Category: Activities

This weekend, Vermont is full of Harvest Festivals . . . and most of them celebrate apples. Apples are, after all, Vermont’s state fruit (named in 1999) and the apple pie is our state pie. We have about 4,000 acres in apple production. Plus, the apple diversity you can find in our state is increasing every year – as we bring back old varieties and products that had fallen out of fashion over the generations, and invent new ones.

First, there’s the varieties of apples themselves, like the collection of over 90 different heirlooms being celebrated at Scott Farm in Dummerston on Sunday, with names like Sheep’s Nose, Hidden Rose, and D’Arcy Spice and descriptions like “often said to look more like a potato than an apple, an irregular, uneven surface overlaid with rough gray and black russet and distinctive knobs and welts” (but it tastes good, this describes the Knobbed Russet)

We may build our collection of old apples even more with the Lost Apple Project, recently launched by Colin David and David Dolginow. As 7 Days reported on 10/9/13, this duo in Addison County is mapping forgotten apple trees – growing on field edges, for example, or alongside country roads – to find unusual apples with promising characteristics that they might save from disappearing. They’ve identified 60 individual trees so far, and as an example of the unusual flavors they’ve discovered mention that one tastes just like lemonade. The project is currently seeking Kickstarter funding. Having diverse apple varieties goes hand in hand with having diverse uses for apples.

The apple that’s best for eating might not be best for pie baking or for making applesauce. The best apple for applesauce, by the way, is Yellow Transparent. And Wolf River apples are so large you only need a few to make a pie. This weekend, cider presses will be going at festivals and open houses across the state. Commercial kitchens and home cooks both will be prepping pies, apples sauces, and apple butters. Apple Cider Jelly Sorbet, as shared in an earlier DigInVT blog post. On Saturday, The Inn at Weathersfield will have a cooking class on how to make their heirloom cider pie (I don’t know their recipe, but mine involves boiled cider – which adds tang to both dessert pies and savory meats – read more about this product at the Wood’s Cider Mill site.

A relatively new product that keeps a traditional spirit of slow production and intense flavor is ice cider. The Eden Ice Cider company in West Charleston, VT, has brought ice cider to our state from where it began in southern Quebec. It’s a sweet wine, made through a freezing and melting process that concentrates the natural sugars in an apple’s juice. You can read a short description of the process at the Eden Ice Cider website and you can taste different varieties of ice ciders at the Northeast Kingdom Tasting Center in downtown Newport, open daily from 10 am – 8 pm. And, of course, there are all the standard apples we know – the MacIntoshs, Cortlands, and Honeycrisp – available at orchards, farmstands and U-Picks around the state.

Check the DigInVT.com Places page, along with the Events, to find where you can join in the apple celebration this weekend. 

You can find more writing by Helen Labun Jordan at www.discoveringflavor.com

Source: Dig in VT Trails

The historic barns, hillsides dotted with cows, and steaming sugar houses of Vermont’s working landscape have been iconic images of the state for many years. Increasingly, visitors want to do more than drive by these pastoral images. They want to roll up their sleeves, milk a cow, dig potatoes, and learn more about the food system with all five senses.

On October 22 and 23, the Farm-Based Education Network and Vermont Farms! Association are collaborating with the Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont, Shelburne Farms, and University of Vermont Extension to offer the Farm-Based Education Forum: Agritourism, Education and Economics on Your Farm. This two-day, skill-building event will support farms that are currently open to the public, or considering this step, as well as educators and agricultural service providers who work with farms, and tourism enterprises that partner with farms in their communities. The forum is geared towards those experienced in agritourism as well as those just starting out. This is the first time farmers, educators, and tourism enterprises will come together alongside representatives from the Vermont Agency of Agriculture and Department of Tourism and Marketing

The Farm-Based Education Forum will offer hands-on workshops and field trips throughout the state on October 22. Participants will tour farms that engage the public in various ways in the Champlain Islands as well as Chittenden, Addison, and Rutland counties. Shelburne Farms, a nonprofit education organization, will host a day-long workshop focused on developing educational programs on its 1,400-acre working farm and campus for learning in Shelburne, VT. Also at Shelburne Farms, University of Vermont Extension will provide training for service providers who support farms that offer agritourism and direct marketing.

