For two days only you will receive a free signed paperback copy of her book, HONEYBEE Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper, when you order a Honey Tasting Party in a Box four jar set for $50. That’s a $64.95 value!
Calling all local honey lovers and holiday shoppers looking for a unique gift for someone special. We have a sweet deal for you! Marina Marchese, author and founder of Red Bee Honey in Weston, is generously offering a bonus gift package exclusively to Fairfield Green Food Guide readers through midnight December 11. For two days only you will receive a free signed paperback copy of her book,HONEYBEE Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper, when you order a Honey Tasting Party in a Box four jar set for $50. That’s a $64.95 value! Perfect for honey lovers, wine lovers and adventurous eaters, this tasting kit created by Honey Sommelier Marina Marchese includes everything a party of 10 needs to taste, evaluate, and savor four different single nectar source honeys. There’s even a special chapter on honey tasting in the book that’s perfect to read aloud before the tasting adventure begins.
Carol Herman, the Books Editor at The Washington Times, named Marchese’s Honeybee: Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeperone of the “Books We Loved” in 2009. It’s now in its second printing in paperback and retails for $14.95.
Red Bee Honey is listed in the most recent edition of Patricia Brook’s “Food Lovers’ Guide to Connecticut”, a best of the best foodie guide to Connecticut. James Beard Award-winning author Rowan Jacobsen calls Marina “The Red Queen” and dedicates one chapter of his new book American Terroir to tasting honey with Marina at Red Bee Apiary.
How to Order:
Online Orders:
Orders must be placed by midnight on December 11 at http://www.redbeehoney.com/. When ordering online, please choose item # RG00HT2 + Honey Tasting Party in a Box 1 which includes four, 4-ounce jars of Red Bee Honey’s Limited Harvest Honey and 10 Honey Tasting Score cards for $50.00. You will receive a FREE signed copy of HONEYBEE Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper when you type “Fairfield Green Food Guide” in the Special Instructions and Comments box at checkout. You may also specify the gift recipient’s name in this box so the book can be signed for her/him. Since this offer is exclusive to our readers, you will not see this special offer mentioned on the website.
Holiday Boutique Orders:
On December 11, Red Bee Honey is holding its annual holiday boutique and open house from 11 am until 6 pm. You may take advantage of this offer in person at the boutique. Just mention that you are a Fairfield Green Food Guide reader and would like to purchase this exclusive bonus gift package.
Last year’s event was a roaring success and more guests are expected this year due to growing concerns about counterfeit and tainted honey imported from India and China. News outlets around the country last month published articles citing studies which provided incontrovertible evidence that many retail products labeled “honey” contained no pollen and were therefore not real honey according to the USDA’s definition. Consumers in the know are turning to local beekeepers as a trusted source for real honey.
To learn more about Red Bee Honey, visit the web site and read Lessons from a Local Beekeeper on this site.Marina’s transition from art director to beekeeper and Honey Sommelier is also told via a beautifully produced Yahoo Second Act video.
This is not a paid advertisement and Fairfield Green Food Guide receives no benefit from sales, other than happy readers!
Local honey lovers and those on the road to good taste and new discoveries won’t want to miss Red Bee Honey’s annual holiday open house on December 11 from 11 am to 6 pm. Last year’s event was a roaring success and more guests are expected this year due to growing concerns about counterfeit and tainted honey imported from India and China. News outlets around the country last month published articles citing studies which provided incontrovertible evidence that many retail products labeled “honey” contained no pollen and were therefore not real honey according to the USDA’s definition. Consumers in the know are turning to local beekeepers as a trusted source for real honey.
If you’ve never tasted single nectar source honeys side-by-side to compare and contrast them, this is your chance to do so with Red Bee Honey’s founder, beekeeper, and Honey Sommelier Marina Marchese. Once you’ve picked your favorite flavors, choose from a wide assortment of beautifully packaged individual bottles of honey or boxed gift sets that include lavender lip balm and beeswax candles. Or create your own gift boxes at any price point. Relax by the fireplace and enjoy the live music as your gifts are boxed up, wrapped and tied with ribbon- compliments of the house.
Honeybee: Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper is Marina Marchese’s captivating story of how she came to be a beekeeper and expert on honey.
For the readers on your list, pick up a signed copy of Marina’s book “Honeybee: Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper”, now also available in paperback. Carol Herman, the Books Editor at The Washington Times, named Marchese’s Honeybee: Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper one of the “Books We Loved” in 2009.
Red Bee Honey is listed in the most recent edition of Patricia Brook’s “Food Lovers’ Guide to Connecticut”, a best of the best foodie guide to Connecticut. James Beard Award-winning author Rowan Jacobsen calls Marina “The Red Queen” and dedicates one chapter of his new book American Terroir to tasting honey with Marina at Red Bee Apiary.
To learn more about Red Bee Honey, visit the web site and read Lessons from a Local Beekeeper on this site. Marina’s transition from art director to beekeeper and Honey Sommelier is also told via a beautifully produced Yahoo Second Act video.
Marina Marchese, Honey Sommelier, author and founder of Red Bee Honey, will be a special guest at the Weston Grange winter farmers' market on Saturday, Dec. 3.
Honey Sommelier and Author Marina Marchese of Red Bee Apiary will be the featured guest at the Winter Farmers’ Market at Norfield Grange in Weston on December 3 from 10am to 2pm. During this event, Marina will host her Signature Artisanal Honey Tasting at “The Drizzle Table” and be signing copies of her international selling book, Honeybee: Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper, which will be available for purchase. Also available for purchase will be a wonderful selection of Marina’s Red Bee Artisanal Honeys, gift items, and her honey-based skin care products including lip balm, soaps, honey facial scrub, and beeswax balms.
