Grow what you love. Love what you can use in some form or fashion. Let your passions lead the way. The past 40 plus years of Paula Winchester’s life have been devoted to the love of the herbs. She started the Herb Gathering Inc. in 1978, which now sells fresh herbs to 40 local grocery stores across both state lines. Her small, whimsical yard displays herbs, native plants, wild flowers, and whatever flora shows up on its own, as well as birds, bugs and butterflies, and all sorts of furry creatures that are roaming free.

Our class with Paula will be interactive as we learn about her yard and herbs via a scavenger hunt, sip some of the imported Chinese teas from her Twelve Winds Tea Company, and nibble on herbal munchies.
Paula will talk about the multiple uses of herbs, where and how to plant them for best results, how to get them to thrive in our Midwestern weather.

Class starts punctually at 4 p.m. Saturday, May 4th at Paula’s home in Brookside.
Please wear good walking shoes, bring your questions, and let’s have a scratch, sniff, and taste BLAST!!

Herb Gardening
Saturday, May 4th, 2013
4:00- 5:30 pm

Paula’s Garden in Brookside

http://www.herbgathering.com/herbgathering/

5742 Kenwood Ave.
Kansas City, MO 64110
(l block west of Holmes or 3 blocks east of Oak in the Brookside area of Kansas City, MO)
The house is pearl gray with brilliant blue shutters if you can’t locate the house number due to all the leaves in the way.

$15 for SFKC Members
$20 for Non-Members

Make your online reservation through http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/369186
All ticket purchases are non-refundable. If you are unable to attend, your ticket purchase is a donation to Slow Food Kansas City.

Questions? Contact Sarah at Sarah.Reed@nkch.org (or 816 241-6189 evenings only please).

Next up is the final class of the Nose to Tail pig butchering series with Chef Alex Pope of The Local Pig butcher shop: The Ham!  Mmmm, ham….
We started with the head, and we moved towards the tail with each subsequent class. We will work on breaking the hind leg of a pig down into smaller pieces, where to cut to yield hocks, how to inject a ham with brine and talk about the process to make coppa.

Tastings will include

• coppa – a lightly cured “free form” ham flavored with sage, orange and clove
• brown sugar ham – ham steaks brined in brown sugar and rosemary – roasted and served with pretzel bread for sandwiches
• ham hock confit – black pepper and thyme cured pork hocks cooked in pork fat – served inside of tamales.

In addition to coffee, soda and water, there will be beer for those interested.

Nose to Tail Butchering

This whole series of classes is for Slow Food Kansas City Members only.

Alex Pope is a veteran of top Kansas City restaurants such as The American Restaurant and R Bar. In 2011, Pope was named among the best new chefs in the Midwest by Food & Wine magazine.  In addition to his new venture, The Local Pig, he’s the chef for Vagabond Pop-up culinary events.  Read this article in The Pitch for more information on Alex and The Local Pig Butcher shop.
Not a member or want to bring a non-member?  That’s easy!  Join Slow Food KC It’s only $25 for a one year membership.  Questions?  Contact Liz at lizsccs@gmail.com or 816-809-6518.

A percentage of sales comes to Slow Food Kansas City and the group’s philanthropies.

We still have room in the butchering class on September 9th at the Local Pig. The third class in the series, The Belly, will include tastings and your choice of beverage. If you haven’t noticed, we recently updated the following information on Brown Paper Tickets:

Fall (Sept 9th): The Belly. In this class we will learn how to fabricate a whole pork belly, then cut down to a center cut pork belly. We’ll cover how to cut spare ribs and cover the steps to curing bacon. The 3^rd class will feature cuts from the belly of the pig.  Tastings will include bacon and porchetta, along with a flavorful apple salad.  In addition to coffee, soda and water, there will be beer for those interested.

Click here to read the full description for these classes and reserve your spot. Hope to see you there!

If you’re looking for something special to do this weekend, consider attending or volunteering at foodNow.

