Five Points Bakery: Being a locavore just got easier

This weekend was pretty darn exciting over on the West Side. Just a couple short blocks from my house Five Points Bakery opened its doors and sold out of bread within two hours. My boyfriend and I walked over today around noon and were lucky enough to snag a loaf for our late breakfast. It was delish.

Besides the fact that Five Points is owned and operated by a couple living a block away from the bakery, besides the fact that their bread is 100% grain and made from locally-grown wheat stone ground on site, besides the fact that Five Points partners up with the good folks at Promised Land CSA (my CSA!) to purchase their wheat and products--THEY OFFER A BREAD SHARE.

I am so out of control excited about this share.

Five Points is offering a 13-week, $65 bread share. They'll have four shares every year, one per season. The summer share offers a multigrain pan bread, a honey wheat loaf, a cinnamon raisin, and a specialty bread. You select the kind you want and stop by one of the pick-up locations every Thursday to take it home. You can also add muffins, cookies, and their house-made pizzas to your share as well.

As we walked home from the bakery today, Sean and I talked about the summer ahead and how easy it will be for us to eat local. Between our CSA share, our new bread share, and an endless supply of deer meat from Sean's brother (that's for him, I'm a vegetarian), we hardly have to grocery shop.

Now, on to the chickens...

Buffalo Small Press Fair - this Saturday!

In continuing with my buy-local coverage, I thought I'd highlight the Buffalo Small Press Book Fair happening this Saturday at the Karpeles Manuscript Museum on Porter Ave. I've never gone and am sorry to say that I'd never heard of it until today.

From the website: The Buffalo Small Press Book Fair is a regional one day event that brings booksellers, authors, bookmakers, zinesters, small presses, artists, poets, and other cultural workers (and enthusiasts) together in a venue where they can share ideas, showcase their art, and peddle their wares.

The inclusion of zinesters piqued my interest. If you don't know what a zine is, I suggest you read this and then go to the Small Press Fair with $20 in cash. I don't know Buffalo's zine scene too well but I'd be willing to bet that for $20 or less you'll pick up some fun, photocopied pieces of local art. If you want to see some of the best of the best, check out Microcosm Publishing. It's not Buffalo-based but it is an independent and community-focused publisher.

Local restaurant week, get on it!

Sushi at Sea Bar in Downtown Buffalo
"Sush'" originally uploaded by Nick Sherman

I'm re-blogging this announcement from Edible Buffalo's site but I thought this event deserved as much attention as possible: Local Restaurant Week in Western New York.

Some of the best city and suburb-based restaurants are offering a "dining package" for only $20.09 per person the week of March 23-29, 2009. It's a great way to get out and try a new place (and for a great price).

Visit the event's website for a list of participating restaurants.

Buying local on Etsy

Greetings from bad blogger Whitney! It's been awhile--cough August, cough cough--but I'm renewing my pledge to post on Buffalo Locavore. You'll be hearing from me a lot more in 2009.

While we focus mostly on local food here on the blog, I thought I'd divert attention away from the edible and over to one of my favorite sites, Etsy.com. During this past Christmas shopping season, I tried to buy local as much as possible. What that meant to me was choosing local shops over Target and the mall. I think my gifts were a hit.

In addition to walking the Elmwood strip, I found myself logging onto Etsy and browsing the handmade goods available from crafty Western New Yorkers (for those of you unfamiliar with Etsy, I suggest checking out their information page and browsing the site. In short, it's an easy-to-use eBay for handmade and vintage goods).

On Etsy, you're more often than not buying goods directly from their creators: handknit scarves, beautiful paintings, and artisan jewelry are among the many offerings. And because the Etsy peeps are awesome, you can even hone in on an area of the world from which you wish to purchase your homemade gifts through the site's "Shop Local" page.

After typing in "Buffalo NY," check out these great finds (all made in and around Buffalo):

This "Romantic Cuff" from Paperhill is described as "something that Lizzie from Pride & Prejudice might wear" and "lovely in place of a traditional corsage or be a perfect touch for rehearsal dinner or for the bridesmaids." $30.

Not only are these earrings beautiful, they're incredibly affordable. The shop beadediris describes them as "made with 16mm vintage green moonglow lucite rounds" and recently included them in a special Buy-4-get-Free-Shipping deal. $5.50.

This photograph from Linden Tea, "Twisted," can be ordered as an 8x10 print on glossy or matted paper. $18.

If you haven't bought a 2009 calendar, consider this locally-designed piece from DesignCircus $8.50. and be reminded of your effort to buy local every day. On sale for $8.50.

What are you waiting for? Get over to Etsy!

NY Food Trader

From a stronger sense of community to a healthier planet to local economic advantages, the movement to eat locally is spurring the growth of farmers' markets throughout the nation — the number operating in the U.S. grew 6.8 percent from 2006 to mid-2008. Now, a new virtual farmers' market in New York State is taking that growth online. NYFoodtrader.org provides a free, quick and easy online sales outlet for farmers who want to advertise their products to local customers. Modeled after a similar site in Maryland, FoodTrader.org, the New York site lets farmers leave contact information with their listings for pesticide-free apple cider and organic pork, chicken and turkey, among other things, so consumers can contact them directly and arrange their own transactions. It's ideal for farmers who have small quantities to sell, eliminating waste and making local agriculture more sustainable. The site is run by the government-funded Environmental Finance Center at Syracuse University. In the future, the center hopes to add a farm-to-farm agricultural exchange where farmers can advertise manure, hay and other items for sale or barter.

