Only one bite, I swear.
I’m easily tricked by attractive food with great local pick-up lines like, "It’s artisanal tofu made right up in Traverse City, dressed in a soy honey glaze…"
Artisanal? Traverse City? My mind focused on those words and onto my plate went the soy-covered soy.
It really wasn’t all that great, so I really did only have one bite, but thanks to Twitter and Donielle, my blogger foodie "date" for tonight’s Fork Fest here in Grand Rapids, the world was quickly alerted:
Can you believe that @kitchenstew ate soy covered in soy?!
#forkfest instagr.am/p/Q8NlXlKBME/
Fork Fest was Local First’s celebration of the completion of the 10×10 Eat Local Challenge, which I have shared about before (goal: to move $10 of your food budget to local foods/producers/restaurants each week for 10 weeks). Over 1000 people took the pledge, and I think all of them got a goat cheese truffle from Dancing Goat Creamery but me.
Lesson: Always eat dessert first when you’re at a local foods event. It’s mostly healthy anyway.
Lesson no. 2: Skip the soy-covered soy and double back for the truffles! 
If you’re in the Grand Rapids/West Michigan area, seriously – put this one on your "must-attend" list for next fall.
Romence Gardens greenhouse was simply filled with local restaurants, farms, breweries, creameries, grocery stores and food artisans with samples of their culinary delights.
It didn’t take long for me to announce, "I’m overstuffing myself tonight and I’m not even going to apologize for it!" I get pretty jazzed up in a group of people appreciating local, artisan, and consciously-raised food.
Check out my double decker action:
Those plates include lamb from S&S with goat cheese on top and some sort of spicy Asian dish that was amazing from the Winchester, pumpkin chili from Derby Station, artisanal sausage from Link Love, pickled veggie bruschetta from Farm Link (maybe?), and hiding back behind there is a raspberry hard apple cider from Brewery Vivant, who also served this:
I said to Donielle, "I have to take anything with duck in the name. Not something I make at home!"
And this soup was also incredible, from Amore Trattoria Italiana:
And this:
My first plate included buffalo sauce twisted mac and cheese from the Twisted Rooster, butternut soup from Brann’s (wow), raw and artisanal cheese from Grassfield’s and Lubber’s Cowslip Creamery, carrot-ginger soup from Green Well, bread pudding from Graydon’s Crossing, Little Rooster crackers, and kale Caesar salad from Trillium Haven.
Don’t wake me for breakfast tomorrow…I think I’m stuffed until lunch.
Thanks to Local First for putting together an awesome event! Where else could I go to an event to eat local food (and avoid doing dishes at home) and leave with a basil plant, 4 dozen pastured eggs that I purchased, and a note to self to nominate my favorite local farmer for a Slow Food "Snail of Approval?"
It was my kind of night.
(What’s That About Soy?)
For those who haven’t been around here much, I know I’ll have to answer this question in the comments anyway. Here’s why I don’t usually get caught with soy – covered or covering – on my plate:
- Soy is over 90% genetically modified.
- Soy has phytoestrogenic compounds.
- Soy is high in phytates.
- Soy is also high in the inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids.
- Unfermented soy was never a part of any culture’s traditional diet, only fermented soy is.
Katie shared 3 good reasons to say no to soy, and Sarah wallops us with 170 more, if you need some research and citations.
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Kitchen Stewardship is dedicated to balancing God’s gifts of time, health, earth and money. If you feel called to such a mission, read more at Mission, Method, and Mary and Martha Moments.
Disclosure: I am a media sponsor of the 10×10 challenge, and for my help in promoting, I got to go to Fork Fest for free. I would have paid the entrance fee in a second though – kids are free all the time, so maybe I’ll take mine next year! See my full disclosure statement here.
Fork Fest Recap — Eat Local, West Michigan! // Oct 19, 2012 at 11:28 am
[...] a more in-depth recap, visit my friend Katie’s post at Kitchen Stewardship. Share this:TwitterEmailPrintFacebookLinkedIn Filed Under: Uncategorized · Tagged: fork [...]
It was great seeing you again!
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Katie Kimball @ Kitchen Stewardship Reply:
October 19th, 2012 at 4:53 pm
You too! Eek! I didn’t mention The Local Cook in the post, just Slow Food…oofska. Not intentional, but sorry about that!
Katie
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Julie Reply:
October 21st, 2012 at 10:11 pm
???????????????
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I disagree that all soy is bad. It kind of sounds as though you are throwing the baby out with the bath water. Just my opinion though. I’m for soy that’s not a gmo and its tastes great fresh or when prepared well.
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Christina,
If you read all of comments, she does mention that only fermented soy (miso, natto, tempeh, etc . . . ) was part of some culture’s traditional diet, not the unfermented soy foods of today. Toes are the only soy foods you should eat IF you can find them non-GMO.
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Carol G. Reply:
October 19th, 2012 at 6:42 pm
Christina,
If you read all of comments, she does mention that only fermented soy (miso, natto, tempeh, etc . . . ) was part of some culture’s traditional diet, not the unfermented soy foods of today. Those are the only soy foods you should eat IF you can find them non-GMO.
[Reply to this comment]
Sorry, darned auto correct!
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There’s really only one reason to avoid soy…when any food source is presented in a gelatinous form floating in liquid in the refrigerated section of your grocery store…it is best to be avoided!! UGH!! WHO really decided something that disgusting should be good to consume?
[Reply to this comment]
'Becca Reply:
October 22nd, 2012 at 2:55 pm
Really, you think tofu is more disgusting than dead animal parts blended with pink slime and industrial cleansers and soaking in blood?
Well, to each her own. I would much rather handle tofu than raw meat. I agree that PLAIN tofu is not a pleasant food, but cooked in a sauce it can be really delicious!
[Reply to this comment]
Julie Reply:
October 22nd, 2012 at 10:04 pm
I never said anything about pink slime and industrial cleansers being OK. Where did you get THAT? I simply said that tofu floating in water is gross! With all of the genetically modified soy being grown, and the problems with women consuming soy, IMHO it should probably be avoided anyhow.
I don’t have the obvious problems that you have with blood. Blood is natural and I’m ok with it, sorry you aren’t. Sheesh!
Funny how you say ‘to each her own’ after your nasty, mean-spirited ‘meat hater’, passive/aggressive comments…obviously NOT what you really mean.
Whatever Becca. We don’t agree about tofu, but you don’t have to be so directly nasty/snippy/snarky to me.
I was talking about tofu….not Becca…I can like Becca who may eat tofu and not like tofu itself…just like I eat/enjoy broccoli and still love my son who doesn’t like broccoli at all. Don’t take it so personally! It’s JUST food…and just opinions! ;>)
[Reply to this comment]
'Becca Reply:
October 23rd, 2012 at 10:12 pm
You’re right, you did not compare tofu to meat or to any other food. You did say it was gross, and I don’t think my comment was any nastier than yours.
The liquid in which tofu is soaking is water. It is just as natural as blood. It is far less likely to contain pathogens.
You said there was ONE reason to avoid soy and that that reason is the texture of tofu and the fact that it is stored in water. I thought that was an odd reason to avoid it. The possible health concerns about soy are much better reasons, but you did not mention them at all in your first comment.
[Reply to this comment]
Mmmm, soy-covered soy! I eat that sometimes, but only organic GMO-free. Well, actually, in restaurants I will choose tofu of unknown GMO-ness over meat of unknown yuckiness, because there are more kinds of yuck that can affect meat. But I’ll go for non-soy beans over either one, when I have the option.
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