5/29/10

From CivilEats.com














According to the recently released annual survey by the Apiary Inspectors of America (AIA) and the Agricultural Research Service (ARS), more than a third of U.S. managed honeybee colonies—those set up for intensified pollination of commercial crops—failed to survive this past winter.

READ STORY HERE

3 Nurse Bees

video

Eggs and Honey

Spent the afternoon at the hives and coop. It was the first hive opening after the queen was released. All three hives seem to be doing really well. Then again I am new to this, but in all three hives I see eggs and larvae and capped honey. That seems good, right? Hive two was pissed as we searched for the Queen, but we found her. All of the hives are taking much less of the sugar water. I think that is because they have it all figured out and are getting plenty of food themselves. I feel like I should leave them alone. I am clumsy. I put my fingers through their honey. I have alot to learn from my bees. I am sure they will teach me.

Then I went over to the coop. 13 eggs. Happy hens. Alice is totally cool. She is so chatty and confident. She makes me laugh. After about 1/2 hour a thunderstorm rolled in. The call ducks were so happy! Stomping in the puddles. Tim, the mandarin duck is very playful. I kinda want him to come home with me.

Eggs and Honey

There's the Queen

video

5/26/10

Guest Blog Post from - FRESH, the movie!

We here in the FRESH office have the fortunate opportunity to work with thousands of exciting, innovative, and inspiring people all across the country. We learn the ins and outs of community supported kitchens (and their very special "feasts"!) We get calls from farmers living in the most unheard of and stunningly beautiful places. We've strategized with the likes of Tracy Singleton of Birchwood Cafe in Minneapolis, Ari Drefel of Gather in Berkeley, and Ben Meyer of Ned Ludd in Portland. We helped organize a canning workshop with the famous Classie Parker of NYC's Just Food. Let's admit it, people, we have cool jobs.

But, nothing I tell you, has ever had us clucking like a flock of hens around this office like the upcoming FRESH kick-off event in Boston, happening on Tuesday, June 1st.

“FRESH Perspectives on Local Food: An Evening Celebrating Youth Growers” is the event to kick off all events. This exceptional evening highlights a most uncommon line-up: local growers who have not a single wrinkle from the sun, but tons of green ideas...we all know the problem right? Most people don't want to farm and everyone wants to eat. Well, these youth growers (we're talking honey-making, chicken-raising, vegetable-planting urban farmers) have got some ideas and a lot of gut. They're out there doing what most of us wish we could do more - putting dinner on the table!

If you haven't seen the film FRESH, get ready for a shot in the arm. Depressed about the food system? Yeah, we know. FRESH has gone beyond the bemoaning, and gets the conversation going about what fresh ideas and actions are happening all around us and how we can take part - how you can take part!

So, I assume we'll see you at the FRESH Kick-Off Event on June 1st? (Orren's humble, so I must be the one to say it. He's going to be there and he'd love for you to be there, too.)

The event is sponsored by the loveliest of locals: Taza Chocolate, Chive Events, Suffolk University Committee on Sustainability, and Harvest Co-op.

You'll have the chance to see the film PLANTING FOR PEACE, as well as hear from an amazing and select group of young people working on good food issues.

Tickets are $12 and include a free voucher to see FRESH at the Brattle Theatre June 18-23. Buy tickets here.


the FRESH team - Allison Radecki, Lisa Madison, Jamie Yuenger

FRESH in Boston!

CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS

Smoke and bees

Panel at Eagle Street Rooftop Farm

Bee Blog

5/24/10

Pollen Nation

"Every year, hundreds of professional beekeepers forklift their wooden hives onto 18-wheel semis, strap down the loads, and head out on the highway.

Across the country - from the Imperial Valley in California to the Florida panhandle and the hills of Maine – farmers rely on honeybees to pollinate crops worth $15 billion every year.

But parasites, pesticides, and modern agricultural practices are making it harder and harder for beekeepers to keep their bees alive, and the crisis could affect what shows up on all of our dinner tables." - pollennationthemovie.com



Smoke and Sugar

video

Awesomeness!

My friends Lis Timpone, Annie Novak and Paula Crossfield!

Eagle Street Rooftop Farm Event, Brooklyn COOL!


5/7/10

SweetGrass

The Garden - Movie Trailer

Bees.

200,000
beekeepers existed in 1950; 
today, there are less than 
1,000 
in the U.S. 

Happy Chicken Egg Cupcakes from Clare!



















EEEGG CUPCAKES 

Photo credit: Photo by Eric Staudenmaier for "Hey There, Cupcake!" by Clare Crespo

Serve these with coffee and orange juice for an extra-special birthday breakfast.  

1 recipe batter for White Cupcakes (use eggs from Happy Chickens!)
1 recipe white frosting
20 organic canned apricot halves, drained
 

Line cupcake tins with paper liners. Fill the liners a little more than 3/4 full with the batter and bake the cupcakes as directed in the recipe. Frost the cupcakes. You can be sort of messy about this, because if you have curvy edges instead of perfect circles, the cupcakes will look more like eggs. Place an
apricot half on each cupcake to make the "yolk." Continue with the remaining cupcakes.

Chocolate

From my friend Clare Crespo - yummyfun.com



















HAPPY BIRD'S NESTS 

Photo credit: Photo by Eric Staudenmaier from "The Secret Life of Food" by Clare Crespo

Vegetable oil 

3 cups mini marshmallows 
3 Tablespoons butter (plus 1 teaspoon for your hands) 
4 cups chow mein noodles 
12 yogurt-covered almonds or jelly beans

1. Line a cookie sheet with tin foil. Coat well with vegetable oil. In a saucepan, melt the marshmallows and butter together over medium-low heat. Stir until smooth. Pour marshmallow mixture over noodles in a large mixing bowl, and stir until well coated. Rub butter on your clean hands and form balls out of the noodle mixture. Place on sheet. With the back of a spoon, press the center of each ball to make an indentation. Fill nests with yogurt-covered almonds or jellybeans.

Food Corp - cool