Slow Food: One of Life's Greatest Pleasures
by Kathryn Matthews

Believe it or not, this year's brutally cold winter had a romantic upside: slow-cooked food. While many bemoaned the snow, the frigid temperatures, and wrestled with cabin-fever, I secretly relished being housebound. The inclement weather forced me to slow down, giving me a chance to cook for pleasure and to reconnect with food. Though I'm a food writer by profession and a passionate home cook, I must confess: I, too, get caught up in a pace best described as fast, faster, fastest. Sadly, I've downed my share of meals on-the-run, rushing out the door to an obligatory meeting! event! place to be! For those of us juggling the daily pressures of family, career and hectic schedules, this often translates into less-than-optimal food choices.

Herein lies the allure of Slow Food, a non-profit, international organization devoted to celebrating the pleasures of the table. Their premise is simple: if we seek a good life, we must consume good food. And from the Slow Food perspective, good food starts at home. Not just cooking it, but also buying from local growers and sources close to home.

Slow Food's Fast Start
As Alice Waters, the acclaimed restaurateur (of Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California) and Vice President of Slow Food International has often said, "Eating is a political act." Indeed, this was how Slow Food got its start.

Actually, McDonald's helped launch the Slow Food movement in 1986, when it opened a restaurant in Rome at the Spanish Steps. This dismayed the prominent Italian journalist Carl Petrini. But instead of driving his Vespa full-throttle into the golden arches, like Jose Bove, the French farmer hailed as a national hero after ramming his tractor into a McDonald's restaurant being built in his hometown, Petrini chose a tastier way to make his point. He organized a peaceful protest outside the building—armed with bowls of penne—to renounce both fast food and the overall fast pace of modern life. From there, the Movement blossomed. Three years later, in 1989, Petrini founded Slow Food International in Paris, calling for an "ecologically aware consumerism committed to sustainability." In other words: a return to traditional recipes, locally grown foods and wines, and eating as a social event. Today, Slow Food International has expanded to 75,000 members in 45 countries, organized into "convivia", or local chapters; a magazine, appropriately entitled "The Snail," and a website (www.slowfood.com). Here in the U.S., Slow Food (www.slowfoodusa.org) has 12,500 members who support the organic movement, promote North American food traditions and advocate artisanal foods, like heirloom fruits and vegetables, handcrafted wines and beers, farmhouse cheeses and other foods considered part of our cultural identity.

Taking It Slow in the Valley
In June 2002, Slow Food arrived in the Hudson Valley. Convivium members, from Ulster, Dutchess, Orange, Rockland and Putnam counties, meet quarterly and sponsor (or co-sponsor) events. "We want to bring people back to the table—it's the real glue that keeps families as a unit," says Gayil Green, a former farm education center project coordinator and now the Hudson Valley convivium leader.

The reasons people have joined the Slow Food Hudson Valley chapter are as diverse as its members— among them, teachers, farmers, lawyers, chefs, writers and restaurateurs. Take Natalie Steward, chef-owner of Mina restaurant in Red Hook. She showcases local purveyors on her Hudson Valley-themed menu, and she is, at heart, a culinary patriot. The idea of celebrating an authentic, American cuisine is exciting. "Here, we go out for Italian, French or Chinese food, but if you travel to other countries, nobody goes out for 'American' food. I'd like to see that happen!" she says.

Ken Migliorelli, whose Tivoli-based family farm specializes in over fifty varieties of field crops, from bok choy to arugula, likes Slow Food concept of buying and consuming local ingredients. "Nutrition and healthwise, it makes more sense," he says. While he and his wife cook and eat at home most nights, he says that when they do dine out, "We choose restaurants that may be a little more expensive, but that's okay, because we know that their ingredients are top-quality and fresh."

Stephen Kaye, a livestock farmer and president of Valley Farmers, a livestock cooperative in Millbrook, immediately signed on because Slow Foods support artisanal producers. "Slow Food's goals mirrored ours," says Kaye. Member farmers of his co-op raise small herds (35-50 cattle) on grass—never in filthy, overcrowded feedlots. The difference? "Our meat is varied and distinctly flavorful as a result of individual farming practices," says Kaye, who only sells to restaurants and customers in the Hudson and Mohawk Valley areas. He hopes more customers will learn to appreciate their artisanal approach to small-scale farming.

Culinary trips abroad, cooking classes, wine tastings and potluck dinners highlighting seasonal local products are a big part of Slow Food's "pleasure at the table" agenda. But lest anyone think that Slow Food is geared only toward foodie elitists who like to attend fancy dinner parties, Green sets the record straight. "Ultimately, we want to connect with Hudson Valley farmers though Slow Food programs because sustainable agriculture is such an important issue here."

