A few weeks ago I purchased Mark Kurlansky’s book The Last Fish Tale: The Fate of the Atlantic and Survival in Gloucester, which chronicles the history and development of Cape Ann into one of the most important and plentiful fisheries in the world – and the decline of the fishing industry in more recent decades due to overfishing and mismanagement.    The city of Gloucester is the oldest fishing port in the country and despite the steady decline of commercial fishing New England, the commercial fishing industry continues to employ 80,000 people in Massachusetts.

This past weekend, the Boston Globe reported that the Gloucester Seafood Display Auction would be shut down for 10 days after being accused by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of falsifying records to hide the purchase of 20,691 illegally caught cod.  This is only the latest in an ongoing battle between local fishermen, fisheries management and conservation groups around groundfishing regulations.  The current regulatory system of New England fisheries is based on days-at-sea.  A report recently published by The Pew Environment Group suggests that a regulations based on days-at-sea encourage waste of fish, and cost fisherman more money, while not significantly improving threatened fish stocks.

Help may be on the way as a new framework for managing groundfishing (which includes species such as Atlantic cod, pollock, and flounder) will be discussed and voted on this week by the New England Fisheries Management Council.  The new framework would encourage fishers to  form fishing co-ops called sectors that would provide groups of fishers with annual catch limits and end the current management tactic of establishing catch limits based on days-at-sea.  The hope is that the new structure would provide fishermen with greater flexibility in setting their own guidelines, while depleted populations of species like Atlantic cod have a chance to replenish themselves.

There is still debate amongst fishermen and conservationists alike on if the new plan will be successful.  On a weekend broadcast of Radio Boston, fishermen cited their fear that the proposed annual catch limits for each sector will not provide them with enough income to sustain their businesses.  Conservation and fisheries management groups are concerned about the long-term health of the industry and fear that without significant changes to the current structure, we risk losing the commercial fishing industry forever.

Like most Tuesdays, I was working from home yesterday.  At lunchtime I took my two dogs out for a quick stroll around the three wooded acres where we live.   When we approached my tiny patch of sunlit garden nestled among the trees, I was surprised to see something that definitely hadn’t been there the day before: Five little Marfax bean seedlings had broken through their covering of compost, still bean-capped, leafless and bent over, they were nevertheless making their way towards the sun.  I’ve been gardening for years, and I love it, but I surprised even myself with the childish glee with which I observed the seedlings.  There is a reason there are so many cliché sayings about planting seeds.  I could suddenly see my whole bean-filled summer garden unfolding before my eyes, and I had equally vivid images of my bean-filled belly come harvest-time this fall!

All over New England, this little bean miracle is playing out on a much larger scale than in my tiny garden.  Marfax beans are one of the sixteen varieties of heirloom vegetables we’ve asked twenty-eight farmers in the Providence, Portsmouth, and Boston areas to grow for the RAFT (Renewing America’s Food Traditions) Grow-Out project Chefs Collaborative is piloting this year.  When their much larger fields of Marfax beans are mature, we have thirty-five chefs lined up, eager to buy, feature and promote them on their menus.  At Chefs Collaborative, we hope that the community building we’re promoting during the Grow-Out establishes connections between farmers and chefs that grow beyond the bounds of the project.  But community building will not be the only source of interesting connections to come out of this project; growing Marfax beans establishes a significant connection between all the participants and the rich agricultural history of New England.

The origins of the Marfax bean are mostly lost, but we know they have been grown in New England for over a century.  Some sources suggest they were a favorite among the logging camp cooks in Maine, who floated their bean rafts (think food truck on a raft) down Maine’s rivers, feeding loggers their four times-daily meals of beans.  The camp cooks were not only unique in their distribution of baked beans, they also cooked them in an interesting way.  In a method most likely learned from Native Americans, camp cooks cooked their beans in a “bean hole:” a rock-lined fire pit in the ground where the pot of beans was buried to slowly cook from residual heat held by the stones.  Many Mainers continue the bean hole tradition at outdoor fairs and festivals, and at MOFGA’s (Maine Organic Farming and Gardening Association) annual Common Ground Fair, the Marfax bean is one of the favorite beans for the bean hole!

