The local produce sellers

On a recent visit to St. John, U.S.V.I., my mom and I stopped at our favorite local fruit and vegetable stand in downtown Cruz Bay. My parents eloped on the island in the 1970’s and my mom tells me that scenes like this used to be much more common, and going marketing was one of her favorite things to do. With the rise of supermarkets on the island, and even abroad, its hard to find individual produce sellers anymore, unless you are lucky to live near a farmers market. 

Here are a highlight of things we found for sale at the market, at the time of our visit. Locally made hot sauce, coconut oil, and honey in varying sized bottles that had been reused from their original purpose. Collected and dried star anise seeds, beautiful cinnamon sticks fresh from the tree, dried sorrel blossoms and fresh nutmeg still in the shell! Colorful hot peppers, papayas, starfruit, avocados, and fresh turmeric (curcurma) were also readily available. 

The owner of the market starts her day at 5:30am to catch the ferry over from the neighboring island of St. Thomas, and collect her produce and set up for her day. I have a huge respect for this woman, and all the others who still sell at markets. In the dulling environment of duty free, cheap tourist gimmicks and obnoxious party scenes that modern day travelers experience when they go abroad, finding little gems like this market make us remember what it was that inspired generations to travel around the world in the first place. It was to find that authentic thing, i.e.. place, business, people, item, that represented the country we chose to buy a ticket to and explore. For me, places like this is why I am most excited about helping my parents re-write their series of guidebooks to the Virgin Islands, because I not only love finding these places, but I love sharing them with everyone so they will stay in business for future generations to enjoy. If you are planning to visit the island, our book is called St. John, On Foot & By Car and is for the travelers who enjoy being off the beaten path. 

* Future visitors to the island can find her stand in front of Connections Communications Center. She sells everyday except for Sundays. 

Event: CitySeed Community Conversation

The 2014 Dirty Dozen list is out! (Republished from MindBodyGreen)

"Don't want to eat fruits coated with toxins? Neither do we! And neither does the Environmental Working Group, which thankfully tracks what's actually in and on our food. On Tuesday they released their annual Shopper's Guide to Pesticides, which breaks down which fruits and veggies have the most pesticides and which have the fewest. Their goal is to bring some transparency to our food supply and help you decide when it's worth shilling out extra for organic produce. Apples topped the toxic list for the fourth year in a row, which may not come as a surprise in the wake of news that they're often covered with a chemical that's banned in Europe. If it fits in your budget, the EWG recommends buying organic whenever possible. And if it's just not affordable right now, their guide can help you make more informed, healthy choices. The bottom line, says the EWG, is that it's always good to eat more fruits and vegetables, even if you're exposed to pesticides.Now you can be a little smarter about it."

The fruits and veggies with the most pesticides (the "Dirty Dozen Plus") are:

1. Apples
2. Strawberries
3. Grapes
4. Celery
5. Peaches
6. Spinach
7. Sweet bell peppers
8. Nectarines (imported)
9. Cucumbers
10. Cherry tomatoes
11. Snap peas (imported)
12. Potatoes

The "Dirty Dozen Plus" includes:

1. Hot peppers
2. Kale/collard greens

And the fruits and veggies with the least pesticides (the "Clean Fifteen") are:

1. Avocados
2. Sweet corn
3. Pineapples
4. Cabbage
5. Sweet peas (frozen)
6. Onions
7. Asparagus
8. Mangos
9. Papayas
10. Kiwi
11. Eggplant
12. Grapefruit
13. Cantaloupe
14. Cauliflower
15. Sweet potatoes

 http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-13571/12-fruits-veggies-with-the-most-pesticides-2014-dirty-dozen.html

Event: Fungus & Forage Festival- A Walk on the Wild Side

It’s a day to take a walk on the wild side!

