Thank You for a Wonderful Slow Food East End Annual Meeting

Oct 14, 2024 | Blog, In The News, Past Events

Dear Slow Food East End Community,

A heartfelt thank you to everyone who joined us for our potluck dinner in the field at Golden Acres Organic Farms! To gather at a common table with so many of our followers on a gorgeous fall day with a view of the farm and old dairy barn to reflect on a year of our work was truly gratifying. Our buffet was bountiful, with a wide variety of delicious dishes of fall flavors that everyone contributed to showcasing the incredible spirit and passions of our community.

Once a year the board of Slow Food East End publically reports about our efforts to promote good, clean, and fair food for all. We work to connect local farmers with consumers, we aim to educate our community about sustainable systems to promote healthy food which begins with good soil and water practices. We honor leaders who do this work every day. We advocate for food equity. The East End is a unique region, we are gifted with an incredible agricultural heritage and work to find ways to ensure it endures and aim to make it more accessible to all.

A huge shout out to my entire Slow Food East End team for their hard work in pulling this event together. Your dedication and effort made the day a success. During dinner every board member took time to share news about their work and personal passions. High points included our Earth Day celebration, our Snail of Approval program which this year included awards to farms, wineries and restaurants but also to food insecurity advocates and a hospital with exceptional culinary practices. Our awards bring well-deserved international recognition to all. We shared news about our ongoing engagement with educational programs and funding to help provide summer access to farms for disadvantaged families and thanked our community for three years of support for Flour Power and outlined new Feed the Forks initiatives to come.

The sunny fields of Golden Acres Organic Farm were ideal for our dinner meeting. Awarded a Snail of Approval this year for their commitment to sustainable farming practices and community engagement aligns perfectly with our mission at Slow Food East End. If you haven’t visited yet, they have an amazing farmstand in a historic dairy barn down a scenic tree-lined private lane in Jamesport, be sure to check out their many event offerings at goldenacresorganicfarm.com. This sweet farm is available for private events.

Our partnership with Long Island Wine Country was on full display at our dinner celebration. The North and South Forks are home to over 50 wineries. Since the 1970s winemakers have transformed our local agricultural community and have received national and international acclaim. We are proud to pour LIWC wines for all our events and encourage our community to support our vintners and do the same.

Feasting with friends allows us to share our mission and connect with one another. Never underestimate the importance of community and the power of our collective efforts. Your support is invaluable to our mission. Through your engagement, we can continue promoting good, clean, and fair food for all. Each of you plays a crucial role in our efforts, whether through volunteer work, participation in events, or simply spreading the word about our initiatives. Your commitment makes all that we do possible, and we are truly grateful for your dedication to building a sustainable food community together. Thank you for being an essential part of our journey!

Grateful to all who help us slow our forks down,

Maria

Thank you Eduardo Amorim who helped us capture beautiful memories of the day.

October 6: Annual Public Board Meeting & Potluck

Sep 25, 2024 | Blog, Events, In The News

All welcome are welcome to attend our Annual Public Board Meeting and potluck gathering!

Date: Sunday, October 6, 2024

Time: 3:30 – 5:30pm

Place: Golden Acres Organic Farm – 652 Peconic Bay Blvd, Jamesport, NY

Bring a potluck dish to share, we’ll supply the rest! Join us for a casual afternoon gathering. SFEE invites you to attend our annual public board meeting — Slow Food style! We look forward to slowing down together as we share news about our year and upcoming plans. Come meet the current board, connect with other Slow Food members, tour the farm and meet the farmers too, awarded a 2024 Snail of Approval award. Learn how you can be more involved in the work we do.

This is not your average “meeting” — it’s an afternoon of fun: tasting and sharing, laughing and learning. We will be pouring Long Island Wine County wines. Our board members are planning to bring delicious bites from our kitchens too. We hope that you’ll also bring a homemade taste to share, 8+ servings please.

Please do RSVP below so we have plenty of chairs.

RSVP for Annual Meeting Potluck

September 18: Flour Power Turns 3 at CAST

Sep 9, 2024 | Blog, Flour Power, In The News

Slow Food is very proud of our ongoing support of CAST North Fork for their work in combatting food insecurity and developing programs to help our neighbors. 🎉

Date: Wednesday, September 18, 2024

Time: 5:30 – 7:30pm

Place: CAST – 53930 Main Road, Southold

For the past three years, Slow Food has partnered with CAST through our Flower Power program to tackle food insecurity on the East End. We developed a healthy, shelf-stable bread recipe, trained bakers, provided starter kits, and mobilized home bakers to supply food pantries with nutritious, homemade breads. Our collaborative efforts have led to significant progress, and we’re excited to celebrate our achievements, share updates, and discuss future plans to continue addressing food insecurity and improving nutrition in our community.

In recognition of CAST’s accomplishments, SFEE will also present CAST with a Snail of Approval award for their outstanding efforts in addressing food insecurity.

So much to celebrate and we hope that you all will join us at CAST in Southold on Wednesday, September 18 at 5:30 pm.

RSVP for Flour Power Celebration

August 4: Summer Soirée at Share the Harvest Farm & Snail of Approval

Jul 28, 2024 | Blog, Events, Snail of Approval

Celebrating Share the Harvest Farm: A Snail of Approval Award

We are delighted to announce that Share the Harvest Farm in East Hampton has been awarded the prestigious Snail of Approval by Slow Food East End. This recognition honors their extraordinary commitment to combating food insecurity and promoting access to fresh, local produce for everyone in our community.

