Part of Regenerate Weekend, September 27 thru 29 2019
London Bread Camp
Regenerative Grains
Detroit Bread Camp happened! 2019 James Beard Award Winner Chef Greg Wade conducted a bread immersion locally grown organic grains and natural yeasts using a wood-fired oven.
The event is geared toward chefs, food influencers and anyone who is passionate about what they eat. The event is geared to all skill levels, ranging from beginners to professional baker.
Attendees saw our amazing Michigan grains, met the farmers who grow them, interact with fellow chefs, participated in one of the largest Detroit urban farms and experienced the delicious flavors, textures and aromas of whole grain, naturally leavened and wood-fire baked bread!
Detroit Regenerative Grain Weekend was made up of four events, two of them were to gear up in the weeks ahead and two were held Sunday thru Tuesday.
Hampshire Farms Earth Day Open House that is held every year at the farm in Kingston, Michigan every spring. It was a chance for the team to get together, look at Shirley’s wood fired baking operation and to see the milling operation for the regenerative grain grown right there.
Bread Camp Parlor Event was held in a private home in order to introduce the Hazon community to edible applications of Regeneratively grown ingredients and the people behind them.
Breaking Bread Together community day at Oakland Avenue Urban Farm was a Sunday open house-style event held the day before Bread Camp to introduce wholesome, regenerative and a delicious pancake brunch to the local residents around the farm.
Detroit Bread Camp was a two day event held, on a Monday and Tuesday, presented as an extension to the London Bread Camp and Regenerate Heritage Grain Weekend held every autumn by Paul Spence and Chef Greg at Growing Chefs in London, Ontario.
The event was limited to 20 people to ensure Chef Greg has one on one time with each participant.
Oakland Avenue Urban Farm hosted the event. Hampshire Farms helped to construct a new wood-fired oven on site with reclaimed bricks. Regenerative Bread Camp and Community Day are all part of Heritage Grain weekend when area restaurant chefs and caterers bake with, 2019 James Beard Outstanding Baker Award recipient, Greg Wade. The community weekend kicked off with Breaking Bread Together on Sunday, June 23rd 12:30pm-3:00pm with Chef Phil Jones, Chef George Vutetakis [thevegetarianguy.com] , Hampshire Farms of Kingston, Michigan, Spence Farm from Ontario, CA and Hirzel Farms of Luckey, Ohio at Oakland Avenue Urban Farm. This day was part of a partnership with Hazon Detroit [hazon.org] . The public enjoyed the taste of heritage grains, fresh bread from the brick oven and pancakes hot of the griddle all from Michigan flours.
For chefs, bakers, and those with interest in baking who want to gain more knowledge in the versatility of using grains, join us next year to bake with Chef Wade.
Bread camp is educating and connecting growers, millers, bakers, chefs and consumers who are creating a rise in demand for local grains. This program increases a baker’s capacity to procure and utilize regionally grown whole grains to help build and develop the regional food-shed.
Hampshire Farms Open House & Pre-Camp Event 
Original Member 
Randy and Lou talking shop 
Inspecting Regenerative Graains 
Old School is sometimes the best way 
Antique grain mill still does the job 
Shirley Hampshire and her woodfired oven 
At the farm 
Hampshire Farm open house 
Vegan Pre-Camp Parlor Event 
Pre-Camp Regenerative Dishes 
Regenerative, Organic and Vegan 
Pre-Camp Spread 
Regenerative Spreads and Dips 
Organic Baked Regenerative Felafel 
Chef Amber’s incredible Michigan cherry crisp 
Roasted Yams with Caponata and Almond Ricotta 
Chef George and Chef Amber Poupore Presented a Vegan Regenerative Spread 
Chef Amber’s cashew cheese 
Chef Amber and the team 
Grain Display and Discussions with Hirzel Organic Farms 
Bread Camp Detroit Parlor Regenerative Spread 
Welcome! 
