Tuesday, May 5th @ 7:00 p.m.: Leda Meredith reads from Botany, Ballet, and Dinner from Scratch

Last August, Leda Meredith stopped eating bananas. And lemons, chocolate, soy sauce, and avocadoes. On the day after her 45 birthday, she started “the 250,” a year-long experiment in eating foods grown within a 250-mile radius of her Brooklyn apartment. Thus began the process of retraining herself—planning every meal ahead, scouring the city for local beans and flour, canning countless jars of tomatoes so she could eat something other than potatoes all winter. Now, one year later, Leda has emerged unscathed—healthier, she says, and a better cook—from her experiment in eating locally. And as if canning and dehydrating food weren’t enough to keep her busy all winter, she’s also written a book. Botany, Ballet and Dinner from Scratch is the story of Leda—from wild-haired kid to world-traveling professional ballet dancer to experienced botanist and forager—and of the recipes she uses to make saving the environment a delightful culinary adventure.