About
Soirée-Leone Sinclair is a teacher and writer focused on food preservation and putting food on the table. She serves on the boards of food-centric organizations, as well as Chinkapin Craftstead, a rural arts and land preservation organization. She lives and works on her 57-acre homestead in Tennessee.
She grew up on an off-grid homestead in rural Maine in the 1970s. After 23 years in San Diego, California, she and her husband moved to Tennessee.
She brings her background and experience as an urban homesteader growing food for her family year after year to food preservation education. Her workshops include in-depth explorations into cheesemaking, fermentation, and canning (pressure, water bath and steam canning).
Historically, food preservation was a seasonal activity to have food between seasons of abundance, stretch the food budget, and ride out tough times. Soirée-Leone approaches food preservation as a strategy to put food on the table. We can minimize waste, share the bounties, and rely more on local and regional farms by preserving food at home. Along the way we can also build and support our communities. In 2023 Soirée-Leone was awarded the Patti Myint Phila Award that “celebrates the person, group, or organization that best exemplifies Patti and Phila’s spirit for using their food/cooking skills to improve, assist, and/or support their community.”
Credit: Robin Erler
Furry tofu. What a special treat! Actinomucor elegans spores are impossible to source in the U.S. The surprise gift from a UK friend who traveled to Taiwan made this furry tofu possible. Rhizopus oryzae is a suitable substitute which available in U.S.
Natto. I love natto. Bacillus subtilis is naturally occurring and endemic on all beans and legumes.
Stretchy cheese. There are so many incredible cheeses and stretchy cheeses are among my favorites to make.
Aged cheese. Mt. Dell. Raw cow milk, wild cultured (in this case ripe milk kefir), non-GMO rennet, natural wrapping of organic cheesecloth and local lard, and aged 12-15 months. It weighs in at at about 4 1/2 pounds after aging.