See the Texas
Cheese Plate info page for everything you wanted to know about
Texas cheese.| Tonia Ashworth-Kuesel | Chateau de Fromage, Dallas |
| Chrissy Omo | CKC Farms, Blanco |
| Des (Desire) Dunn | Cou Rouge, Lubbock |
| Deborah Rogers | Deborah's Farmstead, Fort Worth |
| Nancy Patton | Haute Goat Creamery, Lubbock |
| John Spanogle | La Cuesta Farm, Clifton |
| Edgar Diaz | Moo Cheeses / Lucky Layla Farms, Garland |
| Paula Lambert | Mozzarella Company, Dallas |
| Amelia Sweethardt | Pure Luck Grade A Goat Dairy, Dripping Springs |
| Mike and Debbie Sams (represented by Elizabeth Hutchins, Reheboth Ranch) |
Full Quiver Farm |
| Elizabeth Hutchins |
Rehoboth Ranch, Greenville |
| Stuart and Connie Veldhuizen | Veldhuizen Family Farm, Dublin |
August 20th, 2006 - Slow Food Gathering at Central Market, Fort Worth |
| Central Market Fort Worth
sponsored a Slow Food gathering of producers and growers who grow food
the “slow
way” in our own backyard, the North Texas area. Although a growing
segment of
the population is interested in organic and natural foods, many people
do
not realize that some of these products are grown in the communities
surrounding us. Approximately 122 Slow Food members and people from the community attended and talked with the growers and producers to find out more about their products. The meeting was organized by Claudine Martyn, a member of the Dallas/Ft Worth Convivium and manager of the cooking school at Central Market in Fort Worth. Among the growers who attended were: Tim & Kathy Cooper of Cooper Farms in Fairfield; Geno Stille of Gene’s Greens in Colleyville; Pat Brennan of Brennan’s Vineyards in Comanche; Michael Butchard of La Casa Verde in Weatherford; Kevin & LaDonne Wenzel of Wiseman House Chocolates in Hico; Stuart Veldhuizen, cheesemaker, Veldhuizen Family Farm in Dublin; Deborah Rogers of Deborah’s Farmstead in Ft Worth; Tonia Ashworth of Chateau de Fromage in Dallas; Jim Milburn of Linda Jean Farms; and Tim Gilpin of Gilpin Family Dairy. We sampled cheese from Veldhuizen Family Farm, Deborah’s Farmstead, and Chateau de Fromage, as well as Gene’s Greens microgreens. Mark Monfrey, leader of the Dallas/Ft Worth Convivium and co-leaders were on hand to answer questions about Slow Food. Two of the delegates to Terre Madre, 2006, David Uygur, and Claudine Martyn were also at the meeting to explain what Terre Madre means to Slow Food. See Local Picks page for list of the producer's contact information. |
Feb 21st, 2006 - Mardi Gras Mambo Terra Madre Katrina Relief Fund, Art Institute of Dallas |
 Everyone
donned fluorescent-color throw beads at the entrance to The Art
Institute of Dallas Culinary School, where the dining room glowed
purple, green and gold from masks, dolls, table and wall decor that
Mark Monfrey has collected over years.Slow Food Dallas' Mardi Gras Mambo centered around Poppy Tooker's recipes for seafood gumbo, red beans and rice, Boudin sausage, savory calas, and bread pudding with Bourbon sauce. Art Institute of Dallas culinary students prepared delicious food using ingredients generously donated by Central Market Dallas. In keeping with our practice of tasting an Ark product at every event we tasted traditionally crafted root beer made from spring water, herbs, vanilla, yucca and pure Louisiana cane sugar, by Abita Brewery, Abita Springs, Louisiana. We showcased three excellent McPherson Cellars wines made in Lubbock, Texas, by Kim McPherson: Viognier, Rose, and Syrah. Delta swamp rhythms moved everyone who braved the night's freezing rain. Some know our Louisiana-native musician / Zydeco band leader Tom Spicer as Spiceman, purveyor of fine seasonal produce to many wonderful chefs, and some simply obsessed to his original tunes such as Swamp Gas, Looziana Mudslidin' and Delta of the Big Sun. Then it was into the teaching kitchen to take advantage of the venue's large screen