition

This summer Slow Food USA is launching an awareness campaign called Time for Lunch to bring public attention to the need to help our schools feed our children healthy foods (not fake or fast foods), and to help our schools source real food locally.

This fall the Child Nutrition Act, the bill that governs the National School Lunch Program, is up for reauthorization in Congress. The National School Lunch Program provides a meal to more than 30 million children every school day. By giving schools the resources to serve real food, 30 million children will benefit with better health, better nutrition, better concentration, and, as many studies have shown, academic achievement.

The Slow Food USA platform is recommending these inclusions to the bill:

Invest in children's health - Give schools just one dollar more per day for each child's lunch.
Protect against food that puts children at risk - Establish strong standards for all food sold at school, including food from vending machines and school fast food.
Teach children healthy habits that will last through life - Fund grants for innovative Farm to School programs and school gardens.
Give schools the incentive to buy local - Establish financial incentives that encourage schools to buy food from local farms for all child nutrition programs, thereby creating jobs in our communities, rebuilding rural economies, supporting family farmers, and shortening the distance food travels to save oil and ensure school foods are as fresh and healthy as possible.
Create green jobs with a School Lunch Corps - Train underemployed Americans to be the teachers, farmers, cooks, and administrators our school cafeterias need in a program similar to Americorps.
To sign the Time for Lunch petition and learn more: www.slowfoodusa.org/timeforlunch


Contact Your Legislators

A second component is telling your legislators that this issue is important to you. Quick steps:

1. Write a letter to your Washington legislators to vote for the reauthorization.
2. Make a phone call to tell them that change can't wait: It's time to provide America's children with real food at school.
3. Invite your legislators to your Eat-In (see third component below) and/or set up a meeting to talk in person.

To find your legislators' addresses, visit http://congress.org and type in your zip code. Remember that politicians work for you.


Community Eat-Ins on Labor Day

A third component of the campaign involves heightening media attention on the need to reauthorize the Childhood Nutrition Act through hundreds of Community Eat-Ins across the country on Labor Day. An Eat-In is a potluck that takes place in public and gathers people to support a cause - like getting real food into schools. Any type of Eat-In can be planned - big or small.

To learn more and for details on how to organize your own Eat-In on Labor Day, visit the Slow Food USA website at http://www.slowfoodusa.org/timeforlunch.


If anyone is interserested in hosting an event or would like to join an event, contact us at slowfoodwestchester@gmail.com.



Slow Food International is a non-profit, member-supported organization founded in 1989 to counteract fast food and fast life, the disappearance of local food traditions and people's dwindling interest in the food they eat, where it comes from, how it tastes and how our food choices affect the rest of the world. Today, we have over 85,000 members in 132 countries. To become a member, or renew your membership to Slow Food USA, please visit:
www.slowfoodlongisland.org
or
www.slowfoodusa.org

FOOD, Inc at the JACOB BURNS

Food, Inc.

Opens July 1

Food, Inc. is more than a terrific movie-it's an important movie, one that nourishes your knowledge of how the world works (or, in this case, has started not to work)." (Entertainment Weekly)

In Food, Inc., filmmaker Robert Kenner talks to best-selling authors Eric Schlosser (Fast Food Nation) and Michael Pollan (Omnivore's Dilemma) to lift the veil on our nation's food industry—a nexus of mechanized farms, engineered food, and unhealthy practices that's been effectively hidden from American consumers by slick public relations and slack government regulation. This eye-opening documentary explains how unfettered corporations exploited laws and subsidies to create wholesale monopolies, and explores how modern developments in food production pose grave risks to our health and environment.

Opening Night, July 1, 7:00 pm with Frederick Kirschenmann, a longtime leader in sustainable agriculture. Kirschenmann is President of Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture in Pocantico Hills and Distinguished Fellow for the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University. He also oversees management of his family's 3,500-acre certified organic farm in south-central North Dakota.

Robert Kenner. 2008. 94 m. NR. US. Magnolia Pictures.