One of the things that makes the Bay Area such an irresistibly lovely place to live is that, by and large, we're a buoyant lot. Let those on the other coast stomp slushily to the treadmill this morning to suffer for all their bacon-and-eggnog holiday excess. We'll be out here in the Pacific sunshine, picking Meyer lemons to squeeze into our green tea and visualizing abundance--not necessarily around our midriffs, but in our lives and others'.

Too often, it seems, gastronomic New Year's resolutions are all about "don'ts"--don't love the deep-dish at Little Star or the bacon cheeseburger at Marlowe so much; don't demolish half a loaf of Outerlands' bread in one sitting unless you've walked from Russian Hill and back to get it; don't spend more at Blue Bottle than you put in your savings account every month.

Instead of focusing on cutting things out (like the freebie salumi at Adesso's twice-daily aperitivi hour or the chocolate egg creams at Sidekick in the Ferry Building, to name just a few of my own local pleasures) this year, why not focus on adding things in? Things that are fun, things that last, things that do good for your community and for the beautiful and winter-greened land we all call home.

This year, why not resolve to:

Mural and compost at Free Farm

Get Dirty, Grow Locally

A community garden plot is a great place to start, but why not share your labor and get to know your neighbors? Volunteer at one of the numerous urban farms that have sprung up around the Bay Area. Willing hands are always needed, especially in the cold, rainy, tomato-less months. And not all the jobs require heavy lifting or complete mobility; I've spend many afternoons poking seeds into flats, transplanting seedlings, and making signs.

Dig, dine, and dance! Sign up for the monthly newsletter from Pie Ranch. The country outpost of Mission Pie, this small farm is located down the coast in Davenport, just north of Santa Cruz. On the 3rd Saturday of each month, the ranch hosts a community workday, followed by a potluck supper and a barn dance with a caller.

A fun outing for families is Marin Organic's Monday afternoon Glean Team. Each week, a different organic farm in Marin lets locals pick through their already-harvested fields for not-quite-as-pretty (but just as delicious) produce. The boxes of fresh, local veggies are distributed directly to schools in Marin. Afterward, gleaners can pick a round for themselves. (You'd be surprised what kids will eat when they've picked it themselves--especially if they've gotten good & muddy in the process.)

Strawberry Jam

Can It, Brine It, Carve It

Would-be urban homesteaders have a lot of choices these days. Longing to swap out the Heinz's for your own homemade ketchup and pickles? Then the folks at Happy Girl Kitchen have a workshop for you. (And for the truly serious among you, there's "Advanced Jam," prerequisite required.)

Charmed by winter's citrus, but afraid of ending up with sticky clementine soup or Meyer-lemon jello blocks? Put yourself in the knowledgeable hands of June Taylor, the British-born queen of marmalades. No one in the Bay Area takes fruit work as seriously (or finds it as fascinating) as Taylor does. At $200 per person, her small, hands-on classes are pricey, but her intelligent, carefully structured how-tos will forever take the guesswork out of your canning.

Prefer salami to jellies? The nose-to-tail classes in butchery and meat preservation at Fatted Calf will expose your sexy inner butcher. Get on their mailing list to sign up for a class; they sell out fast. (Classes are offered in both their Napa and their Hayes Valley locations.)

In Bernal Heights, Avedano's offers monthly "Butchery for Adults" and "Advanced Butchery" classes, as well as classes in trussing, carving, and curing.

...Then Talk About It

What do we talk about when we talk about food? Everything from the eco-sustainability of small-scale meat production to the history of heirloom apples has become food for thought lately. If you're curious as to what the Bay Area's farmers, writers, makers and thinkers are thinking about, check out the calendars at Kitchen Table Talks and 18 Reasons. Both offer an intriguing roster of thought-provoking events, talks, and panel discussions.

At Headlands Center for the Arts, performances, artists' presentations, and gallery talks are often preceded by a communal meal in the old mess hall. Sometimes, however, the meal itself is the event, as local or visiting artists and chefs come together to get inspired by the palette of the windswept, (supposedly) ghost-ridden landscape of the Marin Headlands, using mostly local and mostly organic produce, meats, and fish as their medium. Have more time than money? Volunteers are often needed to help in the kitchen, set up, serve, and clean up.

Elsewhere in Marin, the Marin Agricultural Land Trust (MALT), which works to preserve farmland in Marin while educating the public about conservation, is currently accepting volunteers for its two training sessions in January and February. The training will include trips to farmers, ranchers, and dairy farmers in the area.

...And Give Back

The holidays may be over, but the need at local food banks, soup kitchens, and food pantries remains just as strong. Find out when, where, and how to help, now that the Thanksgiving-to-Christmas volunteer crush has subsided.

Let's Preserve volunteers get ready to make apple sauce. Photo: Agustin Gutierrez

Foraging with friends and gleaning for good is very much back in vogue. Locally folks like Asiya Wadud of Forage Oakland and Iso Rabins of forageSF, as well as North Berkeley Harvest, PUEBLO Urban Youth Harvest in Oakland, and Anna Chan (aka The Lemon Lady) in Clayton have that covered.

And D.I.Y. canning is also au courant, with Bay Area cookbook authors like Vanessa Barrington encouraging urban homesteaders to put up provisions in their pantry.