Marina Marchese is a passionate and inspirational speaker who has dedicated her life to honeybees and educating chefs, foodies and beekeepers about the culinary delights of artisanal honey. The founder of Red Bee® Honey as well as The American Honey Tasting Society, Marina is an unparalleled connoisseur of honey from all over the world. Ms. Marchese is the current president of the Back Yard Beekeepers Association of Connecticut and enjoys sharing her personal story and journey into beekeeping with domestic and international audiences including beekeeping and gardening clubs, woman and motivational groups, libraries and general audiences.
The indoor, heated Winter Farmers’ Market at Norfield Grange kicked off its second season on November 12th and provides local residents with fresh local produce and products through the winter season. The market is open on Saturdays through April 7, 2012 from 10:00am-2:00pm (closed Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve). Each weekend nearly 20 vendors will set up shop inside the Grange during the market so visitors can enjoy shopping in a warm and comfortable environment. Guests are encouraged to bring reusable bags and their holiday shopping list to purchase local artisan foods and other specialty products, which make great gifts.
This Saturday several new vendors will join the market: Du Soleil (hot soups, tapas, and prepared gourmet food), Pasta Heaven (gourmet pasta), Stoneware by Krisa, Designs of the Season miniature boxwood trees, Laszlo Accessories (belts and headbands), and Weston High School Crafters for a Cause.
Along with the REGULARS: Gazy Brothers Farm (produce), Daffodil Hill Growers (produce + jelly, jam, syrup and more), Eaglewood Farms (meat & eggs), Butterfield Farm (Promote the Goat with cheese, milk, yogurt and more), Whistle Stop Bakery (cakes, pies, muffins & cookies), Pemaquid Seafood, Connecticutly Grown Hot Sauces, The Bites Company, Sticky Nuts, Jesse’s Kettle Corn and Nod Hill Soap, Kareen Kanaga (handmade jewelry), antique & collectible holiday gifts, hand knit infant & kids hats, handmade boxwood wreaths by Weston Girl Scout Troop, picket fence artwork, and more.
The winner of the market’s HOLIDAY TREE RAFFLE will be drawn at 2:00 pm on Dec. 3. Weston Gardens generously donated the 6-7 foot Balsam Tree. Tickets are free with a purchase from any of the market vendors or 3 for a dollar. If you didn’t win they have 440 more trees for sale down the street; stop on your way home.
HOLIDAY SEAFOOD RAFFLE – 8 Maine Lobsters! Drawing Saturday, December 17th at 2:00pm.
The Norfield Grange, located at 12 Good Hill Road in Weston, Connecticut, is a community center that hosts events for the residents of Weston. It serves as a meeting place for members of the community to socialize. It also hosts fairs and other farmer’s markets throughout the year, where local vendors sell fruits, vegetables, baked goods, art work, needlework, rugs, photographs and more. It is also home to the Grange Coffee Club, where local artists meet to share their works of art and is available for private events.
For additional information about the Winter Farmers Market visit www.wintermarket-ct.com or www.norfieldgrange.com or call 203-226-8233. For additional information about Marina Marchese and Red Bee Honey visit www.RedBee.com.
Food Day is being celebrated across the country on Monday, Oct 24. Over 1,800 grassroots events have been planned to celebrate the day, including more than 25 in Connecticut.
Think of Food Day as Earth Day for Food. It’s a day for all members of our communities to come together to bring awareness to and spark ongoing dialog about issues surrounding food production and consumption in this country. It’s also an opportunity to learn how to make food choices that promote good health and are kind to the environment, farm workers, and animals.
Anyone who wants to observe Food Day can attend organized events in schools, libraries, nature centers, supermarkets, restaurants, art galleries, theaters and more throughout Connecticut, including:
Film screenings & discussions
Potluck and fundraiser dinners
Cooking demonstrations and competitions
Food drives with matching donations
Workshops with sustainable food professionals
To find a scheduled Food Day event near you, visit www.FoodDay.org, and search by town or zip code.
I am excited to be organizing Food Day events on Monday in both Greenwich and Fairfield in partnership with Slow Food Metro North, a local chapter of Slow Food USA, a national Food Day partnering organization. Amy Kalafa and John Turenne, two nationally recognized sustainable food experts, will present “Overcoming Obstacles to Improving School Food”, a high-impact workshop that teaches successful approaches for overcoming obstacles to making school meals more healthful and sustainable.
John Turenne and Amy Kalafa are well versed in the challenges confronted by better school food advocates. Amy is the author of Lunch Wars:How to Start a School Food Revolution and Win the Battle for Our Children’s Health, and the producer/director of the acclaimed documentary film Two Angry Moms: Fighting for the Health of America’s Children. Lunch Wars is an invaluable handbook for better school food advocates and attendees can obtain a signed copy at these events. John Turenne, founder & President of Sustainable Food Systems of Wallingford, is a nationally recognized leader and innovator in sustainable food practices. Formerly Executive Chef at Yale University, he worked to create the Yale Sustainable Food Project and more recently led the behind-the-scenes team that made Jamie Oliver’s “Food Revolution” work in the Huntington, West Virginia school system. http://angrymoms.org/, http://www.sustainablefoodsystems.com/.