to preview King Cake, the soon-to-be-premiered documentary film by Scott Dixon McDowell, professor of film at University of Southern Mississippi's School of Mass Communication and Journalism. Approximately 20 minutes later, more than 50 people craving the unique traditional New Orleans confection moved quickly back to the dining room. Queuing up for Cavallini Coffee's custom chicory blend, conversation revolved around the toy baby that is required in each King Cake. Well-crafted display boards, plus our souvenir printed program and a talk by Michael Cox addressed the work and losses of people of New Orleans: Terry Spell; Patsy and Roko Tvrdelc; Isabell and Miguel Mendez; Leah Chase of Dooky Chase Restaurant; Mandina's Restaurant; Angelo Brocato; and more. Thanks to leaders Michael Cox and Mark Monfrey co-chairing this event, Slow Food Dallas donated $2,000 to aid producers hurt by Hurricane Katrina. Mardi Gras Mambo handout (PDF format) |
Jan - March, 2006 Ark and Presidia Products at Central Market |
| Central Market featured Slow Food Ark and
Presidia products throughout their store during the "Fresh Start"
selling promotion. |
December 13th, 2005 Coldiretti (Italian Farmers) at The Art Institute of Dallas |
 Slow Food
Dallas members and
friends were invited to meet members of Coldiretti ("the people who
directly cultivate the land"), an Italian farmers cooperative, and an
Italian wine expert, while four cooks from northwestern Italy (Turin)
prepare authentic Italian dishes. All the farmer members of
Coldiretti within range of Turin hosted Terra Madre delegates,
including Ugo and Cristiana Ginatta, and Robert and Nancy
Hutchins. According to Ugo, one of the four visiting cooks is
president of the Province
of Turin Cooks Association, established in 1722. |
December 6th, 2005 Wines and Vines of Sicily at American FoodService |
 Slow Food
Dallas Guided Tasting
of Wines from Sicily. A 45-minute seated guided tasting of
Sicily's Nero
d'Avola (an indigenous varietal, red wines) by itself and in blends.
Also, a taste of a Tre Bicchieri (Three Glasses)
wine.Program handout (PDF format) |
September 24th, 2005 Slow Food Panel at Waxahachie Chautauqua |
Michael
Cox, Slow Food Dallas
Leader and General Manager of Central Market-Plano
Rachel Gaffney, Cookie Maker, Rachel Gaffney’s Authentic Irish Goods, Dallas, TX Robert Hutchins, Rancher/Farmer, Rehoboth Ranch, Greenville, TX Deborah Rogers, award-winning Cheesemaker, Deborah’s Farmstead Cheeses, Fort Worth, TX David Brawley, Artisan Baker and Consultant, Dallas, TX |
September 16-19, 2005 Slow Food Dallas Cheesemaker featured at Cheese 2005 |
| CHEESE 2005 - the biennial Slow
Food international conference in Bra, Italy (held September 16-19, 2005) Handout (created by Slow Food Dallas) for Slow Food USA table - featuring cheeses from southern US states Article about all the American cheeses featured at Cheese 2005 including Blanca Bianca made by member Paula Lambert of the Mozzarella Company |
August 13th 2005 Members Picnic Honoring Timothy Mullner |
 Honoring Timothy Mullner: Timothy founded Slow Food Dallas with a few friends gathered around his kitchen table in March 2003. Many of us did not meet until the convivium expanded via the August 2003 organizational meeting hosted by Michael Cox in the Community Room at Central Market Plano. Now we have over 100 members. |
April 30th 2005 An Evening at Rehoboth Ranch |
 On a
beautiful spring late afternoon, we toured Rehoboth
Ranch's rich pastures where cattle, chickens, turkeys, and Katahdin (an
heirloom variety) lambs forage on native
grasses, all without hormones, antibiotics, or pesticides. In the
cow pasture we saw a baby calf that had been born earlier that
day. We gathered eggs at the hen house (it's portable, too) and
watched a milking demonstration in Robert's Grade A Goat Milk
Dairy. Delicious side dishes filled long buffet tables.
