Parts of this episode of The Key Ingredient with Sheri Castle were filmed in Western North Carolina earlier this year. Our hearts are with those experiencing the devastating impacts of Hurricane Helene.
Each time I get together with Chris Smith, I learn fascinating things about sustainable farming and mindful eating. Chris is the Executive Director and founder of The Utopian Seed Project, a non-profit based in Western North Carolina that, among other things, works in seed saving, plant breeding, and crop trials – what they call “hands in the earth work.” Their goal is to provide crop options for a changing climate and biodiversity for resilient food and farming systems.
One of their endeavors is The Heirloom Collards Project, which makes Chris an ideal guide on this field trip to Yanna Fishman’s farm in Western North Carolina, one of the project’s farming sites. I was in for a wonderful lesson in collard varieties and their history on a rainy, blustery day in late winter.
As we walk the rows, it’s easy to see the impressive diversity among collards. Chris encourages me to pick a leaf to taste right in the field, where I learn to my surprise and delight that some varieties are tender and sweet enough to eat raw.
Some are the large, dark green leaves that most of us recognize, but they also come in a beautiful array of shapes, sizes, colors, and textures.
Chris gathered a big basket of collards from both his and Yanna’s gardens that was pretty enough to serve as a flower arrangement. One type had pale green variegated leaves with stunning purple veining, for example.
Some leaves were tiny as rose petals and others as large as a platter.
I leave the farm eager to head into the kitchen to show that there’s not only many types of collards, there are also plenty of creative ways to cook them. Sometimes all we need to fall back in love with a familiar vegetable (or get curious enough to try it for the first time) is a fresh look and fresh take.
Sheri visits a collard farm and talks about the harvest with collard expert Chris Smith.
Sheri Castle, award-winning food writer and cooking teacher, is known for melding culinary expertise, storytelling and humor, so she can tell a tale while making a memorable meal. Her creative, well-crafted recipes and practical advice inspire people to cook with confidence and enthusiasm. She's written a tall stack of cookbooks and her work appears in dozens of magazines. In 2019, the Southern Foodways Alliance named Sheri among Twenty Living Legends of Southern Food, calling her The Storyteller.
Sheri says that she's fueled by great ingredients and the endless pursuit of intriguing stories, usually about the role that food plays in our lives, families, communities and culture.
When she steps away from the kitchen or a local farm, Sheri enjoys spending quiet time at her home near Chapel Hill. She hails from the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina.
In each episode of "The Key Ingredient," renowned food writer and cooking teacher Sheri Castle celebrates beloved ingredients, tracing their journeys from source to kitchen. Sheri introduces us to farmers, chefs and other food experts, sharing stories, recipes and tips along the way. Join Sheri & friends to learn the stories behind some of North Carolina's most beloved ingredients.