Now comes canning for a cause. The Sonoma County group Let's Preserve a community effort to continue old-fashioned (now newly chic) food traditions, make good use of excess produce, and help those in need.

This past harvest season in Healdsburg, Santa Rosa, and Petaluma thousands of pounds of gleaned apples, tomatoes, and quince were preserved and donated to local food pantries, in an effort, says one organizer, to close the gap between waste and want. Apples and tomatoes were canned for sauce, the quince became filling for empanadas that were frozen for future use.

Merrilee Olson, who runs her own Sebastapol-based food business PRESERVEsonoma, didn't grow up hungry but her family needed help to put food on the table. Raised by a single mom, who supported three kids on a state salary in Lincoln, Nebraska, food stamps frequently helped to provide dinner. Now a professional chef who works with local farmers and artisan food and wine clients, Olson wanted to find a way to give back through food.

She teamed up with Judy Christensen from Slow Harvest in Healdsburg and Elissa Rubin-Mahon of Artisan Preserves in Forestville and last summer offered a training workshop for volunteers who want to galvanize their community to preserve surplus produce.

Last month, she led a group of volunteers who peeled, cut, cooked, and canned hundreds of pounds of apples to benefit the COTS Petaluma Kitchen.

Food pantries will accept preserved products that have been processed in a commercial kitchen under the supervision of someone who is food-safety certified, says Olson.

Nobody doubts the need is out there. NPR reported this week that the number of people on food stamps hit a new all-time high; as of September nearly 43 million people were using the program, according to data released this week. "Food insecurity is reaching frightening levels," says Olson. "We believe we can make a difference in our communities by preserving and making healthy food available where it's needed."

Last month, KQED's Forum addressed hunger in the Bay Area. In San Francisco, one of every five children is at risk of going hungry and the numbers are similar in other local counties. During this holiday season, food bank and soup kitchen operators are reporting a spike in the number of families that are seeking food.

"I'd love to see every community in the Bay Area doing its own preserving and feeding their neighbors in need," says Olson, who notes that groups as far away as Minneapolis have been inspired by the Let's Preserve model to can food for the needy. She also points to Anya Fernald's Commando Canning events, Yes We Can Food, in Oakland as a local example of community canning.

In the future, Olson would like to include other preservation methods, such as pickling, drying, and curing, to ensure that good produce -- including vegetables -- finds its way to the underserved. She'd also like to teach families in need preservation techniques so they can can for themselves.

Clearly, community canning events do good. They're also fun. "We get volunteers from 18 on up -- at our last event we had eight young adults from the Coast Guard -- and everyone had a good time sharing stories in the kitchen and around a table at a potluck afterwards," says Olson. "There's nothing like food to build community."

To learn more about how to start something similar in your area or to sign up for future community canning events, visit Let's Preserve.

Do you know of similar efforts in your area? Let us know below.

[Thanks to Jennie Kimmel and Agustin Guiterrez for sharing their photos.]

Hunger in the Bay Area originally aired on KQED Radio's Forum 88.5FM Fri, Nov 26, 2010 -- 9:30 AM

In San Francisco, one of every five children is at risk of going hungry and the numbers are similar in other Bay Area counties. As the holiday season begins, food bank and soup kitchen operators are reporting a spike in the number of families that are seeking food. We talk with officials from several Bay Area food agencies about the need they're seeing and how people can help.

Host: Dave Iverson

Guests:
• Kathy Jackson, CEO of the Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties
• Larry Sly, executive director of the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano Counties
• Paul Ash, executive director for the San Francisco Food Bank -- an organization that collects food to distribute to needy people

Bay Area Food Banks central resource: bayareahunger.org
Map and links to local Bay Area Food Banks: Find Your Local Food Bank

Anyone who's ever browsed through the baskets of Star Route Farms or Green Gulch Farm knows what beautiful greens look like. Bunches of taut, brilliantly verdant kale and chard, each leaf perfectly ruffled or puckered, turgid and bright, rustling together crisp as taffeta or a new dollar bill.

Such perfection is no mean feat for an organic farm, where insidious leaf-miners and flea beetles (to name just two of a whole host of burrowing, munching hungry creatures who have a greedy lust for chard and arugula unmatched by even Alice Waters) can turn a row of gorgeous leaves into hole-punched eyelet overnight. Strong plants, good soil, a lot of attention, companion plantings that feed beneficial bugs--all these help. But so does accepting that your crop is always going to be on a bell curve, and not every leaf can be above average.

Of course, restaurant chefs (and the picky shoppers paying top dollar at Ferry Plaza) want perfection. Providing impeccable produce year after year has made the reputation of these local farms. But what happens to all the delectable but not-quite-gorgeous-enough stuff?

Thanks to Marin Organic, it's showing up on the plates of those who need it most: active, hungry, growing kids.

Every Monday, Scott Davidson, Marin Organic's School Lunch and Gleaning Program Manager, meets up with an all-ages group of volunteers at a selected farm. The task is simple: go through rows that have already been harvested for sale, and pick the best of what's left. The produce is boxed, rinsed, and loaded onto Marin Organic's truck. Cooled overnight, it's delivered the next day to schools, camps, and/or after-school programs all over Marin, either for free or at very low cost.

