Member Spotlight: Gabby Skladman
Gabby is the child and grandchild of immigrants from the former Soviet Union, which means that mushroom foraging, never-throwing-anything-away, and homemade, scratch-made eating is in her DNA. She loves the strong sense of community among Slow Food members and their overwhelming desire to share, learn and grow together.
• Name: Gabrielle Skladman
• Seattle Neighborhood: Wallingford
• Hometown: Northbrook, IL
• Member of Slow Food Since: 2019
SFS: What are your favorite spices?
GS: Za'atar and rosemary - but not together!
SFS: How did you first learn about Slow Food?
GS: My favorite coffee table book at my parents' house and childhood home, a beautiful National Geographic book called 'Food Journeys of a Lifetime' had a page about Slow Food and its origins in Turin, Italy. That's not how I officially learned about Slow Food and became involved, but it's a better story, so I'll go with that.
SFS: What do you do to embody Slow Food in your daily life (career, home, hobbies, etc)?
GS: Eating nose-to-tail, local, minimally-processed foods as much and as often as possible!
SFS: What is your favorite dish or food that has profound meaning for you and why?
GS: Liver pates! They perfectly exemplify my outlook on food and what I value in the food I eat. Sustainability - learning to eat the whole animal, such as the organs, and not just the desirable bits, means we can reduce food waste and/or raise fewer animals in total. Nutrition - liver is a nutritional powerhouse and many several studies show that liver is the most nutrient-dense food on the planet! Ethical agriculture - because toxins pass through the liver, it is especially important to seek properly raised animals to minimize your exposure to pesticides/hormones/antibiotics that may be present in factory farmed animals. Culture - I grew up on my grandmother's chopped liver, and that is still the pate I love most. It is a staple of Ashkenazi Jewish food and a reminder of my heritage.
SFS: What is the last great book or film about food that you read/saw and would recommend to Slow Food members?
GS: I'm reading Dan Barber's The Third Plate now!