Become a Sustainavore!

Eat for your health, the planet, and your values.

Become a Sustainavore!

Eat for your health, the planet, and your values.

Recap of AHS12 and The Sustainable Feast

We’ve had a busy week here on the farm. I got to attend (part of) the Ancestral Health Symposium at Harvard University and then hosted the Sustainable Feast in the Barn on Friday, August 10th for many of the attendees in our barn at Clark Farm. In addition, we hosted Michelle Tam of Nom Nom Paleo, her husband Henry Fong of FitBomb and their two absolutely adorable children here in our house for a week. I’m overwhelmed with how great this past week was and thought I’d offer a quick recap.

Andrew and Joel on their way to AHS12

Meeting Joel Salatin

On Thursday, August 9th my husband Andrew and I were asked to pick up Joel Salatin, the keynote speaker for AHS,  from the airport and bring him to the conference. What an honor! We had some time to chat with him about his operation and tell him a bit about ours. Andrew has read every single book he’s ever written, and we follow many of his sustainable farming techniques at our own farm. To a sustainable farmer, Joel Salatin is a total hero!Joel’s talk at the conference was very inspiring. He spoke about how kids need to have less screen time and more time in the dirt. At the end of his talk, his call to action was to get in the kitchen. I couldn’t agree more. When I ran the farmstand at our previous farm, Green Meadows Farm, I sold only whole chickens. So many people would look at me with a worried look on their face and asked me what to do with it. It’s such a shame that we’ve lost our food culture. We live in a compartmentalized world today, where people have no connection with food our each other. People are separated by class and age, and our food is wrapped in plastic.

The Conference

There were some amazing talks that I missed, including Mat Lalonde’s discussion of nutrient dense foods. Mat has been instrumental in helping me learn about nutrition and helping me with my practice. I also missed most of Robb Wolf’s discussion of City Zero: How Markets and Evolution Can Revolutionize Medicine. Fate is funny sometimes, just today, two firefighters came over to our farm to recruit Andrew to join their volunteer department. I offered to give a nutrition talk and they were thrilled to learn more about how the Paleo diet can help get them even more able to do service. I can’t wait to get involved.

The Event

The next day of the conference, while my house guests attended, I was in “event” mode. I had to string up some “guano protection” tarps from the ceiling of the barn, after learning that bats can defecate in flight. I’m sure bats are considered paleo, but I didn’t want to see their poop on people’s plates at the dinner. The barn was completely transformed from this:

 

To this:

Photo by Paul Cary Goldberg

 

I had some help. In addition to my husband, his crew and a few kind neighbors, Chive Sustainable Event Design and Cateringtruly had a vision.

The Chive women meet pre-event. Photo by Paul Cary Goldberg

They not only constructed the amazing menu, but set producedthe event. They are a one of a kind business owned by three good friends. Their mission is to produce events that are sustainable. Their philosophy is to take social responsibility beyond just a passion for sustainable food. All materials we bring to parties are 100% compostable, reusable or recyclable, helping us leave the smallest environmental footprint possible. It was a zero waste, 100% delicious party!

The menu:

Caledonia Elderberry Bellini – elderberry cordial and organic prosecco (Elderberry cordial donated by Calendonis Spirits)
Knockabout Cucumber Mint Gin and Tonic
Spicy Pickle Vodka Martini-  (Ryan and Wood donated the vodka and gin)
Biodynamic wines, red and white
Sparkling water and maple soda
                                                                                                                Photo by Paul Cary Goldberg
We were lucky enough to connect with Scott Peterson, a wine distributor in Massachusetts who supplied the wines at a discount for the event. They were biodynamic and sustainably sourced. For more information on sustainable wines, check out my friend Summer Wolf’s company, Indie Wineries who graciously hosted me and Andrew on our trip to Italy two years ago. Some of the wines served at the dinner were through her company.

Passed hor d’oeurves:

Photo by Paul Cary Goldberg

 

Curried Lamb kabob in blanched greens with spicy coconut cream (lamb donated by US Wellness Meats)

Broiled Essex Clams with minty pesto

Wild Boar Belly and Spice Roasted Sweet Potato Wedges (Wild boar donated by Fossil Farms)

Clark Farm Herb Omelet with house made spicy kimchi
Photo by Paul Cary Goldberg

First Course:

Icy Cold Clark Farm Heirloom Tomato Gazpacho with roasted chili oil
Second Course:
Crispy Baked Zucchini Fritters with greek yogurt and herb sauce
Fresh Smoked Bluefish with garlic aioli and pickled sea vegetables
Hearty Greens Salad with blackberry walnut vinaigrette

Third Course:

 

Grilled Coulotte Steak and Roasted Shady Oaks Organic Mushrooms
Baked Eggplant with mint and Valley View Goat Feta (Steaks from US Wellness Meats)
Photo by Paul Cary Goldberg
Dessert:
Homemade Vanilla Coconut Sorbet
Ginger Roasted Stone Fruits
Taza Chocolate Macadamia Nut Bark (Thank you to Taza Chocolate for the donation and US Wellness Meats for the nuts)
I also want to thank Pure Indian Foods for donating ghee for the chefs. Without all of these generous donations, I would not have been able to produce this event for such a reasonable ticket price.

The Company:

In addition to great food, I was honored to have so many of my nutrition heroes in attendance. Robb Wolf has been such an important influence to me. Not only was The Paleo Solution what finally healed my health, but Robb also encouraged me to start my blog, Sustainable Dish. Diane Sanfillipo, author of the newly released Practical Paleo book is also someone I need to give huge kudos to, for introducing me to so many people and for all of the amazing advise she’s given me.