Mary and Elizabeth Hutchins prepared savory entrees featuring the
grass-fed meats and pastured poultry raised sustainably on land
surrounding us: Poulet aux Oignons,
Herb Roasted Turkey, Fire Roasted Smoked German Sausage, Slow Roasted
Rosemary-Crusted Chuck Steak, and Honey Roasted Pork with Apples and
Onions. No one could resist hanging out in the kitchen (for the
record, too many cooks did NOT spoil the broth). Robert and Nancy
Hutchins and Ugo and Cristiana Ginatta related their experiences as
Terra Madre delegates while we ended the convivial dinner with gelato
from Paciugo. Terra Madre was a heartwarming experience
for the delegates because they felt appreciated and honored for their
commitment to raise and serve wholesome food in an ecologically sound
way. We are fortunate to count farmers and other producers of
wholesome and delicious foods among our Slow Food Dallas members. It
was absolutely worth the drive. Writing about Terra Madre, Robert Hutchins said: Program handout (PDF format) |
March 31st, 2005 In Our Own Backyard: American Cheese |
 Together
for the first time:
five North Texas cheesemakers
brought their
cheese and shared their stories. Then the panelists, with moderator Helen Duran, led us in a tasting of
a selection of
American Cheese Society award-winning cheeses from around the
USA. We are the first in North Texas to offer an artisanal cheese plate with examples from four local cheesemakers. Our local plate consisted of two cheeses each from cheesemakers Paula Lambert of Mozzarella Company, Dallas; Claudine Martyn, Dallas; Deborah Rogers of Deborah's Ft. Worth Farmstead Cheese, Fort Worth; and Michael Sams of Full Quiver Farms Farmstead, Kemp. Cheese made by panelist Elizabeth Hutchins of Greenville is not available for sale. We donated proceeds from this fund-raising event, hosted by the Viking Culinary Arts Center, and supported by Central Market, a purveyor known for finding and promoting local producers, to the American Cheese Society and to Slow Food USA. Press release details (PDF format); Program handout (PDF format) |
June 27, 2005, The Best of Lombardia |
| The Best of Lombardia - Tasting
seminar presented by the Federlombarda Argicoltori, an association of
Italian agricultural entrepreneurs, featured a tasting and seminar of
cheese, olive oil and wine from the Lombardia Region. |
February 19, 2005, Savor Dallas |
| Fourteen Slow Food Dallas
members and friends worked a total of 94 hours as volunteers at Savor
Dallas on Saturday. The inside word on the seminars and the
International Grand Tasting: a tour de force. |
December 9, 2004 Spirited Entertaining: Holiday Ideas with Bushmill’s Irish Whiskey |
 Slow Food
Dallas member Marius Donnelly welcomed us with pear cider and
tasty hors d'oeuvres at Trinity Hall where we learned about Bushmill’s
tradition of making whiskey in Ireland. Orla O'Regan,
Bushmill's Whiskey Brand Ambassador from Schull, Ireland, guided two
side-by-side tastings:
blended Irish whiskeys, and single malt Irish whiskeys. Theresa
Magee brought Irish cheeses from Sigel's to
refresh our palates between the whiskey flights and told us how
farmhouse cheesemaking has been revived in Ireland over the last twenty
years. Rachel Gaffney offered samples of her delicious traditional
shortbreads made with unsalted butter imported from Ireland. And Italy
met Ireland at the finish as Ugo and Cristiana Ginatta floated a
selection of Paciugo gelato into glasses which Orla topped off with
just a bit more of the Bushmill's. Try this at home and Happy Holidays
to all. Program handout (PDF format) |
October, 2004 Terra Madre and International Salone del Gusto - Turin, Italy |
 Terra
Madre,
the international Slow Food conference Oct. 20-23, 2004: each local
Slow Food convivium was asked to send premier producers from
