An Evening of Radicchio with Lane Selman

Discussion, book signing and chicory tasting with MX Morningstar Farm

Join us for an evening devoted to radicchio, the beautiful, complex and often misunderstood winter vegetable. We’ll explore its Italian roots, the people growing it today, and the pleasures of bringing more chicories to the table.

Our guest, Lane Selman, is the co-author of Radicchio: A Celebration of the Beloved Italian Vegetable, a Professor of Practice at Oregon State University, and the founder of the Culinary Breeding Network. Raised on a Florida citrus farm established by her Sicilian great-grandparents, Lane has built a career connecting farmers, plant breeders, chefs and eaters around a shared interest in flavor and the crops we grow.

Radicchio has become a particular passion. Her work has taken her to farms and seed breeders in northeastern Italy and helped bring growers and chefs together through Chicory Week and radicchio celebrations in the Pacific Northwest. She brings both agricultural knowledge and an infectious curiosity to a vegetable with far more variety than many of us realize. Learn more about Lane’s radicchio work.

Lane will lead a conversation about chicories’ history, growing traditions and place in the kitchen, followed by time for questions.

Then we’ll taste chicories with our friends from MX Morningstar Farm, a vegetable farm in the Claverack–Hudson area. Supplying local households and cooks through its farm store, CSA and restaurant relationships, MX Morningstar emphasizes the connection between healthy land and flavorful food. Its farming practices are designed to build the long-term health of the soil, with equal care for the quality of its produce and the well-being of the people who grow it.

The tasting will be a chance to explore the differences among chicories and discover a new favorite. Whether you already love radicchio or are still warming to its bitterness, come curious—and hungry.

Lane will also sign copies of Radicchio, available to purchase during the evening.