A Taste of Fall - Launch Party for The Positive Plate on 11-11-11

Alright folks!!  Here is the official launch party of The Positive Plate - Orange County's newest, hottest restaurant sustainability program spearheaded by Jesse Baker PhD of Ecofficiency!  We have an amazing line up of food from some of OC's best "green" restaurants in addition to stellar music (including Common Kings, Jacob Luttrell and American Idol's Michael Castro)!  It's all happening this Friday on 11-11-11 at an incredibly unique and fitting venue - The OC Food Bank in Irvine, CA.  Tickets are still available but they are going fast!  You can purchase them here for $60 a pop.  Each ticket includes unlimited food and drinks.

 

Sending a special THANK YOU to our restaurant and beverage sponsors.  AND, we are lucky enough to have Paul Schafer of PS Photo Media as our sponsoring photographer along with Fusion Linens as our linen donor.  Of course, Floral Sense will be there with sustainably designed arrangements decking out the event!  There WILL be a give-away of some arrangements too.  

Can't wait to see you there!!

Yours Truly,

Joanna

The Positive Plate Launch Party on November 11, 2011

Ok, I know I promised tidbits of Floral Sense press so, rest assured, they will be showcased in the coming posts.  But I wanted to insert an exciting announcement about The Positive Plate's launch party happening on 11/11/11 at Second Harvest Food Bank in Irvine, CA.  Seriously, I am SUPER stoked about this event as we will have several of our restaurants presenting signature fall dishes with a sustainable twist.  Love it!  Check out the brochure below and the website here for more detailed info.

Just keep in mind that admission is limited to 200 people so purchase your tickets soon!

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Yours truly,

Joanna

Sustainability in the Cut Flower Industry

Co-founder of Ecofficiency.org, Chrissy Gray, has spent the last few months abroad in South America and I'm excited that she is finally back!  While overseas, she had the opportunity to visit Cayambe, Ecuador, and get a peak into the thriving cut floral industry there. What she learned was that the actual impacts of farming practices on these flower plantations are alarming. Detrimental practices include the use of pesticides that are illegal in the US which, in turn, are affecting the community's children born with physical deformities and mental deficiencies...not to mention the use of non-biodegradable materials just to package the roses.  (I can't even tell you how much cellophane I have stored away for future design use off of cut flower packaging. I don't even purchase cellophane.)  Chrissy's article (which you can read here) tells an eye-opening view into what goes behind some of the flowers you purchase.  

Sustainability in the floral industry has been a difficult push.  Thankfully, the demand for environmentally safe floral farming has led to the development of certifications such as Veriflora and Rainforest Alliance. For Floral Sense, this makes the conscientious purchasing of our fresh goods much easier.  This also means that not all the flower breeds we want will be available within the certification which calls for some creative substitutions.  You, as a retail consumer, have the option to make better choices in where and how you purchase your designed arrangements.  My hope is that you are empowered with enough information to ask your florist the right questions.  At the end of the day, where we put our money is what we inadvertently demand.

If you have any questions regarding this topic or would like to further the discussion, please leave a comment below.  I would love to here you thoughts.

Yours truly,

Joanna

Ecofficiency.org at Doheny Days

Come join Ecofficiency.org at Doheny Days this weekend.  We are greening it up!

 

Check out the Doheny Days Facebook page for more info on attending.  Hope to see you there!

Yours truly,

Joanna

Ecofficiency.org Speaker Series: Socially Responsible Investing

Our Speaker Series at Ecofficiency is finally up and running again after a bit of a hiatus.  We have a new venue too!  Please join us on Wednesday September 7 at Haute Cakes in Newport Beach from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM. Our speaker will be Kyle Scrimgeour from Core Capital Management covering the topic of Socially Responsible Investing.  

Complimentary appetizers and drinks will be provided. And a $5 donation at the door is appreciated!

Haute Cakes

1807 Westcliff Drive

Newport Beach, CA 

949.642.4114

See you there!

Yours truly,

Joanna

The Positive Plate: Launching September 1, 2011

I am SO excited to finally announce the launch of The Positive Plate!  Take some time to browse the website here.  In essence, The Positive Plate is "an Orange County based sustainability program, helping restaurants, food trucks, and caterers implement individualized and comprehensive sustainability plans. Our mission is to help inspire a comprehensive and verifiable movement toward sustainable food production, service, and consumption from within Orange County’s dining culture. All restaurants participating in our program make significant commitments towards operating sustainably, and deserve your support."

Jesse Baker, Founder to Ecofficiency.org, has been working on this project for as long as I can remember.  His hard work and dedication is finally paying off! If you are looking for sustainably certified restaurants to eat at, just check out the beginnings to a great list on the website.

To socially responsible eating!