The Coventry Regional Farmers’ Market Fungus & Forage Festival   This Sunday, we honor those gifts generously offered by Mother Nature; specifically mushrooms, and the herbs growing wild beneath our feet generally referred to as weeds. Both enjoy a timeless history which goes far beyond mere culinary delight. In the barn, the Connecticut Mycological Society returns to provide a stunning display of our state’s wide variety of mushrooms. Their members will be available for discussion and the 3 Foragers will lead free identification walks at 12:00 and 1:00, focusing on edible wild foods. While at the barn, stop to chat with the folks at Connecticut Herb Association and learn about their mission to share herbal information. Their members will lead weed walks at 11:30, 12:00 and 1:00 to discover and identify local herbs that traditionally have been used as medicine and food. Maggie's Farm will be talking about and demonstrating mushroom growing at their tent from 12:30 to 2:00. They’ll bring shiitake and oyster mushrooms for sale. In the market field, you’ll find CT NOFA (Connecticut’s branch of Northeast Organic Farming Association) whose members are supportive of practices that encourage a healthy relationship with the natural world and ecologically sound farming. They can also show you how mushrooms can be grown in compost material! At Joan Blade Johnson and Melanie Johnston’s booth, you can see how natural dyes from foraged local flora can be used to make art. Our own yards are a great source of plant materials that can be easily gathered and used for fabric dyeing.  Roots, nuts, flowers, bark, and lichens are just a few of the natural materials that can be used for dyeing. Creating rusted artwork from foraged (recycled) materials is satisfying and organic… stop by to learn more! Note: Image borrowed from: https://sites.google.com/site/smutheoryoft/

Hip Hip Huzzah for vintage baseball in Hartford!

Following on a recently begun summer trend, my friend and I decided that attending a vintage baseball match would nicely compliment our own vintage activity of picnicking. So, off we went to Colt Park to see a match between the Charter Oaks and Blue Boys. The matches are free and are held every Saturday starting at 10:30 am, and then the 2nd match is around 12:30pm. 

The match was a lovely way to spend a Saturday, and enjoy our picnic made from items procured at the Hartford farmer's market, the splendor of Hartford's vast public parks, and share in experience of a gentlemanly activity. The players didn't wear any gloves, played with wooden bats, rang a bell when a score was made and were decked out in all vintage uniforms. The entire experience was quaint, fast paced and highly engaging and we found ourselves getting rather attached to the Charter Oaks and rooting loudly for them.

The organization, "Friend of Vintage Baseball" have created a local soda pop that they sell at the games to actively try and recreate the feel of a bygone era. They sell for $3 per bottle and support the efforts of the teams. So if you are looking for a good local place to enjoy your picnic this summer, the beauty of Hartford's parks, and a classic American past-time, come out to the ball-field. I think even Mrs. Colt would contribute a huzzah!!


Schedule of games and other info about the organization can be found here on their website: http://www.friendsofvintagebaseball.org/about.html

The Farmers Market is Back!

Tomorrow marks the re-opening of the West End farmers market for the summer season! They will be open every Tuesday and Friday at the corner of Whitney St. and Farmington Ave from 4pm to 7pm. This year, they are partnering up with South Whitney Pizza to sell slices and pies at the market, but you can also rely on finding the stuff you have come to know and love there. Local cheese, honey, fruits and veggies and freshly baked bread to name a few. I am so excited, I know where I am picking up dinner tomorrow!

Sustainable Dining in New Haven

It was on a recent jaunt to New Haven that I had been strolling the streets, enjoying the spring weather when a small sign caught my attention. The black and white illustration was inviting me in to a quaint restaurant called "The Kitchen Table", whose niche is the farm to table experience that has been the rage lately. The restaurant had a funky, urban feel to it and had quirky touches like playfully mismatched place settings. Our server was goodhearted and passionate about the restaurant, always a good sign. He started us off with complimentary bread and housemade flavored butters. While the rolls were delicious, the tiny butters were frozen solid and looked kind of awkward on the large plate. Aesthetically, probably would have been better in a small bowl instead. However, moving on to the food that we actually ordered.

We started our meal by sharing the warm beet salad with goat cheese, toasted pecans and a fresh fig vinagrette. This was a wonderful choice and the flavors were nicely balanced. We were sad that it disappeared so quickly. For entrees, both my companion and I chose to go with the risotto choices. She chose the seafood risotto that came topped with pan seared scallops, and I had the cognac mushroom risotto that you see in the picture. It came topped with an amazing mushroom that I was pleased to discover was also edible. The portions were tremendous and needless to say, we both knew what we were having for lunch the following day. After the meal, we were introduced to the chef who was nice enough to take time and pose for a photograph. He is a creative chef who is passionate about his restaurant and on providing New Haven with sustainable foods. I think that the city needed a place like Kitchen Table, and I am personally excited about visiting the restaurant as the seasons change to see how the menu adapts with what is made available to the chef.

Hours: Thursday-Saturday: 5-10 pm
128 Crown Street, New Haven, CT 06510

Phone: 203-787-5422

Website: http://www.thekitchentablenewhaven.com/

Winters Farmers Market in New Haven

An article that ran in the New Haven Independent that I thought you would might enjoy...


