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2013 Greens Cook-off and Fried Green Tomato Festival!

Oct28

fried green tomato cook offf logoCheck out the slide show below!

The Southeast Area Farmers’ Market annual Greens Cook-off and Fried Green Tomato Festival was a delicious success. Guest judges Darel Ross II, co-director of LINC, and Tony Jolliffi, from the Grand Rapids African American Health Institute (GRAAHI) determined the winners. Dishes were judged for flavor, presentation and wow factor. Market manager Kristin Blood awarded prizes at the market on Oct. 19.

In first place, Holly Bechiri won a gift certificate to Nourish Organic Market for her green tomato jam and homemade bread. Sharon Maddox took second place with collard and turnip greens grown in her family’s garden. Her prize is a private sewing lesson with Erica Millsbrook. In third place, Darlene Gibbons won a gift certificate to A Grand Skein with fresh collards grown in her own garden.

Throughout the competition, market patrons enjoyed sampling contest entries and fried green tomatoes prepared on the spot by market partner Cynthia Price of the Greater Grand Rapids Food Systems Council. Download a copy of our Fried Green Tomato Recipes cookbook here.

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You’re invited! “Food Politics and the Food Justice Movement: Moving Forward”

Oct24
Class meets 10 a.m. to noon on Saturdays beginning Nov. 9 at Garfield Park Lodge, 334 Burton St. SE (skipping the Saturday after Thanksgiving). OKT is underwriting the cost of this class so participation is free.
     Our Kitchen Table invites you to join us for this five week class that investigates the current food system and food policy, looks at food justice responses around the country and discusses what a food justice and food sovereignty movement in West Michigan could look like. This is the third time that OKT has engaged Jeff Smith of the Grand Rapids Institute for Information Democracy to teach the class.
     Whether you are a professional actively involved in local efforts to eliminate hunger and undernutrition or a lay person who wants to know what you can do to increase your neighborhood’s access to healthy foods, this class will open your eyes to how the industrial food complex works and how you can challenge it.
     As a primary source for the class, participants will be reading the book “Food Justice: Food, Health and the Environment,” by Robert Gottlieb and Anupama Joshi. You can buy the book on Amazon.com.

Free, confidential HIV testing at Southeast Area Farmers’ Market today until 3 p.m.

Oct19

IMG_4235The Red Project Mobile Health Unit is at today’s market at Gerald R Ford Academy, Madison avenue just south of Franklin Street.According to the Red Project website,
“There an estimated 1,080 people living in Kent County with HIV. Approximately 260 of these people do not even know they have it – that means nearly 1 in 4 people who are infected are unaware. Talk to your partner about HIV and risk reduction options … and get tested. Also for other infections, like one can do chlamydia urine test here and mauch more… The Grand Rapids Red Project believes everyone should have access to knowledge and tools available to prevent HIV infection, and the treatment necessary to live with it, no matter who they are or where they are…HIV disproportionately affects communities of color, and other traditionally undeserved and marginalized populations. In 2011, while African Americans accounted for only 9% of the population in Kent County, they accounted for 34% of all HIV/AIDS cases… To Learn more, contact us. Or connect with us on Social Media at Facebook: REDProjectGR.”

Well House Apple Sauce Workshop Monday evening

Oct18

Join the urban farmers at Well House, 600 Cass Ave. SE,  for a workshop on how to make and can applesauce. The workshop takes place at 6 p.m. Monday Oct. 21. Participants will can regular and spiced applesauce and take a jar home.

The suggested donation is $20 for this workshop, but Well House welcomes everyone, even if they can’t contribute. Funds collected help sustain Well House’s Urban Garden Project.

Please register by sending an e-mail to contact@wellhousegr.org or calling 616.245.3910.

Come get your hands dirty and help plant fruit trees

Oct10
Friends of Grand Rapids Parks invites you to join them at 10 a.m. Saturday, October 12 to plant An Orchard for Martin Luther King, Jr. at M. L. King Park, Fuller Avenue and Franklin Street SE. The saplings are only about 5 feet tall, so the planting won’t take much time.
These trees will be a public resource for all visitors to the park to enjoy. Once the trees are mature, they will provide shade, storm-water management, aesthetic beauty, and healthy fruit production for the benefit of everyone in the neighborhood.
Laura Casaletto, OKT urban forester, will be on site to help. In addition, the West Michigan Jewels of Africa, will  perform traditional African drum and dance during the planting. Bring your kids so they can learn how to plant a tree! All tools and supplies will be provided by Friends of Grand Rapids Parks.
For information,  contact volunteer Vince Lambert at mlkcommunityorchard@gmail.com.

Free green tomato cookbooks at Southeast Area Farmers’ Market

Oct9

fried green tomato cook offf logoIn celebration of the Greens Cook-off and Green Tomato Festival, Our Kitchen Table and the Kent County Health Department have revised the Southeast Area Farmers’ Market Green Tomato Recipe Book. The 28-page booklet offers 34 green tomato recipes in five categories: fried green tomatoes, appetizers, main dishes, condiments and desserts. Market patrons are welcome to a free copy!

You can also download a .pdf of the cookbook here.

Green Tomato Recipe BookIn addition to the original 34 recipes from the its first edition, the revised cook booklet includes a recipe for vegan fried green tomatoes provided by chef and author of Vegan Soul Kitchen, Bryant Terry, as well as a recipe for delicious Green Tomato Cake shared by local chef and market supporter, Nancy Rutledge.

The Greens Cook-off and Green Tomato Festival take place noon to 2 p.m. Saturday Oct. 12 at the Southeast Area Farmers’ Market, Gerald R Ford School, 851 Madison Ave. SE. To enter, bring your prepared dish to the market and register on site. Even if you don’t enter the contest, stop by to watch cooking demos and sample delicious greens and green tomato dishes!

