Foraging, 7/19/08

Today's forage was a solo effort. I packed up the cooler, camera, and a notebook. And coffee. Can't forget the coffee. (Yes, I'm the kind of locavore that consumes things that don't or won't grow here.)

The first stop was the Bethel Farmer's Market. The season opening was last week, but I missed that one. As you can see from the photo, the place was humming. Since I belong to a CSA, I really don't need much more food, but I like to see what's available and you never know, someone could be growing something that my farmer isn't. I scored:
- arugula from Newtown Cedar Hill Farm (Hi Frank!)
- blueberries from East Windsor and eggs from Arno's Farm in Kent, both from Maple Bank's tent.



Goatboy soaps (with the kids) and Vaszauskas Farm from Middlebury, CT were also there.



Additionally, there were some tents with locally produced handcrafts. I generally go to these looking for food, but locally crafted merchandise certainly fits in with the basic idea.

Then it was off to New Morning in Woodbury to get my raw milk and a few other sundries. I really like their dried organic mangoes better than anyone else's (even Trader Joe's). Theirs actually taste like mangoes. No, they're not local and I suspect mangoes will never be (well, as long as the climate in zone 6 doesn't change).

CSA, Week 4

July 15 was the fourth week of our CSA (Waldingfield Farm, pick-up point Sandy Hook Organic Farmer's Market). Our bounty included:
- lots of beets (with the greens)
- red leaf lettuce
- sugar peas
- kale (a lot)
- swiss chard (a lot)
- pattypan sqash
- zucchini
- leeks
- an heirloom cucumber

Mostly local dinner: I'm cooking some of the kale with pancetta. They don't make pancetta locally, so I have no qualms about importing it. This is an experimental dish and I hope it works out. We'll be having that with boiled (then cooled) beets, and porterhouse steaks from Stuarts.

Speaking of Stuarts, their new farm stand hours are:
Tues - Fri: 12-5 PM
Sat: 10 AM to 4 PM
Sun: 12-4 PM

CSA, Week 3

July 8 was the third week of our CSA (Waldingfield Farm, pick-up point Sandy Hook Organic Farmer's Market). Our bounty included:
- bunch of large beets with the greens
- zucchini, green and heirloom
- pattypan squash
- sugar peas
- mixedgreens
- brocolli heads
- swiss chard
- leeks

Eating locally, no challenge:
Most of our meals for the week have been mostly local (except for the usual suspects: olive oil, grains, beans & legumes). Meat, dairy, and veggies are around 90-95% local. The highlight dish of the week was escarole from my own garden, with cannelini beans (like I used to have when I was a kid). Yum.

Foraging, Sunday 7/6

We tried out a new Farmer's Market, the Sandy Hook Village Farmer's Market (Glen Rd). This one's not restricted to organic farms, although the area's organic farms are well represented here.

- Mitchell Farms, Southbury, CT
- Smith Acres Farm, Niantic, CT
- Shortt's Farm, Sandy Hook, CT
- Beldotti (baked goods, cheese, prepared foods), Stamford, CT

Apologies for not listing all of the items I got from each vendor, but I did not take great notes and the memory isn't what is used to be. Off the top of my head, green beans, zucchini (and zucchini flowers), and greens were most prevalent.

CSA, Week 2

Today was week two of our CSA with Waldingfield Farm. This week's bounty was beets, mixed greens, yellow squash, zucchini, and sugar peas.

Our pick-up point is the Sandy Hook Organic Farmer's Market, where we also got some prepared pesto, fresh mozzarella, and whole wheat flax seed bread. These delectables were made by a company based in Stamford, CT (deepest apologies for not getting their name).

So, with all of that good fresh food in the house, we went out to dinner tonight to Sal E Pepe, our local favorite. Apart from the excellent food and service, Angelo (the owner) makes a point of having local items on the menu.

Sunday Dinner, No Challenge

On Sunday, we invited a friend over to help us plant a tree (a white pine) and enjoy a meal. She ended up getting on the roof and cleaning our gutters! Now that's a friend!

