< Previous10 The next time you are in a grocery store, take a walk over to the produce section and look at the tomatoes. If you’re lucky, there will be a few varieties, such as beefsteak and cherry, as well as maybe the country of origin and a bar code on a plastic sticker. And . . . that’s it. That minimal data is all that’s typically given about the food that nourishes our families, takes center stage during holidays, and satisfies cravings every day. But did you know that there are more than 10,000 different varieties of tomatoes in the world? Some are purple and sweet, some are green and more acidic, and others are red and yellow. They can be both misshapenly large and comically tiny. These varieties have been cultivated by humans over generations to maximize nutrients, to delight taste buds, and to thrive in a specific climate. This amazing biodiversity is a testament to a beautiful reciprocal relationship between humans and plants. Each variety tells a story of culture and history, of movement and climate. As our food system becomes more industrialized and colonized, produce like tomatoes has become a commodity with a barcode to ship across borders and ultimately land on your grocery shelf. As a result, we are losing biodiversity at an alarming rate. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations estimates that 75 percent of our global crop diversity was lost in the 20th century, and today, only nine plant species account for 66 percent of total crop production. A similar story is happening with fish species and breeds of livestock. The sharp decline of food biodiversity has a huge impact on the ability of people to feed themselves, has wide-ranging and negative impacts on soil and animals, and reduces the resiliency of farms facing extreme weather from climate change. When it comes to our plate, the loss of biodiversity also means nutrient-poor options and boring flavors. INTRODUCtiON 4P_SF_AOT.indd 104P_SF_AOT.indd 1012/12/22 11:39 AM12/12/22 11:39 AM 11 Slow Food’s Ark of Taste is all about the joy and justice of biodiversity. It’s a global and grassroots effort to catalog the amazing range of foods around us before they disappear and to raise awareness about how we can act together to preserve and promote these fantastic finds. The pages ahead of you are packed with delightful profiles of farmers, recipes for you to explore, and stories of delicious and distinctive foods facing extinction in the United States. Arranged by region where the food is currently produced, this book includes a whole host of tomatoes not found on your grocery store produce aisle, including the Amish Paste, Cherokee Purple, and Livingston Globe. We hope you will take this book to your local farmers market, talk to farmers about what varieties they grow and perhaps try growing new varieties in your own backyard or windowsill! For joy and justice, Anna Mulè and Mara Welton Executive Director and Programs Director Slow Food USA 4P_SF_AOT.indd 114P_SF_AOT.indd 1112/12/22 11:39 AM12/12/22 11:39 AMAMERICAN CHESTNUT ATLANTIC WOLFFISH BAR-SECKEL PEAR BOSTON MARROW SQUASH CAYU-GA DUCK CLAPP’S FAVORITE PEAR DIANA HAMBURG GRAPE EARLY ROSE POTATO ESOPUS SPIT-ZENBURG APPLE FAIRFAX STRAWBERRY FIDDLEHEADS FISH PEPPER GULF OF MAINE YELLOW TAIL FLOUNDER HANK’S X-TRA SPECIAL BAKING BEAN HANSON LETTUCE HENDERSON’S BUSH LIMA BEAN HINKELHATZ PEPPER JACOB’S CATTLE BEAN JENNY LIND MELON LONG ISLAND CHEESE PUMPKIN MARSHALL STRAWBERRY MARY WASHINGTON ASPARAGUS MEECH’S PROLIFIC QUINCE NEW HANOVER GROUND CHERRY PINK CHAMPAGNE CURRANT PINK PLUME CELERY PLYMOUTH ROCK