Dear Local Gourmands,
Many things to celebrate of late– the legalization of urban beekeeping in New York City, the passage of the healthcare bill, and Vernal Equinox, to boot! On Saturday the early burst of spring and convergence of exciting changes urged me up to our roof where I dusted off the porch furniture and invited friends for wine and snacks– thinly sliced mutsu apples, watermelon radishes, and rounds of toasted challah with goat cheese and honey. We toasted the new season with glasses of Riesling and stayed out late into the night, ignoring the evening chill because once you get a taste of 70 degree sun, there’s no going back inside. On this grey but remarkable Monday morning I wondered how others are honoring the momentous occasion of the dawn of healthcare reform– Ruth Reichl fixed herself a celebration breakfast of crispy hashbrowns, a fried egg, Porterhouse bone, and tangerines. How ’bout you?
In health, food, and solidarity,
Jeanne
March 22-26
The Chickens Are Coming!
Imani Garden
BK Farmyards
Lend your carpentry skills to BK Farmyards to help build out a chicken coop in the Imani Garden in Crown Heights. Plans for the coop can be seen here. 50 chickens are on their way, and they’ll need a nice place to lay for the egg CSA. If you or someone you know is an experienced carpenter, please send a note to volunteer (@) bkfarmyards.com with ‘CHICKEN COOP’ in the title line. Keep checking the BK Farmyards blog which will show all scheduled work days.
Monday, March 22nd, 9 PM
Homebrewer’s Meet Up
Beer Table
427B 7th Ave., Park Slope
Catch up with fellow homebrewers at tonight’s meet up where Ben and Danielle from Brooklyn Homebrew will be on hand to share tips, offer feed back, and share some of their own homemade suds.
Dine in Brooklyn
March 22-25
Lunch $20.10, dinner $25.00
The spring special, Dine in Brooklyn, continues this week. Plenty of the borough’s restaurants who champion locally grown produce are participating– iCi in Fort Greene, Anella in Greenpoint, and Applewood, Palo Santo, and Rosewater in Park Slope, among others. Make sure to call for a reservation in advance.
Tuesday, March 23 & Thursday, March 25, 6:30-8pm
Jam on with Anarchy in a Jar
In coordination with the Ted & Amy Supper Club
$40 per class
Laena McCarthy of Anarchy in a Jar demonstrates her jamming technique in this hands on class that will show participants how to make the most of seasonal fruits and treasures from your CSA haul by preserving them. She’ll let you in on a few handy tricks of the trade and then send you on your way with a jar of homemade goodness. Wine and sparkling water will be served to help loosen up your jam skills.
Tuesday, March 23, 6:30-8:30pm
A Celebration of Chinese Food in Today’s America
Culinary Historians of New York
Museum of the Chinese in the Americas (MoCA)
215 Centre Street (btw Grant/Howard, 1 block north of Canal)
Tickets, $40 (non-members and guests), $25 (MOCA/CHNY members), $22 (CHNY senior and student members)
CHNY honors Dr. Jacqueline Newman, 2009 recipient of the Amelia Award for lifetime achievement in culinary history, with a panel discussion on Chinese food in America today. Panelists include: Jessica Chien, pastry chef and food blogger; Jeffrey Chuang, illustrator and art designer; Kian Kam Kho, software engineer and food blogger; and Stephanie Wang-Breal, filmmaker; moderated by Andrew Coe, author of “Chop Suey: A Cultural History of Chinese Food in the United States.”
“Since the 1965 reform of the immigration laws, tens of thousands of Chinese have arrived in New York from every part of China. Most non-Chinese fans of Chinese food know that one result has been a golden age for exciting new restaurants serving all kinds of once-unfamiliar dishes. But what does the American or Chinese-American food scene look like to members of the Chinese-American community—or communities, since the makeup of today’s first- and second-generation immigrant population is so complex? How do people view the food that they cook at home, the different versions of Western food that they have encountered, the food served here in different kinds of supposedly Chinese restaurants? Four food-minded Chinese-Americans will relate their experiences in navigating Chinese and American culinary identities and share their thoughts on what’s happened to Chinese cuisine as it has become progressively woven into the American culinary fabric.”
