Slow Food Maumee Valley

November Slow Supper

2011-11-13T23:09:00.003-05:00

From soup to dessert, the food was delicious and seasonal, and the conversation was lively. Slow Food Maumee Valley members like to cook, like to eat, and enjoy getting together to share food that is good for us, good for the planet, and good for the people who grow it.

November Slow Supper - Sunday 13th, 4 PM

2011-11-06T11:37:00.004-05:00

Last chance for a pre-Thanksgiving visit to the Bourbon Red turkeys! November Slow Supper will be a harvest pot luck hosted by Michael Leizerman. Michael will supply soup and cheese; guests are asked to bring a dish to share plus the beverage of your choice. RSVP preferred but not required to michael@leizerman.com.
Sunday November 13th, 4 PM
4728 County Road #3
Swanton, OH 43558

August Slow Supper - Tomato To-mah-to

2011-08-03T20:39:00.004-04:00

Once again, members and friends of Slow Food Maumee Valley will celebrate the season with our "Tomato To-mah-to" Slow Supper. This year, it's a pot luck and we're asking you to bring tomatoes or something that goes with tomatoes. We're partnering with Toledo GROWs for this event, which will be held on Sunday August 21st at 3 PM at the Toledo Botanical Garden conference center.

Gazpacho? Caprese? Heirlooms? You decide! Mark your calendar now for this family-friendly event.

SFMV Goes to the Market

2011-06-04T22:11:00.002-04:00

June 4th was the first Slow Food demo of the market season. Amelia Contreras chose a simple and delicious recipe for shaved asparagus salad. Market visits allow us to talk to dozens of people and spread the word about Slow Food as we encourage shoppers to try new recipes with seasonal ingredients. Plus it's fun!

We'll be back at the Market on July 23rd and August 20th. Please let us know if you'd like to join us: sfmv@ameritech.net

Spring Slow Supper - May 15th 5 PM

2011-05-09T20:53:00.004-04:00

Although warm weather isn't quite here, spring herbs and greens are beginning to appear. Our May meeting will celebrate the season:
Sunday May 15th, 5 PM at the home of Georgeann Brown (see directions below)-
May Slow Supper: a potluck, with a focus on Spring greens and veggies

5:00 PM potluck and program: Our speaker will be Alexandra Reau - “A Michigan Teen Runs Her Own CSA”

Directions to Georgeann Brown’s House
12695 Eggert Rd. 734.529.2318

23 North to Ann Arbor
Exit 13-Ida-Petersburg. At top of exit turn right (East), you are now on Ida West Rd.
Travel 2.4 miles (really) to Meanwell Rd.
At Meanwell Rd. turn Left (North) you can only turn left
Travel 2.0 miles to Eggert Rd. It will be the next road after the Wilderness Campground.
At Meanwell and Eggert turn Right (East)
GB’s driveway is the 1st on the Southeast side of Eggert Rd. (12695-red brick colonial)
If you get to the R&R tracks turn around, you missed Eggert Rd

Traditional Easter Feast at Naslada Bistro

2011-03-23T21:29:00.003-04:00

Experience a traditional Easter feast (with vegetarian options and other choices from the menu) at Bulgarian restaurant Naslada Bistro, where the owner will give a talk about Bulgarian food and Easter food traditions.

Monday April 11th 6;30 PM
182 S. Main Street, Bowling Green
Cost: $25 per person

The traditional feast features lamb, which is sourced from local producers. Reservations are required for the lamb dinner, and suggested for the other options (beef, chicken, vegetarian).

RSVP to Lucy Long lucyl@bgsu.edu (419) 304-1642

Naslada Bistro Menu - Slow Food Event 4/11/11

Appetizer--Veggie Spread on Toast

Salad--House Special Salad

Main Course (all meat is organic and local)

**Slow-Roasted Lamb – Served with brown rice and spinach
(This is the Easter tradition; prior reservations necessary for this choice.)

Chicken Piccata – Tender chicken cutlet flavored with delicate lemon-wine sauce.
Served with homemade noodles and sautéed asparagus.

Chicken Paprikash -- Tender chicken cutlet cooked in our carrot-onion wine s
sauce, served over Naslada’s homemade noodles.

Drunken Chicken – Golden baked organic-fed quarter chicken slowly roasted to
perfection with beer flavored baby potatoes.

Stuffed Peppers – Classic Bulgarian recipe of bell pepper stuffed with seasoned
mixture of ground beef, rice and vegetables. Topped with parmesan cheese
sauce.

Beef in Clay Pot – Slow roasted grass0fed beef with carrots, onions and mini
Bella mushrooms in our special tomato-wine sauce. Served with rice pilaf.

Beef Goulash Stroganoff – A German recipe of beef sirloin cooked with leeks,
mushrooms, onion and sour cream. Served over homemade wide noodles.

Vegetarian Pasta “Rasta” – Delicious sauce of fresh portabella, spinach, tomatoes
in garlic-alfredo sauce. Served over our own homemade pasta. Sprinkled with shredded Parmesan-Asiago cheese. Add grilled chicken strips for $3.00.

Vegetarian Gyuvech in Clay Pot – Organic fresh tomatoes, green peppers, red
onion, mini Bella mushrooms, Bulgarian Feta cheese and two Omega-3
eggs.

Desserts

Cake Style Baklava – Sweet layered delight with walnuts and syrup.

French Crepes Flambé – Apricot, strawberry or chocolate crepes flambéed in
light rum syrup.

CHANGING THE WAY WE EAT

2011-02-03T18:32:00.002-05:00

Saturday Feb. 12, all day (10 a.m. to 6 p.m.) –
View and discuss a series of TED talks on food –
Maumee Valley Unitarian Church, on Dixie highway, just south of Rt-582,
between Bowling Green and Perrysburg. west side of road, free parking.
Coffee and snacks for donation; soup for lunch; pot-luck dinner.
RSVP or questions to Lucy Long lucyl@bgsu.edu (419) 304-1642
Free. Registration not necessary.

TEDxManhattan “Changing the Way We Eat” will take place February 12, 2011, in New York City. The one-day event will highlight several aspects of the sustainable food movement and the work being done to shift our food system from industrially-based agriculture to one in which healthy, nutritious food is accessible to all.
Speakers with various backgrounds in food and farming will share their insights and expertise. Relevant clips from the TED conference will be shown. And, hopefully, we’ll have a few surprises during the day. A highlight of all TED and TEDx events is the ample time given for attendees to meet each other and look for new synergies and new ideas to help bolster the sustainable food movement.
Viewing events are taking place throughout the country.

Feel free to come anytime during the day.
10:00 am – 10:30 am Registration—Coffee and bagels
10:30 am – 12:15 pm Session 1 – What Happened?
12:15 pm – 1:30 pm Lunch Break—Potluck Soup
1:30 pm – 3:15 pm Session 2 – Where are we?
3:15 pm – 4:00 pm Early Potluck Supper Break
4:00 pm – 5:45/6:00 pm Session 3 – Where are we going?
6:00 pm END Webcast

TED (an acronym for “Technology, Entertainment and Design”)
Speakers in Manhattan include individuals with different backgrounds in the food and farming movement, including farmers, chefs, researchers, academics, activists, artists/creatives, health professionals, educational professionals, foodies and TEDsters. This is being done in an effort to bring different groups of people working on the same issue together to learn what each other are doing and to help create new partnerships and collaborations.

January Slow Supper - Soup!

2011-01-05T17:45:00.002-05:00

On Monday January 10th, beginning at 6:30, Slow Food Maumee Valley will host our fourth annual Soup Supper. If experience is any guide, by the end of the evening, all the serving dishes will look like this - empty. If you like good food and the company of others who appreciate it, you're invited! Bring soup or something that goes with soup, and BYOB.

