The $5 Meal Challenge from Slow Food USA took place on September 17th, and the results are in. Stories from all around the country are listed on the Slow Food USA site.

The topic of whether eating fast food or junk food is really more affordable seems to keep appearing. For more information about costs of home-cooked meals, see also the recent article by Mark Bittman “Is Junk Food Really Cheaper?”

And, here’s the round-up of $5 Meal Challenge dishes from right here in Austin:

Notes from Maggie’s Farm created a full meal with sides and condiments:

Entree: Pozole
Sides: Roasted Corn  3 ways, Refried Black Beans,
Condiments: Fire Roasted Salsa, Pico De Gallo, Roasted Corn and Hatch Chile Relish with Queso Fresco, cilantro, jalapeno, cabbage, onion, avocado served with crispy tostada, or corn tortillas

Shelley of Franish Nonspeaker hosted a $5 Meal potluck and prepared a Fig and Jam Tart that was just $1 per serving.

Kate of A Bobo Mess made a Black Bean Feta Salad.

Lisa from Lisa is Cooking prepared a Vegan Cajun-spiced Dirty Rice dish to serve ten that came in just under budget.

Kathryn from The Austin Gastronomist created a Zucchini Crumble for dessert that came in at 86 cents per serving.

The Whole Story blog from Whole Foods offered this great list of budget-friendly meals too.

Date: Saturday, September 17, 2011

Slow Food USA has invited everyone to take a $5 Meal Challenge on September 17th. By joining friends and family for a slow food meal that costs no more than $5 per person, we’ll be taking back the ‘value meal.’

And, we’d like to hear about your meals. If you prepare a meal at home or a dish for a potluck for this event, we’d like to  hear your story. Send us a description of your dish or meal and how you kept the cost below $5 per person, a photo if you have it or a link to an online photo gallery, or send us a link to a post if you blog about the event. We’ll post a round-up of all the $5 meals one week after the event. We’re looking forward to collecting this list of affordable slow food meals, so take the challenge and then tell us what you did.

Send info about your meal by noon on Friday, September 23 to: lisa@slowfoodaustin.org

Round-up of $5 meals will be posted on Monday, September 25.

 
“slow food shouldn’t have to cost more than fast food.”

We welcome Paul Courtright of Pioneer Wine Company for this guest post:

I’m yet another one of those Austin transplants. Four years ago my partner and I decided to move here because of the potential. The things that I love—food, wine, and music—are so vibrant and unique here, and the enthusiasm is infectious.

It’s no revelation to say that the food landscape in Austin has changed radically in the last four years. The downtown farmer’s market has grown from a small, if energetic, city block to a really exciting and distinctive showcase of local food culture. A number of truly exciting restaurants have expanded the idea of Central Texas cuisine, and are starting to make food yet another reason for people to visit and relocate to Austin.

As a part of the food world, the beverage scene in Austin has taken off. We have truly great coffee at Caffé Medici and Houndstooth, world-class cocktails at Bar Congress and Fino (to name just two), a score of new and exciting local breweries like Jester King, and a growing number of restaurants with cool wine lists.

Now, when Austinites seek to discover a new wine, they can do so at a number of locally owned and operated wine shops. When choosing a wine shop to frequent, I look for an atmosphere where I can start a dialogue with someone who is passionate and knowledgeable. With this in mind, I set out to find some warm weather refreshment by stopping in at three of Austin’s best retailers:

Wiggy’s is iconic. The two locations downtown are so full of personality, they’re just great to spend an afternoon in, getting lost among the bottles. Their suggestion for summer was a nice rosé from southern France.

The producer, Mourgues du Gres, is in the Costières de Nîmes (in the hillsides of Nîmes, an ancient city east of Provence also famous for being the birthplace of denim fabric). Dry rosé is a staple in southern France, the combination of refreshing acidity and a bit of weight is ideal for the warm Mediterranean climate and rolling limestone hills which resemble Austin in the summertime. François Collard is a young farmer bringing this traditional style into our modern lives.

My next stop was East End Wines. The shop is still young, but the staff combines years of experience in the Austin wine scene. They also suggested a wine from southern France, but their candidate was an esoteric white from Corbières.

Domaine Faillenc Sainte Marie, has been producing wine in the stony hills just north of the Spanish border since the reign of Louis XIV. Dominique and Marie-Therese Gibert farm the land nowadays. In a region much better known for reds, this white is really something special—full bodied, yet refreshing. It’s great both for sipping on the porch and grilling with friends.