Thursday, March 25, 4-6pm
Food Media in a World of New Media
Elmer Holmes Bobst Library, 3rd fl
70 Washington Square South
Clark Wolf moderates a panel that explores the expanding genre of food media and what the changing landscape of new media means for its writers and readers. Panelists include Frank Bruni, author and former New York Times restaurant critic, Scott Hocker, San Francisco edition editor of Tasting Table, Marion Nestle, author and NYU Paulette Goddard Professor of Food Studies, and Krishendu Ray, author and NYU Food Studies faculty.
Thursday, March 25, 7-9:30pm
Urban Ag Movie Night with BK Farmyards
388 Atlantic Ave.
Tickets, $25 at the door
BK Farmyards hosts an evening of films that document the urban ag movement, featuring Garden Cycles, The Greenhorns, and several other surprise shorts. Following the films the hosts will show an update on the progress of the Youth Farm at the High School for Public Service. Sip Sister Liqueurs cocktails like roasted beet martinis and lemoncello sours. Proceeds from the eve go toward the construction of a new greenhouse for the Youth Farm.
Thursday, March 25, 7-9pm
Local Rillettes and Wines of the Loire Valley
Pasanella and Son
115 South Street
Tickets, $45
Matthew Hranek, photographer by trade, upstate farmer by passion, travels the world for work, then comes home to raise pigs, hunt, fish, and forage. Tonight he pairs his farm-raised, homemade pork rillettes with wine from the Loire Valley. The tasting will be lead by Ryan Ibsen, Wine Dirctor of Pasanella and Son vintners, and Matthew Hranek of WM. Brown farm.
Saturday, March 27, 7-9pm
Real Milk: What’s the Real Deal?
A Lecture with Sally Fallon Morell
Subud Chelsea Center
230 West 29th Street btwn 7th and 8th Aves
Tickets, $20
“Sally Fallon Morell, president of the Weston A. Price Foundation and leading advocate in the real milk movement, will speak about the safety, health, economic and legal issues surrounding milk. Come learn why full-fat raw milk from grass-fed cows on pasture is nature’s safest and healthiest food, and the key to revitalizing small family farms and reclaiming our constitutional rights.”
Sunday, March 28, noon-4pm
The Brooklyn Brunch Experiment
The Bell House
149 7th St., Gowanus
Tickets, $20 (in advance), $25 (at the door)
Cook-off competitors Theo Peck and Nick Suarez turn their attention to brunch for the latest installment of their own cooking competition series, the Brooklyn Food Experiments. Bring your best waffles, your famous pancakes, your morning after eggs that bring ’em back for more. Prizes include a Cuisinart mixer and airplane tickets, plus the title of best brunch in the borough. Sean Rembold, chef at Diner and Marlow & Sons and Andrew Knowlton, editor for Bon Appetit, will judge the fare. If you think you’ve got what it takes, sign up to cook here. If you’d rather, just bring bring your appetite– after all, every New Yorker is always up for brunch. Tickets include one complementary beer and entrance to the after party.
Sunday, March 28, 6&9pm
Brooklyn Laundry Supper Club
Toren Building (penthouse), Brooklyn
Tickets, $85
Brooklyn Laundry, a supper club that makes its meals from the local bounty turns an eye to Italian cuisine presented in the pages of The Silver Spoon. The five-course tasting menu with wine pairings will be a spirited celebration of the menu created by Giorgio Locatelli of Locanda Locatelli in London. Feast on Pan-fried scallops, ravioli with rosemary jus, rabbit with prosciutto and polenta, and, of course, a cheese course. Amendei Di Cioccolato, “amendi chocolate tasteers” will cap off the eve.
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Of note a few weeks down the road…
Monday, March 29 & April 5, 1-6pm
First Level Beer Sommelier Training
Jimmy’s No. 43
43 E. 7th St.
“Civilization of Beer Education Consulting invites you to participate in an exclusive, two day program that will prepare you to pass the first level Certified Beer Server TM. exam of the Cicerone Certification Beer Sommelier Program. This intensive program covers the knowledge most crucial to creating and maintaining diverse and profitable beer programs at the retail level. Subjects covered are beer ingredients, styles, brewing process, proper storage and service, flavor and evaluation, food and beer pairing and more.”
Seating is limited and open to beverage industry professionals with 2+ years experience dealing in beer. A spring session of the course commences on Mondays, May 10&17 from 1-6pm.