Wren Hack of Hazon with hot flatbreads 
Getting ready for woodfired flat breads 
Chef Jim Osborn working the flatbreads 
Organic grains grown in Michigan from Hampshire Farms 
Hampshire Farms Regenerative and Organic Grains 
Regenerative pancakes made with Hampshire Farms regenerative batter mix 
Hannah Fine and her Hazon crew on the blender bike 
Lou Kozma of Hirzel Farms 
From the field 
Chef Greg talks about the integrity of a regenerative supply chain 
Oakland Avenue Urban Farm 
Oakland Avenue Urban Farm. oaklandurbanfarm.org 
Kneading 
Proofing 
Everyone makes their own 
Woodfired Pizza! 
!!! 
Planthropie cheese from Rua Francis! 
Cacao Tree’s Jamaica prepping the bread spread 
Organic spreads and dips by Chef George 
The next master baker of Oakland Avenue Urban Farm 
Fresh garnish 
Bread Camp Founders Chef Greg Wade and Farmer Paul Spence 
Workshop topics:
How a region is building its specialty grain food-shed from farmer to baker to consumer.
Compare commodity grains and specialty grains in baking and pastry applications.
Utilizing whole and processed specialty grains in baking and pastry applications.
Utilizing honey in baking and pastry applications.
How a farmer and baker collaboration is created.
Work with a wood burning oven.
Define heritage grains and fermentation.
Discuss nutrition of whole grains and fermentation
For information on upcoming Regenerate and Bread Camp events, click here.
Videos of past Bread Camps:
Skordalia with a history
During the peak of summer in August, when the hot Sahara-born Sirocco winds blanketed the countryside, Aloni-sites were where families gathering for the cool breezes coming off the sea from Kalathas. Men would sip on cafes, while women would sometimes bring a bowl of fresh-picked almonds to crack and catch up on the seemingly endless tasks of the day.
During the extended late summers in Crete, often lasting into November, skordalia was a favorite afternoon condiment spread over crusty bread which was baked in the wood fired oven in the courtyard, or cistern-collected water-dipped crunchy barley rusk paximadia dipped in super green olive oil from the latest harvest. Skordalia was often served with a horiatiki salata of fresh-picked sweet cucumbers, tomatoes, pungent red onions, tiny salt-cured Cretan olives and local sheep’s milk cheese, when it was available.
Anthe adapted the recipe for her life in America, using a bit of cider vinegar to offset the different flavors of the local ingredients. Unlike Crete, the almonds in Canton, Ohio were not fresh from the trees, bread was not kissed by the lightly salted air and lemons were not from the trees in the fertile valley gardens (Kypo). Nevertheless, Anthe’s interpretation was a beautiful, delicious and an irresistible condiment designed for her American life. She would make the recipe as a special treat for my father, which he would not stop eating until the mason jar was wiped clean with bread.
My article from KPHTH magazine with the Skordalia recipe and family history from November 2018 is below
http://www.venizelos-foundation.gr/en/1864-1909-cretan-period-venizelos
Inspiration from Anthe
A recipe for Pumpkin Walnut Baklava
Baklava is one of the hallmark dishes of Cretan heritage.
Originating in Ionian kitchens, it was adopted in every region of Ottoman rule and incorporated into each culture’s national cuisine because of its heavenly flavors and flaky, yet juicy, textures.
I cannot recall any family gathering without Yia Yia’s, Anthe (Stratigakis) Vutetakis, deliciously sweet and delectable baklava. She crafted her recipe while growing up in the village of Plakoures in western Crete and passed it onto her children and grandchildren. My aunt Irene Laggeris inherited her mother’s culinary aptitude and, as most talented cooks will do, added her own memorable touches to the original recipe.
My recipe takes inspiration from the original while using local ingredients and seasonal tastes. The authenticity is rooted in Greek tradition while paying homage to how so much in America is built upon, or influenced by, Greek foundations.
This dessert was first introduced to the public in 1997 when I was chef and owner of Inn Season Cafe in Royal Oak, Michigan. It quickly became a favorite, especially in the Autumn when Michiganders share a collective passion for all desserts crafted with pumpkin, sweet spices and maple syrup.
