When Maggie and I first sat down to co-plan the menu for June’s Community Kitchens dinner, there was no lack of inspiration. From the chefs who had cooked in the months prior, to the Pride-themed “Taste the Rainbow” dinner from June 2022, to using glorious, locally-sourced seasonal ingredients.

In thinking about the menu, we wanted to find a way to center food waste reduction, while celebrating the efforts of Ojaswe’s regenerative farm partners. We wanted to find a way to use local ingredients, while also honoring the origin stories of the food/ingredients. And we wanted to bring to life a culinary experience that gave everyone attending a sense for not only what they were eating, but where it came from — both emotionally and literally. 

On June 30, we hosted a community dinner that celebrated our local food, South-asian-ish flavor, and the hard work of the regenerative and organic farmers. We landed on a menu that used a short list of regenerative and locally-grown ingredients, repurposing them in interesting ways as the meal progressed. Every course showcased ways to use Ojaswe’s chickpea chilla mix, alongside fresh, seasonal ingredients: mint and cherries from Rainier Beach Urban Farm & Wetlands, locally-grown apples from Collins Family Orchards, strawberries from Sound Sustainable Farms, and cilantro from Tualco Valley Farm.

Demystifying the Unknown

The two “hero” elements of the meal were black chickpeas grown regeneratively, right here in North America (vs. shipped from overseas), and Ojaswe’s Chickpea chilla mix, which uses black and WA-grown white chickpeas. Both black chickpeas and chillas have a deep-rooted history in South Asia, but are largely unknown here in North America. Chickpeas in general, and black chickpeas in particular, have both ecological and nutritional benefits. Black chickpeas are a legume and help fix nitrogen in the soil and improve soil quality. They are rich in fiber, protein, and contain anthocyanin, a compound shown to improve gut and hearth health.

The unfamiliar can seem daunting and unapproachable, especially in a kitchen. We wanted to showcase black chickpeas and the chilla mix in ways that could easily translate to home kitchens once our community members took these ingredients and ideas back home.

Our opening course consisted of a seasonal fruit salad and onion and cilantro pakoras, served with mint chutney. Both had a bit of a twist: instead of a classic seasonal fruit salad, we served up a fruit chaat — reminiscent of the lip-smacking street food that I grew up with as a child in India — and instead of the the batter dipped pakoras, we opted for vegetables rolled in a lightly hydrated gluten-free, protein-packed chilla mix. For the mint chutney, we combined three varieties of mint: chocolate, spearmint, and apple mint for a refreshingly delicious twist on mixing the local and global.

For the main course, we focused on a black chickpea stew served with cumin rice and chilla muffins. In creating the stock for the stew, we repurposed onion ends, cilantro stems, as well as leftover mint stems from the first course.

To round out the meal, we served up delicious chilla-spiced cookies for dessert, combining the chilla mix with standard pantry ingredients: baking powder, peanut butter and maple syrup. The results were a unique blend of inventive and familiar, and above all delicious!

Learning From our Farmers

Alongside sharing my food, our community members got to hear not only the story and inspiration behind Ojaswe, but also got to hear from the spectacular farmers Mercy and Elisa who co-run Haki Farmers Collective in Olympia, WA. They shared the importance of collectivism and working in community, especially when our world feels disconnected and virtual.

Haki Farmers Collective is on a mission to reintegrate traditional and inherently sustainable farming knowledge present in migrant and indigenous communities. Mercy and Elisa shared the stories of how they work to connect people of color, including Indigenous peoples, Immigrants and Black peoples, to the life-giving knowledge of truly sustainable farming and plant medicine creation. They shared particularly compelling stories of a young Black woman who wanted to learn how to grow flowers and approached Haki for help; of working to find markets for the produce from their collective such as Farm + Flourish; and working in partnership with values-aligned organizations like Ojaswe, where they’re trialling new peppers for us, in exchange for help with social media marketing for Haki.

Our food system, as they reminded us, is meant to be a collective, collaborative system where we all participate and share knowledge, resources and the fruits of our collective labor. Community dinners, such as this Community Kitchens Meal hosted by Tilth Alliance, are a wonderful way to see ourselves in relationship with each other. To share food and stories, and acknowledge that we are all interconnected.

This material is funded through a Public Participation Grant from the Washington State Department of Ecology. Ecology reviewed the content for grant consistency but does not necessarily endorse it.  

About Community Kitchens Meals  

Tilth Alliance’s Community Kitchen Meals program is based at Rainier Beach Urban Farm & Wetlands in South Seattle and celebrates the diversity of food and food cultures in our neighborhood. Each month we partner with local home cooks and chefs to host an educational, cross-cultural event centered around a nutritious, delicious, and locally sourced meal.