While Eat Boutique is not necessarily a site where we discuss the politics of food, this subject matters to any one who cares about what they eat, where that food comes from, and the people that produce that food. In that vein, we thought you all might be interested in learning more about a new documentary about the rising movement of Americans who are seeking to re-invent our food system. The film, called FRESH, celebrates the farmers, purveyors and consumers who are taking matters into their own hands. The documentary also serves as a guide to empower people like us to take action in small and simple ways that can make a big difference.

To celebrate the release of the movie in the greater Boston area, a series of events and farm-to-table dinners have been planned. Last week, a group of local food advocates, including Willow Blish from Slow Food Boston, John Lee from Allandale Farm, J.J Gonson from Cuisine en Locale, and Jeff Morin from City Feed and Supply, served on a panel to discuss their roles in the local food movement.

When the evening was opened up for questions, it was clear that the people in the room last night were frustrated. From discussions covering the state of food served in our schools, to the affordability of farmers’ market produce, to food deserts, there is certainly much to cause anger. However, as John Lee, the owner/farmer of Allandale Farm said last night, five years ago, there never would have been a 100+ crowd gathered to listen and discuss the state of local food. Five years ago, it was almost impossible for Lee to sell produce that wasn’t tightly wrapped in cellophane, with all of the leaves chopped off and no sign that it actually came from the ground. Things are changing for the better, and rather than dismissing this recent interest in our food as a trend, we should continue to educate ourselves and those around us about the food that we eat.

While the problem is extremely multi-faceted, the message was clear: vote with your food purchases. Every time we buy food, we are making a significant choice. As they say, money talks. As much as you can, buy food that has been produced by small-scale farms and within your region. Connect with those farmers, know from where your food comes. Your body will thank you and you can enjoy that food even more, knowing that your farmers have been paid a good, fair wage and that your food hasn’t traveled, un-ripened, from thousands of miles away in an 18-wheeler. If you can’t make it to a farmers’ market frequently, start being that squeaky wheel. Ask for fresh, local produce at your local grocery store. The more consumers that ask for locally grown produce, the more likely that something will happen.

What else can YOU do? For starters, you can learn more about the movement by seeing the movie FRESH, but you’ll have to hurry. In the greater Boston area, you can see the film at the Brattle Theatre in Harvard Square until June 25. While FRESH week’s activities are nearly over, you can visit any of the restaurants that hosted farm-to-table dinners and talks and enjoy quality, local food.

We’d love to open up this discussion to our readers. What simple changes have you made to better connect with the food that you eat?  Do you know an un-sung hero in the local food movement that is doing amazing work? Share with us below!

You’re probably wondering whether the words farm and fashion belong in the same sentence. I considered the two words to be akin to the relationship between oil and water; never, no matter what you do, shall the two mesh. Well, let me tell you that I maintained that point of view until I ran into one of the local farm girls at Green Meadows Farms in Hamilton, Massachusetts.

I was super busy socializing with the pigs, chatting them up while they dug into their grain. Seriously, what else is there to do when the pigs eat but talk at the air? After three months in Paris, I was just grateful to speak with a creature that may, in fact, understand my words. The pigs would chuckle and giggle, feigning interest in my lousy jokes, unlike all those Parisians who simply stared, then winced and walked away. The pigs didn’t wince, not once.

Neither did the hens. They didn’t wince either. But like the pigs, they were far more interested in those huge grain bins than my idle chit-chat. They were so interested in that grain, several of them hopped into the bright bins, digging into a smorgasbord of yummy bits – yummy to them, at least. So… I was chatting with the pigs and then the hens and then ran into the most beautiful farm girl I’ve never seen. What, beside that huge smile, makes this farm girl so beautiful? Check out her outfit, people!

On this early Saturday morning, this farm girl had very little to wear at home. She pulled out whatever was clean and on hand, which included a short gray t-shirt, adorable plaid running shorts (the kind we used to wear in college), and the most sparkly leggings I’ve seen outside of the New York City Halloween Parade. Seriously.