I Borrowed this from the Governing Website!!! Here is the direct link:

http://www.governing.com/idea.aspx?id=6128

Give Local as a Gift

If you are looking for local-centric holiday gifts, here are two that fit the bill.

1. Edible Buffalo is offering a subscription special--5 issues for the price of 4. Please note "Holiday Gift" when placing your order. All holiday subscriptions will begin with the winter 2008/2009 issue, which comes out this month. They will also include a special gift card with the first issue. Offer expires December 22, 2009! Go here to order.

2. Buffalo First has created coupon books that will be offered for sale at local retailers starting tomorrow. The book offers great discounts at a huge array of local businesses. The books cost $10, with the proceeds going to both Buffalo First and the local business where you buy the coupon book. You can find the list of businesses selling the book here.

Come Apple Picking With the Locavore Crew

The writing crew here at Buffalo Locavore (Whitney, Kirk, Ann, Brian, and me) are going apple picking.

We will be meeting at Bidwell Parkway next to Talking Leaves at 2pm on Saturday, October 25, 2008 and carpooling up to Murphy Orchards to pick apples and learn a little about our region's Underground Railroad history. You can find out more about the orchard here.

Leave a comment if you plan on joining us so we can get a rough head count. Hope to see you there!

Start Your Chili Right with Growing Green

I recently received an e-mail from the delightful Zoe Hollomon of the Massachusetts Avenue Project announcing a fun event at the Amherst Street Wegmans this Sunday. Please see Zoe's message below, and turn out to show your support if you can!

"Greetings from Growing Green! Growing Green Youth will be at Wegman's on Amherst St this Sunday October 12th from 11am-2pm to promote their Amazing Chili Starter for the fall and winter months. So if you haven't stocked up on your comfort foods for the cold months please come by this Sunday to Wegman's on Amherst, ; we'll have samples of our Amazing Vegetarian Chili with roasted sweet potatoes- if you havent tasted it yet its Yummy!. We'll be in the Natures Market Section in the rear of the store near the deli. If you love our Amazing Chili or prefer something else please look at our alternate recipe ideas and get experimental for your taste buds! Growing Green really appreciates your support of a youth run, eco-friendly, local food business. "

Must read: Wednesday's "Dining In" serves up some news on Wegmans

I try to pick up the New York Times on Wednesdays because it is on those days that the "Dining In" section is published. I like "Dining In" because it covers food-related stories from a variety of perspectives: profiles on chefs and farmers, reports from New York's Greenmarket and other markets throughout the country, local and national food trends, and, of course, a fair share of recipes.

Last week's offerings (I know, I'm late) included an article on how Supermarkets are adapting to demands for locally grown food. It seems like the increase in gas prices and the growing awareness of "local food politics" have created a perfect storm for local growers, many of whom sell directly to supermarket chains.

Our own local giant was featured in the write up and, for those of us keeping track of this sort of thing, comes across as a leader of the pack:

Wegmans Food Markets, a 71-store chain based in New York with locations in
Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and Virginia, has been buying from local farmers for the last 20 years. Today it has 800 farmers and has also experienced
a 20 percent increase in sales of local produce over the past year. “There’s a
real emotional connection with local,” said Dave Corsi, vice president for
produce.

Mr. Corsi said that in order to buy from local farms, the chain had
to stop acting like a chain. “We don’t control these relationships centrally —
the produce manager in each store does this directly,” he said. “We only guide
the stores.”

I didn't know much about Wegmans' local food practices beyond the fact that they do a good job of carrying it. I was pleased to learn that the relationship between grower and buyer seems to remain as human as possible (you can learn a bit more about the Buffalo-area farmers on Wegmans' website) and I'd like to know more about the effect this sales increase will have on their non-local produce sales. It wasn't clear if Wegmans cut--or will cut--the amount of non-local produce it buys in light of these new figures.

Also mentioned in the Times article is Wal-Mart's recent steps towards buying local food. This development sort of makes my head spin since the corporate culture runs opposite to what I appreciate about eating (and buying) local but hey, I guess it's a good development?

Anyway, check it out and cheer for the last line of the piece: "'It’s going to be a way of life,' said Matt Seeley, vice president for marketing of the Nunes Company, which sells Foxy brand vegetables. 'I don’t think there is any turning back.'"

PS: Give Hawthorne Valley Farm a high-five for milling their own flour. Dante Hesse, also mentioned in the same piece, is a HVF alum.

Fresh and Local at Wegmans

Wegmans offers produce from local farms throughout the summer, which I think is a great way to make it easier for more people to buy foods grown in our area. I do not have a farmers' market in my neighborhood, so it is nice to have local options when I can't make a special trip to Elmwood or the weekday market downtown. They also offer other local foods, like Pellicano's tomato sauce, in their Nature's Marketplace section.

So, what local produce was Wegmans offering this week?

Yellow Squash (delicious marinated in italian dressing and grilled)

Zucchini (not my favorite, but it did look quite good)

Cabbage (many varieties--the Savoy looked particularly tasty)

Lettuce (Green Leaf, Red Leaf, and Romaine)

Potted Basil (from a local green house)

Not bad selection for a mass market. I look forward to seeing more local produce at Wegmans this summer, especially local fruit.