CHICKEN RHODE ISLAND GREENING APPLE RHODE ISLAND WHITE CHICKEN ROXBURY RUS- SET APPLE SASSAFRAS SHEEPSHEAD FISH STOWELL’S EVERGREEN SWEET CORN TENNIS BALL LETTUCE TUSCARORA WHITE CORN WELLFLEET OYSTER WHITE CAP FLINT CORN AMERICAN CHESTNUT ATLANTIC WOLFFISH BAR-SECKEL PEAR BOSTON MARROW SQUASH CAYUGA DUCK CLAPP’S FAVORITE PEAR DIANA HAMBURG GRAPE EARLY ROSE POTATO ESOPUS SPITZENBURG AP- PLE FAIRFAX STRAWBERRY FIDDLEHEADS FISH PEPPER GULF OF MAINE YELLOW TAIL FLOUNDER HANK’S X-TRA SPECIAL BAKING BEAN HANSON LETTUCE HENDERSON’S BUSH LIMA BEAN HINKEL- HATZ PEPPER JACOB’S CATTLE BEAN JENNY LIND MELON LONG ISLAND CHEESE PUMPKIN MAR- SHALL STRAWBERRY MARY WASHINGTON ASPARAGUS MEECH’S PROLIFIC QUINCE NEW HANOVER GROUND CHERRY PINK CHAMPAGNE CURRANT PINK PLUME CELERY PLYMOUTH ROCK CHICKEN RHODE ISLAND GREENING APPLE RHODE ISLAND WHITE CHICKEN ROXBURY RUSSET APPLE SAS- SAFRAS SHEEPSHEAD FISH STOWELL’S EVERGREEN SWEET CORN TENNIS BALL LETTUCE TUSCA- RORA WHITE CORN WELLFLEET OYSTER WHITE CAP FLINT CORN AMERICAN CHESTNUT ATLANTIC WOLFFISH BAR-SECKEL PEAR BOSTON MARROW SQUASH CAYUGA DUCK CLAPP’S FAVORITE PEAR DIANA HAMBURG GRAPE EARLY ROSE POTATO ESOPUS SPITZENBURG APPLE FAIRFAX STRAWBER- RY FIDDLEHEADS FISH PEPPER GULF OF MAINE YELLOW TAIL FLOUNDER HANK’S X-TRA SPECIAL BAKING BEAN HANSON LETTUCE HENDERSON’S BUSH LIMA BEAN HINKELHATZ PEPPER JACOB’S CATTLE BEAN JENNY LIND MELON LONG ISLAND CHEESE PUMPKIN MARSHALL STRAWBERRY MARY WASHINGTON ASPARAGUS MEECH’S PROLIFIC QUINCE NEW HANOVER GROUND CHERRY PINK CHAMPAGNE CURRANT PINK PLUME CELERY PLYMOUTH ROCK CHICKEN RHODE ISLAND GREENING APPLE RHODE ISLAND WHITE CHICKEN ROXBURY RUSSET APPLE SASSAFRAS SHEEPSHEAD FISH STOWELL’S EVERGREEN SWEET CORN TENNIS BALL LETTUCE TUSCARORA WHITE CORN WELL- FLEET OYSTER WHITE CAP FLINT CORN AMERICAN CHESTNUT ATLANTIC WOLFFISH BAR-SECK- EL PEAR BOSTON MARROW SQUASH CAYUGA DUCK CLAPP’S FAVORITE PEAR DIANA HAMBURG GRAPE EARLY ROSE POTATO ESOPUS SPITZENBURG APPLE FAIRFAX STRAWBERRY FIDDLEHEADS FISH PEPPER GULF OF MAINE YELLOW TAIL FLOUNDER HANK’S X-TRA SPECIAL BAKING BEAN HAN- SON LETTUCE HENDERSON’S BUSH LIMA BEAN HINKELHATZ PEPPER JACOB’S CATTLE BEAN JEN- NY LIND MELON LONG ISLAND CHEESE PUMPKIN MARSHALL STRAWBERRY MARY WASHINGTON ASPARAGUS MEECH’S PROLIFIC QUINCE NEW HANOVER GROUND CHERRY PINK CHAMPAGNE CUR- RANT PINK PLUME CELERY PLYMOUTH ROCK CHICKEN RHODE ISLAND GREENING APPLE RHODE ISLAND WHITE CHICKEN ROXBURY RUSSET APPLE SASSAFRAS SHEEPSHEAD FISH STOWELL’S EVERGREEN SWEET CORN TENNIS BALL LETTUCE TUSCARORA WHITE CORN WELLFLEET OYSTER WHITE CAP FLINT CORN 4P_SF_AOT.indd 124P_SF_AOT.indd 1212/12/22 11:39 AM12/12/22 11:39 AMAMERICAN CHESTNUT ATLANTIC WOLFFISH BAR-SECKEL PEAR BOSTON MARROW SQUASH CAYU-GA DUCK CLAPP’S FAVORITE PEAR DIANA HAMBURG GRAPE EARLY ROSE POTATO ESOPUS SPIT-ZENBURG APPLE FAIRFAX STRAWBERRY FIDDLEHEADS FISH PEPPER GULF OF MAINE YELLOW TAIL FLOUNDER HANK’S X-TRA SPECIAL BAKING BEAN HANSON LETTUCE HENDERSON’S BUSH LIMA BEAN HINKELHATZ PEPPER JACOB’S CATTLE BEAN JENNY LIND MELON LONG ISLAND CHEESE PUMPKIN MARSHALL STRAWBERRY MARY WASHINGTON ASPARAGUS MEECH’S PROLIFIC QUINCE NEW HANOVER GROUND CHERRY PINK CHAMPAGNE CURRANT PINK PLUME CELERY PLYMOUTH ROCK CHICKEN RHODE ISLAND GREENING APPLE RHODE ISLAND WHITE CHICKEN ROXBURY RUS- SET APPLE SASSAFRAS SHEEPSHEAD FISH STOWELL’S EVERGREEN SWEET CORN TENNIS BALL LETTUCE TUSCARORA WHITE CORN WELLFLEET OYSTER WHITE CAP FLINT CORN AMERICAN CHESTNUT ATLANTIC WOLFFISH BAR-SECKEL PEAR BOSTON MARROW SQUASH CAYUGA DUCK CLAPP’S FAVORITE PEAR DIANA HAMBURG GRAPE EARLY ROSE POTATO ESOPUS SPITZENBURG AP- PLE FAIRFAX STRAWBERRY