Thank You Everyone at Foodival 2018!

It takes many people to make Tooting Foodival happen.  

Here's a short thank-you to (hopefully) most of you!









GROWERS

Without your generous contributions of locally grown produce we would not have been feasting!

• Charles & Lesley, Foulser Rd - tarragon & bay leaves 
• Elisabetta, Dahomey Rd - Tuscan kale, cima di rapa, marrow, leeks, chard, pumpkin
• Jane, Furzedown - rhubarb, squash
• Tamworth Farm Allotment growers - marrows, squashes, cucumbers, peppers
• David & Mal, Ramsden Rd - radishes, grapes, tomatoes, runner beans, kohl rabi
• Kath, Khartoum Rd - beetroot, carrots, courgette
• Susan, Cornford Grove - grapes
• Michael, Ullathorne Rd - grapes, courgettes
• Hilary, Tooting - plums
• Tooting Community Garden, North Drive - blackberries, greengages, garlic, Picasso & Maris Piper potatoes, pumpkins

• Rachel, Tooting Bec Rd - courgettes, cucumbers, tomatoes, mini aubergines, chillis, peppers
• Richard, Upper Tooting Park - mint, rosemary, beetroot, courgettes, tomatoes, curly kale
• Chuck, Cornford Grove - sprouting microgreens
• Debbie, Furzedown - pumpkin, runner beans, cucamelons, squash, courgettes, apples
• Egle, Derinton Rd - pea shoots, mustard greens
• Susie, Earlsfield - carrots, yellow courgette, potatoes, tomatoes, runner beans, rosemary, sage
• Belinda, Beechcroft Rd - flowers, marrows
• Poppy & Teo, Streatham - patty pan & butternut squash
• Al, Tamworth Farm - snake gourds, squashes & marrows
• Sue, Furzedown - butternut squash, pumpkin, courgette, green leaves 
• Ollie, Clapham Junction - squash
• plus...Abel & Cole donated several boxes of organic vegetables when we were concerned that the summer's drought would limit the amount that community growers could spare us. Thank you so much!

CHEFS
Volker Nissen of Essential Ingredient for co-ordinating the cooking on Saturday with three notable local chefs: Manisha from Pooja Sweets, Rick Gibbs of Rick’s Tooting & Elisabetta Costantini from Minestra Supper Club.

Tooting Foodival 2018: Congratulations to this year’s Top Tooting Cook competition winners!

Thank you so much to the competition entrants, the judges and to the local enterprises who donated prizes for each class in the 'Top Tooting Cook' competition.

We had fabulous entries made with love and delicious fresh local ingredients...all adding up to good tasting and decision-making challenges for our panel of judges. The panel judged several classes as well as the overall 'Top Tooting Cook'.
Thanks loads to Bryony Williams for her beautiful photos in this post.

Overall 'Top Tooting Cook' Winner: 

Norah Jane Brasington - not only for taste and look of all her entries to three categories, but also for her exceptional use of locally sourced fruit and veg, eggs and honey. 

Her choices symbolised the fundamental reasons of this festival which are encouraging the community to consider sustainable living by Growing Local and reducing the air miles our food travels -  thereby reducing carbon emissions.

A fabulous example of a community action response to addressing climate change!

Winner in the Savoury Class:

Farhana Wahab who made delicious Spinach and potato burgers from locally grown vegetables. The judges commented that 'they are amazing and have great texture'.

Winner in the Dessert Class:

Rachel Crosby who made a blackberry and mint cake using locally grown fruit and mint. The judges were impressed especially by her beautiful presentation.

Winner in the Apples and Pears Class:

Norah Jane Brasington for her “beautifully moist" gluten-free apple and honey cake from locally sourced apples, eggs and honey! 

Winner in the Jams and Pickles Class:

Debbie Morey of Good Sorts won with her “delicious" Damson Jam with fruit sourced from a local allotment.

Special Commendation to ‘Baked Bean Boy’ for his hot kale and tomato salsa with “great heat”, all ingredients sourced from donations to Foodival 2018. 

The judges cogitate!

The audience enjoying a taste of the entries

Why not enter 'TTC' next year in Foodival 2019!

Yum!

Inviting you to our series of free local events this autumn exploring sustainability in Tooting!

We're thrilled with the fun and buzz at the Tooting Foodival last Saturday! Thanks to all who contributed their time, equipment, skills and produce to make it a success (see the I Grew This 2018 blog post).  Over 600 people took part on a sunny Tooting afternoon!
Much more to share about it soon on this blog.

The Tooting Foodival was the first in a series of free local events this autumn, all about exploring, influencing and creating sustainability in Tooting, together.