We'll also hear from Liz Bergman of Sage Organics about her October 2010 trip to Torino, Italy for Terra Madre and the Salone del Gusto, the biennial events that bring together food producers and cooks, educators and food activists from around the world.

Monday January 10th 6:30 PM
Flying Rhino, 436 13th Street, Toledo, 419 244-6100
$5 Slow Food members; $10 others
(join here for $25)

Slow Cooking with the Toledo Zen Center

2010-11-09T21:43:00.002-05:00

November 12-14
The Toledo Zen Center & Drinking Gourd Dharma Circle will be Holding an Event Featuring….
Edward Espe Brown, Author, Chef and Zen Priest
From “HOW TO COOK YOUR LIFE”

Beginning with The Tassajara Bread Book in 1970 Edward Espe Brown has been teaching and inspiring cooks and bakers to realize their capacity to nourish themselves and others with their labors in the kitchen.

Ordained as a Zen priest by Shunryu Suzuki Roshi in 1971, he has led meditation retreats and cooking classes throughout the United States, as well as Austria, Germany, Spain, and England.

His work and teaching is now the subject of a documentary movie How to Cook Your Life, directed by Doris Doerrie. Many of the stories in the movie also appear in his latest book The Complete Tassajara Cookbook (published by Shambhala, September, 2009). Edward’s other books include Tassajara Cooking, The Tassajara Recipe Book, and Tomato Blessings and Radish Teachings. He also edited Not Always So, a collection of Suzuki Roshi’s lectures.Roshi’s lectures.

Edward will lead workshops on Mindfulness Touch, cooking, Zen Master Dogen’s Tenzo Kyokun’s Instruction to the Cook, baking and he will give a Dharma Talk on Sunday. For information on Edward’s workshops, please download our brochure. Class is limited, please contact us to sign up!

“HOW TO COOK YOUR LIFE”
[ To register, please send an email to tzcevents@gmail.com ]

• Friday 12th, 7:00 p.m. Living the Sustainable Life – Toledo Zen
Center, 6537 Angola Rd., Holland, OH, (free will offering).

• Saturday 13th, 9:00 a.m. to Noon & 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. How To Cook
Your Life: A Food Workshop – Michael Leizerman’s kitchen, 4728
County Road 3, Swanton, OH, (fee: $100, space limited!).

• Sunday 14th, 10:30 a.m. to Noon. Dharma Talk on Zen Master
Dogen’s Tenzo Kyokun (Instructions to the Cook), (free will offering);
2:00 to 4:00 p.m. ”What’s Cooking? A Hands-On Expression of Zen”
- Toledo Zen Center, 6537 Angola Rd., Holland, OH, (fee: $25).

To learn more about Edward Espe Brown please read his new article “Let Your Passion Cook,” which appeared in the March 2010 Shambhala Sun or visit the The Peaceful Sea Sangha website.

For more info on event, check out: ToledoZenCenter.org

Dig In and Break Bread - Updated

2010-09-13T20:40:00.003-04:00

On Saturday September 25th, we will join Slow Food chapters across the country as we Dig In and Break Bread. We're partnering with Toledo GROWs for our local events, and we hope you will join us:

From 11:30 - 3:30, Dig In to volunteer with garden chores at the Oneida Greenhouse, 728 Oneida, or help prepare dinner - for location, e-mail us: sfmv@ameritech.net

At 5:00, Break Bread with Toledo GROWs at the Harvest Celebration at the Oneida Greenhouse. For kids of all ages, a showing of Wallace & Grommit is rumored for later in the evening.

Dig In and Break Bread

2010-09-05T10:33:00.002-04:00

On Saturday September 25th, friends and members of SFMV will join Slow Food chapters across the country by volunteering in a local garden, then celebrating the harvest together.

Our chapter is partnering with Toledo GROWs to help with end-of-season chores at the Oneida Greenhouse.

Later in the day, we will join in a harvest dinner at the greenhouse.

Want to rsvp or learn more? E-mail us here: sfmv@ameritech.net

August Wine Tasting

2010-08-24T22:55:00.002-04:00

Two dozen members and friends of SF Maumee Valley enjoyed learning more about Ohio whites - two reislings, two pinot gris, and two chardonnays - and sampling the best of what can be created from the gardens, farms, and markets of Northwest Ohio at the height of the tomato season - Thanks to Mary and Steve Weiss for hosting and to Jim Sautter and Liz Soto for the taste education!

2010-08-22T22:19:00.004-04:00

There was no shortage of ripe seasonal fruits at at the Toledo Farmers Market Saturday morning, and with a few herbs, some honey, and a blender, SFMV members Amelia Contreras, Tahree Lane, and Eric Britton created a series of refreshing drinks for those who stopped by to taste and to hear a little bit about Slow Food. Thanks to Amelia, who co-ordinates the project, our monthly market days have introduced Slow Food to dozens of market shoppers this year.

July Slow Supper

2010-07-28T23:02:00.003-04:00

Somehow, with not much planning, SFMV members seem to choose diverse, delicious dishes for our potlucks. Our July Slow Supper was no exception: We enjoyed a range of wonderful salads, fabulous bread and Flying Rhino coffee, plus interesting conversation in a unique setting: the PetMassage Institute, owned and operated by SFMV members Jonathon and Anastasia Rudinger.

If you were there, please send your recipe (sfmv@ameritech.net) or post it on our Facebook page. If you missed it, please try out some of these salad ideas at home. Either way, mark your calendar now for September 25th. Along with SF chapters across the country, we'll be organizing a volunteer work day, followed by a harvest celebration.

For more pictures of our July pot luck, plus some menu ideas, look us up on Facebook.

July Market Demo

2010-07-19T21:33:00.003-04:00

Kids of all ages enjoyed the colorful fresh dips made by Amelia Contreras for SFMV's July demo at the Toledo Farmers Market: Cream cheese with a bit of Garlic Expressions and some raspberry puree from Ackerman's Berries was delicious on gluten-free crackers. Citrus poppy-seed dressing and a yoghurt-basil-mint-honey mix were popular as dips for the fresh local peppers and cucumbers.

We'll be back at the market on August 21 st, September 18th, and October 16th. If you'd like to help, please e-mail us: sfmv@ameritech.net.

Slow Summer Schedule

2010-06-20T22:46:00.004-04:00

July: Cold appetizers, salads and desserts for a simmering summer evening
Potluck dinner: Wednesday, 28 July, 7 pm
•Location: PetMassage Institute, 3347 McGregor Lane (off Secor Rd.), Toledo
•Hostess: Anastasia Rudinger, owner of PetMassage
•Please bring your own serving utensils and wine/beverage to share.
•Jonathan and Anastasia will provide paper plates, napkins, plastic cups and tableware.
•Dogs are welcome to join us. They must however, be on leash.
•For further information, please call Anastasia between 9 am - 3 pm at 419-475-3539.

August: An evening tasting Ohio wines with Jim Sautter of Sautter’s Market THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT
Wine and hors d’oeuvres: August 24, 7 PM
•14 Winding Creek Place, home of Mary and Steve Weiss
•Limited to First 24 people to RSVP / Members only until July 15th
•$10 per person (members) - bring an hors d'oeuvre to share
•RSVP to m.weiss@bex.net

Slow Food at the Toledo Farmers Market

2010-06-19T17:47:00.004-04:00

Saturday June 19th - It was a gorgeous Saturday morning, and several dozen market shoppers visited the Slow Food Maumee Valley table to choose toppings - strawberries from Perrans and honey from Wines Bee Yard, swiss chard from Sage Organics and Lock 21 from Canal Junction - for a crepe made by Amelia Contreras and assembled by Rita McDougal and Mary Weiss. We'll be back at the market again: July 24th, August 21st, September 18th and October 16th. We're looking for ideas, chefs, and support staff; to volunteer call Amelia (419 340-8748) or Paula (419 466-4396)or e-mail us: sfmv@ameritech.net.

