Sustainable and Green... FOOD

I think I mentioned that the SF Green Festival, was sort of like a County Fair.  Well, it definitely was in the sense that it had a wide selection of yummy foods to try and buy.  Most of the food was sustainably sourced and organic and I believe all of it was vegetarian. I found some yummy stuff like corn cakes filled with cheese, fruit smoothies, and vegetarian corn dogs!  Now that was like going to the fair. Most importantly though, I bumped into some great local restaurants, caterers and chefs who prepare food using organic and local foods:

Cafe Gratitude was there, and their fair was wonderful and raw as usual.  Thankfully there's one close by so I can get my fix of their raw mint/chip shake.

Lydia's used to have a full service restaurant in Fairfax, when I lived there.  Their pesto pizza was amazing.  I miss it.  Luckly, they are selling their yummy crackers and items in local grocery stores.  Tey also cater, so there is a chance you can enjoy their pesto in person.

 

Here are some plates Lydia's was offering to the attendees.  I have had their wraps and they are pretty tasty, as is the green soup. Apparently the owner, Lydia, won the Woman Owned Business of the Year Award from The Woman's Initiative.  Very cool

Table Nectar is a local catering company that had some delightful foods available to festival goers.  A pic of their menu items it below:

 

That Coconut Polenta is calling my name, as is the Chai Mousse.  Yum.  I definitely  have a sweet tooth.

I didn't get to try all of the food there, but I have had prior experience with Lydia's and Cafe Gratitude, and can say that I really enjoy their food.  From the looks of Table Nectar's menu, I can imagine their food is pretty delightful as well.  All three are definite possibilities if you are looking for some sustainable raw foods for your wedding or event.  It might be suggested to mix the raw foods with some cooked foods however, as not all guests are familiar with raw edibles.

And this brings me to the last mention of the day: Leif Hedendal

Leif was at the Festival as well.  He was giving a short talk while stirring some leak soup, and chatting about his secret eating society dinners.  The Festival had a "Soul Kitchen" where local sustainable chefs prepared food and shared stories with folks in the audience.  Leif was cooking while I was taking a break, and happened to catch the tail end of his talk.  His food is awesome, and for the most part cooked, although incredibly sustainable and locally grown.  He puts on small dinner parties at secret locations around the Bay, and I bet if asked he might be willing to do a bigger event too.  Anyway, I thought I would tease you with a visual something he posted recently on his blog: http://cookinglessons.wordpress.com/

Now, doesn't that look delightful.

In Green and Healthy Food,

G&G

Useful Vendor Connections and Mounds of Trash

This Weekend I participated in the Green Festival in San Francisco.  I donated some local floral designs, bridal bouquets, attended the event and helped with cleanup.  It was fun to meet local vendors and vendors from afar, as well as listen to guest speakers and artists and take part in the massive recycling and composting activities after the event.

an arrangement I made (Gorgeous and Green Events) for a stage at the festival, I love the combination of red and lavendar

It sort of felt like a county fair with a green spin.  I do love the fair and love shopping for stuff, but I did wish there was a little less focus on the retail side of things.  I also noticed that although there were quite a few vendors and organizations who were very green and sustainable, many were not quite as green and it made the festival feel a little green-washed at times.  I think for future events it would be great to have higher standards of vendors and possibly include more demonstrations and hands on activities, instead of such a main focus on retail sales.  I think it is important to offer green and sustainable items for people to purchase or learn about, but one of the main tenants of sustainability is getting by with less.  Living simply.  And I would definitely like to see the festival incorporate this tenant a little more next time. For the most part, however, the experience was valuable.  I met some other green businesses, learned a lot about recycling and trash and realized how much responsibility we all have in reducing our impact on a daily basis.  Sifting through the festival's bags of trash, recyclables and compost made me realize how all of the little things we touch can add up to create something big.  A big pile of trash that goes to the landfill, if we let it. Thankfully, I'm not willing to send piles of trash to the landfill and either are a lot of other green businesses.  I hope to showcase a few this week in upcoming blogs, but here is a sneak peak at some of the folks I met:

Righteously Raw: raw chocolate bars, super tasty!

a bouquet I made for the Hemp fashion show and Conscious Clothing,who also make cute lingerie beside their wedding gown collection

Lydia's: A local organic and raw food company, who also caters!

Table Nectar: an organic and raw catering company

Cafe Gratitude: A great organic and raw food restaurant in the Bay Area

A water station at the Green Festival, I loved that they actually showed you where the water we were using was coming from:

I hope to show you more from the festival in future posts. In Green and Health, G&G