You know we at TAUNY have always loved food--we love learning about people’s food traditions and practices, from recipes treasured over generations to new family favorites that shine a light on stories and experiences important to North Country life. And we love sharing food with you--at events, gathered round our own TAUNY Kitchen counter, and through stories, photos, and videos online.

So in some ways, it’s nothing new for us to be focused on food--from the abundance of foodlore that’s come up in our varied research projects, to the award-winning Good Food, Served Right cookbook and smaller recipe gathering projects, to the opening of The TAUNY Center Kitchen, to the work of Kitchen Specialist Teresa Stone over 2020 and the regular contributions of many volunteers, interns, and project participants--and of course the years of sharing delicious and meaningful tastes of food traditions at countless programs.

Going forward, we’re thrilled to have the chance to build on all this and more by diving into our new “Folk to Table'' Project. Over the coming months, Director of Research and Programs Camilla Ammirati will be shifting focus to this project in order to develop TAUNY’s work with the food traditions of the region and all who live here. 

The initiative will include things such as: ongoing research into regional food culture and the food traditions individuals and communities carry on throughout the North Country; projects and presentations featuring these food traditions; live (in-person and/or virtual) cooking demonstrations and workshops; videos and other social media features; and more. As we get this initiative going, we’re especially excited to start with a 2021 partnership with littleGrasse Community Farm to highlight the connections between food-growing practices and the food traditions they reflect and sustain. This project will feature food-growing both at littleGrasse and in personal gardens around the area and beyond. Stay tuned for more about this project, and let us know (at camilla@tauny.org) if you grow food (whether a single herb or crops that help sustain you) to help support your own food traditions and would like to share your story--and maybe a glimpse of your garden and the dishes you make with ingredients from it--for this project!

As with all our work, this is a community project--learning about, documenting, sharing, and celebrating the food traditions of our region begins with you! Keep an eye out in the coming weeks and months for calls to share stories, recipes, traditions, and more. And meanwhile drop us a line any time at camilla@tauny.org if you want to let us know about your own food traditions--or anything food culture-related you see around you that you think we should know about--or if you’d like to get involved in the program as a volunteer or intern. 

Pictured: Camilla happily dives into the wonderful Adirondack Cookbook by Hallie Bond and Stephen Topper, to brush up on some research--and maybe decide on a dinner plan--as she starts shifting her focus to North Country foodways.

Jill here:  In my ideal world, everyone would wear hand-knits every day of the year.  We aren't able to bring you an in-person North Country Knits display this year, but let's have an online show & tell!  Please email a photo of one project you completed in 2020 to jill@tauny.org by January 22.  In the message, tell  something about the project. We'll post submissions in late January. 

Pictured: 

Wool dress knitted by North Country Heritage Award recipient Annis Holmes, Chestertown, NY.  Annis made this finely knit garment when she was a pattern tester for a major yarn company. Dress shown on a model featured in the company's pattern books.

Open Call for Folkstore Purchased Artwork

Call for action! When you purchase an artwork and bring it home, there is an unspoken connection that is built between you and the artist. Periodically, artists mention to us how much they would like to see their work as it looks installed in the homes of purchasers. If you have Folkstore-purchased artwork in your home that looks especially nice in installation, we encourage you to share your photos with our Communications Director, Xiuke Wei at: xiuke@tauny.org. If you have a story to tell, you can send it along with the photo too! This is an opportunity to support your favorite artists in a different way, while strengthening the bonds between the TAUNY community and local artists. 

Pictured:

Metal wall art by James Gonzales, shared by Alan Hersker.