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Healthy Living @ EATxNE

Healthy Living was so proud to be a presenting sponsor of the first ever EAT x NE festival on September 19th-21st at Oakledge park in beautiful Burlington, VT. This FREE 3-day celebration of Vermont food was a great success with over 8,000 attendees throughout the weekend. The goal of Eat by Northeast was to strengthen Vermont’s local food movement by welcoming the entire community to a free, all-ages festival with goals to:

• raise an estimated $20,000 or more in donations to local food non-profits
• educate entrepreneurs, families and gardeners on the business, preparation and cultivation of local food
• celebrate our vibrant culinary tradition through fun gatherings at the peak of our abundant harvest

There was free music, great local food vendors and over 30 free seminars from the best entrepreneurs, chefs, and champions of the local food movement in VT. We played a role in many of the happenings over the three day festival and we’d love to show you some highlights!

On Friday, we took part in the Brewhaha which featured over 20 of the region’s breweries, cideries and wineries. We were happy to be there both Friday and Saturday night pouring local wine for attendees. We poured wine from Boyden Valley Winery, Shelburne Vineyard, East Shore Vineyard, Lincoln Peak and Fresh Tracks and had samples available of local Vermont cheeses.

On Saturday, our Learning Center duo was on site teaching kiddos cooking magic. It started in the Oakledge Pavilion at 11 AM with Kids in the Kitchen: Local Veggie Samosas. Kids had a ball making Samosas (crispy little veggie-packed pastries) in this hands-on session with Chef Clarina Cravins. It’s fun to allow kids to try new foods, and it was certainly a crowd-pleaser! Learning Center Chef Clarina Cravins loves teaching Kids in the Kitchen classes, and offers them every week at our Learning Center.

Next up we had our Demo Coordinator, Erin teach proper storage and creative cooking techniques with root veggies. Erin invited the crowd to join her up front as she sampled different recipes and explained how she made them along with some super tips and tricks she’s found while preparing these foods. This session turned into an informative Q&A time where everyone left with new knowledge to bring home to their kitchens. Thanks Erin! Make sure to check out all the awesome demos that Erin sets up in the store. Whether is a vendor coming in to sample their product or a recipe she whips up and serves, chances are you won’t want to miss it so click here to check out what she has going on.

At 1 PM, we were back under the pavilion for another Kids in the Kitchen class. This time, Clarina and Brian taught kiddos how to prepare Apple Crisp! Clarina started the class explaining a bit about apples and what to look for when purchasing them. Then everyone was treated to warm apple crisp with Cabot cheddar cheese to snack on. Finally, the little bakers used local apples and King Arthur Flour and got to bring their crisps home to bake.

Next up, Kimchi 101. Kimchi is a traditional Korean fermented dish that’s packed with flavor, crunch and a healthy dose of probiotics. When quality kimchi costs about $8-10 per jar in the store, why not make your own? Our Demo Coordinator Erin shared with the crowd some tips and tricks on preparing Kimchi at home and there were plenty of yummy samples and great questions from the audience.

Next we were already into night two of the Brewhaha. The attendance on Saturday night was spectacular. Many people joined in the festivities but still the lines were manageable and the selection large.

This brings us to Sunday. Another beautiful day down at Oakledge in the sunshine. We had two sessions on Sunday, first up was ‘Use Up Summer Bounty with Grilled Flatbreads’. Chef Clarina Cravins, chef at Healthy Living’s Learning Center fired up the grill to demonstrate the fine art of grilled flatbreads. Flatbreads are inexpensive to prepare, fun, and versatile… a great way to use up local veggies, meats and cheeses. The outcome of these pizzas was so delicious I don’t think there was one leftover piece. Don’t forget that Clarina offers a variety of classes for adults every month in the Learning Center; from Ladies Night Out to Vegan and Vegetarian classes, click here for more information.

Shortly after the Flatbreads came one of our favorite activation’s, Homemade BBQ Sauces. BBQ sauces can expensive to buy – but they are easy to prepare at home. Pair it with some locally-raised meat, an you’ve got an award-winning summer meal. Two Healthy Living all stars, Chef Clarina Cravins and Meat Manager Colin Driscoll, taught and demod two amazing homemade sauces and gave tips on cooking grass-fed beef. Dishes included: Teriyaki sauce with grass fed beef and Smokey Onion BBQ sauce with Local Pork.

Last but certainly not least, the whole Healthy Living gang came together to grill up sausages! Our house-made sausages, made from all local meats are one of our house-made specialties, and the best in town! We served up sweet and hot Italian and cheddar beer brats, come check out all of our freshly made flavors in our full-service meat case. People were thrilled when they found out these amazingly tasty treats were being served for FREE! We had such a good time grilling that even Gov. Shumlin stopped by to say hello and share some laughs with us as our busy weekend was beginning to wind down.

It was a busy yet rewarding weekend of fun. We were so happy to be part of this event and we already can’t wait until next year! Want to see more? Check out the EATxNE website by clicking here.