FIDDLEHEADS FISH PEPPER GULF OF MAINE YELLOW TAIL FLOUNDER HANK’S X-TRA SPECIAL BAKING BEAN HANSON LETTUCE HENDERSON’S BUSH LIMA BEAN HINKEL- HATZ PEPPER JACOB’S CATTLE BEAN JENNY LIND MELON LONG ISLAND CHEESE PUMPKIN MAR- SHALL STRAWBERRY MARY WASHINGTON ASPARAGUS MEECH’S PROLIFIC QUINCE NEW HANOVER GROUND CHERRY PINK CHAMPAGNE CURRANT PINK PLUME CELERY PLYMOUTH ROCK CHICKEN RHODE ISLAND GREENING APPLE RHODE ISLAND WHITE CHICKEN ROXBURY RUSSET APPLE SAS- SAFRAS SHEEPSHEAD FISH STOWELL’S EVERGREEN SWEET CORN TENNIS BALL LETTUCE TUSCA- RORA WHITE CORN WELLFLEET OYSTER WHITE CAP FLINT CORN AMERICAN CHESTNUT ATLANTIC WOLFFISH BAR-SECKEL PEAR BOSTON MARROW SQUASH CAYUGA DUCK CLAPP’S FAVORITE PEAR DIANA HAMBURG GRAPE EARLY ROSE POTATO ESOPUS SPITZENBURG APPLE FAIRFAX STRAWBER- RY FIDDLEHEADS FISH PEPPER GULF OF MAINE YELLOW TAIL FLOUNDER HANK’S X-TRA SPECIAL BAKING BEAN HANSON LETTUCE HENDERSON’S BUSH LIMA BEAN HINKELHATZ PEPPER JACOB’S CATTLE BEAN JENNY LIND MELON LONG ISLAND CHEESE PUMPKIN MARSHALL STRAWBERRY MARY WASHINGTON ASPARAGUS MEECH’S PROLIFIC QUINCE NEW HANOVER GROUND CHERRY PINK CHAMPAGNE CURRANT PINK PLUME CELERY PLYMOUTH ROCK CHICKEN RHODE ISLAND GREENING APPLE RHODE ISLAND WHITE CHICKEN ROXBURY RUSSET APPLE SASSAFRAS SHEEPSHEAD FISH STOWELL’S EVERGREEN SWEET CORN TENNIS BALL LETTUCE TUSCARORA WHITE CORN WELL- FLEET OYSTER WHITE CAP FLINT CORN AMERICAN CHESTNUT ATLANTIC WOLFFISH BAR-SECK- EL PEAR BOSTON MARROW SQUASH CAYUGA DUCK CLAPP’S FAVORITE PEAR DIANA HAMBURG GRAPE EARLY ROSE POTATO ESOPUS SPITZENBURG APPLE FAIRFAX STRAWBERRY FIDDLEHEADS FISH PEPPER GULF OF MAINE YELLOW TAIL FLOUNDER HANK’S X-TRA SPECIAL BAKING BEAN HAN- SON LETTUCE HENDERSON’S BUSH LIMA BEAN HINKELHATZ PEPPER JACOB’S CATTLE BEAN JEN- NY LIND MELON LONG ISLAND CHEESE PUMPKIN MARSHALL STRAWBERRY MARY WASHINGTON ASPARAGUS MEECH’S PROLIFIC QUINCE NEW HANOVER GROUND CHERRY PINK CHAMPAGNE CUR- RANT PINK PLUME CELERY PLYMOUTH ROCK CHICKEN RHODE ISLAND GREENING APPLE RHODE ISLAND WHITE CHICKEN ROXBURY RUSSET APPLE SASSAFRAS SHEEPSHEAD FISH STOWELL’S EVERGREEN SWEET CORN TENNIS BALL LETTUCE TUSCARORA WHITE CORN WELLFLEET OYSTER WHITE CAP FLINT CORN NOR THEA ST 4P_SF_AOT.indd 134P_SF_AOT.indd 1312/12/22 11:39 AM12/12/22 11:39 AM14 NORTHEAST In late September 1874, the Appalachian ridge newspapers from Maine to Georgia published a notice that read simply: “The chestnut trees will soon be ready to be clubbed.” This announcement was common before the chestnut blight of the early 20th century. Until then, one of the great autumn recreations of the region was “nutting.” Drumming the trunk with a hammer or beam would shake ripe nuts to the ground for collection, provided the trunk was not too broad and the tree not too tall. If one chanced upon a giant (not unusual for the robust American chestnut), a nutting party would resort to other methods of harvest, like shimmying up a trunk using a leather cinch belt. “These excursions of old hold a delightful place in all reminiscences of youth,” reported the Greensboro Record in 1909. “Even those who do not roam the countryside to gather the fallen nuts amid the leaves welcome the less romantic appearance of the roaster and the vendor in the city streets, while the roasting of the American US ORIGIN OR MOST PREVALENT IN Appalachia CHARACTERISTICS Piquant, sweet, toothy in texture, small nut, large tree USDA PLANT HARDINESS ZONES 4-9 CLOSE RELATIVES Asian chestnut, Sicilian chestnut NOTABLE PRODUCER American Chestnut Foundation CHESTNUTCHESTNUT 4P_SF_AOT.indd 144P_SF_AOT.indd 1412/12/22 11:39 AM12/12/22 11:39 AMNORTHEAST 15 