September Local Food Events
Greetings:
We hope all of you are having a relaxing and fun Labor Day weekend! Here on the farm, we continue working because the weeds and the vegetables do not stop growing on Holidays!
September is a big month for local food! I wanted to bring to attention a few local food events we have going on in the area this month:
*Sunday, September 12, 5 pm: Annual Harvest Benefit Dinner, Kirklin Farm ($75)
Come slow down, celebrate the season’s harvest and share a meal with your community. Dine outside under tents on the centennial Kirklin Farm, just outside Kalamazoo and help us raise funds for the Fair Food Matters’ Growing Matters Garden program and the Future Chefs program. These programs protect the stewardship of our land and strengthen our local economy by educating the next generation about food and where it comes from. Area chefs come together to prepare a five-course meal and celebrate the best of the season’s offerings. ($60 of the event cost is tax-deductible)
Interested in farming, local food, sustainable living? Then the SW Mich Harvest Fest is for you! $10 per carload. Bikers enter for free.
*Friday-Sunday, September 17-19: Mushroom Growing Weekend at Circle Pines Center in Delton
Michigan mycologists David Schaffer and Brian Rogers will reveal the art and science of growing edible and medicinal mushrooms. The pair owns and operates Mushroom Gardens LLC, a successful fungi farm in Interlochen. These experts will lead you in hands-on log inoculation with cold stain oyster spores and impart trade secrets of the mushroom business. The weekend will also include Qigong, goat milking, lakeside sauna, canoeing, hiking and relaxation in a wooded atmosphere. To register call (269) 623-5555 or email info@circlepinescenter.net
*Friday-Sunday, September 24-26: Harvest Weekend at Circle Pines Center in Delton
This slow food and homesteading event at CPC will demonstrate how to extend the local food season. Harvest Weekend will include an experiential dehydration workshop led by Excalibur COO Whitney Verkade on Saturday, September 25th. Other workshops will explore and explain canning the garden’s bounty and cooking root vegetables with our very own talented kitchen staff.
Circle Pines Center is dedicated to supporting Southwest Michigan farmers. All participants of camps, educational events and retreats are served from-scratch meals consisting of organic, locally-sourced ingredients. This approach is in accordance with the mission of CPC to teach peace, social justice, environmental stewardship and cooperation as a way of life. Costs for workshops vary; visit the website for more information at circlepinescenter.org. To register call (269) 623-5555 or email info@circlepinescenter.net.
In addition to the Harvest Weekend, we are also having a farmer appreciation feast at CPC on Sunday, September 26th at 3:00pm. More than 12 farm families that have been providing CPC with locally-grown produce, meat, and cheese will join us, along with other community members, to celebrate the year of generous harvest. A five-course, locally-sourced meal will be served family style for a suggested donation of $60 per plate. Please email rachelz@circlepinescenter.net if you are interested in attending.
*Sunday, September 26, 1:30 pm: Barn Bash 2010 at Green Gardens
Join us for our annual Fall potluck at the farm on White Rabbit Road. Arcadia Way will be entertaining with their wonderful folkgrass music. RSVP by September 20 to ruthie@greengardensfarm.com so we can plan accordingly.
Take care, Trent & Ruthie