May Slow Supper

2010-04-29T21:54:00.004-04:00

Spring Pot Luck
Monday May 17th 6 PM
Home of Paula and John Ross
3468 Brookside
419.536.0807

Hear from your leadership team about exciting plans for the year.
Bring your favorite spring dish
BYOB if you would like to enjoy wine or beer

Requested contribution: $5 per person members; $10 friends

April Update

2010-04-08T16:57:00.004-04:00

SFMV members met recently at the Original Sub Shop to elect leadership and discuss future plans.

The leadership team, consisting of Paula Ross, Lucy Long, Michael Leizerman, Michael Szuberla, Amelia Contreras, and Katie Bibish, will be responsible for planning events and building a strong local chapter.

Future activities will include pot lucks, taste education including heritage varieties and ethnic foods, demonstrations and tastings at the Toledo Farmers Market, the Time for Lunch campaign, collaborations with local groups who share our goals, and more! We also hope to raise funds for worthy projects to advance the Slow Food goal - everyone should have access to food that is good for them, good for the planet, and good for those who produce it.

Outreach to new members is a key goal, and to that end SFMV member Gini Behrendt has created a Slow Food Maumee Valley facebook page where we will share information about our chapter and about SF activities at the national level.

As always, we're open to your ideas. Let us know what you think: sfmv@ameritech.net.

Membership Meeting Announcement

2010-03-23T22:56:00.002-04:00

Slow Food Maumee valley has scheduled a membership meeting for the purpose of affirming/electing leadership. Members only are invited to seek a position on our leadership team or to vote for the volunteer leaders who will co-ordinate chapter activities in the coming year.

Friends and supporters are invited to become a member in time to participate in this meeting.

The meeting will be held on April 7th. Members will receive meeting details by e-mail. Members and friends are invited to call Paula Ross at 419.536.0807 with any questions or suggestions.

February Slow Supper

2010-01-30T15:05:00.003-05:00

SFMV is teaming up with the folks at the Original Sub Shop (SFMV members Jackie and Sarkis David)to bring you " A Night at the Baghdad Cafe" on Friday February 5th.

Jackie and Sarkis are cooking up community chicken - courtesy of ToledoGROWS - and exotic accompaniments. The dinner is for the benefit of ToledoGROWS Seed Swap.

When: February 5th, 2010 at 7:00 PM
Where: Original Sub Shop and Deli, 402 Broadway, Toledo 419.243.4857
Price: $30 per person

BYOB, RSVP by Tuesday, February 2nd to sfmv@ameritech.net

Third Annual Soup Supper Potluck

2010-01-06T13:55:00.004-05:00

It's a tradition:

Soup Supper Potluck
Monday January 11th
Start time 6:30 PM
Flying Rhino Coffee
436 13th Street
Toledo 43604
244-6100
Bring your own wine or we provide non-alcoholic beverages
Requested contribution: $1 per person

Our special guest speaker will be Andrew Zychowicz from Stanley's Meats. Andrew will draw on his training as a scientist and his experience as a small-scale producer to give us a new perspective on what we eat:

Processing, labeling, regulating... How do large food companies manipulate our choices? How can we as consumers/co-producers make good food choices?

Your RSVP will help us prepare: please reply to let us know if you will be attending: sfmv@ameritech.net

October Slow Supper

2009-09-22T16:24:00.004-04:00

Summer is over, but fall brings lots of opportunities to work for good, clean, and fair food for all. Mark your calendar now for our October Slow Supper, a potluck at the home of John and Paula Ross, 3468 Brookside Road, Toledo, Sunday October 25th, 4 PM. More details to follow.

Our special guests will be the founders of a new Slow Food on Campus chapter at UT. SFMV member Deb Boardley will serve as the group's advisor, and will help them to establish a presence on the UT campus for students interested in good, clean, fair food for all.

Time for Lunch

2009-08-30T22:56:00.002-04:00

Slow Food Maumee Valley is one of more than 270 chapters in all 50 states hosting a Labor Day eat-in in support of the Time For Lunch platform.

Bring a picnic and join us from 1 to 4 on Monday September 7th at the Ward Pavilion, Wildwood Metropark.

Bring food to share and your own place settings. Bring your family, bring your friends!

Questions? Send them to slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com

August Slow Supper

2009-08-06T16:47:00.003-04:00

It's the height of the season. Gardens are looking great, and farmers markets are overflowing. Get out your favorite summer recipes - tomatoes, zucchini, corn, anyone? - and join SFMV for an August pot luck dinner at the home of Bill and Joanne Treuhaft.

Non-alcoholic beverages will be provided; if you'd like to enjoy wine with your meal please byob.

Tuesday August 25th
7254 Forest Brook Drive, Sylvania
arrive between 5:30 and 6:00 PM
e-mail us: slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com

Slow Food Dinner at Revolver Restaurant

2009-06-15T12:00:00.006-04:00

Since SFMV was launched two years ago, we've enjoyed great food and conviviality, and we've done it on a budget accessible to everyone. Many events, like our Strawberry Celebration last Saturday, have been free, as well as informative and delicious.

Our June event is a splurge: a trip to Revolver Restaurant in Findlay. We're privileged to have such a restaurant right in our backyard, and I'm sure that the splurge will be worth it. I've just spoken with chef/owner Michael Bulkowski, and he's planning a great meal for us including Lake Erie perch or walleye, chicken from Dickman Farms, local strawberries, and local vegetables like heirloom beans, spring peas, and carrots. In addition to great food, we will hear from Michael about his restaurant, and we'll meet one of his suppliers - Russ Chester of Garden Spirit Farm in Mt Blanchard.

The cost for this event is $75 for SFMV members; $100 for non-members. As always, become a member here. Reservations a must: RSVP to slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com
Thursday June 25th
arrive 6:30 - 7 PM
Revolver Restaurant
110 East Sandusky Street
Findlay, Ohio 45840

The Berries

2009-06-15T11:55:00.002-04:00

It was all about the berries at Saturday's Strawberry Celebration, but many of us could not resist the jams - made by SFMV member Amelia Contreras for Johnston's Fruit Farm. Click on the photo to check out the short list of ingredients!

June - Strawberries!!

2009-05-19T15:25:00.003-04:00

We're having a Strawberry Celebration! Slow Food Maumee Valley is teaming up with SFMV Members Fernando and Martha Mora, owners of Johnston Fruit Farms in Swanton, for a family-friendly event. Taste strawberries and learn about the farm: its history and the ideas that Fernando and Martha have for its future.

Saturday June 13th
4-6 PM
Johnston's Fruit Farm
1 mile west of Swanton on Airport Highway

July - Mindful Eating with the Toledo Zen Center

2009-05-19T15:21:00.002-04:00

Slow Food Maumee Valley in conjunction with the Toledo Zen Center presents a workshop on Oriyoki: the art of Zen eating. Oriyoki is the liturgical sharing of a meal in a Zen monastery. Oriyoki which translates as 'that which contains just enough' is a transformative practice of mindful eating. During this day long workshop we will practice traditional Zen meditation. We will also watch a film about a Zen Priest who was head cook at the San Francisco Zen Center. After a lunch break we will return to hear a talk on Oriyoki, then prepare and eat food according to this ancient and venerable tradition.
This will be a wonderful opportunity for us to enter deeply into the practice of gratitude and satisfaction as we taste, once again, for the first time.
July 18 9-5
Toledo Zen Center
6537 Angola Rd
Holland OH
toledozen.org

Please bring:
Your favorite cutting knife and board
3 nesting bowls about the size of a soup bowl
4 large cloth napkins
a spoon
a mug
a small spatula

Cost:
All Day $55 nonmembers
$50 members
Half Day $30 nonmembers
$25 members

Please RSVP before July 16

Anyone Up For A Field Trip? Revolver!

