Healthy Eating Ambassador

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• Posted Get #HitchedatHopeFarms to Dish with Gracie
  Hope Farms is now open for socially distance intimate weddings! For $2,000, Hope Farm's Intimate Wedding package affords a two-hour event on 7 acres of urban green space in Sunnyside, just outside Loop 610, complete with ceremony backdrop, seating for 12 guests, wedding cake, tabletop and wedding flowers. Read more from the Houston Chronicle Here...
• Posted Tasty Thymes Were Had at the December Family Cooking Class to Dish with Gracie
  This December we welcomed Chef Kevin Naderi of Roost for a hands-on family cooking class to explore holiday favorites with a healthy twist. After taking our food adventurer oath, the class perfected their knife skills with a Fall Harvest Salad, spotlighting our Hope Farms winter harvest of kale, arugula, green onions, and radishes. A tofu green goddess dressing that would turn any ranch lover was a hit with the kiddos, not only for a new and exciting flavor profile, but also the bonus of using the immersion blender! As an accompaniment to the salad, students whipped up a warmed cranberry and goat cheese spread to top a toasted artisanal sourdough loaf, courtesy of The Breadman Baking Company, that demonstrated proper zesting, peeling and folding techniques. One would have thought that our young chefs were participating in a holiday cookie-decorating...
• Posted KPRC 2 Commends Warriors to Farmers Training Program to Dish with Gracie
  KPRC 2 Houston Life visited Hope Farms on Veteran's Day to celebrate the Warriors to Farmers Training Program and our cohort! Check out the interview here....
• Posted Houstonia Captivated by Fashion in the Fields to Dish with Gracie
  "Last Sunday, Recipe for Success Foundation held its second-annual sold-out event, Fashion in the Fields, presented by Neiman Marcus. The UnitedHealthcare Foundation Gathering Barn at Hope Farms played host for the swank crowd that included families, socialites, media stars, and devoted philanthropists alike. Event Chairs Amanda Boffone and Elizabeth Dwyer set a mod, glamorous tone for the event, which was a multifaceted affair and featured a cocktail social hour, fashion show, and delectable brunch by Snooze Eatery, La Table, Common Bond, Hilton Americas, and Pat Greer's Kitchen. The weather could not have been more perfect; wide-brim hats and breezy fall neutrals ruled the day as the perfect match for the sunny, crisp fall afternoon..." Read More...
• Posted Wells Fargo Does It Again! to Dish with Gracie
  Our friends at the Wells Fargo Foundation are continuing their support by contributing to our Hope Farms Veteran Program workforce development! Wells Fargo has been a long-standing partner of Recipe for Success Foundation and we value their partnership as we work together to build stronger communities. Our nation has a long history of welcoming our troops home and bringing them back into a life where they can work and study out of harm's way. We have created a unique 2,000-hour training program designed and offered only to military Veterans. With funding from Wells Fargo, we will be able to further empower our new Veteran Farmer Training Program Manager, Tyler, in his effort to transform our veteran trainees from warriors to farmers. We are deeply grateful for lasting relationships with companies like Wells Fargo, who support our mission throughout all...
• Posted New School Year with Nutritious & Delicious Fun! to Dish with Gracie
  As we approach the 2019-2020 school year, we are pleased to announce ten new Recipe for Success Affiliate Partner Schools in Houston! Thanks to H.E.B and United Healthcare Foundation, thousands more children will learn healthy eating skills with our Seed to Plate Nutrition Education™. A huge welcome to Alcott, Bastian, Codwell, Condit, Grissom, Mading, Mitchell, and Shadydale Elementary Schools along with KIPP Dream and Pershing Middle Schools -- our newest Affiliate Partners. Teachers at all the schools have been going through our S2P Instructor Training this summer as they prepare to launch their programs on their home campuses. We are thrilled to be working with these fantastic schools, their faculties, parents and especially the students! There is always room for more, so please reach out if you are interested in bringing our Seed to Plate Nutrition Education™ to your...
• Posted Love, Tito's Community Garden to Dish with Gracie
  Partnerships play a huge role in our ability to provide our programming, both in schools and on the farm. We had an amazing work day to close out May with Tito's Handmade Vodka on the farm during their Love, Tito's event. Just like RFS, Tito's Vodka believes in the power of people coming together to accomplish big things! Love, Tito's is a social experiment to reconnect communities, one block at a time. The Tito's Vodka family worked alongside local nonprofit organizations in Los Angeles, Miami, and Houston to help support urban farms to make fresh, healthy food more accessible to the local community. Together we built 21 raised beds for our new Hope Farms community garden, as well as expand the pollinator garden in front of the farm. The hard work, dedication, and initiative of all those who helped is...
