Eat Locally While Traveling

By guest blogger Kathy Chavez

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Eating locally can be a challenge when at home, while eating locally on vacation may seem impossible.   But it's worth the effort. Whether deciding to splurge on a nice meal out on vacation or at  home, keeping it local feeds both the economy and your body well.

Local dining is eating at an establishment that is owned and run by someone that lives in the community, and preferably the food served comes from local growers and ranchers too.  Regional is usually defined as farmers and ranchers within one hundred miles of the establishment.

The benefits of eating locally are numerous, both environmentally and health-wise.  The most important reason for me is taste, as very few things beat the flavor of fresh picked food.  Produce consumed within hours of ripening tastes best and provides better nutrition than food that matures in the truck.

While traveling the same methods of finding local restaurants can be used as when you’re at home.  They include word of mouth, the internet, and local magazines.  If time and season allow attend a growers market.  Local markets frequently serve prepared food and they will also know the best places that serve their produce.  Just ask them where they eat.

The online search for local dining can be time consuming, overwhelming and frustrating. After doing several online searches for Albuquerque, Chicago, Santa Fe, and San Francisco the most helpful for me were Yelp, Dinegreen, and Citysearch. Yelp and Citysearch are good for reading personal reviews and tips about restaurant atmosphere and what to order.  Dinegreen is through the Green Restaurant Association, a national non-profit working towards a more sustainable restaurant industry. For the consumer, dine green.com shows restaurants' scores according to seven categories including water efficiency, energy, waste reduction, and sustainable building materials. It's an important effort, considering "the restaurant industry consumes a third of all U.S. energy used by the retail sector and the average food service faculty uses 300,000 gallons of water per year." 

So, whether you're eating here in New Mexico or out of state this holiday season, don't forget to celebrate local.

Edited by Jasmine McBeath

Celebrating as a Community

 

The time to vote has come and gone, right? Not true, according to Foodology star Greg Gould, who claims we vote three times a day, probably more. That’s because you’re making an economic, political, and social justice choice every time you raise a fork to your mouth. 

For instance, if Americans in urban areas bought two fair trade chocolate bars a month, it could benefit 30,000 small-scale farmers. Or, if we were to join families in the Philippines, India, Brazil, Spain, and the UK in cooking more efficiently, the benefit would be the same as planting 540 million trees and letting them grow for 10 years. 

My favorite part about this worldwide GROW movement is that it’s not overwhelming. The idea is to think global, act local. It’s not hard to save food, cook smart, or eat a little less meat. It’s also reasonable to expect us to eat seasonally and support small-scale farmers.

Oxfam’s been talking a lot about the GROW Method this fall, so we decided to practice what we preach in a big way. Two weekends ago, we celebrated our first World Food Day Community Dinner. We partnered with six different nonprofits, received donations from a dozen farms, and put twenty volunteers to work in shifts from 10am to 10pm. Everyone came away saying how wonderful the food tasted and with a greater understanding of how eating locally can make a global impact. 

Kalen and I were lucky enough to see it through from beginning to end. The day started with picking up produce at the Downtown Growers Market. Our community chef Kathy met me there and we visited each booth from 11am-1pm requesting leftovers. The farmers were incredibly generous and helpful, offering what they didn’t think other growers would have and making sure we came out with what we needed to pull off the meal. We left with watermelons wedged below the seats, baguettes leaned against the doors, and greens draped across the seats. Boxes of cauliflower, squash, and tomatoes called shotgun, paper bags full of potatoes and apples filled the truck, and mini pumpkins spilled out the back.

I have to admit it was a little overwhelming when we laid all the food out on the counter in the church. Then something magical happened. Our community chef Kathy transformed into a contestant on one of those cooking show competitions. Challenge: make food for 100 people using the ingredients in the kitchen with only 6 helpers in under 5 hours. But unlike the people on those shows, everyone seemed to maintain their composition. Every time I glanced over, I saw people hard at work, but smiling.

