Sportello presents Siena Farms Autumn Dinner on Wednesday, September 23 with a 6:30 reception and dinner at 7. Enjoy an aperitivo reception followed by a four course collaborative dinner with Siena Farms, Chef de Cuisine David Cavilla, and James Beard award-winning Executive Wine Director Cat Silirie. $125 per person includes wine pairings. Call 617-737-1234 to reserve. Sportello is located on Congress Street in Boston.
Join Chefs Ana Sortun and Barbara Lynch, Mixologist John Gertsen, and the Siena Farms’ team to help purchase the Farm’s largest, most fertile, and most cherished parcel of currently-leased farmland here in Sudbury on Saturday, September 21, from 5:30 – 10, rain or shine. This 26-acre set of agricultural preservation restriction protected fields will be theirs to farm for generations – with your support!
This unforgettable night of celebration will include cocktails in the fields themselves, live music, and a multi-course feast from the fields with wine pairings in the greenhouse, at the peak of the 2013 harvest season.
All proceeds from the 2013 Farm-Raiser Dinner will be used toward the down payment of this farmland purchase, which is under agreement and scheduled to close on July 18th, 2013. We’ve been anticipating and preparing for this opportunity for over three years, and your contribution now will play a pivotal role in making this historic transaction possible for Siena Farms.  All 100 tickets for the Farm-Raiser Dinner must be sold by July 12th to meet Siena Farm’s goals.
After your purchase, Farmer Chris will follow up with you directly by email to confirm your reservation details. Please call Farmer Chris directly at (978) 479-0019 with any questions about the Dinner, the Field or Farmland Packages, or the farmland itself. Please note that Farm-Raiser Dinner reservations will be transferable but not refundable, and that the purchase cost is not tax-deductible. Tickets are $1,000 each, and there are special benefit packages available at http://www.sienafarms.com/farm-raiser-dinner.php.
Do you need some new ideas to help you get the most out of your veggies – no matter what the season? Oleana Chef de Cuisine, Cassie Piuma, joins us to share some flexible recipes that can be used with different vegetables all year long. Get out of your steamed-veggie and stir fry rut! Friends from Ana Sortun’s family farm, Siena Farms, will also join us for the evening as we make Boreks, Phyllo Pies, Caponata, Tzatziki and more.
Classes include a recipe booklet, tastes of all dishes demonstrated, beer or wine pairings (depending on class topic) and plenty of time for Q & A with the Chef! $110, plus $3.74 registration fee, at www.farmfork-eorg.eventbrite.com. The class will take place Monday, October 1 from 6:30 – 9 at Sofra, 1 Belmont St., Cambridge.
So you’re a month into your CSA and feeling overwhelmed by the bounty of local produce? Well, this is a night you should be sure not to miss. During this series, the Stir team at 102 Waltham Street in Boston will get you thinking creatively of what to do with all those carrots, radishes, and greens. From dips and spreads to 30 minute meals, you’ll be ready to pick up your next weekly share and get cooking. Call 617-423-7847 to sign up. Note that on the Stir website, these classes were listed in the June calendar, but dated July 25 and 26, so call soon to confirm. We tried to get in touch ourselves but were unable to make a connection. We all know Chris Kurth from the Farmer’s Market and Garden Club of the Back Bay programs, and his wife Ana Sortun of Oleana and Sofra is a culinary genius, so while we won’t guarantee they will make an appearance at these sessions, we know their vegetables will do so!
Join The Museum of Science in the Gordon Current Science & Technology Center prior to the screening of the new documentary film, American Meat, as each of the individual panelists is interviewed in depth on the subject of sustainable meat agriculture and production. Discover the real difference between organic foods and their traditionally grown counterparts when it comes to nutrition, safety, and price. Talk with the experts during the question and answer sessions after each interview. Attend our Small Footprint, Big Flavor dinner and receive discounted Exhibit Halls admission for this program. Panelists include Jonathan D. Kemp, president, FoodEx/Organic Renaissance Food Exchange, New Bedford, MA | Dan Mandich, owner, Westminster Meats, Westminster Station, VT | Danielle Nierenberg, senior researcher and director, Nourishing the Planet Program, Worldwatch Institute | Theo Weening, global meat coordinator, Whole Foods Market | Nick Zigelbaum, livestock manager, Siena Farms, Sudbury, MA.
At 2:30 pm, Food on Film presents American Meat. This new documentary chronicles America’s grassroots revolution in sustainable meat production. The film, an official selection of Food Day 2011, explains our current industrial meat system and shows the feedlots and confinement operations, not through hidden cameras but through the eyes of the farmers who live and work there. Featuring legendary sustainable farmer Joel Salatin, American Meat frames the debate on whether sustainable meat production could ever meet the needs of the consuming public and showcases the people who could change everything about the way meat reaches the American table.
A discussion follows the screening about the sustainable meat industry and whether it can meet the needs of the world’s, and New England’s, growing population. Advance registration begins at 9:00 a.m., Saturday, February 25 (Wednesday, February 22 for Museum members) at mos.org/events.
Admission is free thanks to the generosity of the Lowell Institute. Additional funding provided by the Richard S. Morse Fund.
One of the best things about a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) box is that each week, home cooks receive a new selection of seasonal produce that inspires creativity and improvisation. Sometimes, though, cooks hit a road block. Sure, you have plenty of ideas for the tomatoes, cukes and lettuce, but what about the kohlrabi or the kale? As the glorious growing season winds down, the chefs of Barbara Lynch’s Stir will present a menu of current offerings from Siena Farms’ CSA along with several favorite ideas for familiar and not-so-familiar veggies. The class will take place at 102 Waltham Street in the South End on Thursday, October 6 beginning at 7 pn, the cost is $145 (which includes an incredible dinner with wine, along with the class), and you can sign up on line at www.stirboston.com, or call 617-423-7847.
