Hollywood Farmers' Market patrons take note: Due to the Los Angeles Marathon this Sunday, March 2, 2008, the Hollywood Farmers' Market will be open from 11:00am until 2:00pm.
Due to the LA Marathon route, the Market will start late to allow everyone easier access to the Market after the race passes through Hollywood. Normal hours (8:00am until 1:00pm) will resume the following weekend. The market will be open at its regular location, Ivar & Selma Avenues between Hollywood & Sunset. Validated parking for market customers will be available as usual at the Cinerama Dome during market hours.
A map of the marathon route and related street closures will be available on the L.A. Department of Transportation website.
(Thanks to SEE-LA for the reminder.)
† Cloned Food and Consumer Choice: Bernadette Tansey of the San Francisco Chronicle takes a look at how consumers--and therefore how the businesses who sell directly to consumers--might respond to products from clones. The debate continues...
† Fritz Haeg and Edible Estates: Los Angeles-based Fritz Haeg, whom many Slow Food members and friends may know from his work on the Edible Estates projects, will be exhibiting at the Whitney Biennial, and the New York Times caught up with him to discuss his work.
While in NYC, Fritz is also promoting the publication of his new book, Edible Estates: Attack on the Front Lawn. Advance praise from Slow Food supporters is already coming in:
The best ideas are usually the simplest ones. Fritz Haeg deserves a genius award for his wonderfully subversive plan. Instead of mowing your lawn, you should eat it." - Eric Schlosser, author, Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American MealWherever I am, I'm always looking to see what's edible in the landscape. Every time I see the median strip in the street in front of Chez Panisse, I can't help but imagine it planted with waving rows of corn. Edible Estates describes wonderfully how a garden in front of every house can transform a neighborhood, sprouting the seeds not just of zucchini and tomatoes but of biodiversity, sustainability, and community. - Alice Waters, founder, Chez Panisse
† Speaking of blogs, check out "Fresh Mouth": Thanks to Marion Nestle for the pointer to a new blog titled "Fresh Mouth." Its description: "A family of 5, 1 mission to eat only fresh food or processed food with 5 ingredients or less for 30 days. How we survived without McNuggets, Cheerios, and even organic cookies." In the kick-off post, Eileen Dolbeare explained:
We've decided to do an experiment and teach the kids about healthy eating and real, whole food as a way of life and not as a means to scoring sugar. Our 10-month old son is motivation, too. He's on the cusp of eating real foods, and we want to sustain his untainted palate for as long as possible.Yesterday was Day 8, so hop on board. It should be an interesting journey.So, we start Fresh Mouth - our 30-day bender on all things fresh, whole and reasonably unprocessed. We're not as hard core as the locavores of late. We admire Barbra Kingsolver and her crew, but we'll still eat chicken from the plants of Perdue. We can't go all organic all the time because we can't afford it. So, we'll make compromises here and there. Organic milk one week, organic beef the next. We'll sow our seeds and grow our own herbs and veggies in the spring.
We'll take the lead from food studies prof Marion Nestle and writer Michael Pollan. We'll eat only fresh foods and processed foods with five ingredients or less. If we can't pronounce the names of the ingredients, we won't buy or eat them.
We're an average American family trying to eat better and enjoy it more. We'll convince our three little kids that fresh food is about pleasure, rituals and family - and not about red dye #40, high fructose corn syrup or hydrogenated oils.
Longtime Slow Food Los Angeles member Amelia Saltsman is the author of the Santa Monica Farmers' Market Cookbook, a great resource whether or not the Santa Monica market is one of your weekly destinations. Amelia spotlights local farmers and ranchers whose products form the basis for shopping--and eating--that is good, clean, and fair.
Amelia will be signing copies of the cookbook and participating in a discussion with Greenopia founder Gay Browne this Wednesday, 27 February, at the Whole Foods at 2201 Wilshire Boulevard in Santa Monica. The discussion and signing will take place between 7:00pm and 8:00pm.
If you're one of our members or friends who are downtown denizens during the day, Gay and Amelia will also conduct a booksigning and discussion at the Library Store of the Los Angeles Central Library, located at 630 West 5th Street, from noon until 2:00pm on Wednesday, 19 March.