Fresh, nutritious, locally-grown produce goes to the kitchen and turns into lunch--and because there's no cost to the farm, and very little cost in labor, participating schools actually save money, money that can then be spent on getting more healthy food to their students.

Anyone with a couple of hours free on a Monday afternoon can join the Glean Team. Sign up online or over the phone, and an email detailing the next week's location will be sent to you every Friday. Usually, the location flip-flops between Green Gulch and Star Route, with a few other farms making occasional appearances.

Wear a jacket and don't-mind-getting-muddy shoes, and bring a few tote and/or plastic bags for your post-gleaning haul. (After the gleaning is done, volunteers can go through the harvested section yet again and pick for themselves.)

Last Monday, we left a hot, sunny afternoon in Oakland for the cool, foggy twists of the Shoreline Highway, bumping down the eucalyptus-lined road to the Zen Center's Green Gulch Farm. As you might expect from a longtime Buddhist retreat cupped close to the ocean, the whole place is soaked in peace and abundantly quiet. The joy jumps out in color: ravishingly purple bursts of lavender, whorled-pink roses, black-red pincushion flowers, vermillion-tipped raspberry canes and espaliered apples and pears weighted with green-and-gold fruit. Yellow-spattered mustard plants gone to flower reach up six feet high over the broccoli and cabbage rows we've come to harvest.

These weed-laced rows are going to be mowed under tomorrow, Scott tells us. The biggest, fattest heads of broccoli and cauliflower have already been picked, but sharp eyes can find side shoots, mini-heads growing next to where the main stalk was broken off. These tender, bite-sized florets are gold to school-kitchen chefs, he tells us, easy to cook and easy to eat.

We fan out down the rows. Everyone likes the hunt, especially the teenage boys in the crew. The leaves are huge and heavy, hiding the score, but underneath, the tender stalks snap easily and our recycled waxed-cardboard boxes fill up fast. We move onto small, loosely curled heads of cabbage, then over to red-veined plumes of ruby chard, puckery dino kale and curled Bloomsdale spinach.

We're mindful to take only the best-looking stuff, part of the education process of eating local and organic. Because it's being given away, it has to look better, even, than what's bought: No one, even a cash-strapped camp or school, wants to feel like a dumping ground for wormy charity carrots, no matter how much Vitamin A they might provide. It's not hard, however: there are still plenty of lovely greens left, enough to fill at least twenty-five or thirty boxes, if not more.

Scott points out the clumps of nettles growing in between the rows. This weed is probably the most nutritious thing growing on the farm (sellable for at least $6 a pound at a farmers' market) but the leaves will cause a brief, itchy sting if touched. They do leave their mark on my wrists and knees as I pick, but I don't mind: I've happily paid good money for nettle soup and nettle pasta at Delfina. Tomorrow's breakfast will be emerald eggs, scrambled with sauteed nettles. (Once cooked, they're harmless and delicious, especially rich in B vitamins. Just wear gloves, or use tongs, when working with the raw item.)

By six o'clock, the boxes are neatly stacked in the truck. Now we can go over the rows one more time, picking for ourselves. Now I'm not so particular: holey chard, nettle tips, tiny volunteer beets and potatoes all go into my bag. We'll be living off this bounty for a few days at least, while back at the farm, the tractor will be turning under the last few roots and leaves, making room for a new planting.

Green Gulch Greens Pie
This adaptable, calzone-like pie is inspired by Greek spanikopita. You could easily replace the yeast dough with six or seven sheets of defrosted phyllo dough, brushing melted butter between each sheet before filling and sealing.

Any mixture of reasonably tender greens will work here, including chard, spinach, orach, mustard, radish or turnip tops, lacinato (dino) kale, and beet greens. If you want to add in some tougher greens, like collards, kale, or broccoli leaves, be sure to shred them very finely so they'll cook as fast as the softer greens. A handful of strongly flavored greens, like arugula, parsley, or sorrel can be tossed in as an accent.

Makes 2 pies, enough to serve 6-8

Ingredients:
For dough:
1 1/2 tsp yeast (1/2 package)
3/4 cup lukewarm water
2 cups all-purpose white flour, or 1 cup white flour mixed with 1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tbsp cornmeal
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil

For filling:
approximately 10 cups shredded mixed greens
1 large onion, peeled and diced (about 1 cup)
4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg, or to taste
Juice and grated rind of 1 lemon
2 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
1 oz. ricotta salata, crumbled
Salt, if needed
2 eggs
2 tbsp raw rice
Egg wash (optional): 1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tbsp water

Preparation:
1. To make dough: Dissolve yeast in water and let sit for a few minutes. In a large bowl, stir together flour, cornmeal and salt. Pour in yeast mixture and olive oil. Stir to make a pliable dough.

2. On a lightly floured surface, knead dough for 5-8 minutes, until it feels springy and elastic. Rinse out bowl, coat lightly with olive oil, and return dough to the bowl, turning to coat with oil.

3. Cover bowl with a clean damp towel and let dough rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours. Punch down and divide dough in two.

4. While dough is rising, make filling: Place a large saute pan over medium-low heat. Add oil, then onions and garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, until onions are soft and translucent but not browned.

5. Add greens by the handful, stirring, until they collapse and cook down. (You make have to do this in batches, removing the already cooked greens to a separate bowl.)