Fat organic carrots were a big seller at Tom Cornell’s stand at the inaugural winter farmers’ market at Edgewood Park on Sunday. Scores of local shoppers stopped by to purchase local food. On a sunny, cold day, with fresh snow on the ground, eight vendors set up shop in the parking lot. Cornell (pictured above on the right, with customer Jamie Volpe), who runs Riverbank Farm in Roxbury, was one of them. Volpe happily listed her purchases: “I’m buying carrots, I’m buying chickens from Stone Gardens, beef from Nunzio at Four Mile River Farm. I buy everything. I buy bread, and now that they cheese here, I’ll probably buy that, too.” One vendor had leafy greens on offer. She quickly sold out. “I’ll have to bring 30 percent more next time,” said Whitney Caporaso of Bodhichitta Farms in Prospect. She was also selling shiitake mushrooms, which are not commonly grown in the state. She said she and her husband Chris grow the mushrooms on logs, which is more labor-intensive than growing on other media. “But they’re preferred ... On the logs they pull things from the log itself that makes them more medicinal and more tasty.” She described them as more delicate in taste than other mushrooms, but “they still have a good flavor for a mushroom.” She recommended them for soups featuring miso or leeks.

 “This is a very neighborhood-oriented market,” said Rachel Berg, the manager for City Seed, the non-profit that runs five summer farmers markets in New Haven and two winter markets. (The other one is in Wooster Square on the first and third Saturdays.) She said the push was on from both customers and vendors at the summer Edgewood Park market to expand to winter hours, because many of them didn’t want to travel across town to Wooster Square, and the vendors at Wooster Square (which opened its winter market several years ago) wanted another outlet for their winter crops, meat and dairy products. Not to mention more processed foods like maple syrup, tomato sauce and salad dressings (pictured) offered by Patrick Horan of Waldingfield Farm in Washington, Conn. The Edgewood market runs on the second and fourth Sundays through the winter. Berg estimated about 200 people came through on opening day. “I think it’ll get busier, especially when people get more cabin fever and want to get out of the house,” Caporaso opined. “And, as we go forward, the daylight hours are longer, people are up a little earlier, they incorporate this into their routine. This is going to be a great market. This is a great neighborhood.” New Haven leads the state in the number of winter farmers markets up and running. Statewide there are only a half dozen, but the trend is definitely upward, said Rick Macsuga, marketing rep for the Connecticut Department of Agriculture. Another indication of growth is a $37,000 grant just awarded to the Connecticut chapter of the Northeast Organic Farming Organization by the U.S.D.A. to promote local winter crops. Measures include extending the growing season through the use of plastic tunnels and learning how to store summer-grown crops such as squash, potatoes, onions, garlic, dried beans, turnips, rutabagas, carrots, beets, parsnips ... exactly the kinds of items for sale at the Edgewood market on Sunday.

Cooking Lessons at "The Kitchen" as promised...

The Kitchen offers a broad range of cooking classes, led by chefs from The Kitchen, Firebox, and surrounding restaurants. Choose from the current class schedule, or book a private class and dinner with your friends, family, clients, or colleagues.

Cake Decorating / Sunday, January 16th, 1:00-3:30 pm $75 (kit included)
Instructor: Audra Weisel
Learn from a pastry chef with 20 years experience making custom cakes how to smoothly ice a cake, and to pipe flowers, borders, writing, and other designs that will make your cakes look fabulous! We will provide you with a cake to decorate and bring home and all the tools you'll need to get started. Price of class includes a cake decorating kit of essential tools. All you need to bring is your imagination!


Protein Packed Meat-Free Entrees/ Wednesday, January 19th 6:00-7:30 pm $50

Instructor: Samantha Drake
Learn to make healthy main courses without meat or dairy but with plenty of protein. If you would like to eat less meat or just eat healthier, these recipes are high in flavor and low in fat. Learn how to prepare whole grains, high protein beans, calcium rich greens, and what to do with tofu. A sugar free dessert will also be explored.


Raw Treats to Eat / Wednesday, January 26th, 6:00-7:30 pm $50/
Instructor: Jessica Soleil
Ever feel tired after a big meal? Well, it’s because our bodies are working double-time to process the food devoid of living enzymes. Try a raw food diet which contains all the living enzymes that cooking foods over 116 degrees depletes, and is higher in nutrients! Asides from experiencing improved energy, weight loss, detoxification, a sturdier immune system while saving electricity, “cooking” raw is fun and easy! Granola Bars, Neapolitan Macaroons, Spinach Spread and Indian Carrot Soup all raw!

(This is just the classes for January, the schedule online is posted through March. Check it out and sign up!)