2009-04-30T14:57:00.004-04:00

On Thursday, June 25th, Slow Food Maumee Valley members and friends will be traveling to the much-celebrated Revolver Restaurant in Findlay where chef/owner Mike Bulkowski will prepare a seasonal dinner and talk with us about how he partners with local farmers to produce great food.

The price for this special evening will be $80 for SFMV members, $100 for non-members, plus wine if you care to order it. Please contact us: slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com if you are interested in reserving a seat at this very special event. Menu details will be available as the evening approaches.

Chocolate From Bean to Bar

2009-03-04T18:39:00.003-05:00

The Mansion View Inn was a beautiful setting for last night's chocolate event. Some of Toledo's savviest food purveyors were on hand - Flying Rhino, Downtown Latte, Phonenix Earth Food Co-op and the Original Sub Shop were all represented - to learn about Ecuador's Kallari Chocolate Co-operative, where indigenous families harvest, ferment, and roast cacao beans in the foothills of the Andes, then make fabulous organic dark chocolate bars at nearby factories in the cooler highlands.

We blind-tasted 10 dark chocolates, and the Kallari bars were a clear favorite. Look for them now at Whole Foods, perhaps soon in Toledo!

Chocolate Event Details Set

2009-02-23T16:01:00.003-05:00

SFMV Members and Friends are invited to the Mansion View Inn, 2035 Collingwood, at 7 PM on Tuesday March 3rd to meet Enrique Cerda, a member of the Kallari Association in Ecuador, whose Kallari Chocolate bars were recently launched at Whole Foods stores in the U.S. Cerda will be traveling with a translator, Rebecca Roebber, an intern from the University of Oregon

The Kallari Association is a cooperative of over 850 Quichua families in Napo Province in the Ecuadorian Amazon. Recognizing that most of the profit is to be made from sales of chocolate bars, not the cacao beans, the Quichua people created a cooperative where they would have more control over revenues. The Kallari Association, with its self-reliant governance and innovative economic model, is nothing short of revolutionary in the global chocolate industry. Cacao production provides the Quichua people with a viable income so they have the economic resources to resist logging their forests or succumb to the short-term riches offered by petroleum extraction. A full 100 percent of profits from sales of the chocolate bars are returned to the Kallari Association.

Chocolate Can Be Good, Clean And Fair - Learn How

2009-02-09T23:01:00.006-05:00

On Tuesday March 3rd, SFMV will host Kallari chocolatier Enrique Cerda and intern Rebecca Roebbler, who will be visiting Toledo to share the techniques of organic cacao production and artesanal chocolate making.

The talk and tasting will be held at 7 PM at a location to be announced. The cost will be $10 per member, $20 for non-members.

Participants will also have the opportunity to sample various chocolates in a blind tasting, including several gourmet, organic, fair trade, and single origin dark chocolates.

The Kallari Association is the first indigenous organization of cacao growers to receive 100% of the proftis from their own line of chocolate bars.

Kallari cacao growers transport their cacao harvest to a nearby factory in Quito Ecuador. The Amazon beans are processed when they are still fresh, only weeks after the harvest. Kallari is one of the few chocolate bars made without the typical Methyl Bromide fumigation of cacao beans prior to export, weeks spent in airtight shipping containers and months/years spent in storage as brokers await price hikes in cacao or chocolate makers churn out bars.

Healthy Living Series

2009-01-14T16:32:00.002-05:00

"Skyrocketing health care costs send the message that things need to change."
SFMV Members Lisa Bowe and Kris Johnson have lots of suggestions for those who want to change the way they eat. Their Healthy Living Series at Grace Lutheran Church begins on January 19th.

What To Eat

2009-01-14T16:01:00.003-05:00

Dr. Marion Nestle, NYU professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health, will be in Toledo on Tuesday March 17th to kick off a series of events offering local and global perspectives and strategies on food production and acquisition. Dr. Nestle will speak at 7:30 PM at UT's newly renovated Memorial Field House, Room 2100.

The series is sponsored by the UT Departments of Environmental Sciences and Women’s and Gender Studies and the UT Society for Environmental Education and are supported by a grant for the Program for Academic Excellence.

In preparation for this visit, several groups are forming to read Dr. Nestle's new book, What To Eat. If you'd like to join a group, please e-mail us: slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com .

What To Eat is available at People Called Women, mention the book group for a discount.

Goodby Grocery Store Hello Farmer

2009-01-14T15:54:00.001-05:00

Join D.I.G. (Dedicated Independent Growers) Local on Thursday, January 15^th at 4:30 pm BGSU/Hanna Hall Room 205. Come learn how you can have can have a personal shopper (your local farmer!) pick your fresh produce every week and deliver it to your neighborhood.

Meet the food growers in your community who have been feeding your family and theirs for generations, and learn more about Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)

Thursday January 15^th 2009 at 4:30 pm,

Bowling Green State University

Hanna Hall, Room 205.

Sample next summer!

First Event of 2009 Draws a Record Crowd

2009-01-12T22:15:00.003-05:00

Forty plus friends and members talked, traded recipes, and shared an amazing array of soups and breads, plus a couple of salads and some wonderful desserts.

As you can see, it was a hungry crowd, and nothing went to waste.

The leadership group will be meeting soon to plan more events for 2009. Members who are interested in leadership opportunities can e-mail us (slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com ) or call Paula Ross (419.536.0807).

Soup in the New Year

2008-12-27T12:34:00.002-05:00

On Monday January 12th, beginning at about 6 PM, Ralph and Gini Behrendt will host our second annual January Soup Supper potluck, featuring soup-and-everything-that-goes-with-soup, for SFMV friends and guests. The venue is the fabulous Flying Rhino at 436 13th Street in Toledo.

RSVP to slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com

Slow Events This Week

2008-12-01T22:56:00.004-05:00

This week, friends and members of SFMV are invited to celebrate community with SFMV member Mike Szuberla and Toledo Grows, and to celebrate the holidays with SFMV friends at C/J Natural Meats & Farmstead Cheese.

WHAT: The Greenhouse Project Ribbon Cutting.

WHO: The NorthRiver Weed & Seed Strategy, The Community Integration and Training for Employment (CITE) Program from the Lucas County Juvenile Court, Toledo GROWs, the Toledo Botanical Garden, The Connecting Point, Toledo City Councilman Joe McNamara and other community leaders.

WHEN: Thursday, December 4, 2008 at 1:15 p.m (Ribbon Cutting) – and at 5:15pm (Celebration of youth participants).

WHERE: The back grounds of the Connecting Point (1212 Cherry St.) along Lagrange Street, between Seneca and Onedia Streets.

*************************************************************************************

C/J Natural Meats and Farmstead Cheese invites you to A Homespun Christmas - December 4, 5, and 6

Featuring Canal Junction Grass Fed Meats,
Made-on-the-farm Cheeses and fresh Baked Goods

C/J Natural Meats and Farmstead Cheese
18637 Road 168
Defiance, Ohio
419-399-2350
SUPPORT LOCAL - BUY LOCAL!