delectable nut in the coals of the fireplace is a delight known in those homes where the fireplace survives.” Sometime shortly after 1900, a fungus arrived with chestnut trees imported from Asia and spread to the American chestnut trees in the northeastern hardwood forests of the US. Arborists identified the blight in 1904 and, to their great dismay, discovered that no remedy could counter its lethal effect on the cambium layer beneath the tree’s bark that serves as a tree’s hydraulic system. Blight spread steadily, first in the northern chestnut forest from Maine to Maryland, then down into the Appalachian ridge, until the whole eastern range of the tree sickened and died. Thus, this dominant tree of the eastern uplands essentially expired in an ecological disaster that still haunts the minds of those who enforce biological security in the United States. Animal populations that had depended upon the autumnal nut fall for sustenance came under great stress. Deer and raccoons turned to the upcountry cornfields to survive. Human foodways disappeared with the tree, among them the masting of hogs in October beneath chestnut groves, the making of Native chestnut breads from nut meal, the boiling and mashing of chestnuts into spoon meat, and the making of chestnut gruels and grits. To these common dishes, one could add the refined preparations of chestnut soufflés and chestnut puddings that graced the side tables of Eastern households during the holidays. These dishes were all but lost with the trees, and all that remained after the blight was the Christmastide appearance of imported “roasting chestnuts” and perhaps a few additional nuts for the traditional stuffing or dressing. The most reputable of European strains is The edible portion of the American chestnut is piquant, sweet, small, and rather toothy in texture. When dried, the nut makes a versatile meal and flour. Because of its culinary quality, the American chestnut inspired an expansive set of dishes and regional foodways. 4P_SF_AOT.indd 154P_SF_AOT.indd 1512/12/22 11:39 AM12/12/22 11:39 AM16 NORTHEAST the Sicilian chestnut, larger and more meaty in texture, pleasantly sweet but not so distinctive in taste as the American chestnut. Both Chinese and Japanese chestnuts are significantly less sweet, and sometimes tend to be chalky in texture. All hope is not lost, though, as forest ecologists, geneticists, and scientific arborists have labored to restore the American chestnut tree to its traditional range since the mid-20th century. In the 1970s, a hypovirulent but non lethal strain of the blight was imported from Italy, and diseased chestnut trees were inoculated in their cankers to counteract their destruction. This proved to be an effective local remedy for infestations in the northeast. However, the most promising path forward has been the breeding of resistant hybrids of the American chestnut. Using a breeding scheme devised by Charles Burnham, blight-resistant Asian trees are crossed with American trees, and their offspring crossed again with just an American chestnut tree. The resultant trees from these back crossings are predominantly, though not absolutely, American chestnut. The American Chestnut Foundation selected these hybrids as the instrument for the reforestation of the old eastern range. The edible portion of the American chestnut is piquant, sweet, small, and rather toothy in texture. When dried, the nut makes a versatile meal and flour. Because of its culinary quality, the American chestnut inspired an expansive set of dishes and regional foodways. Chestnut-fed pork and