So perhaps some of you think this outfit is a little unusual… it is! And thank goodness. Farmers are always wearing those boring baggy jeans, short sleeve t-shirts and John Deere hats. This farm girl had a different sort of inspiration that Saturday morning. While dealing with her lack of clean clothes, she made a decision that made me smile. She made my day. And when I asked to take her picture, including the super up-close photos of her long legs, she smiled, flattered by the compliment. I had, in turn, made her smile (and perhaps made her day, who knows…)

So I had my smile and snapped my photos and let her go on about her morning’s worth of tasks, which included feeding those hungry hens. I kept chatting with the animals, pointing out how lucky they were to have such a happy sparkly farm girl dosing out their grain.

This is a story of a long table draped in white, lined with perfectly placed wooden seats, standing in the middle of a field, waiting for the guests to dine beneath flickering swallows’ tails, along-side butterflies and trailing bean vines.

Outstanding in the Field began in 1999, in Santa Cruz, California, when a man named Jim Denevan had an idea: To dine at the source on the very soil that nourished the bounty on the plate, in the company of the farmers who cultivated it. Soon San Francisco cooks were tramping out to the farms to get involved, and the al fresco/adventure dinners began to spread across the country. In 2003, Jim and Katy Oursler bought a 1953 vintage bus and started East to set up dinners anywhere beautiful and meaningful, always close if not on a farm, by local loving chefs, mostly under the open skies. Since 1999, they’ve included 180 farm dinners, including six tours of North America.

Since the North East is where I’m drooling from, I’ll give you a few examples of farm and chefs coupling for a magical night: Bartlett’s Ocean View Farm on Nantucket, Old Chatham Sheepherding Company in Old Chatham, NY, and Strawbery Banke in Portsmouth, NH have hosted Outstanding Dinners prepared by (not necessarily at the mentioned farms) North East restaurants like Harvest in Cambridge, The Pearl on Nantucket, and Prune in New York.

So go to the website and make a reservation for a field, a winery, a cathedral, a cave of your choice. Once you arrive at your hallowed destination, you will be greeted by a glass of wine and a tour of the site by the hosts. Then you will remove to the long table to sit family-style with the other 149 guests. (The Outstanding table seats 150.) Each course will be paired with a wine selection, usually local if possible, and you will dine on the food grown if not right under your feet then very close by, by chefs trained to extract art from these fruits of the vine. You will eat and drink until the sun sets, the stars come out, and the cows come home.

Ralph Waldo Emerson said the sky is the daily bread of the eyes. Pick a date, a farm, a dinner and let your eyes feast, too.

The North American Tour list has launched, and tickets go on sale Saturday, March 20 at 12 pm EST, and typically sell out fast.

I miss Summer. I know I’m not the only one. But while others miss the beach and icy margaritas, I miss visiting the farmers’ market each week. Last year was the first time I signed up for a community-supported agriculture (CSA) program and it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

Each Monday, I would visit the friendly folks at the Silverbrook Farm tent, where unlike other CSAs, they give you free reign to choose your vegetables. Throughout the Summer and Fall, I experienced the micro-seasonality of a southeastern Massachusetts farm, greedily snatching up bags and bags of amazingly flavorful tomatoes, greens, onions, potatoes, basil, berries, peaches, plums, apples, squash, and eggplant. I couldn’t resist stocking up on Silverbrook’s colorful jams and jellies, some of which I hid away in my pantry so I could have bursts of summer all winter long. I see I’m not the only one who fell for their jam!

While New York City and Rhode Island love winter farmers’ markets, Boston is seriously lacking on that front. When the market closed in November, I sadly headed back to my supermarket with the goal of trying to eat as seasonally and locally as possible. Fast forward to February when my co-worker told me about a winter farmers’ market that she had recently visited. I was so excited by the idea, I peppered her with questions until she agreed to take me along.

