Grain Gathering 2016

Grain Gathering 2016

We gather in a meadow surrounded by orchards and grain fields. We sit cross-legged in the sun and talk about farming and milling and baking and everything in between. There are big, white tents sheltering communal tables lined with cutting boards spilling over with loaves made with different varietals of wheat, rye, barley, and spelt.

Dr. Steven Jones recites poetry and we listen with open hearts, ready to take it all in, believing beyond belief for the first time in a long time that the food system just might…actually could…can be a better place that works for everyone.

It sounds like a myth, that the huge commodity arrangement we’ve tumbled into over these many long years can actually be nuanced. Could it be a glimmer of sustainable is actually obtainable? This is my third Grain Gathering and each has been more inspiring than the last…

 

Thoughts/Lessons/Notes from Grain Gathering 2016

*Baking is an art and simply immersing yourself in the craft of it is your best teacher.

*That said, there is no one way to do things. This very fact has two convergent sides. On the one hand, it means that if you’re having an issue that needs to be solved, there are about two thousand and three different ways to look at it for an answer. On the other hand, it means you get to do things your own damn way. Don’t let anybody tell you that the way you want to solve a problem is not the right way. Even if it doesn’t solve your problem, it will take you through a process to an ultimate becoming. Kind of like life itself, really.

*Baking is a process not a product.

*There are other people who share your frustration with hairy arms holding crumb shots of white bread. This is not the only marker of good bread, people. Thank you for pointing this out so clearly, Dawn Woodward!

*Croissants can be made with 100% whole grain. Thank you, Jeff Yankellow.

*It is totally worth getting up at 4am to walk the fields.

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*Lodging is the terminology for when wheat stalks fall over. Breeders can select for stronger wheat stalks. Wheat stalks have historically been as valuable as the seeds. Thatching was once as valuable as flour.

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*Oats are pretty.

*Buckwheat is a dainty and delicate and difficult little lady. Also, quite the world traveler. She’s apparently been hoarded by companies that only let you sell seed back to them, but WSU Bread Lab is trying to change that with an open source seed in the workds. She not only pretty (and to me, tastes amazing), but she’s a safe haven for bees and extends a farmer’s harvest season to late October. Resolve to eat more buckwheat.

*Josey Baker and Jonathan Bethany make a good teaching duo.

*Josey Baker is a photo bomber…but has the best smile.

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*Food literacy is an important way to keep our kids connected to food. It’s not that it will necessarily make kids grow up to cook their own food. It’s just that knowing this skill will help them make better food choices.

*Pay attention to the food ethnographer June Jo Lee. I predict she’ll steer us in a new direction.

*Always, always say yes to the pie. Especially when it’s made by Tara from Smoke Signals.

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*The best conversations can be had on a Sunday morning in an empty parking lot when you happen to run into Julie from 600 Degrees. Seek out her bakery as

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