Website: http://www.billingsforgeworks.org/kitchen-classes

The Kitchen Cafe

      A nifty place has popped up in Frog Hollow, Hartford, that you should definately know about. The Kitchen was opened with the innovation of providing job training and employment opportunities to residents of Frog Hollow and Billings Forge. It is a small community operated bakery/ cafe that is open to the public, and also runs a farm-to-table catering business on site. The staff is comprised of trainees with the exception of the extremely accomplished Executive Chef, Julie Carrion who makes sure that the food that makes it out of the "kitchen" and into the cafe is edible. Phew!

Besides the fact that this approach to running a business is innovative, it also has huge social ramifications. The trainees learn hands on job skills, are provided an opportunity to earn a living, and are even guided through creating food service focused resumes while learning fundamental computer skills. You have to ask yourself, why haven't other places thought of this?

Inside the cafe, you will find a smattering of small tables, inviting cushioned chairs and a picnic table to sit at. The menu is boldly enblazened on a chalkboard in vivacious colors, and the counter displays tantalizing pastries in sparkling glass jars. The menu is pleasingly healthy and simple. Lunch offerings range from salads to quiches, with some creative sandwich offerings in between. My favorite so far has been the Curry Chicken Salad with Mango chutney and pea shoots. Mmmmm. Did I mention that you get to choose a side dish with the sandwich? Yup, with yummy choices like Asian Sesame Noodles and Zucchini & Tomato Gratin.

     Every night of the week, they offer "Dinners-To-Go" which change daily and are posted on their website. Some of the typical dinners that they feature are: Chicken Breasts with Sundried Tomatoes, Lemon and Capers, Seared Salmon Steaks & Salsa Verde and Crispy Pork Shoulder. Also note worthy is that they bake artisanal breads daily which are always a necessary item to pick up.

If you have been inspired to try the Kitchen Cafe, and you end up loving the food, then you might want to check out one of their cooking classes in the near future. I promise to post the list of classes up on the blog asap!

Open Mon-Fri 9am-7pm
Ph. (860) 727-8066
Website: http://www.billingsforgeworks.org/cafe-menu-hours

Fresh and Local, Part III: Pizza made to order at the farmers markets!

     I have been hearing a tremendous buzz lately about these amazing looking pizzas that are being made to order at local farmers markets across the state. They are cooked on a portable wood fired clay oven by a group called "Farm to Hearth" that started up last year.
     Here is their motto: "Farm to Hearth was established in order to showcase our passion for wood fired baking and bring honest, uncompromised food into the community. We are committed to sourcing our ingredients from small scale local farms that utilize sustainable growing practices.This is our philosophy for two reasons: First, to support the farms that are committed to caring for our precious land so it remains fertile for generations to come. Second, to provide our local community with the freshest, most nutrient packed food possible. Food that has not been treated with chemicals or preservatives, sat in warehouses or had been shipped from another part of the world."
      Sounds delicious to me! I can't wait to try them, I am getting hungry looking at the pictures of their pizza creations online. And since I missed today's appearance at Billings Forge Farmers Market in Hartford, I might try to catch them in Coventry this Sunday at the Nathan Hale Homestead farmers market from 11-2. I advise you to try to catch them as well, we'll nosh together and compare tasting notes.

Fresh and Local, Part II: CitySeed and Zinc

     Fresh and Local are definately the "it" words of the year. More and more often I am seeing these words splattered across menus, websites, grocery stores and entering mainstream vocabulary. And restauranteurs are getting the hint that their patrons are starting to get more savvy when it comes to what they are consuming and wanting to know where it comes from. For instance, with as many disasters are we are having, such as with the Gulf situation who wouldn't start to be concerned with the source of their foods?
     If you are somebody who usually patronizes restaurants that strive to offer organic or vegetarian fare, this inclusion of the terms "fresh and local" into mainstream vocabulary comes as a bit of a bore, and you are probably thinking to yourself that it's about time that they finally jumped aboard. Well, the interesting part of this news is that mainstream restaurants are getting the message. One such restaurant is Zinc in New Haven where you can go to enjoy their "Zinc Farmers Market Menu" which is the result of the partnering of the restaurant with CitySeed, the organization responsible for New Haven's farmers markets. The Chef & Owner of Zinc, Denise Appel will collect her ingredients for the menu from the Downtown Market each Wednesday and then create the week's menu from her finds. The four course, fixed price menu will change each week depending on what is available at the market. The menu will be available Wednesday through Saturday.