And then, suddenly, it was dinnertime. Volunteers set out frothy watermelon juice in a glass punch bowl next to pitchers of sun tea. The produce from the counter (plus the donation from the Co-opt) became spicy pumpkin soup, chicken stew, bruschetta, shepherd’s pie, beans with tortillas, squash and greens, green chile bread, baguettes, and half a dozen different salads. The dessert table screamed fall with its peach squares, apple brown betties, dark chocolate covered apple slices and pumpkin pudding.

As I walked around, I heard great things about the food, and was happy to see people using the food icebreaker questions. There’s nothing like food to get strangers talking. 

        

When it came time to pledge GROW, some people said they will try Meatless Mondays, others vowed to chop vegetables and meat into smaller pieces for shorter cook times, and still others promised to buy CSAs and shop at the farmers market. Keynote speaker Greg Gould shared insight into fixing the food system by improving our personal quality of life and health. I liked how Greg acknowledged that each person is an expert as far as their own personal food preferences. We already know what we like to eat, now we just have to think about the best way to go about it. Greg’s talk tied in family food traditions, teaching children to cook, and what we can learn from planting trees. He’s a very engaging speaker, so I recommend hearing his speech, recorded by Peter Gallo at Kimchi Farms.  

At the end of the night the cleaning crew came to the rescue. Right in line with the GROW Method, we didn’t have to throw anything away. With hoards of hungry guests, there weren’t many leftovers. Anything extra was split between volunteers while the kitchen scraps went to the pigs at Kimchi Farms.

I really couldn't have wished for a better event! I owe a great deal to so many people and groups, but I'd especially like to recognize Kalen Olson, who took charge and was a fantastic event director, and Kathy Chavez, our awe-inspiring head chef.

By Jasmine McBeath

THANK YOU!

Donors

Bosque Baking Company

Brown's Family Farm

Clay Trafton Farm

Frost Hill Organics

Granja Para Mañana

Harvest Gifts

La Montanita Co-opt

La Quiche

Macias Farm

Magos Farm

Majestic Valley Farm

Moore Family Farm

St. Thomas of Canterbury Church

Collaborators

Amnesty International

Bread for the World

Community Bricolage

Food Corps

Foodology

Nourish International

Oxfam Action Corps

Community Chef

Kathy Chavez

Guest Speaker

Greg Gould

Photographer

Rene Ronquillo

Circle of Protection Success!

Republished from Bread New Mexico Blog by Carlos Navarro.

A Circle of Protection Vigil: Prayer, Songs and Letters

There were 30 to 35 people gathered at Immanuel Presbyterian Church in Albuquerque for our Circle of Protection prayer vigil on the second Saturday of October.  Just as we did with a similar vigil last year, we had intended to start outside on the front porch of the church with candles and the song Come and Fill  But the wind gusts were too strong and they would have extinguished our candles.  So we decided to start inside in the chapel where we could better center ourselves. 

Surely enough, the calm, quiet wind of the Spirit was present inside in our prayers and reflections and songs from Taizé. We reflected on hunger, poverty, justice and inequality, just as we did last year.  And the Circle of Protection campaign remained the focus of our prayers and reflections. 

In our reflections, we put some emphasis on the mini campaigns in Bread for the World's 2012 Offering of Letters.  And we invited representatives or volunteers from partner organizations to join us in the reflections: New Mexico Oxfam Action Corps, Roadrunner Food Bank, Medical Mission Board, Interfaith Power and Light (representing the National Council of Churches) and Sojourners.

And just as we did last year, we followed our vigil with an opportunity for action.  In 2011, we signed letters to five individuals seeking to represent the New Mexico First Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives.  Afterwards, we held face-to-face meetings with each of those candidates, who had yet to square off in their respective party's primary election.