The beans are medium-small, roundish, and golden-tan colored.  They have a rich flavor and are great for baked beans.  I know I’ll be torn when it comes to using my small crop of Marfax beans – should I dig a bean hole for a historic taste of Marfax beans, recreate a dish made by a Grow-Out chef, or come up with my own use?  Should I eat all my beans, or save a few to plant again next year?  No matter what I do, I’ll be thinking about the farmers and chefs participating in our project, and the rich history of Marfax beans throughout New England.  In future blog posts, I’ll be writing about Grow-Out farms and restaurants, not my own garden… but yesterday, those five little seedlings really brought this project home for me.

- Anne Obelnicki, RAFT Grow-Out Project Coordinator

The “Yes We Can” signature cocktail was developed by Bar Chef Adam Seger of Nacional 27 of Chicago, and Culinary Consultant Robin Schempp of Right Stuff Enterprises of Waterbury, Vermont.

We encourage you to serve this cocktail at your restaurant to celebrate the progress being made towards a more sustainable food system.

Yes We Can Cocktail
This refreshing ginger-mint springtime cocktail is terrific with or without the rhubarb compote. Befitting of the Yes We Can Campaign, it is best served in a canning jar.

6 mint leaves
3/4 oz. ginger-infused, mint-infused or simple cane syrup*
3/4 oz. freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tbsp. rhubarb compote (optional)**
3/4 oz. ginger liqueur or ginger brandy
1 1/2 oz. artisan bourbon
Garnish: 1 mint sprig and additional fruit as desired
Glass: canning jar (e.g., Ball or Mason jar)

Muddle the mint leaves, cane syrup and lemon juice in a mixing glass. Add rhubarb compote (if using), ginger liqueur and bourbon. Stir or shake, then strain into canning jar filled with crushed or shaved ice. Garnish with a sprig of mint additional fruit if desired.

*For Syrup: 1:1 ratio of cane sugar to water, steeped for at least one hour with ginger and/or mint, if desired.

**For Rhubarb Compote: 2 pounds rhubarb, rinsed, ends trimmed, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces, combined with 1 1/2 cups sugar and simmered until broken down but still rosy colored (makes about 1 qt.).

In the past thirty-nine years Earth Day has been observed in a variety of ways:  tree plantings, beautification campaigns,  and the implementation of recycling and conservation programs across the country.  And, in the past few decades, there has been growing interest and understanding around the impact of our food purchasing decisions on our environment.

For the past five years, Chefs Collaborative has partnered with Organic Valley on their Earth Dinner initiative by recruiting member restaurants to host meals in their restaurants around Earth Day.  Earth Dinners are a celebration of our connection to our food, the earth, and one another and provide chefs with a great opportunity to share their passion for local, sustainable, and organic food with the dining public.

This year, we have 17 members hosting Earth Dinners around the country.  Check out the list of participating Chefs Collaborative member restaurants below, or click here to learn how you can host your own Earth Dinner.  Happy Earth Day, and happy eating!

Please call restaurants directly for reservations and information.

American Flatbread
Burlington, VT
802-861-2999

Basta Trattoria
New Haven, CT
203-772-1715

Border Grill
Santa Monica, CA
310-451-1655

Channel Cafe
Boston, MA
617-426-0695

Ciudad
Los Angeles, CA
213-486-5171

Claire’s Corner Copia
New Haven, CT
203-562-3888-

Delegates Dining Room at the United Nations
New York, NY
212-963-7626
*This is a lunch event

Diane’s Market Kitchen
Seattle, WA
206-624-6114

The Dogwood Restaurant
Baltimore, MD
410-889-0952

Elephants Delicatessen
Portland, OR
503-224-3955

Flea Street Cafe
Menlo Park, CA
650-854-1226

Illium Cafe
Troy, NY
518-272-3013

Main Market Co-op at the Glover Mansion
Spokane, WA
509-209-2395

Sola Restaurant
Chicago, IL
773-327-3868

Something’s Fishy Catering
Bethel, CT
203-722-2444

Taste at the Seattle Art Museum
Seattle, WA
206-903-5291

Tastings Wine Bar & Bistro
Foxboro, MA
508-203-9463

Tosca
Troy, NY
518-272-3013

I was excited to be one of twenty judges that deliberated over the presentation, utilization, and taste of the chefs preparations.  The judging took over three hours, and in the end we were won over by chef Matt Jennings’ preparation of a Red Wattle hog.

