Harriet Fasenfest

Harriet Fasenfest (born 1953) is an American writer, urban gardener, and food preservation educator in Portland, Oregon. A former owner/operator of several restaurants and cafes, she uses the term "householding" when referring to the practice of home food growing, canning and storage. She published her first book, A Householder's Guide to the Universe, in 2010.

Biography Fasenfest was born and raised in Bronx, New York. She moved to the Pacific Northwest in 1978 where she owned and operated the Bertie Lou's and Harriet's Eat Now cafes. In 1990 she traveled the country, married and moved back to California. In 1992 she moved to Georgia where she began working with Habitat for Humanity International. In 1997 Fasenfest returned to Portland to work as director of the Performance Salon Series at North Portland's North Star Ballroom, an events arena which combined art and performance with social activism. In 2000 she opened her most recent cafe, Groundswell.

In 2004 she transformed her backyard in Northern Portland into a producing garden. She grows produce for home canning and storing, and teaches classes in food preservation and backyard gardening. She is the co-owner of Preserve, an educational center for home gardening and food preservation, She also blogs for Culinate.com.

Fasenfest regards home food preservation as a political and economic statement. She uses the term "householding" rather than "homemaking" or "home economics" to describe her work.