Denise Appel / ZINC

Here is one of her sample menus:

MARKET MENU
Week of August 25 - 28
Three Course, Fixed Price Tasting Menu
$29 per person + tax and gratuity
$38 per person with optional fourth cheese course*

FIRST COURSE
Roasted Beet/ Fresh Mozzarella Cheese/ Rosemary Balsamic Reduction/ Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Liuzzi's Cheese, North Haven, CT
Urban Oaks, New Britain, CT

SECOND COURSE
Fresh Vegetarian Fettuccine/ Basil + Walnut Pesto/ Roasted Elephant Garlic/ Heirloom Cherry Tomatoes/ Italian Eggplant Caponata
Urban Oaks, New Britain, CT
Stone Garden, Shelton, CT
Rose's Berry Farm, South Glastonbury, CT

DESSERT
Summer Melon Terrine/ Whipped Yogurt/ Basil/ Watermelon Granita
Urban Oaks, New Britain, CT

Optional fourth course*

CHEESE
Kunik Cheese/ Grafton Cheddar/ Local Honey/ Toasted Raisin + Nut Bread
Nettle Meadow Farm, Thurman, NY
Grafton Village Cheese, Grafton, VT
Jones' Apiaries, Farmington, CT

Cocktail Special
Aperol/ Grapefruit/ Splash Prosecco on the Rocks

Websites
http://www.cityseed.org/
http://www.zincfood.com/

Fresh, Local and 5 days a Week!

I could not be more thrilled to see the emergence of all of these glorious farmers markets showing up in Hartford this summer. Having been a long time resident of Hartford, I grew up going to Cheese & Stuff to buy my groceries and produce. When it closed and West Enders were forced to go elsewhere, it was devestating because there really wasn't anywhere else that stepped up to take it's place. And this problem of locating good produce and healthy foods wasn't just in the West End, it was all over Hartford. So, this initiative between the Hartford Farmers Markets, Councilman Jim Boucher and City Hall Representatives marks a turning point in raising awareness about the need for healthy food sources in the inner city. Pretty exciting since in 2005, Hartford had ranked #166 out of a total #169 towns that were surveyed for their food source being insecure. A sign of Hartford's commitment to making the farmer's markets a success in the inner city neighborhoods is also their desicion to allow the residents to make purchases with WIC Farmers Market checks and EBT. This initiative also shows support to CT's farmers since many farms have been getting sold to developers interested in creating new homes and communities in the suburbs on orchards or other rural lands. Stay tuned for information on more farmers markets that are popping up all over the state. In the meantime, check out these Hartford markets, 5 DAYS A WEEK!

West End http://www.westend.org/farmersmarket/
Billings Forge http://www.hartfordfarmersmarket.org/
North End http://www.hartfordfood.org/n/programs/ne-market-n.html
Old State House http://www.ctosh.org/docs/oshfm/farmersmkt.pdf
First Prebysterian Church http://www.farmfresh.org/food/farmersmarkets_details.php?market=261

http://www.hartfordfood.org/farmersmarkets/

Mmmmm Ice cream...

As ridiculously intense as the heat has been over the past few weeks, I am irritated with myself that I haven't made a trip to Salem Valley Farms to cool off with a luscious cone before heading to the beach. This ice cream is made on their premises and is wonderfully creamy. They have the most inventive flavors and I have to admit that I haven't ventured past my favorites which tend to be Mocha Almond, Peppermint Stick or Purple Sable (Black Raspberry Ice cream with chocolate chips). There are some very interesting combinations however that are begging to be taste tested. So if you try some of these... please report back. They are: Banana Walnut, Birthday Cake, Blueberry Cheesecake, Bubblegum, Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup, Cow Tracks, Ginger, Grapenut, Grasshopper, Peach Melba, Pumpkin, Smores, Blueberry Pomegranate, Whopper, Apple Pie and Egg Nog. And of course, they have all the standard flavors if you don't feel like being experimental and want to just get on to eating to your cone filled with melting goodness.

I don't typically post schedules, but this one is so involved, that I think I have to. I wouldn't want you to miss out on the ice cream. :)

Schedule:
~ Thursday through Sunday the first 3 weeks of April from 12-8pm.
~ 7 days per week beginning April school vacation, daily 12-8
~ Beginning Memorial Day, close at 9pm Friday, Saturday, Sunday
~ Daily hours change to Mon-Thurs 12-9, Fri- Sun 12-10 all summer
~ After Labor Day, hours go back to 12-8 Mon-Thurs 12-9, Fri- Sun for September
~ October Schedule: Thur- Sun 12-8pm daily

www.salemvalleyfarmsicecream.com