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Strawberry Feasts Forever

July 26, 2014 @ 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm

$6 – $17

The Strawberry Season is fully here. Albions. Chandlers. Seascapes. Let’s have a feast, in the Garden behind Palm Ave. 7403. Good, clean, and fair.

While arguably strawberries cannot be improved upon and are best straight from the plant our team of creative pastry chefs has put together strawberry treats – both sweet and savory – that will dazzle your eyes and delight your taste buds.

These are the tastings that Dominique Cortara, Rick Ferrari, and Susan Kralovec will be serving:

* Comparative tastings of different varietals of strawberries
* Appetizers with prosciutto, chutney and pepper/herb cheese, and strawberries**
* Pizza with goat cheese, prosciutto, balsamic vinegar, and strawberries**
* Duck skewers with strawberry balsamic glaze
* Strawberry Shortcake
* Strawberry Agua Fresca
* Strawberry Chutney – take-away gift

** Treats will also be available in a vegetarian version.

Wines will be for sale by the glass. Lemonade and cucumber water is served freely.

Bring your children and grandchildren. Games. Best Strawberry Inspired Hat. Make your own strawberry pastry.

We will get to know the different strawberry cultivars and where they are locally available, and about some unknown but desirable varieties that we would like to have back.

We will learn why strawberries are #2 on the list of dirty dozen of the Environmental Working Group – after apples – and should always be bought organic or beyond organic, and locally.

And we will be informed about working conditions in the strawberry industry.

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elissaElissa Rubin-Mahon will speak at this event about the history of strawberries in the United States and the possibilities of preserving and reviving old varieties of strawberries for being included in the Slow Food Ark of Taste.

Elissa is a champion of the revival of the Bodega Red potato, now on the Slow Food Ark of Taste.http://www.sonomadiscoveries.com/stor…/digging_up_history/…/

From her Chef Bio at http://www.relishculinary.com/

Elissa Rubin-Mahon’s foraging and gleaning business, Artisan Preserves, specializes in wildcrafted and rare heirloom ingredients. Elissa’s small batch preserving methods were deservedly rewarded when she took home a Good Food Award in 2011 for her Orange Marmalade made with old grove oranges. In addition to leading perserving workshops for public and community groups, she writes a culinary column for Mushroom: The Journal of Wild Mushrooming, is past president and founding culinary chairperson of the Sonoma County Mycological Association, and teaches about foraged and heirloom foods. Elissa’s work with Slow Food USA to research and evaluate rare and endangered foodstuffs for Slow Food’s Ark of Taste is evident in her ability to create menus and recipes that feature distinctive and exquisite ingredients.

Cindy Daniel of the Healdsburg SHED wrote about Elissa in 2012:

With the precision of a fine artist and the eye of an expert forager, Elissa Rubin-Mahon selects her fruit and produces micro-batches of preserves here in Sonoma County. She sources her fruit from sustainable farms and wild, public lands. Using no more than 7 pounds of ripe, unrefrigerated fruit per batch, Elissa hand cuts the pieces and cooks them – without pectin – in an open kettle.

Her fruit has a regional, and often historical, provenance. Very knowledgeable about heirloom fruits, she specializes in preserving their vibrant flavors. Some of her favorites are: Silver Logan peach, Black Republican cherry and Sierra Beauty apple.

An expert preserver, Elissa shares her know-how as leader of a group of community volunteers who cook-up gleaned, surplus food from local farms and gardens. With inspiration from Elissa, the group works out of a community kitchen, preparing, preserving and distributing food to local food pantries.

We love Elissa’s preserving and her commitment to community. We also like the way she thinks about tools. “If I were an inanimate object,” she says, “I would like to be a spoon. A well-shaped spoon fits one’s mouth like a smile.”

SHED will offer Elissa’s preserves as well as selected foods from other artisans.

http://healdsburgshed.com/2012/11/12/elissa-rubin-mahon/

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wendyWendy Krupnick will speak at this event about growing strawberries in Sonoma County.

Wendy’s primary passion for over 30 years has been organic farming and gardening. Her training started with a 1-year apprenticeship at the UC Santa Cruz Farm and Garden in 1976.

For 10 years she managed the variety trials and demonstration gardens for Shepherd’s Garden Seeds and was the lead garden advisor for customers nationwide.

She worked with many farming and gardening professionals around California as well as in fine restaurants, where she produced herbs, edible flowers, and vegetables directly for their use.

Wendy has been actively involved with organizations working to further a more sustainable agriculture and was a farmers market manager for 10 years. For 7 years she coordinated the 4-acre garden at Santa Rosa Jr. College’s Shone Farm, which is part of the Sustainable Agriculture program. It includes production market vegetables, orchards and berries, cut flower production, perennials and herbs. She is currently Adjunct Faculty with this program.

Wendy has also been teaching Master Gardener classes since around 1992, teaches workshops on edible gardening through Santa Rosa Parks & Recreation Department, and assists home garden clients.

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dominiqueDominique Cortara is one of the pastry chefs on this event, responsible for the Duck skewers with strawberry balsamic glaze and the Strawberry Shortcake, among others.

Dominique is a graduate of Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Arts Academy in Paris where she earned the Grande Diplôme in 2006.

Her Mission is to provide an out of this world experience to her customers when they bite into beautiful, affordable and wholesome products made by hand and from local ingredients.

Her macarons and pies consistently win awards and fans throughout the country. She can be found every Sunday 10am – 2pm at the Sebastopol Farm Market but be early since she often sells out around 1pm!!!

http://dominiquesweets.com/about_us

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Karen_Preuss_photo_1Karen Preuss is the photographer-not-in-residence of this event. Karen made the picture of Jonah Raskin’s hands holding Albion (??) Strawberries that is part of the broadsheet of Raskin’s poem.

 

 

 

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JonahRaskinJonah Raskin is the poet-in-residence of this event. He will read his poem celebrating Slow Food and local strawberries and makes a broadsheet of this poem available as a party-present to the participants. Photography is by Karen Preuss and design by Andrei Pasternak.

 

 

 

 

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waynejamesWayne James of Tierra Vegetables Farm will speak at this event about his farm and his strawberries.

The Start-Up Years

Wayne James began his farming career in the mid to late 70s. While studying Viticulture at the Santa Rosa Junior College, he also picked up a practical farming position working alongside his mentor named Clarence Gericke of Potter Valley in Mendocino County. Clarence had once worked with Wayne’s grandfather and at the time was operating a large market farm out of Potter Valley. Wayne spent approximately two seasons working with Clarence in 1976 and 1977, trucking their diverse summer produce to the very first Santa Rosa Farmer’s Market (including opening day) and initiating markets in the Ukiah area. Clarence was of the opinion that there were far too many vineyards and drilled this perspective into Wayne as a young student of the wine grape growing business.
cont. at http://www.tierravegetables.com/History.html

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chrisChris Bramble will play acoustic guitar at this event!

Chris discovered the joys of singing at age 7 and picked up the guitar at age 12, and has known since those early years that this is what he was meant to do in life. Utilizing his pedalboard to wrest an array of sounds from an acoustic guitar, he revels in improvising and singing of the full range of experiences of a conscious life. He aspires to someday figure out what time signatures his songs are in.

Details

Date:
July 26, 2014
Time:
2:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Cost:
$6 – $17
Website:
http://strawberryfeasts2014.brownpapertickets.com/

Organizer

Zeno Swijtink

Venue

Garden behind 7403 Palm Ave.
7403 Palm Ave
Sebastopol, CA 95472 United States
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