“Overcoming Obstacles to Improving School Food” is designed for all stakeholders in our children’s health and wellness- whether parents, administrators, food service professionals or public health officials. Click here for more information and to RSVP.
If you can’t attend an event, create your own Food Day event at home by eating real food. Real food is kind to the earth, animals and people and good for you. Visit a local farm stand or farmers’ market and take home nature’s bounty to prepare a nutritious meal that supports our community of farms. Take a family trip this weekend to an orchard for a memorable pick-your-own experience. While we don’t have organic orchards in CT, we do have family-owned operations using IPM (Integrated Pest Management) practices, which favor low impact ways to manage pests and plant diseases. Bishops Orchards in Guilford, Drazen Orchards in Cheshire, and High Hill Orchard in Meriden are among the local IPM orchards offering a pick-your-own experience.
6 Principles of Food Day (from the Food Day website)
Food Day is a project of the nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest with over 100 national organizations as partners including Slow Food USA. Everyone is welcome to participate. www.FoodDay.org
Fairfield Green Food Guide & Slow Food Metro North Present:
Overcoming Obstacles to Improving School Food
With Nationally Recognized Experts Amy Kalafa and John Turenne
Join nationally recognized experts Amy Kalafa, author of Lunch Wars:How to Start a School Food Revolution and Win the Battle for Our Children’s Health, and John Turenne, Founder & President of Sustainable Food Systems, for a high impact workshop that teaches attendees successful approaches for overcoming common obstacles to making school meals more healthful and sustainable. This workshop is designed for all stakeholders in our children’s health and wellness.
“We really cannot rely on the federal government to fix school food; the government provides a baseline and it is up to each individual school district to determine the quality of each school’s food environment. This is a grassroots issue and there are any number of local solutions. The solutions are found when members of the school community start paying attention and taking action.” – Amy Kalafa
“As long as school food is provided limited funding, cost will always be a factor. However, that doesn’t mean there aren’t simple ways to overcome inadequate food. We can start by step by step substituting real, whole and fresh ingredients for processed.” – John Turenne
Choose from Two Sessions:
Greenwich at Audubon Greenwich, 12:00 noon-1:00 pm. $10 admission includes a Slow Food Metro North $5 Challenge lunch catered by Concierge Foods of Bedford Hills. RSVP required.
Fairfield at Pequot Library, 7:00-8:00 pm. $10 admission includes light refreshments. RSVP required.
Both events will be followed by a Q&A session and book sale and signing.
To RSVP:
Greenwich only:
Tickets must be purchased online in advance so we can obtain an accurate lunch count. This is a working lunch. Vegetarian and vegan lunch options are available. Walk-ins cannot be guaranteed a seat or lunch. Click here to register and pay online by October 23.
Admission: $10 per person fee includes a local farm-to-fork lunch which celebrates Slow Food Metro North’s $5 Challenge.
Time: 12:00 noon until 1:00, followed by a Q&A session, book sale and signing of Lunch Wars, and networking.
Important: Kindly arrive at 11:45 to register, pick up your lunch and beverage and be seated. This is a working lunch.
Location: Audubon Greenwich, 613 Riversville Road, Greenwich, CT. Please call event organizer Analiese Paik at 203.520.3451 with any questions.
Time: 7:00 to 8:00 pm, followed by a Q&A session, book sale and signing of Lunch Wars, and networking.
Important: Kindly arrive at 6:45 to register and be seated.
Location: Pequot Library, 720 Pequot Avenue, Southport, CT. Please call event organizer Analiese Paik at 203.520.3451 with any questions.
This event is organized by Fairfield Green Food Guide, LLC and Slow Food Metro North and made possible through the generous support of Audubon Greenwich, Pequot Library and Concierge Foods.
About Our Guest Presenters:
Amy Kalafa
Amy Kalafa has produced award-winning films and television programs, and has written magazine articles related to health education for more than twenty-five years. The producer/director of the acclaimed documentary film Two Angry Moms: Fighting for the Health of America’s Children, she has been featured on Good Morning America, Rachael Ray, and Fox News Live, and in USA Today and The New York Times. Kalafa lives with her family in Weston, Connecticut. http://angrymoms.org/
LUNCH WARS: How to Start A School Food Revolution and Win the Battle for Our Children’s Health (Tarcher/Penguin, August 2011) not only exposes the scary, hidden truth behind school lunches, but also gives parents the tools to do something about it. After author Amy Kalafa produced and directed the acclaimed documentary, Two Angry Moms, she was flooded with questions from parents who saw the film and wanted to know how to rid their own children’s schools of unhealthy—and sometimes dangerous—food. LUNCH WARS is Kalafa’s definitive response and an all-inclusive guide to help parents stage their own cafeteria coup.
LUNCH WARS is an invaluable reference. From First Lady Michelle Obama and her Let’s Move! campaign against childhood obesity to the average parent who’s struggling to instill good habits in their children, every American family has a stake in the book’s message. The next—and most crucial—step is to learn what LUNCH WARS teaches and integrate it into every school in America, on every day of the year.
John Turenne
John Turenne, founder and President of Sustainable Food Systems, is a nationally recognized leader and innovator in sustainable food practices. In his role as Executive Chef at Yale University and in the creation of the Yale Sustainable Food Project, John recognized the impact of food service decision-making on the world around us. His consulting company is on the cutting edge in developing best-practices tailored to benefit both the planet and the bottom line for clients. Turenne led the behind-the-scenes team that made Jamie Oliver’s “Food Revolution” work in the Huntington, West Virginia school system.