Anthe in her garden, September 1960
Sweet Tomato Chutney
The art of making chutney is a passion in India. Cooks developed local reputations for their intense combinations of sweet, salty and hot. Over the years I have heard a number of people mention the East Indian saying “too sweet to resist and too hot to eat.” This recipe follows that model and is ideal for the end-of-summer plethora of ripe tomatoes. Not only is it an excellent condiment for an Indian meal, but it can work as a ketchup, as a dip for crudites or a base for sweet and sour dishes.
Serves 4
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds
2 tablespoons finger hot green chiles, minced
1/4 cup sweet onion, minced
1/4 teaspoon garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon ginger root, minced
1 1/2 cups tomatoes, diced
1 tablespoon molasses
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup water
In a medium saucepan in medium-high heat, cook canola oil, mustard seeds and green chiles. When the mustard seeds pop, add onions, garlic, ginger, tomatoes, molasses, cane juice, sea salt and water. Turn down to a simmer and cook 10 minutes or until tomatoes are well cooked and thickened. Serve room temperature or hot.
Pepita and Fire Roasted Poblano Pesto
My first experience with a pesto-style dish was in my Greek grandmother’s house. Yia Yia prepared every family member’s favorite dish and my father’s was skordalia, the traditional Greek garlic sauce. As a child in Crete, where almonds are plentiful and full of flavor, her mother taught her the art of the dish; she learned to prepare the skordalia by pounding garlic, almonds and olive oil with a mortar and pestle. We always knew when we walked into her home that she had prepared the skordalia because of the heavy garlic smell in the air. It seemed to stay in our mouths for days and even crept out of our pores as garlic-tinged sweat. Over the years, my dad was the only one adventurous enough to indulge, which he would do on a Friday so he could return to work on Monday with minimal effect.
The Italian word pesto is often used to describe a combination of ground garlic, basil and pine nuts, although the preparation method of grinding ingredients into a paste is universal and cross-cultural. Ever since man discovered how to grind and pound food products with stone and wood, this method has been employed in traditional cuisines around the world to create sauces, condiments, bases and pastes which enhance flavor profiles. Every culture put their stamp on the method with the common denominator being a mortar and pestle or grinding stone and it is a superb way to add a savory and flavorful edge to a dish without frying or grilling.
A Sicilian version is pesto rosso which substitutes almonds for pine nuts and adds tomatoes with less basil. In Mediterranean France, a cold sauce made from garlic, basil and olive oil is the base for the much-acclaimed pistou soup in Provence.
In India, I watched cooks deftly handle a flat grindstone with a rectangular pestle to create intensely flavored mint chutneys, robust masala pastes and pesto-like fillings for a variety of breads and savories. The grinding stones would absorb the right amount of moisture and unique flavors would be developed by the grinding action. I was so enamored by the amazing quality of these preparations that I carried two of these heavy stones home on a flight.
Central and South American cuisines have a long history of grinding spices, pastes and mole bases using a metate or mealing stone. Chimichurri sauce is one of the well known sauces to use this method. One can imagine my pesto recipe being made on a metate grindstone in an adobe kitchen a hundred years ago. Nutty toasted pepitas with crushed garlic, freshly squeezed lime juice, brightly flavored cilantro and smokey fire-roasted poblano chiles provocatively meld together to create an explosion of flavor in any dish that it is served with. I particularly like it as a foil to corn dishes and often pair it with Quinoa-Corn Arepas and Chocolate Cherry Salsa from my cookbook Vegetarian Traditions. The bright flavor of the pesto is the perfect companion to the natural sweetness of the corn and deep, dark anti-oxidant-rich salsa.
Today, I often make pesto with a food processor, which is a compromise for the sake of modern efficiency. However, if you have a metate, or mortar & pestle and a little extra time, I encourage you to use it–not just for the earthly connection and romance of hand-working one’s food, but also for the flavor.