The letters this year were to  the candidates who won their primaries for the U.S. Senate and for the First Congressional District.  (And for good measure,we included a third-party Senate candidate and two declared write-in candidates).  We have arranged to bring the letters to the campaign headquarters of most of the candidates on Wednesday, October 24. We have requested a meeting with a ranking member of each campaign.  Stay tuned for more details.
      
A heartfelt thanks to Rene Ronquillo for spending the evening snapping all the beautiful images contained in this blog post.    

Michaela Bruzzese (Sojouners)

Donna Marlowe (Roadrunner Food Bank)

Sharon Barefoot served as a nurse in Haiti

Sister Joan Brown performs liturgical dance

Kalen Olsen and Jasmine McBeath talk about Oxfam's GROW Campaign

Betty and Will Drobnik share Taizé song sheet.

The reception featured fair-trade baked goods

We started the vigil with candles

Rebecca Hemphill accompanied the Taizé songs with her cello.

Taizé musicians Jon Roybal, Mary Boehm, Terese Bridges, Joelle Chase, Rebecca Hemphill

Food Mythbusters

Celebrate Food Day: How Does Food Get to Our Table?

Bread and Blessings and the Immaculate Conception Parish invite you to a simple meal and meaningful discussion on Food Day, Wednesday, Oct. 24th after the 5:30 pm mass.  The church is located at 619 Copper in downtown Albuquerque.

Learn about the myths of industrialized foods and participate in a discussion about how we can make a difference for farmers and hungry people both here and abroad. 

World Food Day Done Right

What better way to celebrate World Food Day than by a concerted community effort to improve the local food system? That's what's happening in Albuquerque, New Mexico this October.

On October 16th, 13 restaurants across Albuquerque have pledged to serve World Food Day meals. The restaurants range from cafes and bakeries to wine bars and fine dining. They dish out flavors from all over the world--chicken tikka, pizza bianca, shrimp tamales, green-chile-cheese-bread, and red velvet cake. What connects them is their support for the GROW Method. Each restaurant is already putting into effect multiple principles of GROW, whether by offering more vegetarian options, serving seasonal and local dishes, cooking smart or saving food. So here's your excuse to eat out on a Tuesday, burquenos! Visit one of these restaurants for breakfast, lunch, or dinner to show your support and learn more about what you can do to decrease hunger both here in NM and worldwide.

If you're more in the mood for a home-cooked meal, then celebrate with us on October 27th from 6-8pm. Oxfam Action Corps is hosting a FREE Community Dinner for 100 people at St. Thomas of Canterbury Church on UNM campus. We're putting every step of the GROW Method into practice. First, we're saving food by making the meal from leftover produce from the downtown Growers Market. Second, we're cooking smart by preparing more at once. We're obviously eating seasonally and supporting local farmers. Finally, we're eating less meat, since the meal is mostly fruit and vegetables. (We're also receiving a donation from La Montanita Coopt, so meat-lovers don't worry!)

I have to admit that I wasn't the one that came up with the idea of using donated produce from the Growers Market to prepare a free community dinner. The idea began with a local farmer at the downtown market and evolved with each collaborator. A little over a month ago, I was speaking with Jeremiah from Frost Hill Organics about Oxfam's potential partnerships with successful local growers and producers, such as La Montanita Coopt, Los Poblanos, and Farm and Table. He looked at me with honest eyes and pointed out that while it's great to partner with large, profitable farms, markets, and restaurants, we shouldn't forget the little guys. Oxfam is all about supporting those small-scale farmers, after all. Jeremiah suggested using his leftover produce as a good start. Instead of composting his extra veggies, Oxfam could make a small GROW Meal out of them. Soon a dozen other farmers were on board, and the intimate GROW Meal had evolved into a community dinner for a hundred. Then at the last booth, a buyer overheard my conversation with Macias Farm and asked to coordinate the meal preparation. She started freezing leftover produce that day onwards and calls once a week to let me know what new recipes are in store for guests. Clubs on campus and groups of faith joined in too. Community Bricolage, Bread for the World, Nourish International, and Food Corps are all teaming up with Oxfam. Foodology star Greg Gould is giving a presentation during dinner and St. Thomas of Canterbury Church is donating the space. So you could say that "community dinner" accurately represents not only the meal, but also every step in the process. Please join us in making this community dinner a hit!