For dinner, we fed her pork ribs from Ox Hollow, with a curry dry rub, ribeye steak from Stuarts, salad from the numerous greens from Waldingfield, with some slice fennel from Riverbank on top. The dressing was from Waldenfield. We also had spinach from Holbrooks, sauteed with garlic and olive oil and Wave Hill bread. The wine was from McLaughlin's. She was drinking Mojitos with mint she brought from her own garden.

Fair trade?

Local Meal, Not a Challenge

Tonight was a 95% local meal:
- beef tenderloins from Stuarts
- Sauteed greens (mustard greens and swiss chard from Waldingfield, garlic scapes from from Holbrook's, kale from our garden, olive oil, garlic and fennel from the world)
- boiled beets from Holbrook's
- water from our well

Delicious, nutritious, and local!

Our CSA!

Our CSA did start this week! Today!

Our CSA is with Waldingfield Farm in Washington, CT. Our pick-up point is the Sandy Hook Organic Farmers' Market at St. John's Episcopal Church, on Washington Ave in Sandy Hook (co-inciding with the Farmer's Market here on Tuesdays from 2-6 PM).

This week we got greens; lots of greens. We got Bibb lettuce, red lettuce, mixed salad greens, mustard greens, Swiss chard, and Chinese greens that I don't know the name of. Lots of greens. A very impressive first for us. We also bought some of Waldingfield's own salad dressing.

So tonight we had salad! We mixed the Bibb lettuce, red lettuce, mixed salad greens. We used the radishes, fennel, and carrots from the organic market as toppings. We also chopped the garlic scapes and cut some strawberries (from Holbrook's) for more toppings. For the protein, we crumbled some cheese we had from Sankow's Beaver Brook Farm. And we used Waldingfield's own salad dressing. A very delicious meal.

Thank you Daniel, Patrick, and Quincy!

My Local Farmer's Markets

There are lots of farmer's markets in the region. These are just the very local markets that I'll be frequenting regularly. Here's a complete listing of CT Farmer's Markets from the Hartford Courant.

Brewster Farmers' Market
- Wednesday & Saturday, June 18 – November 22, 9 AM–2 PM

Wholesome Wave (Westport Farmer's Market)
- Thursdays, June - October 23, 10 AM-2 PM, Westport Country Playhouse
- Sundays, June 29 - October, 10 AM-2 PM, Theatre Company

Sandy Hook Organic Farmers' Market
- Tuesdays, June 24 - October 14, 2-6 PM

Sandy Hook Village Farmers' Market
- Sundays, June 1 - October 12, 9AM-2 PM

Bethel Farmers' Market
- Saturdays, July 12 - November 1, 9 AM-1 PM

Back

It's been awhile since I've posted and I do apologize. My calendar got taken over by aliens and I've just wrested it back.

Yes, I'm still eating local. My milk, eggs, and beef are exclusively local and my cheese and other meats mostly are. My grains never were. (Yes, I'm still on that.) My vegetables are not--we've exhausted our put-by freezer supply. We joined a CSA this year, which will be starting soon, so fresh veggies are on the way. Hallelujah!

Among other things, we've been planting and tending our gardens. I'll be posting on that soon (with pictures, even).

While I was out, I attended a reteat at Trinity Conference Center, in West Cornwall, CT. The space is lovely and the weekend was good, but the food was fabulous. Chef Corey prepares exquisite items and several selections at each meal. I had an opportunity to meet him and we ended up having a long discussion about raw milk. (No, they don't serve or have raw milk at the Conference Center because it is against the law to serve it. In the nearby vicinity there are at least three dairy farms selling raw milk, which is perfectly legal.) Anyway, the best news is that several of these dishes were made using local, in-season ingredients. We had fiddleheads and ramps! Chef Corey showed me his map with a 120 mile circle radiating from West Cornwall. His goal is to source as much as possible from this foodshed.