The Austin Wine Merchant has earned a great reputation over the years. It’s a serious wine shop, without pretense. Just steps away from the downtown farmer’s market, it’s also a convenient option for stocking up on summertime thirst quenchers.

I’m a big fan of white wines from the Basque region of northwestern Spain. Txakolina looks intimidating on paper (it’s pronounced “chalk-oh-leena”), but there’s nothing challenging about the tangy, tart wines. Just like the Hill Country, the steep coastal mountains of the Basque region are inhabited by livestock (sheep, in this case). Instead of lemonade, the local tradition is to knock back a few copas of the low-alcohol local wine after a long day in the hot sun. A bottle of Gurrutxaga Txakolina is the perfect refreshment to share with friends around the pool.

After four years, I’m proud to live in Austin. This is a city with exciting opportunities, a place where local and imported food traditions are co-mingling and creating something new and unique. There are some great local purveyors of produce as well fine food and drink. By stopping into your local wine shops this summer, you not only support these invaluable small businesses, but you stand a great chance of getting turned on to some groovy, interesting wine—and maybe a little history to go with it.

Photography by Mel Ferro Cole of I Heart Photography.

Date: Wednesday March 23rd, 7pm – 9pm
Location: SWOOP House, 3012 Gonzalez Street, Austin
RSVP: karlal@slowfoodaustin.org

Kocurek Family Charcuterie and Wine Pairing

Please join Slow Food Austin for a very special evening at 2dine4 catering’s SWOOP House featuring delicious Kocurek Family Artisanal Charcuterie, sweet and savory treats from Cake and Spoon and elegant wine pairings generously provided by Pioneer Wine Company.

Slow Food Austin Member Price: $40
Non-Member Price: $50

RSVP: karlal@slowfoodaustin.org

Price includes:
Quiche tartlets (Cake and Spoon)
Czech Blood sausage with beurre noisette on baguette (Kocurek) with wine
Duo of pate, pate de campagne with tarragon grain mustard, pate de maison with parsley gelee on brioche (Kocurek) with wine
Hure de Tete terrine with frisee salad, mustard viniagrette (Kocurek) with wine
Scallop seared over a bed of bacon and leek ragout with sauce charcuterie (Kocurek) with wine
Bacon and chocolate tart (Cake and Spoon)
Passed Appetizer / Open House Format

Our sponsors:
Cake and Spoon
Pioneer Wine Company
2Dine4 Catering/SWOOP Events
Kocurek Family Artisanal Charcuterie

*A portion of the proceeds will benefit Slow Food Austin.

Antonelli’s Cheese Shop Announces 1 Year Anniversary
February 7th – 10th

Antonelli’s Cheese Shop, locally-owned and operated by John and Kendall Antonelli, will celebrate its one-year anniversary on February 11, 2011. To commemorate this cheese-y day, as well as thank customers and partnering wholesale restaurants, Antonelli’s Cheese Shop is giving away free cheese plates around town from February 7-10. While supplies last, the following restaurants will be participating:

Monday, Feb.7th:
FINO – Free Cheese Plates starting at 6pm
ASTI – Free Cheese Plates starting at 6pm

Tuesday, Feb.8th:
El Arbol – Free Cheese Plates starting at 5pm
Dolce Vita – Free Cheese Plates starting at 5pm

Wednesday, Feb.9th:
Jeffrey’s Restaurant – Free Cheese Plates starting at 5pm
House Pizzeria – Free Cheese Plates starting at 5pm

Thursday, Feb.10th:
Apothecary – Free Cheese Plates starting at 5pm
24Diner – Free Cheese Plates from 6pm to 10pm

Monday through Friday: Make a purchase at Antonelli’s Cheese Shop and be entered into a raffle to win a free private cheese tasting in the shop for up to 20 guests. Additionally, bring into the shop a receipt showing a cheese plate purchase that week (2/7-2/11) from one of the businesses above or from the following and be entered into the raffle: Andiamo Ristorante, Max’s Wine Dive, Truluck’s, The Steeping Room, Salt Lick Cellars, Snack Bar, House Wine, Hotel Saint Cecilia, Star Bar (Wednesday only), and Gibson (Wednesday only). (Please note that the raffle closes at 7pm Friday, February 11.) Thanks also to wholesale friends Vino Vino, Farmhouse Delivery, Hyde Park Bar & Grill, Royal Fig Catering, 2nd & Congress, Pink Avocado Catering, Barr Mansion, and Bola Pizza.

