Story Harvest: Stories of Food and Farming
Story Harvest: Stories of Food and Farming celebrates the connections between food, tradition, and identity by highlighting community members whose professional lives intertwine personal narratives with culinary and farming practices. In a series of workshops, attendees gather at the table and engage in stories, tradition, hands-on food preparation or performances culminating in the discovery of new flavors and textures.
Throughout the series, participants :
Learn and Create: Craft a dish or explore a food technique while learning about the guest’s personal approach to an ingredient and its significance in their life.
Celebrate Tradition and Identity: Experience the emotional bonds and cultural identity surrounding a food tradition through performances, storytelling and cultural shares.
Explore Food Sources: Discover how food links us to the wild and cultivated landscape, discuss local relevance and even harvest ingredients from the field.
Savor Flavors: Delight in new flavors enjoyed in a convivial setting
Revisit and Reimagine: Reflect on ancient culinary traditions and food preparations, envisioning how they can inspire the food of the future.
Through the universal language of food, Story Harvest aims to deepen participants’ appreciation of our shared cultural heritage and foster kinship by exploring the sensory and emotional roots of our identity. Blending tradition and innovation, this program inspires attendees to celebrate the enduring food traditions that help us tell our stories and empower our lives.
2025 Story Harvest Events
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3/8 A Celebration of Maple Sugaring & Stories w/ Bear Fox
Join us for a magical morning of maple sugaring, storytelling, and community connection with special guest, Bear Fox. Experience the time-honored tradition of maple syrup production while celebrating the cultural heritage of this beloved spring harvest!
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6/14 Cooking With Shiso: A Taste of Tradition in Asian America w/ Stephanie Hsu
Experience the legacy of shiso, the fragrant herb cherished across Asian cuisines, in this immersive, hands-on workshop. Guided by Stephanie Hsu, owner of Shiso Foods, we’ll discover the flavors that defined her Chinese-American childhood and continue to bring comfort to Asian communities throughout the Hudson Valley.
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10/11 Pickled Mushrooms: Ancient Techniques, Modern Flavors w/ Luke Sarrantonio
Participants will discover how different cultures have incorporated both fresh and pickled mushrooms into their culinary heritage, learn to identify choice edible varieties, and explore preparation methods that bring out the best in these forest delicacies.
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11/1 Sourdough Bread Making with mother/daughter Angela Heithecker and Celia Brubaker
Celebrate the legacy of the fermentation technique with a 150 year-old sourdough starter while learning to make sourdough bread. Discuss how fermentation is a technique that is undergoing a renewal of interest through innovative foods and recipes due to its recognized health benefits!
2024 Story Harvest Events
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3/2/24 Sourdough Breadmaking and Cultural Share
Angela and Celia will share their stories about how bread is integral to their culture and childhood, share ties between how the sourdough starter is passed down and emigrated to the US from France, and how Angela's predecessors immigrated from Poland and landed in NY.
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3/16/24 Backyard Maple Sugaring + Stories and Songs Around The Maple Tree
We’re excited to invite you back to the farm to learn about the process and cultural history of maple sugaring. As a part of our 2024, Story Harvest: Stories of Food and Farming, we’re excited to host Akwesasne singer-songwriter, Theresa “Bear ”Fox, to share songs, dance, and other traditional stories of her native heritage!
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5/25/24 Local Folk Tales with Wade Baker
Enjoy enchanting traditional stories and lore from a local Catskills-born storyteller , Wade Baker! He is known for sharing incredible lore from our own back yard is sure to capture the hearts and minds of all ages.
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6/27/24 Pupusa Making w/ Albas Kitchen!
Join us for a hands-on pupusa making class with Alba's Kitchen at White Feather Farm! Alba and her family, owners of the beloved Woodstock restaurant, will share their family recipe and guide you through creating your own delicious pupusas.
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8/31/24 Food as Medicine: Garden Veggies to Probiotic Pickles
Learn how fermentation serves as a form of storytelling, a time capsule, and a path to wellness. Our instructor will share a playful approach to this ancient practice, encouraging you to prepare an intentional jar of vegetables that becomes both an energetic and medicinal ally.