This easy-to-prepare recipe works well in sandwiches, as a mezzes-style dip, a quesadilla filling or a layer in a tortilla casserole.
Pepita & Fire Roasted Poblano Pesto
1/2 cup pepitas, toasted
1 cup cilantro leaves, chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 poblano chile, fire roasted, stemmed and seeded
In a food processor, grind pepitas to a meal, add all pesto ingredients and pulse to a coarse consistency. Store in an air-tight container and keep refrigerated.
Roasted Spring Onions
After the winter freeze, one of the first signs of life in the Midwest Farmers Markets are spring onions which are full flavor, extra sweet young shoots that only vaguely resemble a mature onion. At this stage, even the sharpest tasting onion will easily compete with sweet varieties such as Vidalia, Maui and Walla Walla. At this time of year I use them generously, raw in salads and roasted, as in this recipe. This is an excellent easy to make side dish cum condiment that adds zest to a variety of dishes. Make it ahead and use it as an impromptu garnish or a sandwich ingredient as well. Enjoy!
Serves 6
6 spring onion shoots cut in half lengthwise and trimmed to four inches long
½ cup seedless raisins
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
¼ cup diced Roma tomatoes
½ teaspoon coriander seeds
½ teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
3 whole cloves
½ teaspoon whole peppercorns
½ teaspoon sea salt
Bake in a covered dish at 400º F for 1 hour. Serve as a side or garnish.
Tofu Joe
A different version of Sloppy Joe which uses easily aquired ingredients. Simple to create and ideal for making ahead, it is a good stand by when time is short.
Tofu Joe
Base
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 cup yellow onion, diced
1 cup celery, diced
¾ cup red bell pepper, diced
1 small clove garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
¼ cup cider vinegar
1 ½ cups tomatoes, diced
1 cup tomato salsa
½ cup organic ketchup
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon basil
In a saute pan at medium heat, cook the oil, onion, celery and red pepper until the onion starts to become clear around the edges. Add remaining ingredients and simmer until tomatoes are cooked. Transfer and reserve.
Tofu
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons fresh ground fennel seed
1 heaping teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon chipotle powder
¼ cup tamari
1 block firm tofu, mashed
½ teaspoon sea salt
Rinse the saute pan and reuse. Heat with olive oil at medium heat. Add the fennel seed, paprika, chipotle and tamari. Mix together and add the tofu right away. Let simmer until the liquid is gone, add 1 cup of the base with the sea salt and simmer for 5 minutes. Add remaining base and cook again for another 10 minutes on a low simmer. Serve over toasted buns, or bread.
About Making Scents
“Smell is a potent wizard that transports you across thousands of miles and all the years you have lived”
Helen Keller
Aromas enchant us, molding images into the cerebral cortex which can be recalled at any moment with a familiar whiff. With food, an attractive scent can trigger the desire to eat and cause a singular drive to eat something right away.
The sense of smell is seventy percent of taste. While taste buds receive input from salty, sweet, bitter and pungent receptors, olfactory input can recognize up to 10,000 different aromas. This input is immediate and can bypass the normal processing to trigger memory in the cerebral cortex. Imagine having a barbecue without the intensely sensuous aroma not wafting by. A world without aroma is a sanitized and bland proposition. Studies have confirmed that the olfactory sense triggers memories more than the other senses. Mental imagery with the natural romanticized versions, adds immensely to the ‘theater of dining.’
Just as the chemical combination of food ingredients are medicine, food is also integral in aromatherapy. To exemplify this, think of the scents that floated out of the kitchen as a child, baking cookies or a cake, baking bread, or the almost acrid aroma of food cooking over an open fire. There is a sound reason for fast food restaurants to exhaust fumes onto the street. Over the years, it was very common for passersby to eat at Inn Season Café after walking by and smelling the great cooking scents outside our building.
It has been well documented that specific aromas encourage the body to function in different ways. There are scents which cleanse nasal passages, a few aid digestion and some inspire passion, while others work with the psyche. Scent is very much part of the ‘feng shui’ of food and old cultures have this built in to the cuisine.