If you ever have an opportunity to attend an event at the Trinity Conference Center, take it--at least for the food.

Blight Resistant Chestnut

Back at the turn of the century (the previous one, not the recent one), up to four billion American Chestnut tree were killed in a blight. The linked article is a good read, after which, you might wonder, well how far have we progressed in developing a blight-resistant American Chestnut? According to this article at newsday.com:

Now, Guilford's Conservation Commission, along with the Connecticut Chapter of the American Chestnut Foundation, is working to establish a blight-resistant chestnut tree in a 1 1/2-acre orchard in the town's Nut Plains Park.

Their test orchard (last year) worked out and now they're planting in earnest this year!

I have gotten local chestnuts from Cherry Grove Farm in Newtown. These may have been Chinese chestnuts, which are blight-resistant.

Michael Pollan in Connecticut: A Review (of sorts)

This post is a follow up to this post.

With all due respect to the Jersey Boys: Oh what a night! The Station Square in Madison, CT. was packed! I had e-mailed for reservations but the author's talk was already booked solid. My party was even too late to get on the waiting list. And yet, we got in! Pollan turned out to be excellent. He is one of those rare authors who speaks as well as he writes.

The Farmer's Market side of the venue was packed as well. There wasn't room to turn around. And yet, it was exhiliarating--all of us there to get the good stuff.

I scored:
- French Country Bread from Wave Hill Bakers.
- Empire Apples from Palazzi Orchard.
- Two cheeses, one with a Jalapeno and tequila rind from Meadow Stone Farm. (Sorry about not knowing the names of the cheeses. I bought what I sampled and didn't write them down.)
- A taste of Cabernet Franc from Chamard Vineyards. (They were not allowed to sell any at this venue, so I'm going to have to make the road trip!)
- Pleasant Son cheese and soft cheese from Beaver Brook Farm.
- Lettuce from Two Guys from Woodbridge.
- The latest edition of The Edible Nutmeg.
- A family membership to NOFA.
- Michael Pollan's new book, In Defense of Food (signed).

There were many, many other treats and not enough time to check them all out. It was so wonderful and wild. It was definitely worth staying out late on a school night. I am so sorry that I didn't get any pictures. Maybe next time!

UPDATE: Sue Spencer has done a much better job than I have at recapping the evening.

Michael Pollan in CT!

Michael Pollan's speaking tours launching his new book In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto includes a stop in Madison CT. It's about a 60 mile drive for me and IMHO, well worth it. It's on Monday, January 7, 2008 from 4-8 PM at Station Square, 28 Durham Rd., Madison, CT.

The talk is sponsored by R.J. Julia Booksellers and is turning into the midwinter locavore event of the season. From their site:

To celebrate Michael Pollan's book launch of In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto, we have joined forces with Connecticut Grown and CitySeed to bring you fresh local breads, produce, cheeses, wine, meat, and much more. Vendors include: Two Guys Farm, Reingoat Farm, Sugar Maple Farms, Dove & Boar Farm, Palazzi Orchards, Natures Edge Farm, Guilford Foodworks, 18th Century Purity Farm, Four Mile River Farm, Chamard Vineyards, Beaver Brook Farm, Mama Manju's Salsa, Lisa Ann Skincare, Belltame Farm of Lebanon, Dinners on the Farm from River Tavern, Ashlawn Farm Coffee, Claire's Corner Copia of New Haven, Wave Hill Breads, Meadow Stone Farm, Bird Song Farm. There will be delicious tastings to sample, locally grown and baked items for purchase, and information to share. [links added]

Some of you may have heard me go on (and on) about Wave Hill Breads...their French Country bread is the best Italian bread in Fairfield County! I have been jonesin' for this stuff ever since Holbrook Farm scaled down for the winter.

Beaver Brook Farm and Beltane Farm have absolutely magnificent cheeses.

Who says nothing exciting happens in Connecticut?!