Taking Up the Thanksgiving Challenge

2008-11-15T09:04:00.007-05:00

I arrived too late at last night's Slow Supper to capture a photographic record of the food, but not too late to enjoy the array of dishes featuring local, sustainable ingredients, many of them from home gardens or local farmers markets. Slow Food members and friends also met the heritage turkeys the Leizermans are raising; quite a few area Thanksgiving tables will feature both!

The group also was inspired by viewing Fridays at the Farm, a beautiful short film about a CSA outside Philadelphia.

Here are a couple of recipes to help us meet the challenge recently issued by the Consumers Union and the Eat Well Guide:

Red Cabbage, Dutch Style from Kris Johnson

1 small onion, chopped

2 tablespoons butter

1 medium red cabbage, shredded

1 small beet, julienne (optional)
1 bay leaf

1/2 teaspoon cloves

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon raw honey
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup water

2 apples, peeled and quartered
1 tablespoon raw apple cider vinegar

Sauté onion in butter in a heavy pan. Add cabbage and sauté briefly. Add bay leaf, cloves, salt, honey, cinnamon and water and cook gently about 15 minutes. Add the apple and cook another 10 minutes. Stir in the vinegar and serve. (Serves 6)

Marinated Butternut Squash (Scapece de Zucca) from Mario Batali via Paula Ross

2 medium butternut squash, seeded and cut into 1-inch slices
Salt and pepper
4 tablespoons plus 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 medium red onion, sliced paper thin
1/2 teaspoon red chile flakes
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 clove garlic, sliced paper-thin
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
Season the squash with salt and pepper, drizzle with 4 tablespoons olive oil, and place in a single layer on 1 or 2 cookie sheets.
Bake in the oven until just tender, about 18 to 20 minutes. Meanwhile, stir together the remaining oil, vinegar, onion, chile flakes, oregano, and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Remove the squash from the oven and pour the marinade over. Allow to cool for 20 minutes in the marinade, sprinkle with fresh mint leaves, and serve. This dish can be made earlier in the day but should not be refrigerated.

If you have recipes to share, please send them to us: slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com .

November Slow Supper: Talking Turkey

2008-10-28T13:22:00.003-04:00

Slow Food Maumee Valley will hold its November meeting at 6pm on Friday, November 14th at the home of Julie and Michael Leizerman in Swanton.

Julie and Michael have been raising three breeds of heritage turkeys since April, and the birds are reaching their mature stage just in time for the holidays.

Bring a dish to share - maybe a new recipe your are thinking of trying for Thanksgiving? Come talk turkey with Michael and visit the other animals too - kids are welcome!

WHAT: Slow Foods Maumee Valley November Potluck

WHEN: Friday, November 14th, 6pm

WHERE: One Hundred Breaths Farm, the home of the Leizerman family

4728 County Road 3 in Swanton

6 miles west of Toledo Express, then 2.2 miles south on County Road 3

(419)826-7667

Your rsvp is welcome but not required. E-mail us: slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com or call Paula at 419.536.0807 or Julie at 419.826.7667.

SFMV at the Toledo Farmers Market

2008-09-21T20:05:00.004-04:00

It was a beautiful Saturday morning, and hundreds of area shoppers jammed the market. It seemed like most of them stopped by the Slow Food Maumee Valley table, where they enjoyed apple pancakes expertly cooked by SFMV members John Ross, Mary Weiss, and Deb Boardley. Member Amelia Contreras, who has launched her own food business, arranged a tasting of apples from Witt's Orchard. We tasted five varieties: Elstar, Ginger Gold, Gravenstein, Honey Crisp, and Ozark Gold. The winners? Honey Crisp and Elstar tied as favorites, Witts sold out early, and we all enjoyed the market scene, including music by Ten Mile Creek.

Apple Tasting / Samples at Toledo Farmers Market

2008-09-14T22:22:00.004-04:00

Although you'd never know it from selection offered at the the average grocery store, thousands of varieties of apples are grown in the US. Protecting this biodiversity is one of the goals of Slow Food, and Slow Food Maumee Valley friends and members have a chance to follow Poppy Tooker's advice and "eat it to save it."

Every Saturday morning throughout the winter, Witts Orchards offers dozens of delicious varieties at the Toledo Farmers Market (the orchards, located in Oak Harbor, include more than five dozen varieties).

On Saturday September 20th from 9 AM to 12 PM, Slow Food Maumee Valley members will prepare apple-based treats for market shoppers as well as a tasting of several varieties that are at their peak this month. We'll talk to market shoppers about Slow Food and our mission to make food that is good, clean, and fair available to everyone.

If you'd like to help, call Paula at 419.536.0807 or send an e-mail: slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com.

Perennial Exchange Coming Up Soon

2008-09-14T22:06:00.004-04:00

On Saturday October 4th from 10am- to 1:30am, local gardeners are invited to exchange plant and garden supplies at the Original Sub Shop, 402 Broadway (near the Amtrak station) . Here's the schedule:

9:00 Plant Drop-off
9:15 Workshop:Native Plants for the Home Garden.
10:00 Plant Re-distribution

Please bring: Plants (perennials/house plants) - Garden Tools -Garden Books

Need more info? Call the Sub Shop at 419-243-4857.

The challenge of Slow Food Nation

2008-09-09T11:38:00.003-04:00

The speeches were inspirational, the market was irresistible, and the food was delicious. It was a privilege to be at Slow Food Nation. Over and over, I was reminded that Northwest Ohio has the ingredients for a great food system, and that Slow Food Maumee Valley can help create it.
Slow Food USA took a huge step forward at Slow Food Nation, and as members we have the opportunity to be a part of new programs and help to grow a stronger, more focused organization. Are you ready?

Tomato Tasting - Results are Clear

2008-08-24T21:18:00.002-04:00

The two dozen members and friends of Slow Food Maumee Valley have made their decision: we tasted more than a dozen varieties of heirloom tomatoes from area farms and gardens, and the winner by a landslide is the Cherokee Purple.

Pam Weirauch of Pam's Corner also produced some winners - mixed heirloom gazpacho, heirloom tomato tartlets, and goat-cheese stuffed tomatoes were popular, as was the caponata made with eggplants from Andy Keil's farm from a recipe by Mario Batali.

If you missed our first annual heirloom tomato tasting, you don't have to wait until next year's tomato season. Send a message to slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com to be added to our regular e-mail messages, or visit the Slow Food USA website to join.

Unless you have dozens of tomato varieties in your garden, check out your local farmers market. The Toledo Farmers Market is hosting its first annual Salsa Fest on August 30th.

Tomato To-mah-to Tasting

2008-08-03T09:16:00.005-04:00

It's early August, and the tomatoes are beginning to ripen. The season will be in full swing by Sunday August 24th, the date of Slow Food Maumee Valley's first annual Heirloom Tomato Tasting, to begin at 4:00 PM, at the home of John and Paula Ross. Slow Food Maumee Valley is teaming up with Pam Weirauch of Pam's Corner to offer a tomato-centric menu including tastes of heirlooms from a variety of area farms and gardens and desserts made from local fruit, plus iced tea and basil lemonade.

The cost will be $20 per person ($15 for SFMV members). Reservations are a must for this event. Please reply or call 419.536.0807.

Slow Food Maumee Valley is a non-profit organization, and a portion of your cost will be tax-deductible. Proceeds from the event will be used to help strengthen the food system in the Maumee Valley.

As always, you can go to http://slowfoodusa.org/ to become a member.