chestnut-fed venison stood high in the judgment of connoisseurs. Holiday turkeys were stuffed with chestnut dressing. An array of chestnut-centered delights—chestnut pudding, deviled chestnuts, chestnut soup, chestnut soufflé, chestnut bread, chestnut caramels, and chestnut porridge—were common and cherished dishes of the eastern United States in the 19th century. Today, a population of resistant American chestnuts are being consolidated for seed in forests in Virginia, Georgia, and other places in the United States. While the great commercial impetus behind the revival is for timber—American chestnut is the fastest growing straight-trunked large American hardwood tree—the culinary revival of the distinctive chestnut will be the silver lining of the revival’s success. When it returns in force in the coming years, the regional food of Appalachia will have its center restored. 4P_SF_AOT.indd 164P_SF_AOT.indd 1612/12/22 11:39 AM12/12/22 11:39 AMNORTHEAST 17 This squash spurred unforeseen drama in the 19th- century horticultural world. The Massachusetts Historical Society awarded an inscribed silver cup to John M. Ives of Salem to honor his introduction of the Autumnal Marrow squash into general cultivation in 1853. Contemporary reporters were stunned at the $50 value of the award. The value of the cup reflected the horticultural community’s esteem of the squash as a garden vegetable but also brought out some subsequent claims to the squash’s discovery. To quash the whisper campaign against him, Ives laid out the history in the pages of the New England Farmer magazine in 1858: “A specimen of this vegetable was brought to my place in North Salem by a friend from Northampton in this State, in 1831. In the spring of 1833, I distributed seeds to many members of our Mass. Horticultural Society, they never having seen it previously. At the Annual Exhibition of this Society at Faneuil Hall, Sept., 1834, I exhibited a specimen, merely marked US ORIGIN OR MOST PREVALENT IN New York/ Iroquois Nations CHARACTERISTICS Delicate grain and custardy texture USDA PLANT HARDINESS ZONES 5b–7a CLOSE RELATIVE Blue Hubbard squash OTHER NAMES Buffalo Creek squash, Autumnal Marrow squash NOTABLE PRODUCER A. P. Whaley LLC MARROWMARROW Boston Squash 4P_SF_AOT.indd 174P_SF_AOT.indd 1712/12/22 11:39 AM12/12/22 11:39 AM18 NORTHEAST ‘New Squash.’ This was previous to the description or cut being made. One month from this (in Oct. 1834), I for- warded the name, autumnal mar- row, together with a wood cut, to the N. E. Farmer.” In other words, Ives brought the variety to the Massachusetts market but did not “discover” the squash. Ives himself recorded that the squash had been brought to Massachusetts from Buffalo, New York, by Indigenous visitors. These Natives were probably the Seneca, keepers of the “western door” of the Iroquois Confederacy, whose homeland included the place where Buffalo was located. Terrylynn Brandt, a Mohawk seedswoman, recognizes the Boston Marrow as a Haudenosaunee variety known as the Buffalo Creek squash, the first in the evolution of names the squash would come to bear. Ives’s original name pointed to the great ad- vantage of this squash variety in that it came to maturity at a point in the season before all other winter squashes were ready to harvest. It was the perfect succession crop, arriving at the produce stand when no rival squashes were available. But by 1858, growers had begun calling it Boston Marrow squash in regions outside Massachusetts. Weighing upwards of 8 pounds, this thin-skinned, orange-fleshed, white- seeded squash has a custardy