John and his team at Sustainable Food Systems have worked with visionaries across the country who have had the desire to make positive changes to the way they do business. Sustainable Food Systems brings those ideas and desires to reality through careful assessment, planning, teaching and development.
Sustainable Food Systems’ client list includes The Culinary Institute of America; Yale University; Harvard Medical School; The East Harlem School; Jamie Oliver Ltd.; Cabell County, WV Public Schools; St. Lukes Wood River Medical Center as well as multiple other public hospital and school systems.
John Turenne and Sustainable Food Systems were also instrumental in working with the Obama Administration in the development of the USDA’s Chefs Move to Schools initiative and continue to harvest national and international recognition. http://www.sustainablefoodsystems.com/
Aimed at promoting healthy, sustainable, affordable, and just food systems in America, Food Day is a national grassroots mobilization backed by some of the most prominent voices for energizing the food movement. On October 24, 2011, people will gather at events big and small and from coast to coast in homes, schools, colleges, churches, city halls, farmers’ markets, supermarkets, and elsewhere to raise awareness about food issues and advocate for change. Think of it as an Earth Day for food!
Spearheaded by the nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest, Food Day is organized around six main policy goals:
1. Reduce diet-related disease by promoting safe, healthy foods
2. Support sustainable farms and limit subsidies to big agribusiness
3. Expand access to food and alleviate hunger
4. Protect the environment and animals by reforming factory farms
5. Promote health by curbing junk-food marketing to kids
6. Support fair working conditions for food and farm workers
Who is partnering with Food Day?
Food Day’s advisory board is co-chaired by Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa and Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut and includes such members as Michael Pollan, Alice Waters, Marion Nestle, David Kessler, and Professor Walter Willett. Partners include the American Dietetic Association, National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition, UNITE Here, Humane Society of the U.S., Sierra Club, and Slow Food USA. A full list of advisors and partner organizations can be found at www.FoodDay.org.
Meet and greet Connecticut Farmer & Feast author Emily Brooks at Catch a Healthy Habit Cafe on Thursday, July 28, at 6:30 pm. Kindly RSVP for this free event by calling 203-292-8190.
In Connecticut Farmer & Feast, author Emily Brooks beautifully profiles the work of close to 50 Connecticut farmers, sharing stories of multi-generational farm families alongside those of first-time farmers. Eggs, milk, cheeses, honey, fruit, produce, meats and poultry from these farms become the ingredients for more than 85 seasonal recipes. Readers will be inspired to shop at farm stands and farmers’ markets in order to savor the fleeting flavors of the summer harvest. Connecticut Farmer & Feast showcases the bounty of all four seasons, perhaps giving us that extra push we need to visit winter farmers’ markets and nourish ourselves with locally grown squash, hardy winter greens, and root vegetables during late fall and winter.
Official Book Trailer:
Fairfield County Farms profiled in Connecticut Farmer & Feast:
Ambler Farm, Wilton
Hillard Bloom Shelfish, Norwalk
Holbrook Farm, Bethel
Millstone Farm, Wilton
Sherwood Farm, Easton
Shortt’s Farm & Garden Center, Sandy Hook
Sport Hill Farm, Easton
Connecticut Farmer & Feast
A Video Interview with Farmer Patti Popp of Sport Hill Farm in Easton
Event venue: Catch a Healthy Habit Cafe, 39 Unquowa Road, Fairfield CT 06824. Parking is available on Sanford Street.
On Saturday, June 25, Analiese Paik of the Fairfield Green Food Guide made a guest appearance on WTNH’s Good Morning Connecticut Show at 7:49 am to discuss how to capture the fleeting flavors of summer and the newly released cookbook, Connecticut Farmer and Feast.
Watch the video:
Connecticut farm-fresh produce and fruit is filling farm stands, farmers’ markets, green markets, and farm-to-door retailers. It’s the perfect time to enjoy the fleeting flavors of late spring and early summer. Strawberries, rhubarb and garlic scapes are abundant now, but will soon be gone. Here are a few ways to prepare and preserve these local, seasonal favorites.
Strawberries and rhubarb are a magical combination any way you serve them.
Strawberry-rhubarb compote is simple to prepare and delicious hot or cold.
Strawberries and rhubarb are a magical fruit and vegetable combination. Pies, crumbles, compotes and spicy chutneys are favorite ways to enjoy rhubarb. This strawberry-rhubarb compote (fruit cooked in syrup) is prepared very simply and quickly by cooking the rhubarb, which is quite tough and tannic raw, with some sugar, water, and a vanilla bean until tender, about 5-10 minutes minutes, then adding sliced strawberries at the end and cooking them only slightly. The result is a delicious, flavorful, and fragrant strawberry-rhubarb sauce that can be served hot or cold as a pancake, waffle or ice cream topping, spread on toast, or stirred into plain yogurt. It would make a wonderful shortcake topping, no cream necessary. (recipe below)
Fort Hill Farm's organic strawberries were my choice for making this no-cook compote. Some of the berries are so petite they don't need to be sliced.
Millix Farm's spiked strawberry compote contains triple sec and an orange juice reduction.
If you’re looking for a more sophisticated strawberry compote appropriate for adult guests, think of adding some flavored liqueur instead of sugar. Millix Farm Strawberry Compote is a recipe from the just released cookbook Connecticut Farmer and Feast. Author Emily Brooks visited almost 50 CT farms and has profiled each farmer, sharing stories of multi-generational farm families alongside those of first-time farmers. More than 85 seasonal recipes showcase each farm’s products, and in the case of Millix Farm in Willington, it’s strawberries, which are at their peak right now.