Yours truly,

Joanna

Avanti Cafe

Sustainable Living means different things to different people.  For me? My journey has been all about making small, consistent choices that are conducive to promoting a healthier life with the environmental impact in mind.  In particular, green farming practices are a huge component to my interests especially with flowers being a main component of floral design. And naturally, my research of organic floral farms have given me more reason to focus on consuming organically grown food. Needless to say, I am IN LOVE with slow food! One of my favorite restaurants that focuses on "eating responsibly" is Avanti Cafe in Costa Mesa, CA.  They use produce that is grown organically AND locally.  Avanti is vegetarian and vegan friendly.  Oh, and their food is truly dynamic (not to mention, the recent remodeling is well suited for the cafe).

 

You gotta love the fact that water is served in wine bottles.

 

I was lucky enough to take my boys out on a mommy/son date last week so here's a sampling of their menu:

Onion Jam and Garbanzo Flatbread

 

Custom Kid-friendly Cheese Pizza:

 

Arugula and Spinach Pesto Pasta

 

Banana Chocolate Strudel with House-made Peanut Ice Cream

 

I just want to add that my 4 year old had no qualms about eating arugula, spinach, garbanzo beans or onion jam, which emphasizes against the argument that kids won't eat healthy foods that don't look like canned nacho cheese and greasy fries. Its just a matter of how the food is presented. You may recall the event I covered in San Diego of Cooks Confab's presentation of School Lunch where healthy, delicious food was presented in a way that kids will love.  So, to the school districts that want to fight against school food reform based on an erroneous assumption, I say BOLOGNA! (But please don't feed that to my kid.)

So back to Avanti. Right. 

See this picture below of the baskets of gorgeous organic produce?  You can affordably purchase them through your local Community Supported Agriculture (CSA).  South Coast Farms is behind this particular branch in which Avanti serves as a pick up location.  You can order on a weekly or bi-weekly basis anywhere from $31 to $42 a basket depending on if you pick up from the farm or one of their pick-up locations. See? Sustainable living choices don't have to break the bank!

 

And you know you would rather be eating this than what's sold in the grocery stores.

Hope this inspires you to seek out an organic meal this week!

Your truly,

Joanna

Ecofficiency Speaker Series at the The Camp - Greening Your Home Part 2

Happy Monday!

I'm sure you're excited to read about Speaker #2 from last week's Ecofficiency meeting. Meet the Building Doctors. Yeah, I was a bit puzzled too when James approached the stage wearing a set of blue scrubs. But I appreciate the humor! This company specializes in home energy audits and upgrades. And just as a doctor assesses a persons symptoms to determine a plan of health action, so do the Building Doctors for the home.

If you are interested in improving the efficiency of your home, this is a great place to start. Believe it or not, America's largest source of carbon emissions stem from our homes NOT our cars. Surprising, eh?

To start, a home's performance is determined not through its individual units or systems but as a whole. Part of the process of building auditing includes analyzing the various fundamentals in the home (such as air sealing, lighting, etc) and major systems (such as heating, air conditioning, ventilation). Once the problem areas are found, a treatment plan in drawn up. And the retrofitting begins. Interestingly enough, a common source of energy inefficiency? Gaping holes in duct pipes.

Once all is said and done, the performance of the home is tested again for quality assurance purposes. As for costs, that was never covered. But I would imagine that your utility costs would diminish over time as the efficiency of your home improves.

For more information about the Building Doctors, you can visit their website here.

Cheers!

Ecofficiency Speaker Series at the The Camp - Greening Your Home Part 1

As you probably know by now, Ecofficiency holds a monthly meeting at The Camp focusing on specific topics of everyday sustainability. This last Tuesday's meeting covered Greening Your Home. We were lucky enough to have 3 different speakers address various topics to assist us in making our home healthier to live in. Because each topic was so extensive, I will be spreading this meeting out over 2 blog posts.

The first speakers of the evening were Lisa and Ron Beres, a husband and wife team who co-authored Just Green It and pioneered Greennest.com. Both are building biologists who have dedicated their efforts to educating people on reducing the toxins in their home. Believe it or not, you can develop something called Sick Building Syndrome if toxins in your house reach a level that your body can no longer handle. So, here are a few tips for you to creating a a healthier living environment. Use your 5 sense and follow along!

1) Smell - Create better indoor air quality via increasing ventilation, replacing furnace filters, using HEPA vacuums and air purifiers, checking for lead paint, painting the walls with low or zero VOC paints, using non-toxic cleaning products.
2) Taste - Filter your drinking waters through reverse osmosis, carbon-based filters, distillation and shower-head filters. Avoid toxic plastic containers that contain BPA and/or are plastic #3, #6 #7. Use stainless steel water bottles and/or plastic #1, #2, #4, #5.
3) Sound - Reduce electro-pollutions that cause sleep deprivation and interfere with the body's immune system. Move your cell phone, cell phone charger, LCD tv and Plasma tv away from you sleeping areas.
4) Touch - Be conscious of the fabrics you sleep on as many are treated with formaldehyde and pesticides. Eliminate toxic flooring and pesticides.
5) Sight - Have a vision for your green life!