6. When all the greens are cooked, add nutmeg, lemon juice and lemon rind, and crumbled cheeses. Let cool slightly, and taste for seasoning, adding salt if needed. Stir in rice and beaten eggs, and let sit for 15 minutes.

7. To assemble, preheat oven to 375F. Roll and stretch one dough ball into a long oval. Lightly grease a large rimmed baking sheet. Place dough on sheet. Cover half the oval with greens filling, leaving an inch-wide margin. Fold over remaining dough and pinch together to seal. Repeat with remaining portion of dough.

8. If desired, brush pies with egg wash. Bake for 45-50 minutes, until dough is firm and golden brown.

For more information or to sign up with the Glean Team, go to Marin Organic. The next outing will be Monday, Aug. 9th, from 4-6pm at Star Route Farms in Bolinas.

This year's 23rd Annual Star Chefs and Vintners Gala benefiting Meals on Wheels was a feast of a fete, with more than 70 chefs working their magic behind the scenes, over 75 wineries pouring, and a steady stream of boozy concoctions coming from a few of the city's favorite bartenders.

The hors d'oeuvres "grazer" was superb and barely left room for dinner. Of the (way too many) bites I had, some favorites were:

Janine Falvo's (Carneros Bistro & Wine Bar) adorable mini cone filled with orange marlin tartar with green peas and black truffle shavings. Notably, the green peas had been hit with some liquid nitrogen and then transformed into a powder form before being folded into the tartar. Fresh, light, and tasting of spring.

Jeff Banker and Lori Baker's (Baker & Banker) house-smoked trout on potato latke with pickled beets, shaved fennel and horseradish crème fraiche. Crispy and satisfying with familiar flavors amped up with great ingredients.

Jennifer Biesty's (Scala's Bistro) duck liver mousse crostini topped with Swanton Farms strawberries, Sicilian pistachios and Villa Manodori balsamic. A rich, salty, sweet, balanced bite of perfect.

Nathan Beriau and Patrick Callarec's (The Ritz-Carlton SF) seared jumbo scallop over uni risotto. The scallop was silky smooth and quivering inside, and the sea urchin roe risotto was pure decadence. Felt rich just eating this little plate…which was probably the idea…after wining and dining so well, one could sure feel like she had Benjamins lining her clutch. All part of the plan, I'm sure, as the Silent Auction was well underway at this point.

Kudos to the bartenders as well. Those cocktails were works of art. I fell in love with Scott Beattie's (H.M.S. Cocktails) John Chapman -- a martini of St. George whiskey, lemon juice, ginger simple syrup, local apple juice, and St. George Pear au de Vie, topped with Thai coconut-apple-ginger foam and dehydrated apple chips, a sprinkle of cinnamon and pretty flower petals. Purrr.

Needless to say, by actual dinner time, folks' paddle hands were well-oiled. A record-breaking $1.2 million was raised this year. Not surprising, considering there were some big ticket items on the auction block, like getting whisked away on a private jet to Sun Valley for three nights, during which Nancy Oakes (Boulevard) herself will prepare dinner for you and 7 of your closest friends (Winning bid: $38K).

By far, the coolest thing of the evening was getting to witness the mass of top chefs preparing the courses behind the curtain. It was a sight to behold. A sea of plates, chef's whites, and incredible camaraderie. It was like a well-orchestrated dance -- teams of chefs searing, plating, garnishing…dozens of skilled hands hovering over rows upon rows of plates…and a procession of fantastic servers at the ready.

Gala Chef Chair Nancy Oakes oversaw the 10 teams of chefs, with each team producing a different 3-course menu for close to 1000 guests. Given the scale of this endeavor, it was truly impressive how completely under control the entire operation was. I caught Oakes surveying the scene with a smile on her face and she must have been thinking the same thing as she commented on how calm everyone was. No frenzy, no panic. Just brisk, precise work, and lots of smiles. And this is why these are our star chefs.

The evening ended with a stunning dessert reception with every sweet imaginable – cookies, cupcakes, ice cream, mochi, affogato, chocolate in all shapes and sizes – indulgent confections all laid out to be ravished with gusto. By then it seemed, everyone was too sauced to count calories. Favorites of the evening were Jessica Sullivan's (Boulevard) summer berry brioche pudding and Taste Catering's fantastical Alice in Wonderland-inspired spread.

Generally speaking though, I think it's safe to say that every excessive calorie was consumed with relish that evening. For a good cause, but of course.

On Sunday, May 16th, Meals on Wheels of San Francisco will be throwing its 23rd Annual Star Chefs and Vintners Gala at Fort Mason's Festival Pavilion. The gala is a benefit for San Francisco's homebound seniors, and is the organization's largest fundraiser of the year.

Nancy Oakes of Boulevard will be returning for her 7th year as Gala Chef Chair -- it will be her 22nd year participating in the benefit. She will be leading an illustrious line-up of more than 70 of the Bay Area's finest chefs. Who says too many cooks in the kitchen is a bad thing?

Among the chefs participating in this year's gala are: Mourad Lahlou (Aziza), Jeff Banker/Lori Baker (Baker & Banker), Daniel Patterson (Coi), Douglas Keane/Nick Peyton (Cyrus), Jan Birnbaum (Epic Roasthouse), Thomas McNaughton (Flour + Water), Chris Cosentino (Incanto), Staffan Terje (Perbacco), Laurence Jossel (Nopa / Nopalito), Richard Reddington (REDD), Charles Phan (The Slanted Door), and Mark Sullivan (Spruce).