Last Saturday morning, we made our way to the town of Wayland to visit the sprawling Russell’s Garden Center. The place was packed! We wandered past Russell’s beautiful greenhouse and through vendors selling hummus, salsa, and dried fruit leather, until we came upon the farm stands. I recognized Red Fire Farm, and soon began to examine their offerings of root vegetables and greenhouse grown spinach, collards and greens. A recipe began to take shape in my head, and I set about gathering rutabagas, turnips and parsnips – vegetables known to me by name, but not as much by taste. I couldn’t wait to get them home and roast them up!

The following is the loose recipe I created for this massive haul of winter vegetables. Feel free to use different vegetables, and to increase the amount of the maple balsamic mixture. I served them over polenta with feta cheese sprinkled on top for a great wintry meal.

Maple Balsamic Roasted Root Vegetables

Ingredients

• 3 rutabagas
• 3 parsnips
• 2 turnips
• 4 large carrots
• 3 radishes
• 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 3 tbsp maple syrup (honey would also go nicely here)
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 glug of soy sauce (optional)
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme, stripped from woody stems
• 2 teaspoons rosemary, stripped from stems and chopped
• salt and pepper to taste

Turn the oven on to 400 degrees. Line two cookie sheets or jelly roll pans with tin foil. Wash and peel the root vegetables and cut into uniform sized pieces. (I usually go for a smaller size so that they don’t take as long to roast.) Place all cut vegetables into a large bowl and set aside.

In a smaller bowl or a glass measuring cup, combine the vinegar, maple syrup and olive oil (and add the soy sauce here, if you are using). Pour the mixture over the vegetables and toss to coat well. Roast the vegetables, tossing once in awhile, for about 30 minutes or until browned and softened.

There is one Saturday remaining (February 27) at the winter farmers’ market at Russell’s Garden Center. Don’t miss your chance!

Today, while reading about Michael Pollan’s new book, Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual, I found myself nodding “yes,” in agreement with his message, which he succinctly summarized in In Defense of Food: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” Pollan is preaching to the choir with me, but I did still order the new book — there’s still plenty of room for improvement in my diet!

In fact, I recently acknowledged that most of the changes I’ve made in the last few years — like joining a CSA, planting a garden, and cooking at home — revolve around the “mostly plants” part of my diet. But, as a life-long meat-eater* with no plans to convert to a strictly vegetarian diet, I decided it was time to apply the same standards to my meat choices. Let’s face it: It doesn’t make much sense to be eating organic lettuce and an heirloom tomato on top of a burger that has been injected with antibiotics.

So, about three months ago, I decided that I would a) eat less meat, and b) only eat meat from local sources. My local farm stand, Heron Pond Farm, offers meat from Kellie Brook Farm in Stratham, NH, so this certainly made the challenge easier. And, although the local meat is more expensive than what you pay in a supermarket, the cost was offset by the fact that I was buying less of it.

What I noticed immediately was that local meat looks a little different from “factory-farm” meat; there is more texture and — sorry — more blood. I was momentarily grossed out, but then reminded myself that the whole point was to be aware of where my meat comes from — if I am going to eat it, I should be able to look at it before it’s been turned into a breaded rectangle! (A recent conversation with my four-year-old, in which I realized that she had not made the connection between “a chicken” and “chicken” — despite the clue that it’s the same word — also highlighted this issue.)

I’m also so happy to not be buying the “factory-farm” meat that is contributing to what many cite as the #1 source of global warming (just google “factory-farm meat and global warming” for many sources). And, yes, I know that I am a drop in the ocean (make that a drop in 100,000 oceans), but we can’t NOT do sensible things just because we think our actions alone won’t have an impact.