Photo by Paul Cary Goldberg

 

 

Chris Kresser, who has the most densely packed, informative podcast and practice was there. I caught him having a special moment with Tulip, one of our goats. I think his hippy side was shining through! I got to sit next to Amy Kubal, who is THE paleo diet RD expert.  CrossFit Football’s John Welbourne, plus researcher Stephan Guyenet, ancestral wellness practitioner Dan Pardi, Paleo FX organizers Michelle and Keith Norris, Paleo Comfort Foods author Julie Mayfield and Eat Like a Dinosour’s Stacy Toth and Matthew McCarry plus a slew of bloggers who I love and respect were also there. Jimmy MooreBobby GillLaura ShoenfeldGeorge Bryant and Stefani Ruper among others joined in the feast.  Many of these people are “virtual friends” and hardly get to see each other face to face. I’m so glad that I was able to facilitate some real-time bonding. In addition to those attending AHS, several local people from my practice and even my trainer, Justin Keane of CrossFit Woodshed was able to be there.

Robb Wolf and Chris Kresser. Photo by Paul Cary Goldberg

 

Fun and Music:

One of the many great suggestions from Chive was for me to have a photo booth by Jesse Stansfield. He took over a corner with his equipment and lighting, then had chalkboards and a remote for folks to do their own photo shoots. Have you ever seen such a great looking bunch of people? It must be something to do with their diet!
It wouldn’t have been half as fun without the indie/soul tunes of Jesse Ciarmataro of “Qwill“. I’m a huge fan of his style and it wouldn’t have been a success without his presence.

The Cause:

We held a raffle to benefit Land for Good, a non-profit connecting farmers with land owners. This organization is how Andrew and I ended up at Clark Farm. In my mind, they are doing one of the most important things possible. We raised money with some amazing raffle prizes donated from companies like Vibram, Vital Choice Seafood, and Savenor’s. I love land conservationists, because once land is developed, it’s gone. However, leaving land fallow (not in use) is not the most beneficial use of it. Sustainable food production is.

Our Farm:

I was bummed out that the rain held us back from bringing all of our dinner guests on a tour of the farm. I really wanted to show everyone how we raise our animals on pasture, and what a healthy, sustainable operation is. Oftentimes, I hear my vegetarian friends wanting to avoid meat for environmental reasons. The fact is, a healthy farm needs animals in order to be a complete system. Our chickens eat bugs and fertilize the soil, and in return, they give us incredibly omega-3 rich eggs. Our sheep and pigs also are provided tons of space to forage and live happily. They enrich the soil with their manure, something a vegetable-only farm needs to import. We supplement our soil with fish fertilizer from local sources and even collect seaweed to feed our chickens and add to our compost.
“Farmer Andrew” Photo by Paul Cary Goldberg

The most amazing hero of the dinner is my husband, Andrew. He had the vision at age 26 to leave his corporate high-tech job in pursuit of a more sustainable career. I have to admit that at the time I was skeptical. There were many uncomfortable dinners with our parents as he was making his case to change his path. I truly admire his passion for land stewardship in its purist form. I don’t get to work the farm like he does, as I spend most of my time studying, seeing clients, and cooking the fruits of his labor. Andrew is out there in all-weather, doing mostly what the rest of us would find generally boring, hard work. He loves the animals and takes so much pride in the vegetables. Without him, I’d probably be living in a city, working in a cube, and completely miserable. I also can’t imagine a better way to raise our kids than living on a farm, yet with access to the education and cultural opportunities Boston has to offer.

 

I’ve posted all of Paul Cary Goldberg’s (the photographer documenting our work at the farm) photos from the dinner on the Sustainable Dish Facebook page. If you’d like to check out some other perspectives on the farm dinner, visit Robb Wolf’s site or Nom Nom Paleo’s blog post about her family’s visit here. The Sunday after the conference, we were visited by Diane Sanfilippo, Bill Staley and Hayley Mason. They took some amazing photos as we showed them around the farm. You can see Diane’s post about our animals here. I am so honored to have such amazing people in my life.
I also encourage you to check out the videos that will be posted for the Ancestral Health Symposium. I was able to attend a few amazing talks, one of my favorite ones was by Denise Minger about why we should be eating “head to tail” instead of so much muscle meat, for optimal vitamins and minerals. Her slides are both entertaining and informative.

 

What’s Next:

Next week, our family will be on a much-needed vacation to Montréal, to visit some fellow farmers in the Burlington, VT area, and visit the Celebrate Vermont festival. I’ll be brushing up on my rusty french, checking out food markets, and we can’t wait to visit the Montréal Insectarium where my adventurous son is looking forward to tasting crickets!

My kids, Anson and Phoebe. Photo by Paul Cary Goldberg

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6 thoughts on “Recap of AHS12 and The Sustainable Feast”

  1. Diane, I can’t thank you and your family enough for hosting such a beautiful (yes, barns can be beautiful) event. I enjoyed the AHS conference tremendously, but the real highlight for me was the sustainable feast (and the goats, I totally fell in love with the brown one with the red collar!). Paul’s pictures are spectacular (wish mine had turned out so beautifully!). I will certainly be visiting your farm store the next time I am in the Boston area (afterall, I didn’t get to meet the pigs…) If you are ever in Switzerland, I’d love to introduce you to some of our local farmers.

  2. Diana your dinner was the epitome of class. Your attention to every last detail in pulling off this event is nothing less than amazing. The barn was stunning and Chive presented incredible noms as well as impeccable service (and appearance). The rain added a romantic ambiance. I got pretty wet running between the house and barn and remember stopping and looking up to just enjoy the rain. LOVED being around so many friends in this environment. I never thought having dinner with goats would be so elegant but it was easily the highlight of my trip. Thank you so much for your hard work. It won’t soon be forgotten by many.
    -Shirley (Primal Fenix)

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