Talk about a culinary dream team, huh?

With so many all-stars on board, the meal will no doubt be stellar. I asked Oakes what it's like organizing such a massive undertaking with so much talent involved. She responded, "First and foremost, we are so fortunate to be in the Bay Area. So many [of our talented chefs] say yes."

Logistically, the evening will begin with an hors d'oeuvre "grazer" and wine reception, featuring creations from more than 30 chef and wineries. Following will be a three-course, sit-down meal. Oakes explained, the chefs have been grouped together to form 8 groups total. Each group will prepare its own menu for its assigned seating area. "The goal is to let the chefs be who they are," she said. "With each group cooking for about 100 people, it's important that they are able to put something out that they are proud of…and of course, to have fun." Chefs with similar cooking styles will be grouped together, and at least one veteran gala chef will be placed on each team.

Also, with more than 75 of California's leading vintners participating in the gala, there will be plenty of wine to pair with all that fantastic food. And in case you're still feeling thirsty, a special cocktail bar manned by beloved bartenders, Scott Beattie (Hangar One), Jon Gasparini (Rye), Scott Baird & Aaron Smith (15 Romolo) and Daniel Hyatt (The Alembic Bar) will serve up classic spirits and exotic concoctions.

The evening will culminate with a lavish dessert reception, featuring sweet treats from Sara Spearin (Dynamo Donuts), Jake Godby (Humphry Slocombe) and Bill Corbett (Coi & Il Cane Rosso), just to name a few.

Let's not forget about the benefit aspect of this whole shindig. Both a live and silent auction will be held, during which guests will have the opportunity to bid on a number of lavish prizes (food, wine, and luxury-themed). Guests will also have the chance to pledge donations to the "Fund-A-Route" campaign, which goes towards funding an entire meal delivery route for the next year. Last year's gala raised a grand total of $1.1 million.

"Providing nourishing meals and supportive services for San Francisco's seniors is of utmost importance during these trying economic times," said Ashley McCumber, Executive Director of Meals On Wheels of San Francisco. "With the generosity of these world-class chefs and wineries, we are able to provide 440,000 meals to seniors in San Francisco."

Tickets are pricey, but if you have deep pockets or know someone who does, encourage them to wine and dine for a good cause.

Individual tickets are priced at $400, with patron levels ranging from $1,500 to $20,000. To reserve tickets or for more information, call 415-343-1280 or visit www.mowsf.org.

******

While the menus have yet to be finalized, I'm betting that we can expect to see lots of local spring bounty. Think asparagus, strawberries, baby carrots, fava beans, fresh, light, vibrant flavors. Here's a sneak peek at a dish Chris Cosentino (Incanto) is preparing:

Fava Bean and Strawberry Salad with Pecorino
Recipe courtesy of Chris Cosentino, Executive Chef of Incanto & Co-founder of Boccalone

Serves: 6

Ingredients:
2 cups shelled fresh fava beans [about 2 pounds of favas in their pods]
2 cups strawberries, trimmed and quartered
1 bunch wild rucola or arugula
Pecorino cheese
Juice of 1 lemon
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Kosher or sea salt, to taste
Coarse ground black pepper, to taste

Preparation:
1. Bring a pot of water to boil, season with salt, blanch the shelled favas for about 1 minute then transfer to an ice bath seasoned with one teaspoon of salt so as not to overcook.
2. Remove the skins of the larger favas and discard, the smaller ones don’t need to be removed as they are not tough or bitter. Place the favas in a mixing bowl, then set aside.
3. Add the strawberries to the fava beans. Season with salt and fresh ground black pepper. Add the rucola or arugula.
4. Dress with a splash of lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil, toss to incorporate all the ingredients. Put on a platter or on individual plates.
5. Using a vegetable peeler, peel curls of pecorino on top and serve.

With a nod to Earth Month, Food and Wine This Week looks at urban gardens emerging in San Francisco, and rides along with Food Runners as they pick up leftover food for distribution to those in need. Leslie Sbrocco is back with Bay Area Bites blogger, Stephanie Rosenbaum and Mary Risley, founder of Food Runners -- an organization who's mission is to help alleviate hunger in San Francisco, to help prevent waste and to help create community.

Related Posts and Websites:

• Food Runners website
• Food Runners and Urban Gardens
• Edible Gardening with Planting Justice
• A Pigeon in Every Cart: Wading Through Food Waste in California
• Little City Gardens
• Little City Gardens makes a go of urban agriculture in San Francisco
• Alemany Farm
• Garden for the Environment
• The Free Farm
• Free Farm Stand
• Planting Justice
• Neighborhood Fruit
• Produce to the People
• Ghost Town Farm

From graffiti to mural at Free Farm

In a place as densely populated as the Bay Area, one person's bright idea can make a big impact. Just ask Mary Risley, owner of Tante Marie's Cooking School and the founder of Food Runners. As a cooking teacher, Risley loved being part of San Francisco's vibrant food culture. But she also knew that part of the price of perfection for the city's restaurants, bakeries, cafes, and cooking schools was a willingness to toss anything that wasn't 100% great. Which meant a lot of food--good quality, clean, unused but not sellable--was filling up a lot of dumpsters at the end of every business day.

