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Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Last Minute Update for German Night!


Last Minute Update:


The speaker line-up for tonight's meeting has changed. Your chapter leader, Karen will be leading the evening solo. Don't forget to bring along a German dish, or something that goes well with German food. After dinner, the presentation will include demonstrations on how to make 2 popular traditional German dishes: Käsespaetzle mit Speck (noodles with cheese & bacon) and Bratwurst.


And in case you're wondering what's on the menu ...


A sampling of homemade German spreads to go on traditional German bread, including:

Griebenschmalz (a spread of lard & duck fat seasoned with bits of bacon, ham, apples, onions & herbs)

Grassfed beef & liver Tartare (seasoned with egg, gurken, anchovies, shallots, sea salt & herbs)

Quark (homemade German spreadable cheese) with roasted garlic & herbs

German grass-fed cultured butter

Sahne-Quark (the same cheese as above in desert style with raw cream) with raw honey, black current jelly, & berries


As well as:

Homemade gluten-free Spaetzle with cheese and fresh chopped smoked bacon

Warm, sweet-and-sour traditional Red Cabbage


And:

4 Types of Homemade German Sausages with Sauerkraut


See you tonight!

--
Karen Voelkening-Behegan, MA, NTP
Pasadena CA Chapter Leader

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Meeting Notice for Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Hello Members and Friends of the Pasadena Chapter of the Weston A. Price Foundation!

It is with great pleasure that I announce that our next meeting (Tuesday, October 25th at 6:30 PM) will be the first in a series of "Ethnic Nights," where we will apply our wonderfully healthy food preparation techniques to the traditional cuisine of a particular country. This time, in the spirit of Oktoberfest, the country of choice is GERMANY. So when you plan what you'll bring to our potluck dinner, please try to contribute a German dish to keep with the spirit of the evening.

After dinner, we will be hosting special guest, my brother Steven Voelkening, chef, professional caterer, and owner of Epicurean Catering of Las Vegas. Steven and I, being of German heritage, will demonstrate some traditional German recipes in honor of the evening.

Date: Tuesday, October 25th, 2011
Start Time: 6:30 PM
Agenda: Potluck, Meeting, Cooking Demo
Topic: German Night and cooking demo with the Voelkening Siblings (i.e. Geschwister Völkening)
Place: Nature Friends LA Clubhouse, 423 Yucca Trail, Sierra Madre, CA 91024
http://www.naturefriendsla.org/web/index.php?module=pagemaster&PAGE_user_op=view_page&PAGE_id=9&MMN_position=9:9
Clubhouse Rental Fee: $3.00 per person (cash or check)
Donation: To Be Announced
Clean-up: Volunteers always appreciated

Since Epicurean Catering services several large Las Vegas Casinos & conference venues, they do not offer a website, as the business is entirely word of mouth. So if you'd like more information about the business (which specializes in canapés), please come join us at the next meeting.

Hope to see you there!

--
Karen Voelkening-Behegan
Pasadena CA Chapter Leader

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Recap of September 2011 Meeting


While the weather was still nice, our group chose to dine outside on the patio of Nature Friends Clubhouse in Sierra Madre. Our special guest, Simon Caleb of Creston Valley Meats joined us and spoke after dinner about his business. Unlike most meat processors, Simon's business handles every aspect of the operation, from slaughtering to curing. Setting apart Creston Valley Meats is also the fact that Simon processes all kinds of animals, both traditional and exotic, farmed and wild. Examples of his offerings include: rabbit, turkey, lamb, emu, duck, quail, pork sausage, beef jerky, chicken, eggs, and much more. Servicing a wide variety of small sustainable farms in the state of California, many of the animals he processes are grass-fed or pasture-raised. As a special selling point, Simon's mark-up is considerably lower than that of other meat processors, so his products are not only high-quality but also very affordable. Simon even offers raw dog food made out of all kinds of animal parts, so nothing gets wasted. In fact, some of Simon's most loyal customers are pet owners who have been ordering from him for years. They typically claim to have the lowest vet bills around, due to the biologically appropriate raw food (aka "barf") they serve their beloved pets.

During the potluck, many of us tried some of Simon's sausages contributed by one of our fellow members. The flavor was remarkable. They were tender, juicy, savory, and free of preservatives; in a word: delicious! One aspect of the business which Simon discussed was difficulty finding USDA inspectors who can handle such a wide variety of meats. Most inspectors specialize in just chicken or beef, but at Creston Valley, Simon does it all. This occasionally leads to some frustrations for processor and inspector alike, but as a very likeable, hard-working, reliable, and honest man, Simon is clearly adept at complying with sometimes very tedious government regulations. Keeping up with all the compliance codes can be a challenge, so the whole community is grateful to Simon for cultivating such good relations with the USDA.

Considering the uniqueness of his operation, the wide variety of farms, farmers, animals, and inspectors he works with, and his ability to keep up with a massive amount of red tape, Californians are very lucky to have Simon Caleb around. Simon's products are available for order online and are delivered every other week to specific locations throughout California. We at the Weston A. Price Foundation are grateful for this most valuable service he offers to customers and farmers alike. By keeping his multi-faceted one-of-a kind operation running over many years, Simon is doing his part to support sustainable farming and keep his health- and budget-conscious customers very happy. Bravo, Simon! And thanks for making the 8-hour round-trip journey to be our speaker of the evening!