By Jasmine McBeath

Richard's Mexican--Serving up Healthy Options on World Food Day

3301 Menaul (West of Carlisle) in American Square. 505-881-1039. Mon-Sat 8am-3:30pm.

Richard's is innovative, and proud of it. Besides earning the title of 

"The Original Mexican Health Food Restaurant" they were the first restaurant to order our Oxfam materials for World Food Day. When I popped into Richard's to ask if they'd like to participate, I had the pleasure of meeting the whole staff. Karla Viramontes, the owner, treated me like royalty. I think if I'd been hungry on that Monday, I would have eaten everything on the menu. After getting their vegetarian taco, Karla offered for me to sample some of their signature chile relleno tacos. I can still hear her voice offering more and more. Perhaps a tamale? Wouldn't you like some vegetarian posole? No? Then I'm sure you'll want our chile con queso enchiladas. What I did try was definitely a winner. The vegetarian taco consists of a lentils and brown rice meat substitute that really hits the spot. I was half-way through eating before I realized I should take a photo. 

And of course, nothing would be complete here without green chile. The chile at Richard's is fresh and local, straight from the chile pods of Macia Valley. They also use local, romaine lettuce and canola oil instead of lard. Karla prides herself on the fresh ingredients served in every meal. "No fillers in that guacamole," she adds.  

Although I couldn't try any of the meat options (still going strong with Meatless Mondays!), Karla spoke highly of their award-winning carne adovada and red chile pork tamales.  But don't just take her and my word for it. Check out what other people are saying on urbanspoon--129 voters weighing in with a four out of five star rating. 

Interested in Richard's for lunch but another World Food Day restaurant for dinner? Check out our list of 13 participating restaurants to support local on October 16th.

by Jasmine McBeath

Want to change the world...by eating great food?

Out of seven billion people in the world today, nearly one billion of us go to bed
hungry each night. 44 million Americans struggle with hunger. And hungry people in New Mexico miss 114 million meals a year. If you're like me, you realize global hunger is wrong, but are perhaps overwhelmed with how to help.

That’s why the New Mexico Oxfam Action Corps is spreading the word about
Oxfam’s GROW Method. These five simple steps can make a huge difference both in New Mexico and worldwide. In today’s world, food is truly global: growing it, selling it, preparing it, eating it. We’re all interconnected. So the choices we make every day – at the local
market, in restaurants, or even in the kitchen – are more powerful than you might think.

Recognize World Food Day throughout the month of October by hosting
a meal, sharing recipes, and discussing the GROW Method. Throughout
New Mexico, we aim to inspire meals that foster conversation about where
food comes from and the ways we can make the food system more just and
sustainable.

If you're not up to preparing your own meal, then support the efforts by eating out at one of 13 participating restaurants on October 16th, World Food Day. 

Whether you're in the mood for pad thai or pizza on Tuesday, October 16th, we need your support! Eating at one of the participating restaurants shows you care, and also makes you part of a global movement to decrease poverty and hunger. The follow restaurants have signed on because they are already working to improve the food system and believe in the GROW Method. Any time on October 16th counts, so this is your chance to eat out guilt-free for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Participating Restaurants:

• Artichoke Cafe

• Baileys on the Beach

• Desert Fish

• Farina

• Golden Crown Panaderia

• Jennifer James 101

• Nob Hill Bar and Grill

• Rasoi

• Richard's Mexican

• Sky Garden Market

• Slate Street Cafe

• Thai Cuisine ii

• Tiles of Old Santa Fe

Send us a photo of you eating out at any of the above restaurants on World Food Day (email nmoxfamactioncorps@gmail.com) and we'll feature it here on our blog!

by Jasmine McBeath