its area. Over 450 American and 110 Canadian delegates attended Terra Madre, including fruit growers, ranchers, honey producers, winemakers, vegetable farmers, artisanal cheesemakers, bread bakers, brewers, chefs and more. Slow Food Dallas sent members Ugo and Cristiana Ginatta and Robert and Nancy Hutchins as delegates. Ugo Ginatta, who owns Dallas-based Paciugo and makes traditional Italian gelato, and Robert Hutchins, who uses organic and sustainable pasturing methods to raise cattle, chickens and goats at his Rehoboth Ranch in Greenville, met with nearly 5,000 other delegates from 120 nations working in sustainable agriculture. The delegates represent "food communities," Terra Madre's term for those who are linked by a common product, ethnic identity, region, history, approach, or a chain of production. Terra Madre 2004 was the first forum for those who seek to grow, raise, catch, create, distribute and promote food in ways that respect the environment, defend human dignity, and protect the health of consumers. Click here for a complete list of US Terra Madre Delegates. |
October
16, 2004 A Texas Harvest potluck dinner at Central Market Plano
|
 We sent
Slow
Food Dallas members Ugo and Cristiana Ginatta and Robert and Nancy
Hutchins, local artisanal food producers, to Terra
Madre, the October 2004 international Slow Food conference.Ugo Ginatta, who owns Dallas-based Paciugo and makes traditional Italian gelato, and Robert Hutchins, who uses organic and sustainable pasturing methods to raise cattle, chickens and goats at his Rehoboth Ranch in Greenville, met with nearly 5,000 other delegates from 120 nations working in sustainable agriculture. Program handout (PDF format) |
October 16, 2004 Radio Interview - 570-KLIF-AM |
| Jim White of "Eats and Drinks" interviewed Slow Food Dallas leaders, Timothy Mullner and Kim Pierce on 570-KLIF-AM. |
October 5th, 2004 Texas Chefs Association meeting at American FoodService |
 Chefs
visiting the Slow Food Dallas table at the October 5th meeting hosted
by
Slow Food Dallas member Lucian
LaBarba of American
FoodService learned about the Slow Food Ark of Taste. They saw the
9/28/04 Dallas Morning News Texas Taste article "Want a pasture-ized
bird? Order yours now" by Kim Pierce, featuring local farmers who raise
heritage breed and pastured turkeys. Richard Silverston offered tastes
of Moroccan Argan oil,
a Presidia
product in the international Ark of
Taste. |
July 8th, 2004 reception for Dallas Video Festival screening of The Cheese Nun: Sister Noella's Voyage of Discovery, Pat Thompson's documentary film |
 Before
the film we
sampled: delicious raw milk cheeses Blanca Bianca, from Dallas, and
Tomme de Savoie, from France; a traditional monastery cheese, Chimay;
and delicious Belgian specialty brews from Chimay and Bosteels. These cheeses and beverages, thoughtfully appropriate to the content of the film, were donated by Mozzarella Company, Central Market, and Artisanal Beverage Company LLC, and Paula Lambert, Helen Duran, and Mark Monfrey provided education as they served nearly 70 people. Program handout (PDF format) |
June 26, 2004 Shared Suppers, member homes |
 With so
many members, we could
not hold our first Shared Supper around a single dining room table, so
several members volunteered to host suppers that would be held
simultaneously. |
June 3, 2004 A Sardinian Evening with the Farrises at Arcodoro |
 Efisio
Farris, a
member of Slow Food Houston, and brother
Francesco Farris introduced us to the culture, food, and wine of
Sardinia. |
May 21, 2004 Texas Olive Oil Tasting at AMS Production Group |
 Jim Henry
brought us a taste of
the olive oil he pressed in 2003 from his Texas-grown arbequino olives, showed us
pictures of the the trees and the harvest, and shared
his plans for next year. Darlene
Barnes prepared a crowd-pleasing
Mediterranean buffet and presented tastes of rare and wonderful olive
oils from California, South Africa, Italy and New Zealand.Program handout (jpg format) |
March 30, 2004 General membership meeting at American FoodService |
 Members
met to answer the question "what do you want to do for the rest of
the year?," to tour Slow Food Dallas member Lucian LaBarba's
facility, and learn how ARK USA
is saving
cherished foods, one product at a time. While we savored ravioli
and sauces Chena Civello made especially for us at Civello's
Raviolismo, Lucian introduced us
to growers, including Les Constable of Brushy Creek Vineyards.