In Millix Farm Strawberry Compote Emily Brooks uses Grand Marnier and orange juice, a classic mixed drink combination, to create a decadent dessert appropriate for guests. You can also use triple sec, Frangelico or Amaretto. For the best result, use fresh-squeezed oranges to make the orange sauce. Connecticut Farmer and Feast is available wherever books are sold. We’re giving away a copy of Connecticut Farmer & Feast in our Facebook sweepstakes! Anyone 21 and older who lives in CT can enter the sweepstakes. Click on the Sweepstakes banner at the top of this page to enter or visit the Sweepstakes tab on our Facebook page. Click here to view upcoming book signing events, including several in Fairfield County.
Garlic scapes bundled, just as I received them in my Sport Hill Farm CSA share
Garlic scape pesto is a seasonal treat that can be easily frozen and defrosted for late summer use with tomatoes or a winter pick me up.
Garlic scapes are only available for a very short season and it’s a mistake to pass them over. The scape is the stalk of hard neck garlic and is harvested while young, curly, and flexible so it’s still edible. When the scape straightens, it becomes tough and inedible. Get them now before the season ends! Garlic scapes taste like garlic, but are much milder and add a unique flavor to stir fries, eggs, and soups. I love to buy a large quantity (or just take the plentiful ones in my CSA) and make garlic scape pesto in the food processor, substituting them for basil in a traditional pesto Genovese recipe (recipe below). I then freeze some of it for the winter as a pick me up. The pesto is great simply spread on some good bread, like the #1 artisan bread in Connecticut, The Flaxette from Fairfield Bread Company. It’s a great addition to sandwiches or tossed with pasta. Farmer Patti Popp at Sport Hill Farm in Easton, another farmer profiled in Connecticut Farmer & Feast, likes to add a spoonful or two to yogurt to makes a fresh dip.
Recipes:
Strawberry-Rhubarb Compote
This recipe requires a little time to clean, hull and slice the strawberries and chop the rhubarb. After that, it’s done in 10 minutes. The magical combination of strawberry and rhubarb is one not to miss!
Ingredients:
4 cups diced rhubarb , 1/4-1/2 inch dice (4 large or 6 small stalks) (remove all leaves, damaged skin and any soft parts)
4 cups hulled and sliced strawberries (keep whole if they’re very small) (about 3 pints)
Remove the tough stalks, leaves, and any soft parts of the rhubarb and place in compost pail. Cut the rhubarb into 1/4-1/2 inch uniform sized pieces (so they cook evenly), making sure to cut long stalks into several pieces and halving very wide pieces lengthwise before chopping.
Wash, hull and slice strawberries making sure to remove any overripe strawberries. Very small strawberries should be kept whole.
Place sugar and water in a saucepan, gently heat over a medium-low heat and stir to dissolve the sugar.
Add the whole vanilla bean and rhubarb, cover and simmer gently for 5 minutes.
Add sliced strawberries and cook for another 5 minutes or until the rhubarb is just tender. Cook longer if you like the rhubarb shredded.
Remove from heat, use tongs to remove the vanilla bean and slice it in half on a cutting board. Slice one half open lengthwise and use the tip of a paring knife to scrape out the tiny black seeds. Add the seeds to the compote and gently stir with a wooden spoon until well incorporated. Simmer for another minute and then transfer compote to a serving dish or storage container.
Dry the remaining half of the vanilla bean with paper towel or a kitchen towel and store it in glass or plastic (yes, it’s reusable).
Serve hot or cold as a pancake, waffle or ice cream topping, spread on toast, or stirred into plain yogurt. It would make a wonderful shortcake topping, no cream necessary
Garlic Scape Pesto
This recipe requires no cooking, just a quick rough chop of the garlic scapes and a few minutes in the food processor. If you’ve never had it, you’re missing out on a seasonal delicacy!
Ingredients:
A dozen garlic scapes (usually sold in bunches)
about 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts or walnuts
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmigano Reggiano or Grana Padano cheese
Sea salt
Preparation:
Wash and rough chop the garlic scapes. I like to cut off the immature seed heads (bulbils) and reserve them for sauteeing or stir frying.
Fit the food processor with a metal blade and secure the bowl.
Add garlic scapes, pine nuts (or walnuts), and olive oil to the food processor along with a pinch or few grinds of salt.
Close lid and puree until chunky or fine (your preference), stopping from time to time to scrape down the bowl and lid.
Scrape pesto into a bowl and add cheese, stirring just enough to incorporate. Taste and add just enough salt to make the flavors vibrant.
Serve on pasta, pizza, bread or stir a few spoonfuls into yogurt for a dip (a tip from Patti Popp of Sport Hill Farm).
Garlic scape pesto will not oxidize and brown the way basil pesto does so there is no need to cover it in olive oil, just seal it in a container and refrigerator up to 2-3 days. Freeze any pesto you won’t be eating in a few days in an airtight container. Defrost in the refrigerator and add cheese if desired when serving. Be sure to defrost your garlic scape when tomatoes are in season. Garlic scape pesto, mozzarella and tomato sandwiches are fantastic.
Thousands of new honeybees arrive in crates and are transferred to hives during the annual Hiving of the Bees.
Each year beekeeper Marina Marchese invites members of the public to watch as she adds new honeybee colonies to her hives. According to Marina it’s common for beekeepers in Connecticut to lose many, if not most, of their bee colonies over the harsh Northeast winter.