All invited to all of them!

Click here for a copy of the flyer.



The next event is a Tooting Debate on Weds 19th Sept:

'Local Food is an Expensive Luxury'.

Yes, we know.....that's intended to be provocative after the success of the community Foodival based on locally-grown food, local cooking and local eating together. 
Come along and share what you think! Details to come here on the blog.
The debate is on Weds 19th Sept from 7:00 pm - 10:00 pm at The Selkirk Pub, SW17 0ES

We'll promote and share details of all the other events in good time.

I Grew This 2018

Yesterday was another memorable one in the Tooting Foodival annals.  Full reports with myriad pictures will be posted on our blogas in the coming days but firstly thank you to our fabulous growers who donated home grown fruit and vegetables.  Without you the event is not possible.
We give you I Grew This 2018!

Whats on at Foodival 2018!

Running Order 2018

Foodival 2018 started this evening with the produce drop-off at Mushkil Aasaan. Left is the running order for the event including all the food, Top Tooting Cook and music timings.  Click through for the pdf.


You can also drop off produce  between 10:00 & 11:00 on Saturday, in time to have what you have grown included in the chefs' cooking.

We look forward to seeing you for the main event tomorrow from 11am until 5pm in Hereward Rd and Mushkil Aasaan HERE

Meanwhile ... anything left in the garden, window box or allotment?  Here are five crops I harvested just now!

Who's Playing Music at This Year's Foodival?

The Dermot Jones Meltdown™ showcases a variety of local musical talent at this year's Foodival, including Dermot himself and some artists so secret we cannot yet name them here!  Here is a taster of some of this year's acts.
 

Dermot Jones

Armed with six steel strings, a larynx, and a love of music stretching back to the 1930's - a little before he was born - Dermot will entertain you with his own original songs mixed in with off-the-wall covers and instrumentals from the worlds of Soul, Pop, Blues, Country, Folk, Jazz, Rock - but not JazzRock, sorry - Spanish, and Ragtime @DermotTJones

The Troubadours de l'Avenue Verte

The Troubadours de l'Avenue Verte, Jawadi Darabuka, Bain Stringy Thing, Longpela Pick and Blow are Lido regulars going out to play with a mix of of Irish, Disco, Rhythm and Blues. Just back from their European tour, where they eschewed a tour bus for three bicycles. 

Tai Li Ling

Tai Li Ling is a ukulele/guitar-playing Scouser specialising in Folk and Blues songs about her experiences living in the Big Smoke - when not in her day job at St George's University.www.taililing.com Soundcloud

Slim Estrada

Slim Estrada, deep south bluesman and Foodival veteran will be making his way out of the alligator-infested swamps (of Ealing) to join us again this year. We don't know if Pablo X and Washboard Bob will be joining him! www.slim-estrada.com

Emma and the Hot Tub Men play an eclectic mixture of original blues and traditional folk songs, with the odd French cover thrown in. Emma has a beautiful, original voice with a wide range and a soulful, yet ethereal tone. https://soundcloud.com/emma-and-the-hot-tub-men https://www.facebook.com/emmaandthehottubmen 

Vincent Burke

Vincent Burke recently discovered the fresh air and long walks of Summer Festivals playing Latitude Festival; some of the set went out on BBC6 Music and BBC Radio 3. He is well behaved, pet-friendly and occasionally entertaining. His music is melodic and not stupid, and now contains the added ingredients of double-bass and percussion.  http://www.vincentburke.co.uk

There will also be acoustic songs and edutainment from a mystery special guest. 100% British culture from a world citizen... expect everything from kawalee to punk via country ballad and beatbox. 

More information will be added to this post as we receive it ... The Meltdown has secrets you know!

Tooting Foodival Food: the Four Wonderful Chefs, and the brilliant local donors of prizes for the Top Tooting Cook competition

All about Tooting Foodival Food:

• Four Wonderful Chefs for the feast on Saturday 15th!
• Brilliant donors of prizes for the Top Tooting Cook competition!

The Four Wonderful Chefs

 
Volker Nissen (top left) is co-ordinating the cooking on Saturday, plus Manisha from Pooja Sweets (top right), Rick Gibbs of Rick’s Tooting (bottom right) & Elisabetta Costantini from Minestra Supper (bottom left).
Thank you all for sharing your time, experience & passion! 

The Top Tooting Cook competition (for details on taking part click here - and please do enter, just for fun of it) has some brilliant prizes for the different entry classes as well as the main TTC award itself.
In the generous style that we so admire in the Tooting community, the competition prizes have been donated by the local enterprises listed below. Thank you so much!

