Nectar Dinner Club Announces Spring/Summer Offerings

 Nectar Dinner Club, which highlights farmers and growers of fresh, seasonal, sustainable food in our area, has announced its offerings for Spring/Summer.  From their newsletter:

May 6
May 20
Rhubarb with Vicky Tewes of Thistlehair Farm, Union Kentucky. Ed and Vicky Tewes have been growing produce on their farm since 1986. In 2002 they started selling at farmer's markets. They are Certified Naturally Grown, which follows the same guidelines as Certified Organic. Vicky grows the green stalk variety of rhubarb called ''Victoria'' which, when it arrives in April through June, signals the beginning of summer. Although rhubarb is technically a vegetable, it is usually combined with fruits and used in pies, compotes, or traditionally made into wine. We will discover delicious new ways to use this versitile, brightly flavored vegetable which is high in vitamin C, fiber, and calcium.

June 10
June 24
Summer Greens with Sarah and Adam Mancino, Farm Beach Bethel, Bethel Ohio. What started as a small garden in 1998 is now a working family farm and CSA growing heirloom vegetables with organic and biodynamic methodology. Sarah and Adam focus on growing many wonderful types of lettuces and greens. They grow leaf lettuces, escarole, dandelion, tatsoi, and arugula, and put together beautiful lettuce mixes like Spectrum and Spicy Mesculin. We will sample many of Sarah and Adam's  tasty greens in the classic salads of French cuisine, or in salads with seasonal vegetables, cooked fish, meats or local cheeses. Summer is the time to enjoy these bountiful greens just picked from the garden.

July 22
July 29
Squash Blossoms with Sallie Ransohoff. Sallie has been farming sustainably and chemical free on her farm in Batavia, Ohio for over 20 years. Area chefs eagerly await Sallie's squash blossoms to become available-hers are always just picked, pristine, and easy to stuff, batter and fry, or use as is. The beautiful male blossoms, and female blossoms with small squash attatched, are one of the wonders of the summer garden. Learn some new ways to cook with these edible flowers.

Price per person: $55  Dinners starts at 7pm.  Reservations required; call Nectar at 929-0525 to reserve.

Green Eats Catering

Green Eats is new local catering and personal chef service focusing on locally-grown and sustainably-produced ingredients.  For Chef Krishna's sample menus, see the website.

South West OEFFA Event

Lots of local eating events this week!  From SWOEFFA (Southwest Ohio Ecological Farms and Foods Association):

Sunday, April 25 at 2:00, will be the next Southwest OEFFA chapter program,  held at the Civic Garden Center.  The program will feature chef Todd Hudson from the Wildflower Cafe and Coffee House in Mason.  Todd is knowledgeable about our subject "Factory Farms and You" and has spoken at other events about this topic.  He hopes to bring a farmer to the program who used to farm conventionally to share his thoughts about the subject, as well.

Please join us for this interesting discussion about an important topic for anyone who eats! 

It is free to all.  We would like to get an idea of how many to expect, so send an email to swoeffa@gmail.com if you think you might make it.  If you don't RSVP, though, don't let that stop you from coming!

Edible Ohio Valley

Edible Ohio Valley, one of a family of regionally-oriented magazines covering local foods issues, is starting here in Cincinnati. 

There's a facebook page here.

Cincinnati Chapter Weston A Price Foundation events

The Cincinnati Chapter of the Weston A Price Foundation is offering several events.  From their newsletter:

MAKE REFRESHING KEFIR & KOMBUCHA FOR THE SUMMER
Sunday May 2, 3-5pm at the Gorman Heritage Farm
Make your own kefir using kefir grains, or kefir powder, and eliminate the harmful ingredients in store bought kefir. Experienced kefir maker, Sandy will show us how to make plain kefir and smoothies. And we will sample the yummy results!
Making Kombucha will be presented by one of our skilled fermented beverage makers. Learn to be confident in making this efferevescent and satisfying beverage. Costs less than a dollar to make a gallon of this thirst quenching drink. 

GOAT FARM TOUR & POTLUCK
Sunday, June 6, 3:00 PM at the farm in New Richmond
Our event host, has invited us to her goat farm near Bethel. This is an excellent opportunity to see some lovely goats- Nigerian Dwarfs, Alpines, Saanens- learn about goat milk and cheese, enjoy an incredible feast, and take in some fresh air. She is planning on having a few samples of goat cheese available for tasting, and even some goat summer sausage. She will tell us about the goat herdshare program she has started, how she milks and other aspects of the program. After the tour and presentation we will conclude the session with the Potluck. 

DOUBLE J DAIRY FARM TOUR
Sunday, July 11, 2:30 PM at the Double J Farm in Hamilton
Joe and Janet Streit own the Double J Farm, which is now a thriving cow herdshare program for real milk drinkers in the areas north, south, east and west of Hamilton (including Cincinnati). We will listen to how the Streits went from a very small operation to the one they have today. Their story includes their involvement in the legal wrangles with Ohio, moving to a herdshare program, growing the herd and the farm operation. The Streits are members of the Ohio Dairy Grazing Producers, which is a recently formed organization. Joe and Janet are knowledgeable farmers who can answer your questions about dairy farming. This farm is an excellent example of what can be with love and knowhow. We will also discuss milk nutritional and safety issues.

For more information or to register, visit the website.

Slow Food Cincinnati events

Very impressive lineup of events from Slow Food Cincinnati, which appears to have finally hit its stride!  From their newsletter:

• May 1st: Mushroom Foraging Join us for a day of hunting the elusive morel mushroom at Flying J Farm in Johnstown, Ohio (outside of Columbus).  The hunt starts at noon with a potluck to follow at 4:00 p.m.  Please bring a dish with mushrooms in it to share.  Contact Katie@slowfoodcincinnati.org by April 24th if you are interested in carpooling.  (Note: This event was originally scheduled for April 24th but was rescheduled by Flying J Farm.)
• May 14th: Cheese and Beer Pairing We all know that a good wine and cheese pairing can be an eye-opening experience if done right, but what about beer and cheese?  Abbe Turner from Lucky Penny Farm and Grant McCracken, a Certified Cicerone, will tell us why beer and cheese deserve a place at your table, and give hints to pairing them effectively.  The cost, which includes 5 beer and cheese tastings, is $15 for Slow Food USA members and $20 for non-members.  This event begins at 7:00 p.m. and is only for those ages 21 and above.  Location is still being determined, but will likely be central.  Space is limited so please email Laura at events@slowfoodcincinnati.org to RSVP by May 1st.
• May 23rd: Vista Grande Ranch Cookout and Buffalo Farm Tour If you want to learn more about the meat that you consume, this is a perfect opportunity.  Learn how animals are raised humanely and without the use of antibiotics or hormones.  We begin the day at a park near the ranch (exact location still to be determined) at 11:00 a.m. with a delicious cookout featuring Vista Grande buffalo.  We will then head to the ranch for a tour from 1:00 – 3:00 p.m.  There will be a nominal fee to cover the cost of the food, and space is limited so please email Laura at events@slowfoodcincinnati.org to RSVP by May 10th.
• June 17th: Fermenting Class with Fab Ferments Want to learn how to ferment your own food?   Curious about the numerous health benefits and culinary applications?  Join us for a hands-on learning experience at Turner Farm with Jennifer and Jordan from Fab Ferments!  More details to come – please watch our blog for more information.

2010 Cincinnati Regional Food Congress

The 2010 Food Congress will be Saturday April 10th from 9 - 5. Click on the form to see it full size.