Monday, March 29, 7-8:30pm
Hedonists Delight at Beer Table
427B 7th Ave., Park Slope
Tickets, $35
“Barleywines and Beasts: a tasting of various rare barleywines, presented by Michael Opalenski, paired with various smoked and cured meats from our talented friend Gabriel Ross of Dickson’s Farmstand. Michael and Gabe will discuss their products, and Justin will present the beer pairings and some special treats from the cellar. Hedonists delight! Purchase tickets here!”
Thursday, April 1, 6:30pm
Launch of Diet for a Hot Planet
Wollman Hall at The New School
Eugene Lang Building
65 West 11th Street, 5th floor
(enter at 66 West 12th Street)
Anna Lappé launches her highly-anticipated third book, Diet for a Hot Planet, with a book talk and Q&A to honor the good work happening in New York City and across the country, dedicated to making our food system more sustainable and healthy for all.
Saturday, April 3, 10am
Open Volunteer Day East New York Farms
613 New Lots Ave., East New York
“Come get your hands dirty at the UCC Youth Farm. Lend a hand while you learn how we grow food in the city. Tasks include spreading woodchips, turning compost, weeding, planting, and harvesting. No experience necessary, just come ready to work outside and bring some water and a lunch or money to buy lunch at the market.”
Tuesday, April 6
Good Spirits at The Bell House
149 7th Street, Gowanus
Tickets, $40
Good spirits and good times will be free flowing at the Bell House where Edible Manhattan and Edible Brooklyn ring in the second installment of their cocktail series that celebrates local liquors and our borough’s favorite “mixology-minded chefs.” The Vanderbilt, No. 7, James, Walter Foods, The Farm on Adderley and Palo Santo prepare plates to go with perfectly paired cocktails concocted with storied spirits. Sip Empire State favorites like Tuthilltown Spirits and Warwick Valley Winery and Distillery, as well as small batch selections from Vertical Vodka, Chartreuse and Illegal Mexcal. $40 tickets for this evening of food, drink and merriment come with a complementary one-year subscription to Edible Manhattan or Edible Brooklyn when you enter the code “cocktail.”
Sunday, April 11, 4-6pm
TastebudsNYC Fundraiser for Hot Bread Kitchen
Jimmy’s No. 43
43 E. 7th St.
Tickets, $20
Tastebuds NYC, a lively social networking group for city foodies and good food advocates, throws a cook off benefit for Hot Bread Kitchen, an admirable non-profit that trains immigrant women in traditional baking techniques. The challenge for chefs? Use either Hot Bread’s corn tortillas or granola (both are truly outstanding products on their own) as a muse to show the judges what you bring to the table. Cook-off chefs will go head to head to compete for bragging rights and a great cause. Judges include Nick Suarez and Theo Peck of the Brooklyn Food Experiments, Alexis Powell Grossman from Crop to Cup, and Katrina Schultz Richter from Hot Bread Kitchen. For more information or to sign up to cook, e-mail Heidi Exline: hjexline@gmail.com.
Saturday, April 24, 10am-9pm
Earth Day Council
Hattie Carthan Community Farmers’ Market
Clifton Place and Marcy Avenue, Brooklyn
“Celebrate Earth Day at the Hattie Carthan Community Garden! The day will begin with a Garden Planning Workshop and Free Seed Giveaway followed by Feasting and a Community Workday engaging in various building and spring garden activities. To close the day, participate in Honoring the Web of Life and be a part of the Earth Day Council. This event is free and open to the public. For more information contact Yonnette: 718-638-3566 or hattiecarthangarden@yahoo.com.”
Sunday, April 25, 7pm
Just Food Benefit Honoring Joan Dye Gussow
Sotheby’s
1334 York Ave. at 72nd St.
Tickets, $175
Just Food honors Joan Gussow, chair of its first board of directors, and one of the founding forces that rallied the local food movement. As the Mary Swartz Rose Professor Emerita of Nutrition and Education at Teacher’s College where she formerly headed the Nutrition Education Department, Joan believes that eating from close to home makes economic, ecologic, and gastronomic sense and sacrifices neither taste nor pleasure. She is a highly acclaimed nutritionist, author, co-author, and editor of a number of articles and books, including her 2001 work, This Organic Life: Confessions of a Suburban Homestead, which is based on the lessons learned from decades of working toward growing her own.
Local Gourmands 