“foodNow, an all-volunteer gala provides a creative approach to raising awareness and funding for local, healthier eating in Greater Kansas City. Local farmers and local chefs come together to bring a unique local food experience to the West Bottoms, “the original Kansas City”, where the roots of agriculture in the Midwest began.

Proceeds from the gala go to 501(c)(3) not-for-profits working for local, healthier eating. This year’s beneficiaries are The Food Conservancy, Greater Kansas City Food Policy Coalition, and Dream Factory of Greater Kansas City“

Event Details:

Four Course Slow Food Dinner at EBT

Thursday
July 26, 2012
6:30 p.m. Cocktail
7:00 p.m. Dinner 

at
EBT Restaurant
http://www.ebtrestaurant.com/

1310 Carondelet
Kansas City, MO  64114

$50 Members
$55 Non-Members

DId you know Slow Food KC Blend coffee from the Roasterie is available for purchase? Developed by The Roasterie, Slow Food Kansas City Blend is a robust coffee with fruit notes and a smooth finish. This blend, featuring the distinctive red snail Slow Food logo on the label, will be offered for sale in grocery stores and at all Slow Food events.  A percentage of sales comes to Slow Food Kansas City and the group’s philanthropies.

Thank you to Bob and Julie Zoller for hosting one of the best events in KC this summer at Fire Lake Camp! The perfect setting. The perfect movie. The perfect dinner. Enjoy the photos (thank you David Letts!) AND recipes from the meal. Thanks also goes to our local producers for this meal:

Local Pig
Green Dirt Farm
Casa Somerset Bed and Breakfast
Farm to Market Bread
Shatto Milk
Somerset Ridge Vineyard and Winery
Parker Farms Meats
Jasper’s Italian Sausage
Askinosie Chocolate
Various farmers from Overland Park Farmers Market and Paola Farmers Market

- Jamie, George, Linda, Mike and Margaret
Slow Food Kansas City

Photo from Slow Food KC member, Chris Johnston

Timpano di Capellini Rosso

Recipe courtesy of Judy Francini

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. capellini (birds’ nests) pasta
• 2 lbs. Italian sausage, browned and drained well
• 1 onion, chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 8 oz. grated parmesan cheese
• 8 oz. grated Pecorino Romano cheese
• 4 oz. butter
• 16 oz. tomato sauce
• 1 lb. Roma tomatoes, sliced lengthwise very thinly
• 4 oz. basil leaves, chopped
• 1 lb. thinly sliced cheese, such as mozzarella or asiago
• 3 lbs. eggplant
• 8 oz. Italian breadcrumbs

Preparation:

• Grease a large, deep stainless steel bowl (~ 12 in. diameter) and sprinkle it with breadcrumbs.
• Brown sausage and drain grease. Add chopped onion and minced garlic and sauté until tender. Stir in tomato sauce, chopped basil and season with salt and pepper. Add red pepper flakes to taste, if desired.
• Cut eggplant lengthwise into ¼” thick slices, place on paper towels on cookie sheet and sprinkle with salt. After a few minutes blot eggplant slices dry & brush thoroughly with EVOO. Grill or bake (425 degrees) until tender.
• Cook the pasta JUST until al dente in salted boiling water. Drain well. Mix in melted butter, parmesan and Romano. Can be cut together with two knives.
• Cover the base and sides of bowl with pasta. Press firmly into place.
• Layer eggplant slices over base and sides of bowl over pasta, pressing into place.
• Layer tomato slices over eggplant.
• Layer cheese slices over tomatoes.
• Fill bowl with sausage mixture.
• Cover top with remainder of pasta mixture.
• Cover with tin foil and bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes. Remove foil and broil until golden brown & crisp on top.
• Allow to set up at room temperature for 5-10  minutes, then carefully invert bowl over plate to remove Timpano.
• Slice vertically, serve and enjoy!

Serves 20 – 24 people

Recipe Links for S’mores:

Graham Crackers
Marshmallows
DYI invert sugar to replace corn syrup