NEWS RELEASE: Preserving the Bounty Workshop Calendar

From Angela Cardinali
(angela@angelacardinali.com)

On the heels of the recent NY Times article about the farm-to-table movement in the Berkshires, Preserving the Bounty is back for a second year!Due to the popularity of canning and the desire for people to learn how to do it at home, Berkshire Grown will present 13 canning/preservationsessions in September and October throughout the Berkshires. Please see press release below outlining detail.

Workshop Calendar + Details

In north and central Berkshire county, participating members include Gala Restaurant & Bar, Hancock Shaker Village, Mezze Bistro + Bar and Wild Oats Market. Participants in south county include Allium Restaurant + Bar, Amy Cotler, author of The Locavore Way, the Berkshire Co-op Market, Guido's Fresh Marketplace at The Marketplace Kitchen, Heirloom Meals with Carole Murko, Pronto Cooking School, S.O.L. Kitchen Catering and Ward's Nursery & Garden Center.

September 9 – Preserving the Bounty kicks off with Michael Roller of Hancock Shaker Village (HSV) who will present a workshop on Shaker Cooking for Today with a focus on food preservation from 11 am to 12 pm. The cost to participate for is $17 per person and free to HSV members.

September 11 – Wild Oats Market in Williamstown will host a salsa canning workshop from 2-4 pm at the store. The fee to participate is $10 and space is limited. Fiona deRis of S.O.L. Kitchen Catering in Great Barrington will present an all-day workshop on preserving food including tomato sauce, yogurt, lacto-fermented dilly beans and more. In partnership with the Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA/Mass), this workshop will take place from 9 am to 3 pm. The event is part of the Massachusetts Food Preservation Workshop Days. The workshop cost is $50 ($5 discount for NOFA members) and a potluck lunch will be shared at the event.

September 13 – The Berkshire Co-op Market in Great Barrington will host Hawthorne Valley Farm's Sauerkraut Seth who will present a workshop to preserve seasonal vegetables with his traditional lacto-fermentation methods at 4 pm.

September 16 – Carole Murko of Heirloom Meals in Stockbridge will present a workshop on ketchup: preserving tomatoes into an all-American condiment with tomatoes from Farm Girl Farm and Indian Line Farm from 7-10 pm. The cost to participate is $25.

September 18 – Amy Cotler, author of The Locavore Way, will be presenting a workshop in West Stockbridge on making herbs last through winter from 10 am – 12:30 pm. The cost is $40 per person; a $50 fee includes a copy of her book.

September 19 – Pronto Cooking School in Lenox will feature Elyse Etling and Katherine Miller who will present a workshop on dehydrating herbs and vegetables for soup stocks, making dehydrated crackers from zucchini and pickling vegetables with Indian spices from 9 am until 12 pm. The cost to participate is $50. Chris Bonnivier of Gala Restaurant & Bar in Williamstown will host a canning workshop featuring honey-lavender poached port pears at 3 pm.

September 21 – Mezze Bistro + Bar will present a canning and pickling workshop at Sheep Hill right next door to its new restaurant location in Williamstown from 9 until11:30 am. Veteran canner Lauren Gotlieb will present hands-on instruction on pickling carrots and beets sourced from Mighty Food Farm in Pownal, VT. Each participant will take home a jar of each and the cost per person is $25.

September 25 – The Berkshire Co-op Market in Great Barrington will offer a pickling workshop for kids at 10 am with Jenny Schwartz. The workshop is free and open to the public, however space is limited. Ward's Nursery & Garden Center in Great Barrington will host a pickling workshop with Andy McMeekin at 10 am. Guido's Fresh Marketplace and The Marketplace Kitchen chefs will present a hands-on Harvest Cooking workshop in Sheffield followed by supper from 4-7 pm. The preservation focus will be tomato sauce with recipes/instructions and a container of sauce to take home.

October 10 – Extending the canning season, Allium Restaurant + Bar in Great Barrington will host Sherri Brooks Vinton, author of Put 'Em Up, Storey Publishing's newest book on canning and preserving on October_10 from 2:30 – 4:30 pm. Allium's cost per person is $25.

October 30 – Hancock Shaker Village will extend Preserving the Bounty into October with Julie Gale, founder and cooking instructor of At The Kitchen Table Cooking School. This session will provide tips and techniques for proper food storage and preservation highlighting lacto-fermentation, plus canning, pickling, drying and freezing. The cost to participate for is $17 per person and free to HSV members.