Admittedly, I have not been totally vigilant. I still often cook with boxed chicken stock. Once, I made for friends a warm beet and bacon salad that turned out to be too delicious to resist. I even forgot my mandate a few times while out socializing. Oops! Mostly, though, I stuck to the plan. I was even able to order meat while dining out, thanks to restaurants like Zampa, in Epping, NH, whose owner buys from local NH farms. I’ve since loosened the reigns a bit to include meat that has been purchased by people whose quality assurance I absolutely trust, like Flatbread Pizza.

Ultimately, I decreased my meat intake by at least half, while increasing its quality. I think Michael Pollan would approve. Just don’t tell him about my dessert habit…I’m a little more resistant to change in that department!

*I recommend watching Food, Inc, or reading Eating Animals if you’re looking for more information. As for whether we should be eating meat in general…that is a whole different discussion!

Photos by Paul Cary Goldberg

One of my favorite things about winter is getting to see more of my farmer friends (and farmer husband). As the fields are put to bed for the winter, there is more time to plan for the future, see friends and family, and create delicious meals. This week, I invited Kim Nolan, a grower at Green Meadows Farm in Hamilton (and the gal in the photo below), for an impromptu weeknight dinner (an invitation that would have been too much to ask during the crush of the growing season).

Kim came over with a special treat: Italian sausage made from Green Meadow’s own pasture-raised pork. It seemed like the perfect occasion to use the last jar of tomatoes from the small stash I was able to put away last September. With Kim’s Italian instinct for sauce, we were able to throw together a quick and tasty Bolognese that oozed hints of Summer flavor.

If you’re reading Eat Boutique, then I’m sure you’ve made a sauce like this before. It’s a favorite weeknight standby for me, as it was for my Mom when I was a just a little girl. It’s a versatile recipe that lends itself to whatever ingredients are in season.

Spaghettini Bolognese

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 lb hot Italian pork sausage (see below for places to buy locally-raised pork)
• 2 quarts whole peeled tomatoes
• ½ cup roasted red peppers, chopped
• ¼ cup Italian parsley, chopped
• 1 lb whole wheat spaghettini (Bionaturae is my favorite)
• Your favorite grating cheese

Heat olive oil in a heavy-bottomed over medium heat. Saute the onions until translucent. Add garlic and cook another minute.

Crumble the pork sausage into the onion mixture and stir frequently until nearly cooked through.

Add tomatoes, and roasted red peppers. I like to crush the tomatoes a bit (with my hands – I grew up cooking in a highly tactile kitchen where hands were much more frequently used than kitchen utensils) as I add them to the pot.

Bring to a boil, and then turn down to a simmer. Simmer until most liquid is gone. Toss in parsley at the last minute.

Meanwhile, cook the spaghettini according to package directions. You know what to do next: top pasta with sauce and cheese (lots of cheese if you’re like me) and enjoy!

Places in/north of Boston to purchase locally-raised pork sausage:

• Green Meadows Farm. 656 Asbury Street, South Hamilton, MA. 978-468-2277. Pasture-raised pork, lamb, chicken and turkey distributed through a CSA, and at the farmstand. Call ahead to check retail availability or to get on the CSA waiting list.
• Tendercrop Farm. 108 High Road, Newbury MA. 978-462-6972. Large selection of their own meats (as well as a few cuts that they buy in, so ask the knowledgeable folks behind the counter for clarification). Full service butcher.
• My absolute favorite place to go to pick up an artisan-crafted sausage made with locally made meats was Lionette’s Market at 577 Tremont Street in Boston. However (gasp), I just found out that Jamie Lionette sold the shop to Don Otto and his family, who will continue to sell naturally-raised meat and poultry. Once I can stomach the idea of going into the shop and not seeing Jamie’s smiling face behind the counter, I’ll have to go in and check it out. I’ll keep you posted!

Pete and Jen are on a mission, and this week they’re mission saved my belly, my pork belly.

As sustainable farmers and locavores, they raise chickens, pigs, rabbits and lambs in Concord, Massachusetts pastures where they can enjoy fresh air, grass and acres on which to roam. Their chickens are such highly regarded that the testimonials sound almost cult-like (in a good way, of course).