consistency and rich flavor when cooked. It has a famously delicate grain. Ives described the skin color as “reddish cream, with Landr ace v s. cultivar A landrace is a plant or animal improved by seed selection or breeding to take on distinctive characteristics by farmers; its forms and behaviors are shaped by the environments in which it was developed. A landrace has genetic diversity and so can adapt in changes to the environment. In contrast, a cultivar, created by geneticists, commercial breeders, or academic biologists, is purposely genetically inbred and incorporates traits that are economically or agronomically desirable, regardless of the environment in which they may be raised. Cultivars tend to have little flexibility in responding to environmental change. Weighing upwards of 8 pounds, this thin-skinned, orange- fleshed, white-seeded squash has a custardy consistency and rich flavor when cooked. 4P_SF_AOT.indd 184P_SF_AOT.indd 1812/12/22 11:39 AM12/12/22 11:39 AMNORTHEAST 19 dashes of bright ochre when mature,” and the skin texture is moderately warty. It has a pronounced neck on one end and is rotund in the middle. The stem is thick, turning up at almost a right angle from the body of the vegetable. For a landrace variety, it has a remarkable consistency of texture and shape. Breeders have expanded the size and weight of the Boston Marrow squash so that it has the potential to produce mammoth fruits, and the base weight is now up to 11 pounds. The Boston Marrow squash ranked among the most frequently planted squash varieties in the United States for a century. Its long reign in the hearts of farmers and consumers began to be challenged in the 1940s with the introduction of the Butternut squash into mass cultivation. While the flavor is not superior, the Butternut’s one great advantage over the Boston Marrow was that a larger percentage of the body of the vegetable was edible flesh, as the fat neck of the Butternut was more substantial that the spindly neck of the Boston Marrow. Perhaps the greatest irony of this overtaking was that Boston was the city that first and most vehemently embraced the Butternut squash, in 1942 and 1943. Dishes made with Butternut squash exploded onto hotel and restaurant menus in the city in the midst of World War II. The decline in acreage devoted to the Boston Marrow squash began gradually in 1945, then more drastically as the 20th century wore on. Boston Marrow is effectively no longer included in listings or inventory of popular winter squashes, where you’ll see Butternut, Acorn, Delicata, and even the Boston Marrow’s near contemporary, the Blue Hubbard. Yet the Boston Marrow has not been wiped from the countryside. Heirloom seed companies still carry seeds, and a number of home gardeners do well to keep the Boston Marrow growing. In its early days, Boston Marrow squash was substituted for pumpkin in pies. By the 1870s, processors in Connecticut were producing ten-pound supersized cans of Boston Marrow squash meat for the use of boardinghouses and hotels. Squash pies came into vogue after the Civil War, and many slices of pumpkin pie served in New England were in actuality made with Boston Marrow squash. For those familiar with the tasty variety, it retains its famed flavor and texture. The most popular usage for the creamy, earthy squash is as a basis for soup. It’s hard not to argue that they are dual purpose, as they also look fabulous among the squashes that grace your porch or kitchen counter in the autumn season. 4P_SF_AOT.indd 194P_SF_AOT.indd 1912/12/22 11:39 AM12/12/22 11:39 AMNext >