Beekeeper Marina Marchese explains to guests how the bees establish themselves in the wax frame, lay eggs, forage for nectar and pollen, and produce honey.
Marina’s Italian honeybees were trucked up from Georgia in small crates. She and her crew of experienced beekeepers and beekeepers in training prepare the hives for their new occupants, educate guests about honeybees and beekeeping, and finally transfer thousands of bees from the crates to the hives.
Marina Marchese is president of the Backyard Beekeeper’s Association and her book, “Honeybee: Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper”, was recently released in paperback after a successful publication in hardcover. Carol Herman, the Books Editor at The Washington Times, named Marchese’s HONEYBEE as one of the “Books We Loved” in 2009. Red Bee Honey is listed in the most recent edition of Patricia Brook’s “Food Lovers’ Guide to Connecticut”, a best of the best foodie guide to Connecticut. Lucky guests were treated to comb honey straight from one of the hives that not only survived the winter, but which had been so productive during the early spring that it produced over 100 pounds of honey according to Marchese.
Restaurants using Red Bee Honey include LeFarm (Westport), Scoozi (New Haven), Winvian Luxury Resort (Litchfield), Billy Grants (East Haven), and The Unquowa School (Fairfield).
A Culinary Experience to Benefit The Philip Johnson Glass House
Saturday, June 11th, 12-3 pm
NEW CANAAN, Conn. (Thursday, May 5, 2011) – The Philip Johnson Glass House, in association with Harvest to Heat: Cooking with America’s Best Chefs, Farmers, and Artisans, is pleased to announce a one-of-a-kind culinary event to benefit the Glass House, a site of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Chefs Bill Taibe, Brian Lewis and Derek Wagner at the Glass House by Tom McWilliam
On Saturday, June 11 from 12pm to 3pm, guests are invited to explore the buildings, grounds and art collections of the Glass House site while enjoying dishes inspired by the property, created by the chefs and artisans of Harvest to Heat. Each guest will receive an autographed copy of the critically-acclaimed book by Darryl Estrine and Kelly Kochendorfer, published by the Taunton Press. Dine with Design tickets are $300 with limited availability and may be purchased online at philipjohnsonglasshouse.org or via phone at 866.811.4111.
A Marriage of Ideas and Philosophies
The Glass House is pleased to welcome five award-winning chefs featured in Harvest to Heat to Philip Johnson’s 47-acre campus that, fittingly, was designed as a canvas for inspiration, experimentation and cultivation. These chefs are some of the most innovative culinary artists working today and are the leaders of a new generation of chefs sourcing from and supporting local farms and distributors. “Dine with Design provides a unique opportunity to open the property for picnicking and wandering at-will through Philip Johnson’s exceptional architectural creations for one very special afternoon,” says Rena Zurofsky, Glass House interim executive director.
Participating chefs include:
Chef Michel Richard
Chef Michel Richard
Chef Richard was a pioneer in French/California cuisine long before moving to Washington, DC, in 1994 where he opened Michel Richard Citronelle, today, considered one of the finest restaurants in the world. Chef Richard’s creativity can be seen in prestigious culinary publications such as Food & Wine, Food Arts, Bon Appétit, and on the cover of the late, great Gourmet. He has been featured in the Washington Post, The New York Times, and Los Angeles Times, among others and his restaurants hold top honors in the best American dining guides such as Gayot and Zagat. Chosen by the James Beard Foundation as Outstanding Chef 2007, Michel also won the James Beard Award for Outstanding Wine Service at Citronelle the same year, and his book Happy in the Kitchen, won a James Beard Nomination. To rave reviews, and the 2008 James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant, he opened Central Michel Richard, which continues to be a highlight of the Washington, DC restaurant scene. Constantly engaged in something new, Michel, a modern French restaurant, opened at The Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner in the fall of 2010.
Chef Brian Lewis
Chef Brian Lewis
Chef Lewis is a renowned chef best known for his collaboration with actor Richard Gere and his wife, Carey Lowell, in creating The Farmhouse and The Barn at The Bedford Post Inn in Bedford, NY. From the beginning, Brian’s cooking garnered national attention with Esquire magazine selecting The Farmhouse as one of 20 “Best New Restaurants” of 2009. Early experience in the kitchens of legendary chefs Jean Louis Palladin and Marco Pierre White strongly shaped Brian’s refined style of cooking. Brian draws inspiration for his menus from the rhythms of the season and the exceptional, locally-sourced ingredients of his close network of farmers and artisans. In the fall of 2011, Brian will open his own restaurant in New Canaan, CT.
Chef Lee Chizmar
Chef Lee Chizmar
Shortly after graduating from the Culinary Institute of America in 2000, Chef Chizmar traveled to Northern California to work with Bradley Ogden at the Lark Creek Inn. It was there, under the tutelage of Ogden, and the mentoring of Chef de Cuisine Jeremy Sewell that Chef Chizmar developed his love, appreciation and dedication to serving local, seasonal ingredients. After four years at the Lark Creek Inn, Chef Chizmar took the call to travel back east and be part of the opening team for acclaimed restaurateur Christopher Myers’ and James Beard awarded Chef Michael Schlow’s Great Bay restaurant. In 2007, Lee and his wife and business partner, Erin Shea, left Great Bay to open Bolete in Bethlehem, PA. His talent lies in his ability to elevate dishes by pairing homespun ingredients with elegant flavors. Bolete has since garnered national recognition in Gourmet magazine as one of the country’s best “farm to table” endeavors.