Chef Jennings’ menu included delicious charcuterie prepared from the jowl, cheek, tongue, and snout of the hog; a simple and flavorful tortilla filled with carnitas, Rhode Island queso fresco, pickled onion and cilantro; and the memorable boudin noir torte with chili & chocolate and pig brain whip (which is made by boiling down the brain with heavy cream, and oddly enough tastes like CoolWhip).

Cochon 555 is just one of many efforts going on across the country to raise awareness about heritage breeds of livestock by celebrating their unique flavors.  As part of the Renewing America’s Food Traditions alliance, Chefs Collaborative is working with Slow Food USA and the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy to restore agricultural biodiversity and celebrate heirloom varieties of produce, heritage breeds of livestock, and traditional preparation methods.  More and more chefs and home cooks are interested in these breeds.  In fact, the latest issue of Bon Appetit features a whole section on heritage breeds of pigs with accompanying recipes.  For more information on how to work with whole animals and heritage breeds of livestock, download our Pork Report.

Events and programs like these will help to ensure many memorable and delicious meals to come!

“Righteous Porkchop: Finding a Life and Good Food Beyond Factory Farms,” by Nicolette Hahn Niman, should be on the must-read list of anyone who cares about a sustainable food supply.

This well-written memoir tells the personal story of the author’s own initiation to the disturbing practices of hog factory farms as an attorney working with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. ; her introduction to “traditional” farmers and ranchers using environmentally sound practices; and about her own transition from lawyer to environmental activist and to the life she lives with husband Bill Niman on their ranch in Bolinas, California.

I could not put this book down.  Just when a question was forming in my mind, Nicolette answered it clearly and plainly.  Unfortunately, most of this country’s meat, poultry and dairy products come from an industrial system that fails with respect to the environment, public health, animal welfare, and flavor.  We all have a responsibility to make informed food purchasing decisions and this book goes a long way to provide both the background on our food system and practical alternatives.

Perhaps the most useful section of this fantastic book is on how to find sustainably produced foods.  Nicolette shares a framework for making her own purchasing decisions, how she gets information about where her food comes from and how it was raised or produced, where to find foods, and how to make decisions when dining out.

I am privileged to know Nicolette Hahn Niman because she serves on the Board of Chefs Collaborative.  She is tremendously knowledgeable about the animal confinement industry and alternatives.

I encourage anyone intersted in fostering a more sustainable food supply, how their food tastes, a healthy environment, and humane treatment of animals to read this book!

Read on for further commentary:

“Finally, a book that can help everyday Americans understand what’s at stake as a result of our factory animal systems.  A great, common sense and steady read.”
–Michel Nischan, chef, Dressing Room; president, Wholesome Wave Foundation

“A searing, and utterly convincing, indictment of modern meat production.  But the book brims with hope, too, and charts a practical (and even beautiful) path out of the jungle.”
–Michael Pollan, author, Omnivore’s Dilemma and In Defense of Food

–Melissa Kogut, Executive Director, Chefs Collaborative

Over the past week, Chefs Collaborative hosted kick-off events for 27 farms and 30 restaurants participating in the 2009 Renewing America’s Food Traditions New England Grow-Out in Providence, RI; Portsmouth, NH; and Cambridge, MA.

We were lucky enough to have great hosts: Matt & Kate Jennings of Farmstead & La Laiterie Bistro in Providence, Evan and Denise Mallet of Black Trumpet Bistro in Portsmouth, and Tony Maws of Craigie on Main in Cambridge.  Through the Grow-Out we’re facilitating partnerships between farmers who have agreed to grow heirloom varieties of New England produce during the 2009 growing season and chefs who are committed to cooking with these varieties and promoting them on their restaurant menus.

We distributed a variety of heirloom seeds to the that will yield traditional New England favorites like the Trophy Tomato, Early Blood Rooted Turnip Beets, Boston Marrow Squash, and Boothby Blond  Cucumbers — and the farmers weren’t the only ones excited by the varieties.  At each of the meetings, participant chefs commented on how honored they felt to work with these varieties and to play a role in supporting agricultural biodiversity.

In these last (let’s hope) days of New England winter, the sweet, earthy smell of Gilfeather Turnip seeds was a kind reminder of spring and all the great flavors that are sure to come.

The Renewing America’s Food Traditions project is an alliance between Slow Food USA, Chefs Collaborative, Gary Nabhan, Ph.D, and the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy.  Click here to learn more!