• Abel & Cole (who are celebrating their 30th anniversary)
• Al- Mirage 215 Upper Tooting Road, SW17 7TG
• Deelicious Nazish’s Kitchen 12 Tooting Bec Road, SW17 8BD
• Meat & Shake - Tooting 47 Upper Tooting Rd, SW17 7TR
• Nando's 224-226 Upper Tooting Road, SW17 7EW
• Unwined Tooting Market
• Walker Wyatt Cafe 3 Upper Tooting Road SW17 7TS
• Bring Your Own Zero Waste Shop Tooting Market

So much to look forward to: all welcome to the Tooting Foodival 2018, 11:00 - 5:00 on Sat 15th

at 220 Upper Tooting Road, SW17 7EW!

Join us to celebrate & learn about four of TTT's valued community partners at the Tooting Foodival

We're all looking forward to the FREE 11th Tooting Foodival on Saturday 15th September - for all the details of the Saturday community feast and more, scroll through our recent posts including our invitation to you to donate locally-grown vegetables and fruit, and about entering the Top Tooting Cook competition. 

The Foodival will be at Hereward Road and next door at 220 Upper Tooting Road, SW17 7EW from 11:00 to 5:00 on Saturday 15th.

We want to celebrate four community partners who are helping make the Foodival creative, relevant and anchored in our local community:

• Mushkil Aasaan
• London Sustainability Exchange
• Share Nurseries
• Think Outside

Mushkil Aasaan is a community-based care provider. The Foodival will be in their Hall on Upper Tooting Road and in Hereward Road right outside. Ever since TTT was established ten years ago, Mushkil Aasaan and the Project Director Naseem Aboobaker have been rock-solid friends and partners.

We've lost count of the number of times we have been able to meet or run sessions in their Hall! 
Mushkil Asaan gifts us the yearly use of the land where we run the 'all welcome' Tooting Community Garden, our weekly outdoor learning provision with Gatton School, and our Gardens of Sanctuary family days with refugees & asylum seekers from CARAS.


London Sustainability Exchange has been our partners in past activities on Air Quality and more. Throughout 2017 we worked together as LSx co-ordinated the Pollinator Paths Wandsworth Project which engaged 50+ home growing spaces via 4 local community gardens. LSx will be bringing Pollinator Paths 2018 - come along and learn to love insects!
You can do the pollinator recognition survey and sign up for further exciting involvement whatever your age or growing experience.


Share Nurseries is the social enterprise recently launched as part of Share Community.
Share Nurseries have supplied plants to us in many projects - all grown in Tooting with a tiny carbon footprint and a large amount of love, care and skill by Share's beneficiaries. 
Their plants will form 2 pop-up raised beds in Hereward Road, and the plants will be for sale later in the day on the 15th.



Think Outside is a local enterprise which runs and advises on outdoor learning workshops in schools, assists schools in raising funds for the re-development of outdoor spaces and leads gardening classes and related activities for the wider community.
Come and meet the Think Outside team: they are bringing some great activities from 11:00 until 2:00.
 

 

All welcome to come and learn about these enterprises and enjoy their activities at the Foodival on Saturday.

In another post we'll also celebrate the local people who are taking stands to sell their produce - there's lots to enjoy at the 2018 Foodival!

We invite you to share and celebrate your locally-grown vegetables and fruit at the Tooting Foodival on Saturday September 15th!

We're very excited to be hosting our eleventh annual Tooting Foodival community celebration of locally grown, cooked and enjoyed food on Saturday Sept 15th.

Traditionally we invite our friends and neighbours - and also complete strangers - to generously donate locally-grown fruit and vegetables they can spare. Please join in!

All grown locally and generously donated!

In 2017 500+ people feasted with us via the creativity of many volunteers and 4 chefs, cooking entirely local fruit and vegetables. It was a fantastic experience (more to share to celebrate the chefs).

2018 has been a much harder growing year than 2017, and despite that we hope that everyone's green fingers and generosity can be expressed in some donations - everything is appreciated however diverse or apparently humble. It's about the love of sharing rather than volume (though we do need some bulk as well!).

We celebrate the donors on our 'I Grew This' poster and on social media. Donated veg and fruit also provides the ingredients for our Top Tooting Cook Competition.

All the info in the series of posts here on this blog.

To donate produce, bring it along to Mushkil Aasaan at 220 Upper Tooting Road SW17 7EW on Friday evening 14th Sept between 6 & 8 pm, or on Sat 15th between 10 & 11 am. 

We do hope you can contribute - thanks so much.

And we look forward to seeing you at the Foodival!