Saturday was one of those days that makes me feel sooo lucky to live in Brooklyn, the best city around!  Our beautiful neighborhood played host to not one but two awesome food events, Smith Street Soup Fest (benefitting The School For International Studies) and Tastes of Brooklyn (benefitting Seeds in the Middle, which works to empower Brooklyn’s neediest children to eat healthy, local food and stay active).

Tastes of Brooklyn was almost literally out our front door, being held at the Greenmarket at Borough Hall.  The event brought together 18 awesome Brooklyn restaurants like Saul, Brooklyn Farmacy, Benchmark, Egg, and Fornino, that have a local, farm-t0-table philosophy, each offering super seasonal tastings to enjoy.

Though there were lots of memorable tasty treats, our absolute favorite was Prospect Heights’ Aliseo Osteria del Borgo’s delicious trifecta of crostini with creamy cod, chestnut and white bean soup, and country-style pate.  They also threw in a scrumptious biscotti with currants and nuts.  Soooo good!

Other standouts were the Ribollita (traditional Tuscan stew made with seasonal vegetables and dried bread) from Locanda Vini e Olii in Clinton Hill, and the Moroccan-style roasted carrots with coriander and cumin from our own Cobble Hill’s La Vara (quite possibly our new favorite restaurant in the neighborhood!).

In such a locavore foodie borough, it’s so great to see restaurants really flaunt their commitment to seasonal Greenmarket fare in such a community-focused event.  And the cause couldn’t be more worthy.  Seeds in the Middle has such amazing initiatives as growing edible urban gardens where kids can learn about sustainability and healthy, produce-driven eating, student-run markets that offer healthy alternatives to the typical vending machine fare, hands-on cooking classes to get kids excited about making healthy food, and field trips to working farms, community gardens, and farmer’s markets.

Yet another reason we just can’t get enough of our beloved Brooklyn, and all it’s amazing tastes!