With the city's ever-rising cost of living (and ever-squeezed public and private resources for homeless shelters, low-income families, and crisis centers), how could such food get out of the landfill and into the hands of the hungry? Businesses were busy, nonprofits were stretched; the missing link was just that, a link that would connect the food industry with organizations dedicated to feeding the hungry.

Looking for a way to start giving back to the city that had nourished her and supported her business, Risley went first to the SF Food Bank, but realized she wanted to be doing a lot more than packing bags of canned goods. So the Food Bank got her in touch with Daily Bread, an organization in Berkeley run by Carolyn North, which picked up unused food and spread it around to the city's homeless shelters and crisis centers. She asked North if she could start a similar organization across the bay, and North agreed, so long as she changed the name. So in 1987, Risley started Food Runners, a nonprofit dedicated to feeding the hungry by reducing food waste.

As a businesswoman, Risley wanted to make Food Runners into a professional, easy-to-use system that would be simple and mutually beneficial for both businesses and service organizations. 23 years later, Food Runners relies on a network of 250 volunteers who pick up excess usable food from over 400 sites every weekday, from every type of place from small cafes and big hotels to local schools and corporate cafeterias. The food is delivered by volunteers' car and the company's refrigerated truck to shelters and neighborhood food pantries.

When I managed a cafe in the Ferry Building, I knew that all I had to do was box up our extra pastries at the end of every day. The next morning, a cheerful volunteer would show up, pick up the boxes and sign off on my tax-deductible tally sheet. Later that day, those pastries, made with organic ingredients and fruit from a local family farm, might be feeding parents and kids at a drop-in center for homeless families, or adding a little bit of sweetness to a seniors' lunch.

There are other ways to turn waste into resources. The easiest way to start? Drop that banana peel into your green bin. One banana peel multiplied by over 700,000 residents in San Francisco alone means that many tons of food waste (everything from that four-day-old hunk of burrito at the back of the fridge to orange peels and onion skins) are diverted from the waste stream every day via the city's green-waste bins. All that stinky stuff goes to Jepson Prairie Organics, a composting facility near Vacaville. Over the course of about 30 days, it's transformed into high-quality compost that's ready for use by local farms, nurseries, and vineyards.

Or, what about starting from the very beginning, and growing more food from scratch right here in the city? Even in cities as highly populated as San Francisco, Oakland, and Berkeley, a surprisingly amount of arable land is still available. Just look at the Free Farm, which was started on a vacant lot at Gough and Eddy Streets in January of this year.

Pastor Megan Rohrer, a young Lutheran pastor who works with a variety of homeless communities around the city as the executive director of Welcome Ministry, wanted to expand the work she was doing, going from feeding the hungry of San Francisco to growing food for those same communities. The St. Paulus Lutheran church was willing to offer an empty lot it owned to her and a dedicated community of volunteers to make a garden.

Meanwhile Tree, a longtime food-justice activist and community gardener as well as the founder of the Mission's popular Free Farmstand, was looking for a place to grow more local food to supply the farmstand. Once Megan's church connections met Tree's gardening expertise, the Free Farm was born. With grants from the Mesa Foundation along with several local Episcopal and Lutheran churches, plus a whole lot of wheelbarrow-pushing volunteer labor, the weedy lot has undergone an astonishing transformation.

What was once a trash-strewn, needle-littered eyesore that neighbors called "The Pit" is now a welcoming, mural-lined space full of neatly mounded raised beds planted with salad mix, potatoes, beans, broccoli and lettuce. Bricks salvaged from the St. Paulus church (which stood on the space before burning down in 1995) now form strawberry beds on the hillside and a winding spiral bed planted with flowers, herbs, and vegetables. Cold frames and a newly built greenhouse are filled with trays of tiny seedlings, everything from kale to tomatoes to marigolds started from seeds donated by church communities across the country. Bright garden-themed murals by local artist Leanne C. Miller cover the concrete wall on the west side, and there are plans to bring more artists and sculptors into the garden to create site-specific works.

Volunteers get down and dirty every Wednesday and Saturday from 10am to 2pm, building infrastructure, hauling mulch, manure and compost, planting seedlings, waterings, and more. A volunteer-made vegan lunch, often featuring produce harvested from the garden, is shared by all. Volunteers will also share in the harvest, with excess supplying the Free Farmstand (Rohrer hopes to establish another neighborhood Free Farmstand on the site) as well as providing fresh local produce for twice-weekly homeless dinners organized by Welcome. (For more information on Welcome's additional garden projects around the Bay Area, go to Urban Share.)

At the educational Garden for the Environment in the Inner Sunset, weekend workshops teach everything from composting basics to chicken husbandry. Want to spread the word? If you're a San Francisco resident, you can sign up for a three-month gardening and compost educator program that will give you all the necessary tools to teach the basics of urban green gardening and composting. Just want to do a little digging? Volunteer days are Wednesday and Saturdays, 10am to 3pm, with pizza from nearby Arizmendi Bakery to share. The garden's also a great place to get ideas for your own backyard. Organized by concept, there are examples of low-water gardens, native plants, edibles, and more.