|
March 21, 2004 Celebrate Spring at Paciugo, Park & Preston, Plano |
| Chilling out on Sunday afternoon, we were part of the first official Paciugo tasting panel. We tasted several recipes for the new Cherry Almond flavor and voted for the recipe we liked best. |
March 9, 2004 The Cheese Nun: Sister Noella's Voyage of Discovery director's screening and reception |
 We met
Pat
Thompson, producer/director of the documentary; local
cheesemakers; and tasted a rare assortment of handmade
small-production cheeses, some of which are seen in the film,
including cheese from Sister Noella's abbey. Thompson filmed the
internationally
recognized microbiologist over a period of four years tracing how, in
a world of growing uniformity of food, this cloistered American
nun has become a leading defender of traditional cheesemaking and
campaigner for biodiversity. Specialty Belgian beers and Jim Clendenen's wine perfectly accompanied raw milk Blanca Bianca from Mozzarella Company, raw milk baby gruyere from Debbie Sams, raw milk and monastery cheeses from Central Market, Sister Noella's Bethlehem cheese, and Mike Gingrich's Pleasant Ridge Reserve. Read about the event in the June 2004 issue of The Snail and at the American Cheese Society. Program handout (PDF format) |
March 8, 2004 Radio Interview, Glenn Mitchell Show - 90.1
KERA-FM
|
| Glenn
Mitchell interviews Patrick Martins (Director of Slow Food USA);
Sister Noella Marcelino
(a/k/a "The Cheese Nun"); Paula Lambert (cheesemaker and member of Slow
Food Dallas); and Pat Thompson (filmmaker, "The Cheese Nun"). |
February 8, 2004 Gelato: a Taste Workshop at Paciugo on Lover's Lane near Inwood |
 When we
sit down to enjoy some
refreshing gelato, who thinks
about how it’s made? Is it made with milk? Cream? Dulce de leche? What
kind of
sugar? Corn syrup or brown unrefined? Eggs, or no eggs? Fresh
fruits,
jam, or commercially frozen fruit? Slow Food Dallas member Cristiana
Ginatta addressed all those issues and more as she led the workshop. Of course, we ate gelato….lots and lots of gelato. Cristiana prepared many different samples for the workshop, each featuring a single ingredient in the preparation so that we could compare and decide for ourselves which was best. |
January 23, 2004 Year of the Monkey Dinner at Lucky House, Plano |
| We gathered around the Chinese New Year table to learn about traditions of the foods served at a New Years dinner in China. |
January 4, 2004 Dim Sum luncheon
|
December, 2003 Thai dinner at Jasmine
Restaurant, Plano
|
| We closed the year with a delicious Thai dinner at Jasmine Restaurant, 2050 West Spring Creek Parkway, Plano, TX, 75023, a local "mom and pop." Andrew Chalk followed up by creating an inclusive list of BYOB eating places around the metroplex where we can hold casual get-acquainted evenings. If not ALL slow, they are convivial; we can hang out and plan events undisturbed. |
October 23, 2003 American Farmstead Cheese Tasting at Mozzarella Company |
 Our
two-month old convivium was one of 20 in the nation hosting a Slow Food
USA fundraising event. More than
forty people filled Paula Lambert’s
tiny cheese factory at Mozzarella Company October 23 in celebration of
American Farmstead Cheese Month. Helen Duran and Paula Lambert educated
us while we tasted ten cheeses, mostly farmstead, some raw milk,
including a washed-rind raw milk cheese, Blanca Bianca,
Paula made for this
event. Alfonso Cevola guided our tasting of small production artisanal
wines from Puglia and Piedmont.Program handout (PDF format) |
October, 2003 Coppell Farmer's market tour |
 Member
David Gillis introduced us to the Coppell Farmers
Market, where we spoke directly with the farmers and bought organic
eggs from the person who raises the hens, honey from the beekeeper,
cheese spread from the farmstead cheese maker, organic bread from the
baker, and fruits, vegetables and nuts from the farmers who grew them. |
October - November, 2003 Texas Chefs Association presentation |
 Convivium
members Timothy Mullner, Karen and Richard Silverston, and
Ugo Ginatta were invited to attend a meeting of the Dallas
chapter of the Texas Chefs Association on October 7th hosted by Lucian
LaBarba of Freshpoint. Timothy spoke to chef members about the vision
of Slow Food and invited their individual membership. Karen and Richard
and member Pam Palmer represented Slow Food at the Fort Worth Chapter's
meeting on November 10th, where Pam Palmer spoke to the chefs. |
August 5, 2003 First general membership meeting at Central Market |
| Slow Food Dallas members became acquainted with each other at an organizational meeting led by Timothy Mullner and hosted by Michael Cox at Central Market. A number of people who attended had read about the meeting in Cathy Barber's column in the Texas Taste section of the Dallas Morning News. |