Thinking about rules

I'm thinking about my rules...what constitutes a true locavore to me? Idealy, I'd like to be a 90% local foodie. The only non-local items would be stuff that just doesn't happen in the 100-mile foodshed around Newtown, Connecticut.

Those who have been reading along know that I haven't been doing this long enough to have significant stores. I got more serious about puttin' by at the beginning of the Fall. Somehow it hit me that the bounty party was about to end. You also know I never planned on puttin' by. I was hoping to be able to find what I needed as I needed it. Well, you can't get there from here.

The Farmer's Markets are done. The Brewster's Farmer's Market stayed open until the weekend before Thanksgiving, but all the other ones in my area were long closed. Holbrook's Farm Stand is winding down, and once Christmas comes, it's closed for the season.

I'm not even in the bad months yet and I can't even hold 60%. Today (fairly typical mix), I had (not in this order):
- Sliced fennell bulb (from the world)
- Beef loin steak (local, Stuart, Bridgewater)
- broccoli (worldly, California)
- chestnuts (local, Cherry Grove, Newtown)
- Macoun apple (old, falling apart, but local! Blue Jay, Bethel)
- hard-boiled egg (local, Holbrook's, Bethel)
- coffee, Kona and Sumatra (worldly)
- milk (some from who knows where and some from the CT Farmers)
- tea (worldly)
- honey (Cherry Grove, Newtown)
- leftover turkey (worldly--Butterball)
- leftover mashed potatoes (local, Holbrook's)
- sauteed red and yellow peppers (local, Cherry Grove, Newtown)
- sauteed mushrooms (worldly, California)
- wine (local, McLaughlin's, Sandy Hook)

I really don't want to drop below 50%. It's going to be an experience for sure!

Edible Nutmeg

I picked up the Fall 2007 Edible Nutmeg magazine at New Morning. It's a great idea and I found it to be mostly a good read but was somewhat disappointed in the lack of follow-through in some parts. For example:

• In their Letter from the Publishers of the Fall 2007 issue, they pointed out that people were writing in to find out where to get pasture-raised hogs in Litchfield and a CT source of true free-range chickens. While they were looking to make a certain point with their editorial, they never mentioned where one might actually fined pastured chicken and pork in CT?



• They prominently features an ad for the BuyCTGrown Web site, which looked promising, yet the site is still not ready.



• The entries in the Edible Events and Fall Farmer's Markets sections are about to expire. I am not sure exactly when this issue was publicly available, but I am fairly certain that it was past mid-October. I know of one nearby Farmer's market open until mid-November and one farm stand that will remain open until Christmas and that's it. Are there others? It would have been more useful to those in the market for local foods to continue these calendars into the date range of the next issue.



• The article on wine discussed the difficulty of growing red wine grapes in the CT climate but pointed out that there are good Cab Francs here, yet they didn't say which vineyards were offering them.
  
  

Still, it's an interesting magazine and I look forward to future issues.

UPDATE: I sent an e-mail to Robert Lockhart, the publisher of Edible Nutmeg, and he personally (and quickly) responded to several of my points. I am absolutely fascinated with this!

Nutmeg State. NOT!

Connecticut is known as the nutmeg state, but don't waste your time trying to find locally-grown nutmeg.

According to Chef Sanjeev Kapoor, from the Know Your Ingredient section of his Web site:

The nutmeg tree requires a hot, moist climate and well-drained soil with partial shade. With a history rooted deep into the distant past, Nutmeg had its origin in the Moluccas [Spice Islands].

The British introduced this spice to India at end of the 19th century.

Nutmeg was heavily used in foods in the U. S. Colonial period. Early recipes for such diverse foods as lobster, mussels, chicken, puddings and many desserts included nutmeg as a flavoring. It was so highly prized that it was common for unscrupulous Yankee peddlers (mostly from Connecticut) to carve nutmeg look-alikes, store them with real nutmegs to absorb the scent and then sell them to gullible housewives. This is how Connecticut came to be called the Nutmeg State.

So, the bottom line is that you cannot get Connecticut-grown nutmegs!