In association with the SF Parks Trust, the Garden for the Environment is also offering Garden City, a three-part class on creating an urban farm or community garden, on May 2nd, 9th, and 16th. Topics include locating and identifying available land, working with the city to get the proper permits, building a community of volunteers, and the horticultural nuts and bolts of productive edible gardening and landscaping.

And finally, don't forget about what's growing in your own backyard. Want to turn your lawn into a food forest? Check out a recent blog post about how a week (and a bunch of friends and neighbors) transformed one Oakland bungalow, thanks to the help of permaculture designers Planting Justice. Neighborhood Fruit and Produce for the People can help you find, glean or distribute excess fruit in your neighborhood. Got extra lemons or loquats? Don't waste them, share them!

I don't much feel like being clever today. My thoughts are 3,286 miles away in Port-au-Prince-- a city I have yet to visit.

Perhaps it is the fact that I live in a city that has been devastated by earthquakes in the past and will be, undoubtably, devastated again that the one in Haiti has taken up so much of my attention. The thought of those people I love most in the world killed, or trapped alive by fallen concrete and steel is something I wonder if I would have the strength to bear.

Fortunately for us, we have strict earthquake-driven building codes. We have support and money and infrastructure-- what little of that the people of Port-au-Prince had is destroyed or severely crippled.

Haitians need food, they need shelter, they need clothes, and they need medicine.

And, no matter what Mr. Limbaugh says, they need our sympathy and our money.

If you are interested in donating money to the cause of helping the victims of the Port-au-Prince earthquake I would recommend a quick visit to Charity Navigator. It can answer any questions/concerns you might have about text-driven donations, and assist in your decision as to which charity you might give.

Or check out KQED's own Haiti Aid Resource Guide while you're here.

If you want to donate money specifically toward food aid in Haiti The Atlantic has an article linking to food aid resources.

There is a growing number of local restaurants, musicians, book publishers, and whatnots joining the Haiti donating various percentages of their proceeds (in some cases 100%) to Haitian Relief. If you can stomach the exaggerated, offensive photo borrowed from The New York Post, you might actually find some good activities in which to engage over at Eater SF.

Labouyi Bannann

As I was baking off the bit of fun I had originally planned to share today, everything just felt wrong. As I stood in my kitchen, I realized that I had never given much thought to Haiti. Period. I knew nothing of their music, or culture, or food. All that had ever come to mind prior to yesterday were thoughts of slavery, revolution, poverty, and natural disaster. Never in my life had I had a single, happy thought about the place.

I wondered what the people of Haiti ate? There are few better ways of getting the feel of an unfamiliar place or culture than to eat their food. If I were Haitian, I'd want something nourishing and, above all, comforting.

And that's where Labouyi Banann comes in.

It's porridge, essentially-- one made from ripe banana and unripe plantain. There are myriad ways to spell it, but only one way to eat it-- with a spoon. Make that two ways to eat it-- hot or cold. Either way, it's a good way to start the day. Or end it, for that matter. The following recipe makes six to eight servings, so I will be breakfasting on it every morning and, while I do, I will be reading and watching and praying for things to get better (can these people please get a break once in a while?) in Haiti.

Ingredients

1 unripe (green) plantain

1 large or two small, ripe yellow bananas

2 cups water

1 can (12 oz.) of evaporated milk

1 can (12 oz.) of coconut milk (or 1 cup whole milk)

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

3 cinnamon sticks

2 whole star anise

A pinch of grated nutmeg

A heavy pinch of salt

½ light or dark brown sugar (white sugar will work, too)

½ teaspoon grated lime zest

More dark brown sugar and lime zest for garnish

Preparation:

1. In a blender, purée plantain, banana, and water until smooth.

2. Place purée into a medium sized, heavy-bottomed pot. Bring to a boil over low to medium heat.

3. Add evaporated and coconut milks, lime zest, sugar, star anise, nutmeg, salt, and cinnamon sticks. Bring again to a boil and reduce to a simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent any burning. The texture should less like oatmeal and more like Cream of Wheat. Turn off heat and stir in vanilla.

4. This can be eaten hot or cold. Garnish with a sprinkle of dark brown sugar and lime zest.

It's hard to think about hunger on Thanksgiving. Today most of us will be inundated with turkey, potatoes, and pie. The idea of an empty belly seems incongruous to the day itself. But for many families, it's a sober reality. In San Francisco alone, over 150,000 people lack the resources to feed themselves and their families. And as this horrible recession we're living through slogs on, more and more people -- many of whom lived middle class existences not too long ago -- are thankful today not only for their families, but for the food banks whose tireless employees and volunteers helped provide today's feast.

According to Lisa Mizokami, the Volunteer Services Manager at the San Francisco Food Bank,

"requests for food are up 20% this year over last -- and the numbers have kept climbing as we approach the holidays. Just this past Saturday, one of our community partners was overwhelmed by the turnout for holiday food. They normally serve around 400 families each week and had requested enough food for 700 for this last weekend before Thanksgiving. When 1,000 people turned up, they had to scramble to make sure as many people as possible received something. But 50 people still left empty-handed."

And Brian Higgins, the Communications Manager of the Alameda County Community Food Bank says his organization has

"referred more emergency (same-day) food in 2009 than [they] did in 2006 & 2007 combined."