I hope this was insightful to you! Feel free to browse the Green Nest website here for more information on how to green your home. The Beres' book is a great place to start in case you need a manual to green living in your home.

PS - There is a book that I use regularly called Haley's Hints Green Edition that gives you great household tips from cooking to cleaning and everything in between. This is where I learned to create my own cleaning solutions with safe products such as vinegar, baking soda and toothpaste. Truthfully, I didn't care about having chemicals in my house until I had children. Just the thought of them getting into dangerous chemicals gives me chills but now I don't have to worry about it!

Cheers to green living!

What To Do With the Flowers After Your Event

Flowers, flowers, flowers! They are definitely plentiful at a wedding. So after the music turns off, the lights turn on and the guests go back home, what happens to all those gorgeously designed arrangements? If you aren't planning for your guests to take the florals, then it would be smart to think about finding another home for them. Need a few tips to plan ahead?



1) See if the florist that you are working with will be willing to pick up the leftover centerpieces from the venue and deliver them to your location of choice. Some may charge you for your request, some may not. Otherwise, see if someone you know personally would be willing to take care of the delivery.

2) If you rented the vases in which the flowers are arranged, then be prepared to transfer the flowers into vases you don't mind giving away.

3) Be sure to contact the location receiving your florals ahead of time so they can prepare for your delivery. Nursing homes and hospitals are great places to send your arrangements to. And depending on the location, find out if certain flowers in the arrangements are going to be of concern due to allergies and strong fragrances.

I hope this was helpful in planning for your next event! Happy planning!

Image courtesy of Luminaire Images. Thank you for such a gorgeous shot of our work!

Fibonacci's Dirty Little Secret

Alright, so maybe it's not really a secret but its dirty! Fibonacci's Campus Pointe Bistro has its own farm from where they harvest their own produce. And its just a walk away from the restaurant on a patch of real dirt! Check it out:







Just a little side thought - The florals on this dill plant look so much like a filler flower I like to use called Queen Anne's Lace. So what's to say that I can't use the florals from an edible garden to design with?


There is also a composting area. All composting material begin in the first bin and is moved/turned once a week into the following bin.


The progression eventually moves here where the soil is sifted. Its so easy, even the kids can do it!


So what even compelled me to visit the garden during my visit at Fibonacci's on Sunday? I noticed that all the disposable plates and utensils were made of raw, biodegradable material which was enough cause for applause. Then I had to find the trash cans after I was done with my meal.


I found a small crowd of people by the trash receptacle sorting through their garbage. Standing ovation? Getting there.


There were four different compartments: Compost, Fibonacci's Compostable Dinnerware, Recycle and Trash. Each label included a description of acceptable materials.


This composting material can be used for Fibonacci's very own garden! I love it! The system has been set up to sustain itself. (Insert standing ovation here)

Well done!

Cooks Confab Presents: School Lunch! at Fibonacci's by Waters Fine Catering

Clear sunny skies at a crisp 68 degrees set the perfect backdrop for Sunday's event at Fibonacci's Campus Pointe Bistro by Waters in San Diego for the Cooks Confab School Lunch event.


I had been looking forward to this event for several weeks after getting the heads-up from Chef Andrew Spurgin of Waters Fine Catering. There were 2 main reasons this event perked my interest. The first - I was shocked to hear that a school district was openly working with the community of local farms and chefs to create better school lunches. I have seen the intense resistance that public schools have made toward such needed changes. So, I absolutely needed to see how these changes were being implemented and who was at the forefront of making these big steps. Second - Sourcing ingredients from local farms is an issue that is close to my heart and my business. I wanted more opportunities to chat directly with the local farmers and hear their voice.

I was excited to see the actual farmers who supply the produce to the school districts showcased upon entering the building.






We were greeted with a cocktail area that included samples from: Tolosa Winery (Chardonnay and Pinot Noir)


Snake Oil Cocktail Co. (Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice; Strawberry “Milkshake”)


Waters Bar Service (Housemade Beet "Vermouth"; Hibiscus Extract, Raisin Reduction, Pressed Apple Foam, Micro Radish)

This one was my personal favorite because of the innovation in its unique mix of ingredients. The flavor profile was rather intriguing and the presentation was hard to pass up.


We were eventually lured away from bar service into the restaurant for a presentation on the topic of school lunches with the needs and challenges that are faced daily.

