Let’s Cook and Share A Slow Meal: Tapas at the Lavine’s

Part of the Let’s Cook and Share A Slow Meal. A Spring 2014 Campaign of Slow Food Russian River.

In this variant of the idea the hosts invited their guest directly or through the Slow Food Newsletter to members and supporters.

The hosts gathered a nice diverse group consisting of a few new SFRR members, non members, and SFRR members that haven’t been active recently. They cooked and enjoyed a Spanish Tapas dinner together mostly made from local, seasonal ingredients.

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Let’s Cook and Share A Slow Meal. A Spring 2014 Campaign of Slow Food Russian River

The basic idea: People come together to cook a meal, sit down to eat it, and clean up. The meal is in the spirit of Slow Food: good, clean, and fair, for all.

So, it’s not a potluck: meal preparation is done together, in the same space.

It’s not a family meal: there are guests.

It’s also not a dinner party: guest share the cooking with the host, the person who makes the invitation and provides the place where the cooking, eating and cleaning up is happening.

But the basic idea leaves still many options. They’re like games with different constraints set by the host.

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April 13, 2014 Event:
Let’s Cook and Share A Slow Meal: Tapas!
By: Peg
A beautiful Russian River spring green landscape fairly glowed outside the kitchen windows, as SFRR chapter members and folks interested in Slow Food ideals of good, clean and fair food for all gathered on a Sunday afternoon to prepare a Slow tapas meal at the home of Marcia and Chuck Lavine.

The convivial guests chatted and sipped Spanish wines while they chopped, sautéed, roasted and baked.
The abundant alfresco menu began with tapas “appetizers” of seasoned olives, Manchego cheese with quince preserves, roasted asparagus with Serrano ham, and a spinach and mushroom tortilla, both paired with Albarino wine.

While enjoying the Sebastopol sunset, diners sampled patates bravas with a tomato aioli dip, meatballs in almond sauce, fennel and orange salad, grilled Monterey sardines in lemon and herbs, chickpea and chorizo, and steamed mussels with a crusty bread for dipping, all paired with Rioja and Tempranillo wines. Dinner concluded at a table indoors, with a traditional flan and Fino Sherry wine.

Everyone joined in for a quick and easy cleanup, then the grateful guests thanked their hosts for a wonderful evening, calling “Buenas noches!” as they strolled into the night.

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If you would like to host a Slow Meal in your home, contact the SFRR Cook-In Team:
sfrrcookinteam@gmail.com
Photo captions
Dining Alfresco Kate, Marcia, Peg, Brad, Chuck, Liz and Linda enjoying apps and Albarino. Not shown: Ken.
Men at Work. Brad chops fennel, while Chuck prepares the mussels.