The Cheese Course & The Urban Farmer (Day 25 of 30)

First off, just realized that today's post is pretty much the midpoint between when I started these 30 days and my due date. That's pretty awesome!

Tonight Richard, Lydia, and I went to the new Cheese Course in Coral Springs for a free fruit and cheese pairing class. The Cheese Course features hundreds of cheeses, accompaniments (e.g. pestos, honey, fruits, nuts, etc.), bread, and wine. They have a menu with sandwiches, salads, and platters. You can eat there or just take cheese and other items to go. The event itself wasn't quite what I expected, but I did get to try some yummy things. Here are the two appetizers they served:
~An aged gouda with freshly-made mango jam a mint puree on a water cracker. I love aged gouda, and this paired nicely. It brought out the milder, sweeter flavors, but in a balanced way.
~Buffalo mozzarella with locally-grown roasted yellow squash/zucchini, onions, tomatoes, fresh oregano, basil, balsamic reduction, and olive oil.

After trying the different items, the local farmer and chef spoke to us (there were about 20 people in attendance). The local farmer began a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm in her own yard. She explained the program she helps to run, where you can purchase weekly share of her produce along with other locally-grown/raised produce and meat. It's called The Urban Farmer. She's the mother of a two-year old daughter who inspired her to create this farm and buying club. Whenever I hear people speak about local farming, I find it to be very inspirational. I definitely want to look through the website and lean more about the products/services offered. It just makes me want to never eat another processed food again. She was talking about how much better nutrient-rich food tastes, and it is so true. I love the farm-to-table movement and the idea of "slow food" rather than "fast food." I've said it before - I want Lydia to know where her food comes from, how it is grown, how food is prepared, etc. I hope she enjoys cooking (and eating) like I do!

Oh, and the chef who prepared the food works at Daniel Boulud's restaurant in West Palm. That was pretty cool! May have to check it out one day.