• Posted Welcome Farmer Nick! to Dish with Gracie
  While we say goodbye to some, we welcome others to the team! You may have seen him around Hope Farms for the last month, learning about the property and new climate, but now it's time for an introduction. Nick DeBrock, recently moved from Connecticut where he ran vegetable production for The Hickories, is our new Hope Farms Manager. He is your go to for farm shares, restaurant sales, day-to-day production and our weekly farm stand! We're excited to start this new chapter, and extend a big Texas welcome to this new personality! We asked Nick a few questions to dig a little deeper, see the Q&A below. What is the biggest difference in farming in Southeast Texas versus Connecticut? The biggest change is just how drastic the timing is on fruits and vegetables. It is July and tomato season is...
• Posted CultureMap: Tomato Tasting, Strawberry Moon & Van Gogh at Hope Farms to Dish with Gracie
  "Under a full strawberry moon (a tasty beacon, indeed), Gracie Cavnar, founder of Recipe for Success, orchestrated her popular Chefs in the Field supper. Hosted by Recipe for Success Foundation at Hope Farms, the evening brought the farm to the table, featuring fresh produce and a menu showcasing the best of the season..." Read More from Steven Devadanam at CultureMap...
• Posted Field Trips to Hope Farms to Dish with Gracie
  Stories From the Classroom by Paris Anton & Amanda Howard: Spring is a time of both rebirth and growth in our garden, classrooms and farm! As cool days begin to warm it's finally time for our farmers-in-training to put their hands into the soil. The end of the school year ended with a BANG for both our showcase schools with 4th grade field trips to Hope Farms! Between MacGregor Elementary's 84 students and Sylvan Rodriguez Elementary's 164 students, the farm was abuzz with more than the bees in the apiaries. Our S2P kiddos ended a fun filled year spent in their gardens and culinary classrooms seeing the likes of a real working farm, participating in the day's harvest followed by tastings, egg collection in the chicken coop, making seed bombs in the children's garden, and a mass of apron...
• Posted We've Had a Full Plate This Year! And More to Come! to Dish with Gracie
  End of the Year Wrap Up by Jen Fridley: As we closed down the 2018-2019 school year in our Showcase Schools, we are excited to announce news that our Farmers MarKIDS Market was a huge hit at Sylvan Rodriguez Elementary School. Our students displayed the characteristics of little entrepreneurs and agri-business marketers. It was definitely a successful undertaking with the entire school community. Brothers Produce even stopped by to purchase produce from our stand. Our students experienced real life connections in the food industry from seed to plate! Combined with Art for Sale, the Urban Farm led up by Farmer Moore, produce from the garden, and jarred goods from the Culinary Classroom, our students are able to purchase a birdbath for the garden for the enjoyment of everyone with the funds from their market! On the horizon for the...
• Posted Houston Chronicle Dazzled by Delicious Alchemy to Dish with Gracie
  "If it ain't broke, don't fix it - improve upon it. That's the approach Recipe for Success' annual Delicious Alchemy dinner seems to take, anyway. Gracie Cavnar, the organization's founder, board chairman and CEO, tackles a unique challenge each year. Finding a host couple both willing and able to accommodate several dozen gastronomes into their home for a 10-course feast is no easy feat. And then there's the coordination of all that food. Wrangling 10 acclaimed chefs to produce a cohesive yet distinctive menu is quite an undertaking. But when all those moving parts click into place, c'est ce bon..." Read more by Houston Chronicle's Amber Elliott...
• Posted CityBook Naturally Loves Earth Day Festivities to Dish with Gracie
  We kicked off April with a busy weekend full of Earth Day festivities! The weekend started with our Earth Day Festival on April 6 in which we had several vendors and activities for the community to engage in. Snooze hosted a pancake breakfast which benefitted our S.P.I.C.E. Guild, DEFINE utilized our movement lawn for a beat class, and RFS Board Members taught cooking classes to a wide ranging audience. All resulting in community attendance being higher than 2018! The weekend continued with our Chefs in the Field Earth Day Supper on April 7. We greatly appreciated the contributions of our sponsors Treaty Oak, St. Arnold's Brewing, Dairy Maids, and 1836 Olive Oil. Your Butler's Pantry set the scene during the intimate dinner portion of the event, with our long, rustic table down the middle of the Gathering Barn and...
• Posted CultureMap: Earth Day Supper Success to Dish with Gracie
  "In spite of the weather, beloved Recipe for Success founder Gracie Cavnar pulled off yet another Chefs in the Field alfresco supper, this time to celebrate Mother Earth. Hosted by Recipe for Success Foundation at Hope Farms, the evening featured farm-fresh produce and a menu showcasing the best of locally sourced food and star chefs..." Read More...