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Private Wine and Chocolate Tasting
Sunday, February 13th

Join the Sustainable Foodies on Feb. 13 for a Becker Vineyards and Delysia Chocolate pairing and hill country day trip. Don’t miss this Valentine Sunday afternoon chance to join the Sustainable Foodies for an exclusive Becker Vineyard Tour and Tasting with Delysia Chocolate. Included in your ticket price are roundrip transportation on a charter bus, pairing of six Becker Wines, and six Delysia Chocolates. Only a few tickets remain! Click here for more details.

Date: Thursday, December 16th 6pm – 8pm
Location: 512 Brewing Company
RSVP required: karlal@slowfoodaustin.org

Date: December 4th-11th
Location: at your favorite restaurants and stores

Edible Austin hosts this week long benefit for Urban Roots.

Of course we think every week should be “eat local week,”  but Edible Austin’s Eat Local Week, their winter fundraiser event, is an invitation to Central Texans to explore and celebrate the abundance of local food and to raise money for Urban Roots, a youth development program that uses sustainable agriculture as a means to transform the lives of young people and to increase the access of healthy food in Austin.

When you intend to eat local it may be more challenging than you realized to find restaurants and markets that truly support local farmers and food artisans. We’d like to offer you a few questions to ask to determine if you are actually eating local.

1. How often does your menu change?  (Frequent changes are good. It usually means they are working with seasonal harvests)
2. Can you highlight some of the locally-sourced items on your menu/in your store?
3. How often do you feature and/or promote local foods?

About Sourcing

1. How does your restaurant/market define local?
2. Where does your restaurant/market get local food? (direct from farm, 3rd party,  or grocery store?)
3. Is the local food you purchase certified organic?
4. We prefer eating humanely raised, pastured meats.  Do you know if your meats are raised this way?

Encourage more Local Food

Be sure to voice your desires for local food to your server, chef, or market owner.  Don’t hesitate to let them know that you are more likely to be a loyal patron and promote their business if they feature more local, organic choices.

If you are not the assertive type but you still want to make the most sensible choices the Environmental Working Group publishes a wallet guide and iphone app that recommends avoiding the “Dirty Dozen,” a list of conventionally grown fruits and vegetables (that test positive for as many as 67 chemicals) in favor of the “Clean 15.”

Date: Monday, December 13th, 7 pm – 9 pm
Location: Habitat Suites, 500 East Highland Mall Boulevard Austin, Tx 78752

Slow Food Presents:
Folk and Fork History of Texas Foods

A three part series on the culinary heritage of Central Texas.
Food with tall tales and tasters for all!

In “A Brief History of Tamales,” Claudia Alarcón will speak about the central role that tamales have played in Mexican cooking and culture, from their origins among the ancient Mesoamerican cultures that existed in what is today Mexico, to its present-day use as an essential food at celebrations and their persistence as a traditional food for the holidays in the U.S., including a step-by-step visual guide to the process of making them.

In addition we will be sampling local tamales so please RSVP to anneh@slowfoodaustin.org.

About the Speaker:
Claudia Alarcón was born and raised in Mexico City, and has lived in Austin since 1984. For 15 years she held different jobs in many local
restaurants and catering companies, familiarizing herself with all aspects of the industry. She received her bachelor’s degree with honors in Anthropology from the University of Texas at Austin in 1999, with a minor in Latin American Studies. Her honors thesis on the history and ritual significance of tamales in modern and ancient Mexican cultures won an award from the Sophie Coe Memorial Fund from the Oxford Symposium on Food History, and was published in the prestigious food history journal Petit Propos Culinaires. She is currently working on expanding this essay into her first full-length book based on her previous and ongoing research. She is an avid student of ancient and modern Mexican cultures, with a special interest in culinary history and traditions. Alarcón has been writing professionally since 2000 as regular contributor to various local and national food publications, both in print and online.

Date: Wednesday, October 27, 5:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Location: Asti Trattoria
Reservations: 512-451-1218 or online
Menu: slow taste of Italy dinner menu

A four course dinner highlighting Chef Donoho’s favorite recipes from the new book Cooking with Italian Grandmothers by Jessica Theroux.

The special dinner will be $95 per person which includes a signed copy of the book. Dinner for Two with one book will be $165. Additional Wine pairing for $35 per person.
Specials will be available ala carte.

The Menu will utilize local ingredients and 15% of special food sales will benefit Slow Food Austin and their Terre Madre Fund in honor of Mary Booth.

Please make your reservations NOW! (Restaurant.com certificates not valid for special menu.)