Seedling Soirée
A fundraiser dinner for Olivewood Gardens where we cooked two bites around a single idea: that every seed holds the promise of something better.
A taste of spring, a vision for what's possible
The Seedling Soirée was a fundraiser for Olivewood Gardens & Learning Center — an evening rooted in hope for a more just and nourishing food future. OCF was invited to cook, and we brought two bites to the table.
Two dishes with one story.
The Seed — black bean tempeh fermented in banana leaves, glazed with a chipotle beet molasses adobo, served on a tortilla strip with pickled red onion and sour cream. Dense, earthy, full of fermented depth. The seed before it breaks open.
The Seedling — vanilla panna cotta with strawberry and mulberry jam, edible beet soil, and fresh mint. Delicate, sweet, alive. The first green thing pushing through.
Together they told a story about beginnings. About the belief that something nourishing can grow from even the smallest, most unlikely start. That's what Olivewood does every day in National City — and it's what we wanted every guest to taste.
Location
Olivewood Gardens, National City, San Diego
Date
May 30, 2026
Partners
The place
Olivewood Gardens in National City hosted this fundraiser dinner — a sixteen-year-old regenerative farm and community learning center where the garden is the classroom and the soil is the ingredient. Guests gathered as the sun went down, surrounded by the place this evening was raising support for.
The food
Two dishes with one story. The Seed: black bean tempeh fermented in banana leaves, glazed with a chipotle beet molasses adobo, served on a tortilla strip with pickled red onion and sour cream. Dense, earthy, full of fermented depth — the seed before it breaks open. The Seedling: vanilla panna cotta with strawberry and mulberry jam, edible beet soil, and fresh mint. Delicate, sweet, alive — the first green thing pushing through.
The cause
Every bite served that night supported Olivewood Gardens & Learning Center, which works every day in one of San Diego County's most nutrition-insecure communities. The dinner was a small gesture toward a larger belief: that something nourishing can grow from even the smallest, most unlikely start.
The experience
Guests moved through the garden as evening settled in, sharing two small bites built around a single idea — that every seed holds the promise of something better. The food was the message: beginnings, made edible.