The Southeast Area Farmers’ Market is open 3 to 7 p.m. Fridays at Garfield Park, Madison Avenue and Burton Street, and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays at Gerald R Ford School, Madison Avenue and Franklin Street. Shop with your Bridge Card and double your local Michigan produce dollars up to $20 each day you visit!

Give blood at Southeast Area Farmers’ Market Oct. 26

Oct8

Since you can’t get blood from a turnip, the Southeast Area Farmers’ Market is signing up blood donors! Michigan Blood will be on hand for a community blood drive at the Gerald R Ford Market location market from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Saturday, October 26.

You may be eligible to give blood every 56 days if you are a healthy person age 17 or older (or 16 with parent’s/guardian’s consent), weighing 110 pounds or more. See more guidelines below. We are asking volunteers  to sign up by Oct. 19 contacting market manager, Kristin Blood.

Did you know?

  • One pint of blood can help several people.
  • Blood platelets promote blood clotting and can give people with leukemia and other cancers a chance to live.
  • Healthy bone marrow makes red cells, plasma and platelets constantly.
  • Sickle cell disease is an inherited disease that affects more than 80,000 people in the US, 98 percent of whom are of African descent.
  • Many patients with severe sickle cell disease receive blood transfusions every month.

For more information, download Michigan Blood’s 56 Facts About Blood And Blood Donation.

Additional donor guidelines:

  • Eat and drink before donating
  • Allergies–OK if symptoms are under control
  • Colds & Flu–OK if no fever/diarrhea in past 24 hours and you feel well. You must be off antibiotics 1 week
  • Dental–Wait 1 week after major procedures; OK after fillings and cleanings if symptom free.
  • If exposed to ANY contagious disease (e.g. measles, chicken pox, mumps, mono, whooping cough) in past 4-6 weeks, check with Donor Services staff.
  • Pregnancy–Wait 6 weeks after normal or interrupted pregnancy
  • Piercings–OK if pierced with a sterile disposable device or in doctor’s office. Otherwise wait 12 months
  • Skin Infections–Wait until wounds or burns are completely healed and infection free.
  • Medications–Most are acceptable; but you must know the name of the medication
  • Tattoos–Wait 12 months if received in non licensed state. Michigan is licensed and requires donor to present a record of tattoo from the facility.
  • Sexually Transmiterd Disease–Wait 12 months after treatment for syphilis or gonorrhea
  • Past Deferral–Try again. Changes in donor criteria may make you eligible now
  • You cannot donate if you have AIDS, positive HIV test, some blood diseases, leukemia, lymphoma/Hodgkins; OR chronic fatigue syndrome, chronic lung, liver, or heart disease; OR if you have had hepatitis; OR if you have spent a total of 3 months in the United Kingdom between 1980 and 1996.

Celebrate NeighborWoods

Oct2

Reposted from Grand Rapids Urban Forest Project.
October is National NeighborWoods month; a chance to celebrate trees in your community. Across the nation, volunteers and citizens have the opportunity to find numerous events and plantings in their community.  Last year alone, NeighborWoods included nearly 300 cities, and 45,000 trees throughout the United States

This year, Friends of Grand Rapids Parks (FGRP) has listed several events for NeighborWoods. We hope to get large groupings of the Greater Grand Rapids community involved and push the number of trees planting well past 45,000 trees. With the active support, drive, and enthusiasm of our volunteers, we can make this year even better than last year!

Whether it is a goal of NeighborWoods, FGRP, or a personal goal, getting involved and active is strongly encouraged. If you cannot make it to one of the sponsored events, please just get out there and plant a single tree on your own!

We hope to see you at NeighborWoods

Tree ID Workshop (fulfills Citizen Forester requirement)
Blandford Nature Center                       October 1, 6:30p

MLK Tree Orchard Planting    
Martin Luther King Park                      October 12, 10a

Brewers Grove Tree Planting
Riverside Park                                        October 17, 4p

Tree Planting & NeighborWoods Celebration
Riverside Park                                        October 26, 9a

If you’re interested in attending these or other events, please RSVPby contacting 616.389.4687 or lee.mueller@friendsofgparks.org.

Check out the calendar for more events.

Seed Saving Workshop at Well House Sept. 30

Sep26

“Seed is the first link in the food chain. Seed is the ultimate symbol of food security. Free exchange of seed among farmers has been the basis of maintaining biodiversity as well as food security. This exchange is based on cooperation and reciprocity.”From Seed Freedom: A Global Citizens Report, coordinated by Navdanya

1236462_657749657569146_1000651918_nOctober 2 is the kick-off date for Navdanya‘s Fortnight for Seed Freedom and Food Freedom, a global action being promoted by internationally acclaimed seed warrior, Dr. Vandana Shiva. One way we here in the Grand Rapids can participate is by learning about saving seeds.

We are fortunate to have experienced seed-savers among us. Two of them work as urban farmers at Well House, Jeff Smith and Camilla Voelker. They will be facilitating a Seed Saving Workshop 6 p.m. Monday September 30 at Well House, 600 Cass SE in Grand Rapids.

The workshop will address the importance of saving seeds and how to save them. Participants will will look at a variety of ways to save seeds and discuss the importance of non-GMO/heirloom seeds.

To sign up for this workshop, please contact Well House at 616-245-3910 or contact@wellhouse.org. Well Houses asks  for a donation of $20 per person, but also offers scholarships so that money will not be a barrier for people to sign up. The money raised from Well House workshops is used to sustain its urban gardening projects.