I realized part of the resistance from many school districts to changing lunch menus lies in the immense limitations. For example, all nutrition regulations must fit within $1 for each meal. The lunch items need to be convenient, healthy and desirable. The time to prep lunch for a school of students is limited with limited prep space. In addition, The time to serve these meals is limited to usually 30 minutes. And many schools have around 2000 to 3000 students to feed! Unfortunately, this is just the tip of the iceberg of issues.

Here's a chart that speaks volumes for itself:


However, it can be done and it is being done. Broccoli was finally introduced to the San Diego schools with local farms contributing approximately 1000 pounds a week. The response has been very positive allowing for more forward momentum.

(A side note - this event is reflective of what is happening in the San Diego county school district. I'm curious as to what Orange County and Los Angeles County have going on, if anything at all. If any of you readers have insight, please leave me a message below. I would love to hear from you!)

Skipping forward to lunch. Standing in the long line made me feel a bit nostalgic to the school lunch days with my tray in hand. I remember, as a kid, being excited that my mom had to hand me lunch money because she didn't have time to make me a sandwich. But looking back, I'm not sure what the hype was all about. The food was horrible: packaged tortilla chips with canned nacho cheese, chalupas (still not sure what that was), greasy chimichangas, dry tater tots, cardboard pizza. Oh, and I can't forget the chocolate milk in a plastic bag. So wrong in so many ways.



Here are few snaps of the stations before the crowds. I was spying for those plastic milk bags but didn't find any. It looks like we're off to a good start.






Whew, just look at the color on these plates! Each healthy lunch menu item passionately created by some very talented chefs using local produce. Its exciting to think that my own kids would be eating from this menu at school! I definitely want their school lunch to look like this.


Yep, those are edible flowers! I was kinda' tempted to make an arrangement with the flowers and salad into my coffee cup.


And of course - dessert!

This is the Blood Orange Juice Box bar.


See if you can match the menu item description to the picture:
Beef & Broccoli with Brown Rice
by Jason Knibb – NINE–TEN

Chicken & Local Vegetable "Pot Pie"
by Jeff Jackson & TK Kolanko – A. R. Valentien

Cream of Tomato Soup with Parmesan Cream & Bread Crumbs; Lentil–Barley Soup with Mint Yogurt; Strawberry Yogurt with Chocolate Dipping Sticks
by Trey Foshee & Lori Huffman – George’s California Modern

“Fish & Chips” Wild Striped Bass, Baked Vegetable Chips, Tartar Sauce
by Paul McCabe – KITCHEN 1540
by Donald Coffman – Paradise Point

Suzie's Farm Vegetable "Lasagna"; Jidori Chicken Roulade; Handmade Focaccia; Strawberries n' Cream
by Katie Grebow – Café Chloe
by Amy DiBiase – Chef/Consultant

Salad Bar from Waters’ Organic Garden with “a Bunch of Stuff That’s Good For You;” Fava Bean Tops and Beans, Peas and Tendrils, Garden Herbs; Roasted Vegetables and House Made Pickles; Tofu “Caprese” with Suzie’s Farms’ Cherry Tomatoes, Shiso Sesame Soba with Ginger-Sesame; Trio of Citrus with Strawberry Spherification, Black Sesame
by Andrew Spurgin – Waters Fine Catering
by Melissa Mayer – Martini Media

Wheat “Macaroni ‘n Cheese;” Carrot Turmeric Purée; Diced Vegetables; Gruyère Cheese
by Olivier Bioteau – Farm House Café

Nathan's Natural Alpine Chicken Satay; Thai Almond Sauce; Cucumber Relish
by Antonio Friscia – Stingaree

Potato-Cauliflower Tostada, Yellow Cherry Tomato, House Queso Fresco, Pickled Broccoli Stem, Salsa Verde
by Guest Chef Ricardo Heredia – Alchemy

Cashew Nut Ice Cream Cups with Honeyed Quinoa
by Jack Fisher – Jack Fisher Confections

Spring Flavored Paletas: Blood Orange Juice Box; Choco Banana Milk; New School Tangerine and Cream; Yogurt Honey Granola Pop
by Guest Chef Lisa Altman – Viva Pops

Surprisingly, my favorite was the salad bar of raw and roasted vegetables. So simple and clean!

My other surprise favorite station - the coffee! I have never seen coffee served this way and didn't expect the flavors to stand out so much. You probably won't see this happening in a school cafeteria but you can't kill the coffee lover in me.


There is another component of Fibonacci's that I will share about on Thursday but I'll leave the topic in suspense until then. And there were some very important organizations with tables set-up in the cocktail area which I will cover separately. In the meantime, I hope this has given you more food for thought....literally and figuratively.

A special Thank You to Chef Andrew Spurgin for the invite! You're a true inspiration and your passion is contagious!


Cheers!