Setting a stage with scents
Scent is also very subjective. What we like has direct correlation to our life experience and conditioning. For one person the scent of a wonderfully aged cheese is mouth watering, to another it is revolting. The audience is important when planning a meal. Sometimes, we need to help educate a palate, so scents are orchestrated to enhance each other, framing the so called offensive aroma with more accessible and universally appealing scents. When entertaining, it is good to plan an aromatic environment along with the rest of the menu. Many times the aromas around the food have a profound effect on the flavors inside the preparations.
Importance of smells in cooking
Without tasting, the scent of food becomes prominent as a tool for perfection. In Vedic cooking, enjoying the smells of the food for oneself while cooking is the same as tasting it. The cooking aroma can be enjoyed as part of the process of cooking for others and certainly may be used as a tool for creating culinary wonders.
Manipulation of aromas during eating
Timing the drifting scents emanating from food and organizing them in a almost symphonic way can be as important as combining spices. Complimentary aromas play off each other, dancing in the imagination, toying with our memories.
The after dinner scents
After a fulfilling dinner, scent plays an important role in comfort and good digestion. Some of the unpleasant things restaurants do which we can avoid in our personal lives are spraying tables with window cleaners to sanitize while customers are nearby; using heavy bleach solutions to sanitize equipment and counters; have strong smelling food being served with delicate flavors; and allowing smoking nearby, or even at all.
Fortunately in our own homes, we may create environments without these olfactory pitfalls. To focus on the positive, candles create warm, cozy scents that are nice when extinguished too. A flaming dessert or steamy hot fudge sauce can fill the air with deep sensual undertones. Also removing the food from the table is a must before dessert and after the entire dinner when conversation may be heightened.
Learning How to Eat
Mainstream America does not emphasize food as a key to a quality life and source of longevity. Food is mostly used as a sensual sideshow and necessary evil. One the big challenges we face, especially in dire times, is to reconnect with the earth’s culinary heritage. Not only the exclusive diets of the privileged, but those of common people. These are diets that nourish body and soul, which utilize the senses instead of merely placating them. Such foods help define who we are and keep us in touch with the ever present organic cycles of the earth.
I first discovered the significance of food as a young child from my Greek grandmother, who tirelessly went out of her way to both nourish and nurture her family through the medium of lovingly prepared traditional dishes. Memories in my Yia Yia and Papou’s house invariably are associated the times when our family gathered around the dining table, situated just outside of Yia Yia’s kitchen. There I sampled exquisite hand made, tender dolamdakia, irresistible spanikopita, perfectly balanced moussaka and pastitsio to die for. The memories were augmented with intense and creamy skordalia, almost sinfully sweet baklava and the melt-in-the mouth amigdalota cookies made from almonds and orange blossom water. The food sparked conversation and familial bonding.
Eating this way, we knew what it was to be Greek. The food was historically intertwined with cultural identity. What, how and when it was (or is) consumed was a major portion of the Hellenic psyche. Greece is a land that has witnessed the ravages of changing civilizations, occupations and political turmoil. Often it was recognized as the center of the civilized world and the source of our modern political structures. The unique and flavorful cuisine has been a consistent reminder of the greatness that Greece was…and still is. Much of this glory was achieved over millennia at tables in homes and villages with foodstuffs foraged in the mountains, harvested from the land and caught in the sea. The plant based food was so significant that the famous Greek Key pattern, found over millennia as a theme on temples, homes, fabrics and ornaments, was derived from the field plowing pattern used by farmers. Ancient Greeks would also pour a small libation of wine on the earth before drinking, much in the way we toast today. The Greeks have learned to live with the earth in a respectful partnership, where harmonizing with the energies of the cosmos became a goal in life. Anyone who has spent time in Greece can still feel this incredible energy integrated into every aspect. Often this translates into the Greek spirit of life. Along with the Mediterranean sunshine, the sea breezes and the stark raw beauty of the land, it is unique and unlike any other place on earth. No wonder so many Greeks return to their mother land.