The great news is that the number of people volunteering at food banks has also increased. People like you have donated time and money to allow various local food banks to meet increased demand. Yet more help is needed.

So if you're looking for a way to give back to your community this holiday season, or all year, here are some local volunteer opportunities at organizations offering food to those in need. If you know of a great program not listed here, please include it in the comments section.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Bay Area Hunger

This is a great place to get started if you're interested in volunteering at a food bank. Bay Area Hunger is a resource organization that provides information on the the many food banks in the greater Bay Area so you can easily find one close to where you live or work. They even have a map detailing where each food bank is located. Their site also provides information on donating and upcoming benefits.

San Francisco Food Bank
Twitter: @SFFoodBank

The San Francisco Food Bank is the critical link between food and people. They provide food to over 22,000 households each week through 400+ non-profit partners and will distribute 36.5 million pounds of food this year to meet an ever-growing need in our community.

How to Volunteer
Weekend food sorting shifts are full through the new year, so they are now trying to schedule remaining weekday projects through December. Evening and weekend projects are being scheduled for 2010 for those who would like to start their new year off by helping their community.

How to Donate Food
There are over 50 locations throughout San Francisco where people can drop off food.

---

Alameda County Community Food Bank
Twitter: @accfb

Demand at the Alameda County Community Food Bank is at an all-time high in its 24-year history. In October, their Emergency Food Helpline set an all-time record for food referrals (3,235) households for the fourth consecutive month. The ACCFB relies on donations and volunteers keep their program going, which includes distributing 8 million pounds of fresh produce this to year, nearly half of all the food that we distribute.

How to Volunteer

• Food Sorting -- Because this is a very popular time of year to volunteer, the Alameda County Community Food Bank started a program to facilitate volunteers to directly serve their 275 member agencies. Email volunteer@accfb.org for more information.
• Be an operator on the Emergency Food Helpline -- Operators refer food to more than 3,000 households every month. Bilingual reps are extremely in demand. There’s a six-month minimum volunteer requirement – one three-hour shift per week – and there’s 4-6 weeks of training involved. Email volunteer@accfb.org and write HELPLINE in the subject line for more information.
• Join their advocacy group -- Become a member of Community Advocates Against Hunger (CAAH), which meets monthly and addresses anti-hunger legislation (like improved access to food stamps). Write advocate@accfb.org.

How to Donate Food

• There are food drop-off bins set up throughout Alameda County. Many of these are at schools, churches, and grocery stores.
• You can also take part in the ACCFB's Virtual Food Drive where every $1 donated purchases $7 in food.
• Consider organizing your own Food Drive at your work, school, church or with your community group. They will supply everything you’ll need. Just call 510-635-3663, ext. 318

---

Glide Memorial Church
Twitter: @glidesf

Glide's mission is to create a radically inclusive, just and loving community mobilized to alleviate suffering and break the cycles of poverty and marginalization. They provide 850,000 meals a year, making Glide one of the largest free meal providers in San Francisco. Glide is also the only program in town that provides three nutritious meals to the city’s poor, homeless and hungry 364 days of the year.

How to Volunteer

• Food volunteer opportunities include serving food, toy sorting, and sorting and stacking food for Glide's Grocery Bag Give Away.
• Glide is also looking for people to participate in their professional volunteer program, including doctors and other health care providers and employment professionals.

---

Project Open Hand
Blog: Project Open Hand

Project Open Hand provides meals to seniors and people living with serious illnesses in San Francisco.

How to Volunteer
Prepare meals on site, sort and fill grocery bag orders, deliver food, and serve meals for seniors at their senior lunch sites.

---

St. Anthony Foundation
Twitter: @stanthonysf

St. Anthony Foundation has responded to the needs of poor and low-income San Franciscans for the past six decades. They serve daily meals and provide shelter and clothes to those in need.

How to Volunteer
Volunteer projects range from serving trays in the Dining Room and sorting clothes for guests to skills-based services in the Tenderloin Tech Lab, Clinic, and Social Work Center. They offer both regular shifts and special group projects designed for large or small teams

---

Meals On Wheels of San Francisco

Meals On Wheels of San Francisco exists to alleviate the food insecurity and loneliness experienced by seniors who want to stay in their own home but cannot shop or prepare meals for themselves.

How to Volunteer
Various volunteer opportunities are available, including being an at-home visitor for seniors who spend much of their days alone, shopping for seniors, helping with small in-home repairs, and delivering food.

---

Second Harvest Food Bank
Twitter: @2ndharvest

Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties has been providing services to the community for 35 years. They are the single largest nonprofit provider of food to low-income households in Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties and are the seventh largest food bank in the country, providing food to an average of 207,000 individuals each month. Of those they serve, 67% are families with children and 12% are senior citizens.

How to Volunteer
Volunteer opportunities include food sorting, education and outreach, food distribution, and office services.

---

Marin Food Bank

The Marin Food Banks provides food throughout the community, including emergency food orders for families experiencing both short term and long-term crises, bags of food for low-income seniors, and holiday food boxes for needy families during Easter, Thanksgiving, Chanukah and Christmas.

How to Volunteer
The Marin Food Bank offers various volunteer opportunities, which are listed in their web site.