Chef Jennie Cook will co-host a Sustainable Supper for culinary professionals in the greater Los Angeles area and has asked us to help her spread the word:
When: Monday, February 25, 2008 starting at 7:00pm
Where: Cook's Double Dutch, 9806 Washington Boulevard, Culver City 90232
Questions, reservations: Contact Jennie by phone at 310.815.8273.
The focus of this Sustainable Supper will be connecting with fellow professional chefs to discuss the challenges and successes of sustainable sourcing and implementation. Jennie will provide a delicious spread of sustainable food. Guests are encouraged to bring a favorite bottle of wine and join in the discussion!
The event will be co-hosted with Chefs Collaborative. Because of limited seating, please contact Jennie at the number above for additional information and to reserve your place.
† An Urban Farm as an Outdoor Social Space: Our Generation's Symbol? That, in a nutshell, is the proposal by Don Wood and Amale Andraos of Work Architecture for a courtyard in Queens, New York:
. . . the architects’ creative process started with the more traditional P.S. 1 courtyard concept of an urban beach, focusing on themes like the striped bathing costumes of a 1928 photograph called "La Plage." They moved from there to contemplating “Sous les pavés, la plage" (roughly, "under the paving stones, a better life"), a slogan dating from the 1968 student riots in Paris. Finally they arrived at the notion of "Sur les paves la ferme," meaning, "Over the pavement, the farm."Read the complete article about the design competition and the evolution of Wood's and Andraos's concept on the New York Times site."We wanted to find what our generation's symbol would be," Ms. Andraos said, "embodying our preoccupations, our hopes for the world."
In working out their design, the architects also kept in mind the movement from industrialization to postindustrialization, from global to local, from the free market to the farmer’s market, and from sand to hay.
† Competing Views of Cloning: Slow Food has taken a position squarely against cloning and GMOs, largely based on concerns about biodiversity and the sometimes delicate balances that keep ecosystems operating efficiently. Not everyone shares this view, as expressed by James McWilliams in an op-ed piece in the February 5 New York Times, available online. On the Gristmill blog, Tom Philpott finds many faults in McWilliams' arguments.
† GOOD magazine's Food Issue: GOOD magazine is good for Slow Food and a good read. If you've waited to check it out, consider taking a look at the food-focused March/April issue about to hit newsstands. Several articles consider food consumption, food politics, and food-as-business as well as Los Angeles-specific topics.
In November 2007, Slow Food USA announced a partnership with GOOD, joining eleven other nonprofit organizations that benefit directly from GOOD's growth. GOOD focuses on social, political, and environmental issues, and will donate 100% of its subscription revenue to nonprofit groups. If you sign up for a subscription to GOOD you can designate your $20 subscription fee to Slow Food USA, a win-win situation. Visit the subscription page and consider adding GOOD to your monthly reading list.
† On the Road: Many Slow Food members and friends make their food choices an important part of their travel plans, and the travel section of the February 4 Los Angeles Times offered a selection of California food festivals for 2008, including dates, descriptions, and links to local websites.
With food and energy prices rising steadily and humanity straining Earth's resources and systems, landscaping with edibles is more important than ever for personal, community, and global sustainability.
In this six-part course suitable for both landscape professionals and homeowners, Ecological Landscape Designer Darren Butler will cover the basics of designing, planning, and installing edible landscapes.
Topics are expected to include introduction to sustainable landscaping; landscape design principles; aesthetics of edible-landscape design; practicalities of edible-landscape design; site analysis; soil, testing soil, and preparations for planting; planning; watering methods; installing drip watering systems; planting and seeding methods; suitable species for Southern California; annuals in the edible landscape; innovative approaches to maximizing food production in perennial plantings; sources for materials, seeds, and plants; managing weeds and pests; maintaining the edible landscape and its fertility; and permaculture approaches to managing edible landscapes. Some hands-on work preparing a landscape, seeding, and installing plants is expected. The course will not include information on aspects of running a landscape-design business.
When: Course dates: Six Sundays 9:30 AM to 12:45 PM with short breaks only, Mar 2, 9, 16, 30, Apr 6, 13 (arrival encouraged by 9:00 AM). No class on Mar 23 (Easter).
Where: In Pasadena near North Allen and the 210 freeway. Details provided with class confirmation.
Cost: $220 for early registration through Feb 22; $245 thereafter or on the day of. There will be an additional $50 fee for certification. Space permitting, attendance will be allowed to single classes for $50 per class.