Slow Food Cheese Tasting

2008-07-20T14:13:00.004-04:00

On a hot and steamy night last week at the home of Marian and Gary Silverman, members and friends of SFMV tasted artisan cheeses made by Brian Schlatter of C/J Grassfed, the family farm near Defiance which also offers meats, eggs, and other selected products. Brian, who began production locally in November 2007, sells his cheeses at Toledo Farmers Market every other Saturday and at Perrysburg Farmers Market on Thursdays. He is interested in finding other retail outlets for his cheeses; ask your favorite restaurants or food stores about trying this great local product, which is a slow food in every way: good, clean, and fair!

Tomato / To-mah-to Tasting

2008-07-14T22:06:00.002-04:00

Mark your calendars now for Slow Food Maumee Valley's First Annual Heirloom Tomato Tasting and Feast. This year's event will be held at the home of John and Paula Ross on Sunday August 24th and will feature great tomato-based treats as well as the opportunity to taste a range of locally-grown heirloom tomato varieties. If you would like to rsvp now, or if you would like to receive updates as details are finalized, send your contact information to slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com and we'll add you to the list!

July Slow Supper and Local Cheese

2008-07-05T09:53:00.006-04:00

SFMV's July program will begin with a presentation by Brian Schlatter, master cheesemaker for C/J Natural Meats in Defiance Ohio. We'll learn a bit about the history of cheesemaking and about this new addition to the Northwest Ohio food scene. After Brian's presentation (including samples!), we'll enjoy a convivial potluck. The theme: cheese - dishes made with cheese, dishes that go with cheese, dishes inspired by cheese....you get the idea. Please plan on bringing your recipe, your place setting, and your own beverage.

Thursday July 17th
6:30 PM cheese sampling with pot luck to follow
At the home of Marian and Gary Silverman, 10 Old Coach Road, Bowling Green, OH 43402 (corner of River Road and 235) - 419 823 5049

RSVP to slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com or to Paula @ 419.536.0807

Local Cheese!

2008-06-29T20:52:00.005-04:00

Along with fabulous herbs, fruits, and vegetables, the Toledo Farmers Market now offers aged raw milk cheeses from Canal Junction Farmstead Master Cheesemaker Brian Schlatter, who says "We are an on-farm cheese maker, where we use all of the milk that we produce. We make all raw milk cheeses from our own milk. " Varieties include Miami Erie Canal Swiss, Ravine Colby, Black Swamp Gouda and, last Saturday, a great wheel of shiraz-soaked jack.

Eat It To Save It, as Poppy Tooker would say

2008-06-29T20:39:00.005-04:00

The first of the homegrown cherries made their appearance at the Toledo Farmers Market on Saturday. They're worth waiting for and worth looking for. Mine came from Witt's Orchards, and they will be available on Saturday mornings as they ripen.

June Slow Supper Details

2008-06-08T14:59:00.005-04:00

As of this writing, perfect weather is predicted for Monday, June 16th, when SFMV will celebrate its first anniversary with a potluck Slow Supper at Hoen's Greenhouse, 1710 Perrysburg-Holland Rd. in Holland.

As regular attendees know, with no rules other than bring something that is good, clean, and fair, somehow SFMV potlucks have always resulted in feasts. Since the season has brought early-season harvests to our gardens and farmers markets, I'm sure that this dinner will be no exception.

Please reply here: slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com if you would like to attend. Here are the details:

Slow Supper
Monday June 16th
6:30 PM - about 9 PM
Hoen's Greenhouse
1710 Perrysburg Holland Road

Provided: place settings, cold drinks;, and strawberries

You bring: dish to share w/ serving utensils (ready to serve - no re-heating), and wine if you want it

Cost: Members $5, Guests $10

Here's an optional suggestion: The new is full of stories about the threat to our food supply posed by the collapse of honeybee colonies and, more recently, bats. This month includes National Pollinator's Week. You may want to do some research (examples here) into what pollinators were required for the ingredients in your dish.

Another perspective on slow...

2008-06-08T14:54:00.002-04:00

We've all thought about Slow Food's emphasis on food that is good, clean, and fair. Thanks to Kirk Mizerek for sharing this story about another aspect of the movement...

June Slow Supper

2008-05-26T22:27:00.002-04:00

Slow Food Maumee Valley will be one year old in June. We began our first year with a potluck; let's celebrate our first birthday the same way!

On Monday June 16th, members and friends of Slow Food Maumee Valley will gather for a celebratory pot luck Slow Supper at Hoen's Greenhouse, 1710 Perrysburg-Holland Rd. in Holland.

This is sure to be a feast of wonderful dishes, each one good, clean, and fair. Bring your offering, utensils to serve it, and wine if you want it. We'll provide place settings, iced tea and lemonade. There will be a small charge (TBA) to cover event costs.

Last Call - Spring Slow Supper

2008-04-28T16:32:00.001-04:00

Bill Kolhoff has been cooking for Toledoans for more than forty years, and on Thursday May 1st he will be cooking for us!

Thursday's Spring Slow Supper will include varied preparations of a range of seasonal ingredients including whole walleye, pork strudels, wild rice salad, spring greens, fiddleheads, and mushrooms, all depending on their local availability. Dinner is $15 per person for Slow Food members and $20 per person for friends. Selected wines will be available for purchase by the glass. Bottles will be available with a modest corkage fee.

There will be plenty of seating, and the meal will be served grazing-style, so that we can mingle and be appropriately convivial. Bill will talk with us about his inspirations for local, ingredient-driven cooking. Others are encouraged to bring any books or other sources of inspiration you would like to share.

If you've already reserved, see you on Thursday! For those who have not yet responded, please e-mail me at slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com or call me at 419.536.0807.

Share What You Grow

2008-04-28T16:06:00.000-04:00

April Slow Supper Scheduled for May 1st

2008-04-05T19:19:00.002-04:00

Slow Supper
Thursday May 1st
6-9 PM
Walt Churchill's Market
$15 for members, $20 for friends
RSVP by April 28th to slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com or
call Paula Ross 419.536.0807

Chef Bill Kolhoff is planning a menu to celebrate spring in the Maumee Valley. Selected wines will be available to purchase by the glass, as will any bottle at WCM Wineshop. Check back soon for more menu details.

Finding Spring in the Backyard

2008-04-05T19:06:00.003-04:00

These chives, tucked into a rock wall outside my kitchen, are always the first harvest of the year. They'll be great in the Ohio Organic cottage cheese now available at many Northwest Ohio locations, including Claudia's, Schorling's, and Walt Churchill's Market.

To share pictures of your spring food treasures, whether hunted, gathered, garden-grown, or kitchen-created, e-mail picture files to slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com .

Looking for Spring at the Farmers Market

2008-04-05T18:58:00.003-04:00

The fresh lettuces at the Toledo Farmers Market this morning were hydroponic, but they still taste like spring. The Winter Market has finished, and today's half open-air, half covered market was the perfect place to start the weekend. My friend Millie couldn't resist the hydroponic strawberries, fresh from an Ohio greenhouse!

Toledo GROWs Brings Nancy Lee Bentley to Town

2008-03-18T21:02:00.003-04:00

Slow Food Maumee Valley is happy to share this announcement from Toledo GROWs:

Toledo GROWs to Bring Acclaimed Chef and Author to Toledo Botanical Garden (April 17th and April 19th) .

Internationally-acclaimed health and wellness pioneer Nancy Lee Bentley will appear at Toledo Botanical Garden, April 17th and-19th to introduce her newest book, Truly Cultured: Rejuvenating Taste, Health and Community with Naturally Fermented Foods.

