The
menu, which was created with the help of Marcia Lehman, Alpha Gamma
Delta’s house director, and Professor Mildred Switzer of the UA
Nutrition Department, started with fresh salad greens from Snow’s Bend
Farm with hydroponic tomatoes from John Bruce’s Tuscaloosa farm and a
goat cheese dressing made from Bulgar Creek Farm’s goat cheese. The
second course featured beef tips from Tommy Green’s farm in Ft. Payne,
sweet potato casserole made from sweet potatoes grown by Nick Peturis of
Loxley, and turnip greens and turnip roots bought at the Burris Farm
Market. Dessert was Blue Bell ice cream with peanut brittle from
Seven Winds Kitchen in Logan. Bags of peanuts from Fidler Farms in
Silverhill and satsumas from Art Sessions’ farm in Grand Bay were
given out as party favors.
Several
members of the Alpha Gamma Delta sorority and guests said they were
pleased to be eating freshly-prepared food and glad to be supporting
local farmers.
Accounting
major Laura Marshall, 18, said, "It’s nice to eat fresh and know
where your food came from."
Morgan
Welch, a 19-year-old journalism major, said of the food, "I come
from a small town where they always had fresh tomatoes, and it was
really neat to have fresh tomatoes again. You don’t feel as heavy when
you finish eating," she said.
Don
Wambles, director of the Alabama Farmers Market Authority and featured
speaker at the dinner, challenged the Greek system to be a leader in
bringing local food to campus. He said that he felt that the dinner was
the beginning of great things to come and encouraged guests to continue
to request local food on campus and at area restaurants.
"Here
at the University, you’re a part of the Tuscaloosa community as
well," Wambles said. |
The members of Alpha Gamma Delta sorority enjoyed a meal that was made from local produce. |