I was in need of pork lard, and Peter and Jen’s Backyard Birds did not disappoint. Since I’ll be jetting off to Paris soon, I want to leave the hubby with a perfect confit pork belly, a slab of fat cooked in more fat such that it’s preserved for quick indulgent meals over the next several months. Fab friends on Twitter had pointed me to spots in Providence and New Hampshire to get some affordable lard, but a quick search yielded Pete and Jen’s fabulous mini-store tucked away near Verrill Farm in Concord.

They had fresh eggs galore!

And piles and piles of pig parts – both typical (like pork chops) and a little more unique (pork feet, pork heart, pork kidneys)!

I remained focus on my mission, picking up a couple tubs of pork lard and a small ham hock for a soup I plan to cook up for the husband before I depart. You can take a peek at their mini-store live by signing up for their newsletter.

The first ever Farm Girls Dinner took place at Oleana restaurant in late August. It’s a little event that several of us wanted to happen since the Spring. Schedules, appetites and moons finally aligned for new and old friends to meet, drink and indulge in an authentic and extravagant meal made with farm fresh produce, all natural proteins and lots of old-fashioned hospitality.

The guests were, first, girls (of course) and second, passionate for farm-inspired cuisine. Three of the guests happened to also be wives of farmers, women who were getting a fancy evening out after lots of hard Summer work, sort of a mid-season break from supporting their exhausted spouses. I say “mid-season” because though the Summer is almost over, the harvest season is really just beginning; we are in fact only half-way through our community-supported agriculture program at Green Meadows Farm (check out their new web site!) and will reap the benefits of the harvest through October. Great for us, but farm families don’t see a break until the holidays.

It was such a treat to gather these fabulous women at a farm-inspired restaurant in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Oleana is a leading light in the farm-to-table movement, and consistently switches its menu to mesh with the seasons and is supported by several area farms. These ladies have eaten some pretty fine cuisine, whether pulled from their very own organic farm or while working at or visiting some pretty amazing restaurants, so dining at an equally amazing restaurant while chatting about food and life was a delight.

Oleana exemplifies casual fine dining. My favorite sort of dining, “casual fine dining” permits the guest to enjoy an amazing, almost exalted menu, where special attention is paid to ingredients, preparation and presentation, in an atmosphere so familiar you’d think you were in your own back yard, only with better plates and exemplary service. A few great bottles of wine accompanied our sampling of starters and appetizers (including a divinely-stuffed squash blossom), huge main courses and several shared desserts.

By the time the dinner drew to a close, our bellies were too full and our spirits lightened by the wine and general giddiness in the air. We were well taken-care of and, dare I say, quite spoiled by the staff. We felt fortunate to have had a few hours to escape life, to celebrate our passion/hobby for food and to meet new friends.

We all promised to get together again soon, but secretly, we all new the remainder of the harvest or new babies about to be born or a pretty all-consuming masters program or the insanely hectic pace of life would make it very difficult to replicate that evening. But the general feeling remains the same: Farm Girls Dinners are fun and should happen regularly. With that, I plan to announce the next one on this site shortly. We’re thinking of hitting Will Gilson’s Garden at the Cellar in October. Are you a girl? Are you in the Boston area? Are you game? Email me at maggie AT eatboutique DOT com.

I’ve written for magazines and websites in the past, but I’m particularly excited to announce that I’m writing a column over at IzzitGreen.com starting now! IzzitGreen is a new rating and review site launched last month. You can visit IzzitGreen to find out both how good and how green your local businesses are. I’m writing about food (big surprise!) and all the ways to be more friendly to our earth as we dine, cook and eat. Check out my latest column, all about community-supported agriculture, called “Welcome to My Farm.” Please post your comments over there, as I’m excited to jointly explore how we can all eat good and green.