What is a Snail of Approval?

The Snail of Approval is a hallmark of excellence bestowed by Slow Food to organizations and businesses that embody our values of sustainability, quality, and community focus. It signifies that the recipient is making a positive impact on the local food system and is dedicated to practices that uphold the Slow Food ethos. Share the Harvest Farm exemplifies these principles in every aspect of their operation, and we are thrilled to celebrate their achievements with this award.

About Share the Harvest

Share the Harvest Farm is a beacon of hope in the fight against food insecurity on the East End of Long Island. Their mission is both simple and profound: to ensure that all individuals, regardless of income or social status, have access to fresh, locally-grown produce. Remarkably, 80% of the food they cultivate is donated to those who might otherwise go without.

The farm operates a thriving food stand from May to October, where the community not only benefits from high-quality produce but also frequently contributes additional donations to support this vital initiative. This stand serves as a crucial marketplace for 65 local vendors, showcasing the incredible talent and diversity of East End artisans. The farm is continuously working to expand its reach and support the growing community of local creators.

Share the Harvest Farm is deeply integrated with numerous local nonprofits, including South Fork Pantries, affordable housing complexes, The Retreat women’s shelter, senior centers, Heart of the Hampton, and the Children’s Museum of the East End. Their dedication is reflected in the impressive 24,000 pounds of produce they donated last year alone.

Their approach to giving is refreshingly generous—providing food that they themselves would be proud to eat, rather than leftover or inferior items. This thoughtful commitment has garnered widespread praise and appreciation from across the East End.

Join Us in Celebrating

We invite you to visit Share the Harvest Farm and experience firsthand the impact of their mission. Their work is a shining example of how local initiatives can make a profound difference in the lives of many.

SFEE will be presenting the award at their upcoming annual benefit on the farm, which promises to be an unforgettable evening filled with music, food, and community spirit. Join us on Sunday, August 4th from 5-8pm for a magical evening on the farm under the setting sun. Every ticket directly supports the mission of fighting food insecurity on the East End!

For more information about their programs and get tickets for their annual Summer Soiree please visit their website here.

Thank you for supporting Slow Food East End and our remarkable partners like Share the Harvest Farm. Together, we are making strides towards a more equitable and sustainable food system.

Warm regards,

The Slow Food East End Team

RSVP for the Summer Soirée

May 14: Flour Power Baker’s Workshop at St. Joseph Villa

May 8, 2024 | Blog, Events, Flour Power

We invite you to join Slow Food East End and St. Joseph Villa for an in-person Flour Power gathering.

WHAT: Slow Food East End Flour Power Baker’s Workshop

WHEN: Wednesday, May 14, 5:30 – 7:00pm

WHERE: St. Joseph Villa, 81 Lynn Avenue, Hampton Bays (Drive to end of driveway and Park in lot closest to Main House)

WHO: Everyone who has baked or has ever been interested in learning about becoming a Flour Power baker.

WHY: Food insecurity is a huge issue in our community and our community needs loaves.

We love getting our community together to talk all things Flour Power. We will gather at this beautiful venue on the Shinnecock bay, and our very own Bread Ambassador, Pennie Schwartz, will be there to discuss the finer points of the program.

RSVP for Flour Power Baker's Workshop

WE NEED MORE LOAVES..

If you signed up a while ago and have yet to get your hands in the dough, this evening is for you.

If you are already a baker (Thank you), we’d love for you to come mingle with your fellow bakers and share your expertise — the new bakers always love your experienced tips and tricks.

Bringing our expert baking community together with our novice bakers is always a beautiful thing. We love swapping stories and hearing your experiences, tips, and feedback about the program.

As we like to say, nothing says love more than a home-baked loaf of our deliciously nutritious bread. Flour Power has been SFEE’s community initiative of inspiring home bakers to join us as we continue our work to fight food insecurity on the East End. Since our launch during the pandemic, we have grown to provide loaves to 4 local pantries, 2 on each fork.

Here are some Highlights of our updated Flour Power program…

We have sturdy and secure Igloo coolers at each drop-off location so you can securely and easily drop your loaves.
We have updated the recipe (specifically the amount of flour) for those bakers who prefer to measure rather than weigh their flour.
We have begun distributing complimentary bread baking starter kits (4 metal loaf pans, some ingredients, recipe cards, bread bags…) in a sturdy canvas tote designed to make bread carrying to the drop-off locations easier. These kits will be available to ALL registered bakers, new and existing.
We have also added group dough-making workshops where we can all prep the recipe “together” to bake, so you are more confident in your technique when you take that solo plunge. The “together” is in quotes as these will be group Zoom bake classes so you won’t leave YOUR kitchen while baking. More details at the workshop.

We would love for ALL our current bakers to come to this workshop and pick up their kits and get the updated information.

Share this event info with your friends and neighbors, let’s grow our baking tribe. Come chat with us. And break bread with us (pun intended). The bread we bake is delicious and you will get to hear and sample for yourself why we created this recipe to help feed the forks.

Come prepared to learn, to laugh, and to connect with fellow like-minded community members.

#Slowtheforksdown – #FeedtheForks