Chef Bill Taibe
Chef Bill Taibe
At age 33, Chef Taibe has received three “Excellent” ratings from the New York Times. In 2001, Chef Taibe became Executive Chef at G/R/A/N/D in Stamford, CT., and three years later opened Relish in South Norwalk, CT. After much success with “Relish,” Chef Taibe left to help develop and design Napa & Co., in downtown Stamford, CT. In the summer of 2009, Chef Taibe left Napa & Co. to open his most recent concept, LeFarm. This small, cozy restaurant located in Westport, CT, opened in October 2009 with much success. It is now home to Chef Taibe’s ever-changing menu that reflects the season’s freshest produce, fish and meats. He is also currently involved with The Wakeman Farm Project in Westport, CT. He will be leading a team to help recreate the land that Wakeman lies on into a cooperative farm that will not only serve the community by providing them with fresh produce and education, but also serve the greater state by serving as a liaison between local chefs and farmers.
ChefDerek Wagner
Chef Derek Wagner
Chef Wagner opened Nicks on Broadway at the age of 24. Nine years later, he has opened a newly expanded version of the ever-evolving restaurant. From its modest beginnings, to its current, acclaimed version, Nicks has always focused on seasonally inspired, locally sourced, integrity driven food and service. Chef Wagner has been nominated for the James Beard Rising Star Award twice, featured on TV’s Food Network several times, and written about in Food & Wine, Esquire, Travel & Leisure, The New York Times, The Boston Globe, and The London Independent, among others. Recently, Nicks has been named “One of the World’s Best Restaurants” by Fodor’s International Travel Guide for the second year in a row.
Tuthilltown Spirits
The artisans joining the chefs on June 11th come from far and wide providing a sampling of the incredible bounty our country has to offer. Guests will experience Rappahannock River Oysters from Topping, Virginia; nibble on Freddy Guys Hazelnuts from Monmouth, Oregon; savor a variety of cheeses from Jasper Hill Farm in Greensboro, Vermont; indulge on Theo Chocolates from Seattle, Washington; enjoy a “custom” cocktail from Tuthilltown Spirits in Gardiner, New York; and finish off the day with a smooth espresso from Peet’s Coffee & Tea of California.
To reflect the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s commitment to sustainable practices, the Glass House proudly features environmentally-friendly products for Dine with Design. These include reusable and recyclable glassware by GoVino; WASARA plates designed from renewable materials which are biodegradable and compostable; and bamboo cutlery by Bambu. Following the event, all products will be composted at Three Feathers Farm in South Salem, New York.
BMW is proud to support the Philip Johnson Glass House, a premier architectural landmark in the United States.
About The Glass House: The Philip Johnson Glass House, a site of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, offers its 47-acre campus as a catalyst for the interpretation of modern architecture, landscape, and art; and as a canvas for inspiration, experimentation and cultivation honoring the legacy of Philip Johnson and David Whitney.
About Harvest to Heat: Hailed as the “the fall’s most beautiful cookbook” by Newsweek and named best “overall cookbook” for 2010 by epicurious.com, Harvest to Heat has struck a chord nationwide. As Alice Waters raves, “Harvest to Heat represents a new generation of cookbook, one that celebrates the crucial relationship between chefs, farmers, and artisans, documenting this connection with rich, candid photography and stories from the field and kitchen alike.”
Visit any grocery store and you’ll find the meat case packed with cuts from our nation’s four biggest beef producers: Cargill Beef, JBS SA (US subsidiary owns Swift and Smithfield Beef), National Beef Packing, and Tyson. Read the package labels carefully and try to find any mention that the steer were raised in confinement on factory farms, fed a diet of genetically-modified (GM) corn and soy to fatten them up quickly and cheaply, then routinely supplemented with antibiotics and growth hormones to kick the meat-making machine into high gear. You won’t find anything. Factory meat production is Big Business and it’s not in their best interest to tell you what’s in your food.
Nowhere is obfuscation of facts more troubling than with genetically modified foods (GMOs). In the early 1990s large, multinational biotechnology companies including Monsanto, DuPont, Dow, Bayer, and Syngenta began producing and selling seeds whose DNA they had engineered to either resist herbicides or produce pesticides to protect that plant from viruses and insects. Classified as Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs), these seeds contain portions of DNA from another organism that was inserted into their genetic material in a lab to confer the desired traits. In the case of transgenic GMOs, the inserted DNA was derived from another species, and not always from the plant kingdom.
Processed foods sold in the US commonly contain ingredients made from the “Big Four” GM crops: soybeans, corn, canola and cottonseed, yet they carry no labels declaring “contains GMOs.” The bottle of canola oil innocently sitting in your pantry is likely GM, since eighty percent of the canola grown in the US is genetically modified. “It’s being carefully hidden” explains Bill Duesing, an organic farmer and Executive Director of the Northeast Organic Farming Association of CT ( CT NOFA). “The US food industry will do anything they can to make this stuff seems the same.”