To register or for more information: Call or email Darren Butler (818.271.0963) or allnet [at] pobox [dot] com.
Darren Butler is a consulting arborist, ecological designer, and landscape specialist. He has appeared on several episodes of "Weekend Gardening" for a large international television audience as an expert horticulturist and landscaper, on NPR radio, and in local newspapers. He has taught Sustainable Landscape Design and Diagnosing Plant Problems for the University of California Master Gardener Program in Los Angeles, and holds many landscape- and plant-related certifications and licenses. He currently serves on a statewide advisory committee for all University of California Master Gardener programs, and is a speaker at the upcoming 2008 University of California Master Gardener Conference. He has been gardening since childhood, and developing expertise in Southern California gardening since 1996.
Enrollment, payment, and refund policy: Half tuition must be sent to reserve enrollment, with the remaining half due by the first day of class. If full tuition is not paid by the third class, attendance is expected to stop until payment is completed. Full refunds less $50 will be available until seven days before the first session. No refunds thereafter except for cancellation by the instructor. If tentative details change after enrollment has been paid, full refund is available until three days before the first class if cancellation is based upon the change(s).
Payment is by check, cash, or money order and should be sent to Darren Butler, PO Box 920434, Sylmar CA 91392-0434. Contact Darren directly if you prefer to pay with a credit card via the internet.
Courses not guaranteed to carry. Some courses fill up quickly. To avoid disappointment, please do not delay.
A certificate in Edible Landscaping is available. Specific requirements for completion will include required reading, minimum attendance of four of the six sessions with makeup for missed sessions, a project, and additional fee of $50.
This course provides approximately 18 to 20 hours of continuing education. It is not affiliated with University of California or LA County Cooperative Extension.
Reading List (required for a certificate only) will be announced by mid-February.
Course difficulty: 3 to 4 out of 10. This course will be moderately challenging. Gardening experience, basic understanding of organic gardening methods, and basic knowledge of biology and ecology are recommended but not required. Attendees without organic gardening experience should expect difficulty.
Assistance is needed for video or audio recording of the sessions. Free tuition available in trade.
† "Friday Five: Dan Barber's Five Things to Give Up for Mother Earth": Chez Pim, the blog of Pim Techamuanvivit, has garnered loads of praise over the years for its gastronomic meanderings and enthusiasm for food, wine and related people and producers. As part of her Friday Five series, Pim's latest post considers Dan Barber's list of "five things to give up for mother earth." Dan Barber is the chef and proprietor of Blue Hill and Blue Hill at Stone Barns in New York, and in Pim's words, "Dan's commitment to the environment is well known, but he is hardly a die-hard radical. He is a businessman determined to find a way to be both environmentally and economically sustainable - now that's the way of the future." Read the complete post for the five things at Chez Pim. It's food for thought.
† "The Slow Life Picks Up Speed": Writing for the New York Times, Penelope Green puts the spotlight on how other trades and disciplines are heeding the Slow call:
Alabama Chanin is run on the tenets of the Slow Food movement, which essentially challenges one to use local ingredients harvested and put together in a socially and environmentally responsible way. Above all it emphasizes slowness in the creation and consumption of products as a corrective to the frenetic pace of 21st-century life. "Good, clean and fair" is the Slow Food credo, and it has — rather slowly — begun to make its way out of the kitchen and into the rest of the house. . . .Slow is also an idea, it seems, whose time has come. "When I was researching the book," [author Carl Honoré] continued, "if you Googled slow movement, there wasn’t anything. As a growing cultural quake it just wasn’t there. Now, of course, there are hundreds of sites, and every week I get an e-mail from a student wanting to write his or her thesis on slow cities or slow design."
"The time is now ripe for trying to formalize this slow revolution," Mr. Berthelsen, the founder of the World Institute of Slowness, an advocacy group based in Kristiansand, Norway, said slowly last week. . . . In his lectures to corporate Europe, Mr. Berthelsen, urges workers to work smarter, not faster or harder, and to become more aware of the process than the product. "I always lived under the mantra that the fast will beat the big ... but the slow will beat the fast."
Read the complete article online.
Slow Food Los Angeles had helped spread the word about Carl Honoré's In Praise of Slowness in 2004. The book, now available in paperback, is a wide-ranging introduction to Slow movements and how Slow Food can translate to other aspects of life.