One recent example of a community outreach event was the "Passive Solar Greenhouse Design Workshop" co-sponsored by Slow Food and the Regional Farm and Food Project at the end of February. It was geared toward farmers interested in designing a sustainable greenhouse to extend their growing season. The $65 fee included meeting a farm family who had successfully incorporated a greenhouse into their business, touring a Hawthorne Valley greenhouse, dinner, and an optional second-day field trip.

In March, there was also an annual farmer/chef dinner at Mojo Grill in Wappinger Falls, enabling farmers and chefs to do some informal networking. "We kept the price of that dinner down so that it was affordable," says Green. Those interested in meeting local farmers can attend Slow Food festivals. The upcoming "Totally Fermented" festival in April, hosted by Sprout Creek Farm in Poughkeepsie, features vendors who employ fermentation in the foods or beverages they sell.

Living Slow
You don't have to enjoy cooking soups or stews, nor do you have to be a gourmand, a chef or a vegetarian to participate in Slow Food. Ultimately, it's about the food choices we make. "Support local farmers every way you can because they're the ones who make a huge contribution to the quality of life in the Hudson Valley," urges Green. For all of us, there are some easy ways to bring Slow Food values into our daily lives:

• Shop at farmers' markets or farm stands in season (usually May through October);
• Join a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture);
• Meet farmers in your area so you know who's growing your food;
• Go to your grocery store and ask that they carry_lo-cally grown produce or fruit;
• Eat foods in season;
• Attend Hudson Valley Slow Food events (check out at www.hudsonvalleyslowfood.org)
• Form a convivium: it only takes ten people to start one.

In the end, it's about making time for what really counts. Like the blustery February afternoon I spent making osso bucco, a famously hearty northern Italian peasant dish of wine-braised veal shanks. I had bought the shanks from Kaye and the vegetables from nearby farmers' markets. It was a labor and time-intensive dish. But when the rich, sweet-smoky aroma of the slow-simmering meat drifted into the far reaches of our farmhouse, drawing my reclusive husband into the kitchen like a magnet, my satisfaction was immeasurable.

The anticipation of a meal had brought us together. We opened a bottle of wine, we talked, we relaxed—and savored a quiet moment in our frenzied lives.

Kathryn Matthews is a freelance food, health/nutrition and travel writer who resides in Red Hook and New York City.

Osso Bucco

Serves 4

• 4 pasture-raised veal shanks**, crosscut, 1- to 1-1/2-inches thick (about 4 pounds total)
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 slices slab bacon, diced
• 1 onion, minced (about 3/4 cup)
• 1 carrot, peeled, finely diced (about 1/2 cup)
• 1 celery, ends trimmed, finely diced (about 1/2 cup)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 5-6 ounces button mushrooms, wiped clean with a damp paper towel,and thinly sliced
• 1 tablespoon rosemary, minced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 anchovy fillets
• 1/2 cup dry white wine, such as Gavi di Gavi
• 1-1/2 cups homemade or low-sodium chicken broth (free range, preferably)
• 1-1/2 cups canned whole plum tomatoes, lightly pureed in a blender or food processor
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon Italian parsley, chopped fine
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Gremolata

• 3 tablespoons parsley, chopped fine
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

Season veal on both sides with kosher salt and pepper. Dredge in 1/4 cup flour, shaking off excess. In a skillet large enough to hold all four shanks, heat oil over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, but not smoking, use tongs to sear the meat, until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes total. Transfer meat to a large plate or bowl.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Warm a Dutch oven over medium heat, add bacon, cooking until crispy (but not black) and most of the fat has been rendered, approximately 10 minutes. Remove bacon, placing on a paper towel-lined plate to absorb extra fat.

Add onion, carrot and celery to bacon fat in the Dutch oven. Saute until the vegetables begin to brown, about 4 minutes.

Add garlic, mushrooms and rosemary, sauteing another minute. Remove from heat.

Place the veal shanks on top of the vegetables in the Dutch oven (they should fit snugly inside).

Heat the skillet used to brown the veal shanks over medium-high heat. Deglaze, adding the anchovy fillets and wine. Scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Pour over the veal and vegetables.

Return the Dutch oven to medium-high heat. Add bacon, broth, pureed tomatoes, tomato paste, parsley, salt and pepper. Cover, bringing to a boil over medium-high heat.

Transfer to oven and braise, turning veal every 30 minutes. Add water or stock, if needed, to keep liquid level about the same during cooking. Check veal after 1 hour and 40 minutes, or until a knife or skewer inserted into the shank releases clean.

Remove veal with tongs or a slotted spoon and transfer to a serving dish. Tent with foil to keep warm.

Return sauce to the stovetop. Heat to a slow bubble over high heat. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of flour into the boiling sauce, whisking until thickened (you may not use all the flour).

To serve: Arrange veal shank attractively on individual plates. Spoon sauce over veal and garnish with a pretty sprinkle of gremolata.

**Pasture-raised veal shanks are available from Valley Farmers. Call 845-868-1826 to order through Stephen Kaye, or go to www.valleyfarmers.com for a mail order form.