On Saturday March 15, OKT kicked off the 2014 growing season with its first garden education class. Biochemist Clinton Boyd, PhD shared the importance of potential environmental health hazards encountered while food gardening along with information on soil testing and best practices. Dr. Boyd will facilitate additional food gardening workshops as the season progresses.
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New OKT cooking coach facilitates first cooking event of the season
OKT’s newest team member, Toni Scott, jumped into her role of cooking coach last Saturday at the season’s first Cook, Eat and Talk event. “I just love to feed people,” Ms. Scott says. “I especially like to grill, all year long. I grill turkey, vegetables–when I don’t eat vegetables, I feel sluggish.”
Last year, Toni got many of her vegetables from the OKT container garden she tended with her family. However, that wasn’t her first exposure to gardening. She grew up in a health-conscious family. “My dad had a garden behind the garage and mom cooked from scratch for my four brothers, two sisters and me.”
One of the only times Toni got in trouble as a youngster was when she ate some fruit from a neighbor’s tree. She didn’t have any trouble impressing the folks at Saturday’s event. Her nutritious frittata was a little taste of heaven—plus it’s simple to make and used inexpensive ingredients. Click here for the Frittata Recipe.
First OKT food garden education workshop of the season this Saturday
Dr. Boyd leading 2013 gardening class.
Join us this Saturday, March 15, for one of OKT’s most popular and relevant workshops, How to Plan Your Food Garden. Biochemist and avid urban gardener, Clinton Boyd, PhD, wll share urban food gardening tips including information about soil testing and composting. The free workshop takes place from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. at Garfield Park Lodge, 334 Burton St. SE.
Bryant Terry to facilitate OKT Convening as part of book launch stop at Calvin College
As with his past two books, renowned chef, author and food justice activist, Bryant Terry, will launch his new book, Afro-Vegan, at Calvin College’s Wake up Weekend. And, as he did in 2012, he will make a special presentation in community as a special guest of Our Kitchen Table. We will post the time and location when that information becomes available.
Terry’s last book, Vegan Soul Kitchen, is critically acclaimed. If you’ve attended OKT events, you most likely have seen a copy of it–or seen the recipe card reprints that Terry gave us permission to share with our constituents. He is also the host of Urban Organic, a multi-episode web series that he co-created.
Terry’s interest in cooking, farming and community health can be traced back to his childhood in Memphis, Tennessee, where his grandparents inspired him to grow, prepare, and appreciate good food. Bryant’s work has been featured in the New York Times, Food and Wine, Gourmet, Sunset, O: The Oprah Magazine, Essence, Yoga Journal, and Vegetarian Times among many other publications.
He has made dozens of national television and radio appearances, including being a guest on The Martha Stewart Show, Emeril Green, Tell Me More, Morning Edition, The Splendid Table, and The Tavis Smiley Show. As an exclusive speaker signed with the Lavin Agency, Bryant presents frequently around the country as a keynote speaker at conferences, community events, and and colleges, including Brown, Columbia, NYU, Smith, Stanford, and Yale.
Bryant completed the chef’s training program at the Natural Gourmet Institute for Health and Culinary Arts in New York City. He holds an M.A. in American History from NYU. From 2008 to 2010, Bryant was a fellow of the Food and Society Policy Fellows Program. He lives and creates in Oakland, California, with his wife Jidan Koon and their daughter.
Source: www.bryant-terry.com
On your marks, get set, grow!
Yes, snow still covers the ground, but OKT is thinking spring.
Recruiting Yard Gardeners! Have you ever wanted to grow a food garden but didn’t know where to start? Do you live within our four target neighborhoods (SECA. Baxter, Eastown or Garfield Park)? Are you pregnant or have children under age six? Do you have economic challenges or have health challenges you can address by growing your own food? OKT offers educational workshops, soil testing, gardening tools, starter food plants, garden coaches and compost—all at no cost to qualified gardeners! Drop us an email, oktable1@gmail.com, or give us a call, 616-206-3641.
Toni Scott (right) leading Sept. 2013 Cook, Eat & Talk
Saturday, March 8: Cook, Eat & Talk, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m., Sherman St. Church, 1000 Sherman St. SE. OKT Cooking Coach, Toni Scott, facilitates this cooking demo and dialogue about healthy foods in your neighborhood.
Free Fruit Tree Management Workshop March 22
Friends of Grand Rapids Parks Urban Forest Project is partnering with the Kent and Montcalm Conservation Districts to present a workshop on growing, maintaining and pruning fruit trees. The event takes place 9 a.m. to noon, Saturday March 22 at Sietsema Orchards, 8540 2-Mile Road in Ada.
Although the setting for this event is a production fruit farm, the programming will target small-scale, urban and backyard fruit growers. Topics include selecting appropriate varieties, watering and fertilization, tree biology, insects and disease and tree pruning with an outdoor practical.
Space is limited. If you are interested in attending this class, RSVP to Lee Mueller at 616 389 4687 or lee.mueller@friendsofgrparks.org.
Well House hosts Urban Garden Design Workshop
Growing Food in Urban Spaces, Edible Landscaping and Urban Garden Design Workshop
6 – 9 p.m. Tuesday March 11
Well House, 600 Cass SE, Grand Rapids
Designed for people in the city with limited space to grow, this workshop explores all the possible ways to grow food in an urban setting. Well House staff will work with each participant to design a growing plan for their space.Participants need to bring either a drawing or digital images of the area(s) in which they are growing.
This workshop is limited to 15 people. To register, contact Well House at contact@wellhousegr.org. The cost is $20, which helps to fund the Well House food growing program. However, people with a limited income will not be turned away.
Kicking off the 2014 growing season!
Please join us!
Free film! Feeding Frenzy: The Food Industry, Marketing & the Creation of a Health Crisis
In partnership with Baxter Community Center and Our Kitchen Table, Well House will screen the new documentary, Feeding Frenzy: The Food Industry, Marketing & the Creation of a Health Crisis, 6 p.m. Tuesday Feb. 18 at Baxter Community Center, 935 Baxter SE in Grand Rapids (49507).
Over the past three decades, obesity rates in the U.S. have more than doubled for children and tripled for adolescents. A startling 70% of adults are now obese or overweight. The result has been a widening epidemic of obesity-related health problems, including coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke and Type 2 diabetes. While discussions about this spiraling health crisis have tended to focus on the need for more exercise and individual responsibility, Feeding Frenzy trains its focus squarely on the responsibility of the processed food industry and the outmoded government policies it benefits from. The film lays bare how taxpayer subsidies designed to feed hungry Americans during the Great Depression have enabled the food industry to flood the market with cheap, addictive, high-calorie food products. It also looks at the multibillion-dollar marketing machine that makes sure every one of those surplus calories is consumed.
A discussion will follow the screening. This event is free and open to the public, but donations will be accepted. For more details email contact@wellhousegr.org.
OKT tables at Calvin College “Kill A Watt” sustainability event
On Jan 20 and 21, OKT shared information about its food justice programs with hundreds of Calvin College students during the dinner hour in the dining hall.
Organizer Annaka Scheeres said, “After the event, I overheard people talking about how they learned so much from the OKT table because they had never thought about food justice before speaking with you. I’m so glad that you were able to help them learn about such an important issue!’
Our Kitchen Table 