Jeffrey M. Smith is the founder and Executive Director of the Institute for Responsible Technology, the orgnaization behind the Campaign for Healthier Eating in America
GE seeds are unique enough to be patented as intellectual property (they meet the “usefulness” requirements of patent law), yet were likewise granted generally recognized as safe (GRAS) status in 1992 by the FDA after being deemed “substantially equivalent” to their non-GMO counterparts. GMOs considered GRAS require no long-term, independent animal, human and environmental studies to determine their safety. Wait. We’re eating plants that can produce their own pesticides and contain DNA from other species that was forced into their genetic makeup, yet they’re not being tested and require no labeling? This is a real head-scratcher. Jeffrey Smith, Founder and Executive Director of the Institute for Responsible Technology, and an internationally recognized expert and author of two books on the health dangers of GMOs, Genetic Roulette and Seeds of Deception, weighed in on the topic. “It’s Monsanto’s unprecedented influence on this and previous administrations. It’s hard to know where they end and the government begins. The entire foundation of this technology is based on rhetoric, manipulation, and lies.”
“The number of crossover people from Monsanto to the FDA is phenomenal” adds Duesing. “It’s a revolving door.” The documentary film, The World According to Monsanto, spotlights a few individuals who swung back and forth through the now-famous revolving door between Monsanto, the FDA and the USDA. Perhaps the most salient example is that of Michael Taylor, a former Monsanto attorney appointed by President Obama as Senior Advisor to the Commissioner of the FDA in 2009. Outrage over his appointment from critics of genetically engineered food centered on Taylor’s service between 1991 and 1994 as the FDA’s Deputy Commissioner for Policy, a time when the agency eschewed unnecessary regulation and drafted biotech industry-friendly policies despite warnings by some of its own scientists.
There is growing concern among scientists, watchdog groups, members of the organic agriculture community, and consumers that GMOs pose threats to humans, animals and the environment. Jeffrey Smith said “claims that GM crops will feed the world are not based on reality. They decrease yields and increase the use of agricultural chemicals.” Duesing shares his views. “Genetic engineering is giving pollution a life of its own. It’s a food system that’s built around agricultural chemicals and herbicides designed to kill all green plants, except the GM plant.”
Adding to the unease is the industry’s less-than-stellar track record on environmental stewardship. “These biotech companies have a history of creating long-lived pollutants that damage the environment and then we have to control it” Duesing pointed out. “We can’t eat fish from the Hudson, Housatonic or Quinnipiac Rivers because they’re contaminated with Monsanto’s PCBs dumped in there by GE.”
One instance of cross-contamination vividly illustrates the potential threats GMOs pose to human health. “StarLink [a GM corn approved for animal use only, but which accidentally contaminated human food in 1990 and sickened at least 35] may be part of the collective genome forever and there’s a high probability that it’s an allergen.” recalls Jeffrey Smith. “What we have now is really dangerous technology.”
Jeffrey Smith’s claims are the product of years spent traveling the globe to research and immerse himself in the world of biotech foods. Smith visited Fairfield, CT in April as part of his 2011 lecture tour designed to inform citizens about the dangers of GMOs and teach strategies to identify and avoid them at points of sale. Buying organic and choosing processed foods carrying the Non-GMO Verified seal are among the helpful options outlined in his free publication, The Non-GMO Shopping Guide. Smith’s Campaign for Healthier Eating in America is designed to “end the genetic engineering of our food supply quickly” through consumer rejection rather than through “politics and government.” Buoyed by Europe’s tipping point of consumer rejection of GMOs in 1999, and the US rejection of artificial bovine growth hormone (rbGH) in 2005, Smith is confident that food companies will respond to GMO rejection by a mere five percent of US consumers. “Manufacturers won’t wait for a substantial drop in market share. They won’t lose customers by eliminating GM ingredients either.”
Due to growing concern about the safety of GMOs, lawmakers in 14 states, including Connecticut, have introduced legislation that would mandate, in some form, the labeling of genetically modified foods. Jeffrey Smith explains that “labeling exists in most developed countries with varying levels of thoroughness and enforceability. Europe is the most thorough and .9% is the threshold for labeling.” Duesing believes that it will help if foods containing GM ingredients are labeled, and will be one of the things that drives change, but isn’t convinced it’s the only or best answer. “Energy and the environment would be more important. I’ve been working 30 years to try to influence consumers.”
Left to right: Linda Soper-Kolton, chef/founder of Green Gourmet to Go; State Representative Richard Roy (D-Milford); and Analiese Paik, founder/editor of Fairfield Green Food Guide at Jeffrey Smith's lecture in Fairfield
State Representative Richard Roy (D-Milford), House Chairman of the Environment Committee, recently introduced an amendment requiring products containing GMOs to be labeled in the state of Connecticut. Roy is clearly well-educated on the topic of GMOs and takes a refreshingly consumer-oriented approach to mandatory labeling. “The producers of GMO foods gush their support for what they say is a superior product. If the product is as good and safe as they claim, they should be happy to promote the product” explains Roy. “Instead, they refuse to tell the consumer that a product contains GMOs. What are they hiding?”
Representative Roy attended Jeffrey Smith’s lecture in Fairfield this past April, and briefly shared with the audience his position on GMO labeling and track record of getting difficult legislation passed. “I’m the guy that got the [hands-free] cell phone law passed after a seven-year battle and the pesticides off school grounds.” Undeterred by the GMO labeling amendment’s removal in early May by the General Law Committee, Roy optimistically pointed out that “it can be called again as a proposed amendment on another bill. Support is a growing from a number of legislators, along with environmental groups, especially those involved in toxics legislation and healthy living habits.”
On December 11, Red Bee Honey is holding its annual holiday boutique and open house from 11 am until 6 pm. You may take advantage of this offer in person at the boutique. Just mention that you are a Fairfield Green Food Guide reader and would like to purchase this exclusive bonus gift package. 
