2020-21 Virtual Winter Vegetable Sagra
What is a sagra?
SAGRA events are inspired by the traditional Italian celebrations of specific local foods, vegetables, fruits, and dishes of an area. Culinary Breeding Network has introduced these festivals into the US to build community excitement and increase consumer demand for locally grown and produced food. CBN also collaborates with Italians to incorporate more educational aspects into their Sagra events. At the festivals, attendees learn about locally grown foods, where to buy them, and how to use them at home. They also can taste home-cook-friendly recipes created by local chefs, food advocates, and nutritionists. Culinary Breeding Network Sagra events have included: Sagra del Radicchio (2018, 2019, 2022), Winter Vegetable Sagra (2019, 2020) and Winter Squash Sagra (2017, 2018, 2019).
Due to the pandemic, the 2020-21 Winter Vegetable Sagra took the form of virtual programming from December 2020 - March 2021, featuring TED-style talks, interactive Q&A sessions, cooking demos, and virtual field tours. Sagra program content focused on nine winter vegetables: Celeriac, Radicchio, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Collards, Winter Squash, Garlic and Purple Sprouting Broccoli. Presentations explored crop histories, origins and domestication; medicinal, nutritional and culinary elements of species; farm visits; cooking demonstrations; art and folklore.
November 30 - December 4: GARLIC
Monday November 30.
Garlic in History, and History in Garlic: Diversity & Domestication
Presenter: Phil Simon, USDA/ARS
Tuesday December 1.
Garlic Types and Breeding
Presenter: Avram Drucker, Garlicana
Wednesday December 2.
Inchelium Red Garlic Project
Presenter: Linda McLean, Washington State University Extension - Colville Reservation
Thursday December 3.
Garlic Collection at the National Plant Germplasm Repository
Presenter: Barbara Hellier, US Department of Agriculture
Friday December 4.
Garlic is Better than Ten Mothers: An Exploration of Health Benefits
Presenter: Irwin Goldman, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Folklore and Mysticism of Garlic (starts at 59:34)
Presenter: Mary DeLorenzo-Woods, folk herbalist
December 7 - 11: RADICCHIO
Monday December 7.
History of Radicchio
Presenter: Andrea Ghedina, Smarties.bio
Tuesday December 8.
Cooking demo with Davide Zimolo and his nonna
Presenter: Davide Zimolo, Italian farmer, and his nonna
Wednesday December 9.
Cooking Demo: Radicchio di Treviso Marinato and Radicchio Pizza
Presenter: Cathy Whims, Nostrana
Thursday December 10.
Radicchio Forcing Techniques
Presenters: Brian Campbell from Uprising Seeds, Jason & Siri from Local Roots Farm, Mary & Brian from Wild Roots Farm, and Andrea Ghedina from Smarties.bio
Friday December 11.
Late Season Variety Trials
Presenters: Linda Fenstermaker of Osborne Quality Seeds and Matthew & Giana of The Crow’s Farm
December 14 - 17: COLLARDS
Monday December 14.
History and Significance of Collards in the South
Presenter: Michael Twitty, culinary historian, educator, and author of The Cooking Gene
Tuesday December 15.
Farm Tour: Results & Updates from the 2020 Heirloom Collards Trials across the US
Presenters: Ira Wallace from Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, Norah Hummel from Seed Savers Exchange, Nico Enjalbert from SeedLinked, Jon Jackson from Comfort Farms, and others!
Wednesday December 16.
Seedkeeping and Cultural Identity
Presenter: Amirah Mitchell, Truelove Seeds
Thursday December 17.
Cooking Demo: 4-Way Collard Salad
Presenter: Ashleigh Shanti, Benne on Eagle
January 11 - 15: BRASSICAS
Monday January 11.
Baffling Brassicas: Deconstructing Brassica rapa and B. oleracea
Presenter: Jim Myers, Oregon State University
Tuesday January 12.
Traditional Italian Brassicas from NE Italy, including Fiolaro di Creazzo, Broccolo di Bassano and Verza Moretta Cabbage
Presenters: Andrea Ghedina of Smarties.bio and farmer Jason Salvo of Local Roots Farm
Wednesday January 13.
From Landrace to Modern Hybrid Broccoli: The genomic and morphological domestication syndrome within a diverse B. oleracea collection
Presenter: Zach Stansell, Cornell University
Thursday January 14.
Brassica Fusion Breeding
Presenter: Phillip Griffiths, Cornell University
Friday January 15:
Rooting for Rutabaga
Presenter: Hannah Swegarden, Cornell University
January 25 - 29: WINTER SQUASH
Monday January 25.
Winter squash background, diversity and breeding
Presenter: Michael Mazourek, Cornell University
Tuesday January 26.
Tetsukabuto, the wonder squash!
Presenter: Alex Stone, Oregon State University
Wednesday January 27.
Cooking Demo: Cooking with Tetsukabuto Squash
Presenter: Pastry Chef Lisa Horness
Thursday January 28.
Tropical Squash
Presenters: Glenn Teves from University of Hawaii, Linda Wessel Beaver from University of Puerto Rico, and Edmund Frost from Commonwealth Seed. Facilitator: Jay Bost, University of Hawaii
Friday January 29.
Squash and Pumpkins in Art Through the Ages (could not be recorded due to copyrights)
Presenter: Alice Formiga, Oregon State University
February 9 - 11: INDIGENOUS WINTER FOODs
Tuesday February 9.
Seed-to-Table: Indigenous Food Sovereignty Today.
Presenter: Dan Cornelius, Intertribal Agriculture Council
Wednesday February 10.
Year-round food sovereignty and security through the story of Coyote and Elk
Presenter: Michelle Week, x̌ast sq̓it (Good Rain) farm
Thursday February 11.
How to make squash candy from Gete-Okosimin, a Cucurbita maxima squash
Presenter: Spring Alaska Schreiner, Sakari Farms
March 15 - 19: CAULIFLOWER + CABBAGE + CELERIAC + SPROUTING BRASSICAS
Monday, March 15. Cooking demo: Colcannon with cabbage, leeks, celeriac
Presenter: Jim Dixon, Wellspent Market / Real Good Food
Tuesday, March 16. Cooking demo: Haitian pikliz and Haitian version of beet and potato salad (vegan and non vegan)
Presenter: Elsy Dinvil, Creole Me Up
Wednesday, March 17. Farm Tour: What farmers want from a winter cauliflower and cabbage
Presenters: Laura Masterson, 47th Avenue Farm and Polly Gottesman, Pumpkin Ridge Gardens. Facilitator: Heidi Noordijk, Oregon State University
Thursday, March 18. Demystifying Sprouting Brassicas: what the heck is the difference between rapini, cime di rapa, broccoli rabe, broccolini, raab and purple sprouting broccoli?
Presenters: Kitchen Garden Farm, Wild Roots Farm, Francesco Di Gioia
Friday, March 19. Deep dive into Celeriac
Presenter: Hayley Park, Oregon State University and Underground Seed Company
The Winter Vegetable Sagra series was made possible thanks to the Oregon Department of Agriculture Specialty Crop Block Grant Program and our generous sponsors.