Nancy Lee Bentley is a pioneering holistic health expert, professional chef, natural foods marketing and nutrition consultant, teacher, writer andspeaker. Her work has appeared in national/regional trade and consumer publications ranging from "Organic Gardening" to "Natural Foods Merchandiser". She co-authored the successful Dr. Mercola's TOTAL HEALTHProgram.

Nancy Lee has organized and developed organic/natural food products, co-ops, cooking classes, restaurants, healthy food service pilots, start-up businesses, national trade and organic certification associations. She has trained MasterCard® chefs; organized an allergy/specialty foods mail-orderbusiness, brokered organic and specialty grains, developed wheat-free recipes for Cher, baked a 3-tiered purple birthday cake for Prince, and catered for Aveda founder, Horst Rechelbacher.

Bentley workshops will show participants how to: "Eat our way back to good health, sense, and enjoyment!" using the ancient practice of natural fermentation and culturing.Truly Cultured is a delicious and nutritious feast of recipes, quips,quotes, quizzes, history, anecdotes, puns, myths, food science, facts and figures, secrets, insights, how-to tips, tidbits and unabashed, call-it-like-it-is power truths that help readers understand how important live, cultured, fermented foods are to our health and our communities. Ms. Bentley is well-known for connecting the burgeoning healthy and gourmet organic foods industry with the environmental movement and the spiritual revolution. She tirelessly promotes traditionally cultured foods and holistic lifestyles to support optimum nutrition and sustainable communities. For more on Nancy Lee Bentley and her book, Truly Cultured, please visit the website http://www.trulycultured.com/.

Thursday: April 17th - 7:30 pm to 8:30 pm
– Introduction to being Truly Cultured FREE and open to the public.

Saturday April 19th 10am to 2pm
Seminar : What Does it Mean to be Truly Cultured ( includes food tasting ) .$40 advance fee / $50 walk in. Space is limited -reserve your space in advance.

To register for Saturday's event go to http://truly-cultured.amazonwebstore.com/ or call 419-936-2975

Slow Supper at the Original Sub Shop

2008-03-02T10:15:00.008-05:00

Two dozen Slow Fooders enjoyed a vegetarian feast presented by Sarkis and Jackie David at the Original Sub Shop, the site of our February Slow Supper. All were enthusiastic about the traditional Middle Eastern lenten dishes, and SF Maumee Valley signed up three new members! Thanks to member John Henry Fullen for recording the event.

March Slow Supper and More

2008-02-25T22:18:00.006-05:00

Sunday March 16th, 2008

Toledo Botanical Garden Conference Center

5-6 PM - Stables Room - Beer Tasting with Lloyd Adelphia

Everything you ever wanted to know about beer.... but didn't know what to ask. There will be beer tasting and valuable information on how to make your own. This is a members only event, but you are welcome to bring guests.

6-8 PM - Terrace Room - Irish / Green Pot Luck

Please bring a dish to share that is green and/or Irish for the potluck, and bring your own beverage.

R.S.V.P. if you are planning on attending and what you might be bringing to share: Mary Weiss 419- 842-0005, mweiss@bex.net

Leap Night Dinner Update

2008-02-22T16:53:00.004-05:00

Reservations will be accepted through Sunday February 24th for our February Slow Supper.

The time is 6:30 PM on Leap Night, Friday February 29th
The place the Original Sub Shop and Deli, 402 Broadway, Toledo
The price is $15 for Slow Food members, $20 for those who have not yet joined.

Our hosts will be Jackie and Sarkis David, and Sarkis has created a menu featuring traditional Middle Eastern lenten dishes, including vegetarian soups, grape leaves, and more.

Coffee and tea included, BYOB if you'd like to enjoy a glass of wine with your meal.

RSVP to slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com or by calling Paula Ross @ 419.536.0807

Toledo Grows Events

2008-02-11T16:16:00.002-05:00

We're not sponsoring the following events, but we are happy to help get the word out:

Saturday February 23rd -- The 4^th Annual SEED SWAP

The Swap and all workshops are free and open to the public!

12:00-3:00pm, Crosby Conference Center (SEED SWAPPING) - bring seeds, bulbs, house plants, gardening magazines, et cetera-- there's still time to order unique seeds to share from sites like rareseeds.com. All are welcome -- but those who bring something to exchange will receive more tokens...

Workshop Schedule: (all workshops are at Toledo Botanical Garden)

11:00am "Plant Nutrition", Art Abilities Studio (AAS)
11:00am "Talking Tomatoes", Children's Ed. Building (CEB)

1:30pm "Gardening for Maximum Nutrition" (AAS)
1:30pm "Plant Propagation" (CEB)

3:15pm "Beekeeping" (AAB)
3:15pm "Invasive Plants" (CEB)

Come to the Garden on Saturday, February 23, 2008 to exchange seeds, learn new skills and diversify your gardens. No matter your gardening ability, you'll enjoy the chance to mingle with other gardeners and swap favorite seeds and bulbs. The Seed Swap gives gardeners the opportunity to enjoy new plants and to help preserve unique local and cultural strains, as many gardeners grow plants that are unique to their ethnicity or taste. Visitors are also encouraged to bring houseplants to exchange. There will be activities for kids, workshops, music and more so bring the whole family.

For more information, please call (419)936-2975 or email tgrows2@toledogarden.org.

The Seed Swap is a free/grassroots event � please help us by printing or forwarding these flyers�

February Slow Supper

2008-02-09T12:51:00.000-05:00

This month's Slow Supper will be Friday, February 29th. It's a bonus day, and Slow Food Maumee Valley has arranged just the right way to celebrate it: enjoying a convivial meal others who share a passion for food and drink that is good, clean, and fair.

The meal will be meatless, creative, and delicious, prepared by our hosts Jackie and Sarkis David, and presented at the Original Sub Shop and Deli, 402 Broadway, Toledo at 6:30 PM. The price is $15 for Slow Food members, $20 for those who have not yet joined. Coffee and tea included, BYOB if you'd like to enjoy a glass of wine with your meal. RSVP by Friday, February 22nd to slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com or by calling Paula Ross @ 419.536.0807.

Watch this space for menu updates!

New Northwest Ohio Cheesemaker

2008-01-20T18:48:00.000-05:00

For a few months, I've been purchasing several of my staples direct from a farmer, Ralph Schlatter, of Canal Junction Natural Meats. I haven't yet had the chance to try their new cheeses, but after reading this message from Ralph's son Brian, I can't wait:

Hello to all,
This is Brian Schlatter. I am the cheesemaker for Canal Junction Farmstead Cheese. We are a new operation that started making cheese in November and now have some cheeses ready to be sold. We concentrate on raw milk cheeses. We have cheddar, Colby, Monterey jack, garlic & herb, jack & dill, Italian herb, pepper jack, black swamp gouda, miami erie canal Swiss, Wabash erie canal gruyere (a type of Swiss cheese), and on Wednesday I attempted a blue cheese that will be ready in 60 days. We here at the farm are all very excited about the cheese that we have already. One thing that makes these cheese wonderful is that they not only come from our own milk but that milk comes from the very mineral rich soils that we live on. It has been told to me time and time again by others that clay soil is that best soil to raise food on because that taste from it is exceptional because of the soil that it is raised on. If you have any cheese questions please ask. I will be glad to answer them. For those who like to try something different and with varying varieties when eating the two Swiss style cheese that I am making offer both ends of the spectrum and also make a great fondue. Tell all your friends and co-workers that there is a place in Northwest Ohio that makes cheese and sells it right from the farm. This is the freshest that you can get.

Stay tuned for more to come as I will be posting updates on what is happening

Brian
Master Cheesemaker

Edible Art

2008-01-15T08:45:00.000-05:00

Founded on the universal right to pleasure, Slow Food continues to remind us that it's important to have fun. Imagine how much fun it was for photographer Carl Warner to put together these still lifes in his kitchen!

