Paradise Farms Lazy Sunday Lunch In Pictures and Oyster Mushroom Growing Sneak Preview

Jacob Katel | September 8, 2009 | 11:00am

Paradise Farms is a premiere South Florida grower of specialty produce, certified organic micro-greens and edible flowers for the local restaurant industry. Gabriele Marewski is the head of the farm and is hosting a series of "lazy Sunday" lunches based around green themes related to the fields of work or passion of the people she invites. Interested in going? Send Gabriele an email introducing yourself to gabrieleinparadise@earthlink.net

This past Sunday's lunch revolved around people whose projects deal in green initiatives by or for the youth. Guests included members of RescueEarth.org, the Garden Club president of FIU, a young farmer from Illinois, a high school exchange student from Australia, the head of FIU's Students For Environmental Action, the Miami distributor for Cyclus, a Colombian company that turns garbage tires into shoes, and others.

A gourmet vegan meal highlighting jackfruit harvested on Paradise Farms was prepared by private chef N. Oshun Marcella.

Here are some more pictures from a Lazy Sunday lunch at Paradise Farms.

Iced tea

Liquid refreshments.

Oven roasted garlic appetizer.

Paradise Farms Lazy Sunday Lunch In Pictures and Oyster Mushroom Growing Sneak Preview

And the closeup.

Fresh hummus and vegetables.

Gabriele and Oshun welcome folks.

Getting ready to sit down to eat.

Family style.

Great bread.

Most of one table.

All of another.

Could you pass the rice?

Benjamin Masopeh introduces himself.

Benjamin Masopeh is a mushroom scientist from Ghana, West Africa, who won a visa lottery to come to the United States and chose Florida as the place he wanted to live and Paradise Farms as the place he wanted to work. He found Paradise Farms on the internet and began trading emails with Gabriele. Mr. Masopeh's expertise in mushroom growing struck a distinct chord with Gabriele, who sees Benjamin and his expertise as a godsend. Together they are working to create a line of multi colored (pink, blue, yellow, gray) Oyster Mushrooms that you are likely to see soon on the plates of high end restaurants all over town.