January Soup Supper Draws A Crowd

2008-01-14T22:46:00.000-05:00

Forty members and friends of SF Maumee Valley gathered at Flying Rhino for the first Slow Supper of 2008: an amazing variety of delicious soups plus fabulous go-withs, wines including home made fruit blends and a white wine that SF member Roger Heider brought all the way from Vietnam. Watch this blog for future slow suppers!

January Apples

2008-01-05T17:02:00.000-05:00

Every Saturday I come home from the market wondering "what are these apples I bought?" This week I limited myself to just three kinds: Sun Crisp, Gold Rush, and Blushing Gold.

What are your favorites?

Let us know by commenting or e-mail us at slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com

What the World Eats

2008-01-03T21:33:00.000-05:00

Do you ever think about what Americans eat? And what others around the world eat? Sometimes it's not what you expect.

Check out this story shared by Slow Food Maumee Valley founding member (and Toledo GROWs Executive Director) Michael Szuberla.

Want to see more? Here is information about Hungry Planet, the gorgeous 2005 book in which Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio present a photographic study of families from around the world, revealing what people eat during the course of one week.

Please let us know what you think; leave a comment or e-mail us: slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com

Slow Food in 2008

2007-12-31T12:04:00.000-05:00

SF Maumee Valley members will be meeting this week to plan for the New Year. If you're not a member yet, there is still time to be a part of this planning group; you can join on line or, if you'd rather join at the planning meeting, send a message to slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com and we'll provide all details.

All members and friends are invited to our January Soup Supper, Monday January 14th from 6-8; bring soup, bread, or dessert to share. We'll provide plates, bowls, and utensils. Our hosts at Flying Rhino will provide plenty of counter space and outlets for crockpots. Let us know you're coming - slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com - or just show up, soup in hand.

Good, Clean, and Fair in 2008

2007-12-30T11:19:00.000-05:00

The new year brings new opportunities for Maumee Valley slow fooders to enjoy food that is good, clean, and fair. It also offers us the challenge of sharing the Slow Food approach and expanding the Slow Food network by sponsoring events that are educational as well as convivial.

Members are invited to a planning meeting on January 3rd to sketch out our 2008 calendar. Current members will receive the details by e-mail; new members or those who want to join at the door should contact us: slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com to learn more.

All members and friends are encouraged to get out the soup pots (or the bread bowls, or the wine bottles) and plan to attend our January Soup Supper on Monday the 14th - Flying Rhino Coffee will host, and, again, if you haven't already, rsvp at slowfoodmaumeevalley@gmail.com .

Slow Holidays with SF Member Patrice Powers-Barker

2007-12-15T19:00:00.000-05:00

Here is the photo of some of the produce I used for the recipes for frozen dishes as a Christmas gift for my parents and my sister. The main reason I took the photo was to show that Hubbard squash! Here were the recipes that freeze well. 11 out of 14 include some local foods. All of the peppers and basil were from our garden. All of the root veggies, apples & cider and fresh spinach came from the Toledo Farmers' Market ... veggie quiche in a bag, cheesy smashed potatoes with crab, nut balls (vegetarian "meat" balls), baked pasta with veggies, cabbage roll casserole, sweet potatoes with pineapple & cranberry, spinach & chick pea casserole, 2 different bean dips, squash soup & split pea soup, muffins (including apple), pesto and 1/2 gal cider. Mmmm - I can't wait to share it with them! :)

Eat It To Save It

2007-12-15T18:25:00.000-05:00

Fuji and Yataka. Pink Lady and Arkansas Black. Honeycrisp and Criterion. No, they're not names from some fanciful adventure story, they're apples! And they're all available from Witt's Orchard at the Toledo Farmers Winter Market every Saturday morning.

By supporting local growers who offer products not on the supermarket short list, we can help slow the rate at which heritage fruits and vegetables are disappearing. That's what Slow Food's Ark of Taste is about. Check out the list of apples that have made it on to the SF Ark .

Slow Food International Congress

2007-11-25T21:51:00.000-05:00

The food was great, and the setting was spectacular, but the real joy of attending the Slow Food International Congress was getting to know Slow Food leaders from around the world and being part of an amazing network which links producers and eaters of food that is good, clean, and fair. SF Maumee Valley leaders Paula Ross and Lucy Long returned from Puebla inspired, and look forward to sharing the ideas we gained from our trip.

Sandhill Cranes Winery

2007-11-25T21:40:00.000-05:00

The Maumee Valley group that visited Sandhill Cranes on the Sunday before Thanksgiving was small, but we all enjoyed the trip and learning how a retired Detroit police officer, with his wife and two daughters, came to create a small commercial winery producing an amazing range of grape wines, fruit wines, and blends. This is one of the joys of Slow Food: getting to know the people who produce our food and wine. The scenery around the Jackson, Michigan winery is spectacular. On a future trip, we'll include visits to other wineries on the Pioneer Wine Trail.

Support Your Local Farmers

2007-11-05T11:28:00.003-05:00

Summer fruits are mostly a memory, but local markets are still a great source for winter meals featuring apples, squash, and root vegetables. The Toledo Farmers Market (http://www.toledofarmersmarket.org/) now offers year-round shopping, thanks to new pull-down doors installed in a large section of the market.

All of the above will be available, plus honey, baked goods, and all-season greens and herbs from an area hydroponic greenhouse.

Kids’ Event: Celebrate Heritage Holiday Recipes

2007-11-05T11:02:00.000-05:00

On Sunday, December 2, from 2:00 to 4:00 pm, children are invited to a special cookie baking party at 2443 Pemberton Drive, Toledo, Ohio. Children should bring cookie dough made from a family recipe that they like the most. We will bake the cookies at the party. Children will also participate in other holiday activities including crafts and games.

Children of all ages, accompanied by their parents, are welcome. Cost: $5.00 per child. RSVP to 419 531-3809.

Mark Your Calendar Now For January Soup Supper

2007-10-24T17:21:00.001-04:00

After the holidays, we want simple, delicious goodness. We want soup!

On Monday, January 14th, 2008, SF members Gini and Ralph Behrendt will host the year's first potluck. You are invited to bring your favorite soup (in a crockpot, please; there will be plenty of counter space and outlets) or bread to share. Bring your recipe and come prepared to talk about why you love soup!

The event will be at Flying Rhino; details to follow.

Mushroom Feast

2007-10-22T12:15:00.000-04:00

SFMV member Michael Szuberla has shared this link for information about the Michigan Mushroom Hunters upcoming feast; watch their website for more details:

http://www.sph.umich.edu/~kwcee/mmhc/7xmas.htm

Smelling and Slurping

2007-10-22T11:51:00.001-04:00

Eight Slow Fooders were members of the first-ever coffee class at Flying Rhino on Sunday October 21st. After a delicious brunch, SFMV members and Flying Rhino owners Ralph and Gini Behrendt talked about the history of coffee, demonstrated a range of roasting methods, and "cupped" a selection of coffees for us to taste.

With varying success, we learned to smell the changes in the roasting beans and slurp to aerate the coffee and maximize its contact with our taste buds. Just like wine tasters, we used spit cups and rinsing glasses to allow us to taste the subtle differences produced by different beans and differing roasts, while avoiding more of a buzz than we bargained for.

At their 13th street location, Ralph and Gini offer coffee beans for your at-home experimentation of a selection of beans that they roast in their vintage commercial roaster (pictured above). Check out their website (http://www.flyingrhinocoffee.com/) for more information about their growing local business.