The evening of October 22 will be capped off with a dinner prepared by the Inn at Shelburne Farms, an internationally recognized seasonal inn and farm-to-table restaurant. The Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing and the Secretary of Agriculture will speak about the importance of agritourism to our state’s economy and working landscape.

October 23 will follow a conference format with workshops, networking, lunch, and more at Shelburne Farms. Attendees can choose between workshops on marketing, social media, and business planning as well as innovative ideas around events, tours, dinners, and other offerings to expand direct sales and partnerships with tourism enterprises.

As interest in farm experiences is surging throughout the country, Vermont is well positioned to reap the benefits. Whether it’s a family seeking a farm fresh festival, a couple looking for a scenic country wedding venue, or school children interested in learning how maple syrup is made, more people are thinking “farm to table” and beyond. Many Vermont farms are already engaging neighbors and visitors from out of state. According to Lisa Chase, Director of the Vermont Tourism Research Center at University of Vermont Extension, “Vermont leads the nation in per capita sales of farm products sold directly to consumers. Just twenty percent of Vermont farms account for those sales and a much smaller percent of farms are open to visitors. The growing demand for authentic farm and food experiences provides tremendous opportunities for farmers, educators, and tourism enterprises working together.”

For more information, visit http://www.farmbasededucation.org/events/forum.

Register by October 11.

Attendees can mix and match the full and half day offerings on October 22 and 23. Registration costs $45 for the October 23 workshops, with additional costs for field trips and dinner. Lodging at the Inn at Shelburne Farms is available for a reduced rate. 

Source: Dig in VT Trails

Cider making at Wood’s Cider Mill is a tradition that dates back over a century. Willis Wood and his wife Tina have took over the Weathersfield farm in the 1970’s, but Willis’ family has worked the land there since 1798. In 1882, they bought their first and only twin-crank cider press, the hand powered machine that still makes their cider today. From their cider they make traditional boiled cider and cider jelly, exquisite Vermont products you can’t find anywhere else.

Boiled cider used to be in every Vermonter’s pantry, but went the way of many traditional foods. Now, the unique and exquisite treat is slowly making it’s way back into kitchens, delighting chefs like Jason Tostrup at the neighboring Inn at Weathersfield. “My fist taste of Willis and Tina Woods’ crimson gold blew my mind and, ever since, Boiled Cider and Cider Jelly are the blood that run through the veins of the Weathersfield kitchen. The Wood’s 6th generational cider pie recipe is a staple always on out pasty menu or a perfect paring for hardy Vermont cheese.” Chef Jason was excited to also share his recipe for Wood’s Apple Cider Jelly Sorbet, which he likes to serve with fresh apples, sauteed with basil and butter.

Woods Apple Cider Jelly Sorbet

I have had this on the menu since I first started at the Inn. It was an instant success, as it continues to be year after year. I make large batches of the sorbet in the fall using firm local apples that last most of the year. Eaten when frozen, the cider jelly makes for a very light and refreshing dessert. I like to sauté fresh apples with basil & butter to serve over the sorbet.

 INGREDIENTS

3 qt Water
2 cp Cider Jelly
2½ cp Dark Brown Sugar
1 ea Lemon Juice
1 tsp Ground Ginger
3 ea Apples Pealed, Quartered & Sliced ½ inch thick (preferable from local apple)
1 ea Cinnamon Stick
1 tsp Salt
 
INSTRUCTIONS
 
1. Place all ingredients into saucepot. Bring to boil and simmer on low for 20 minutes. Be sure to whisk all items together and stir pot regularly while cooking so nothing sticks to the bottom of the pot.
2. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Remove cinnamon stick.
3. Using blender or hand-held immersion blender wand, puree mixture until smooth. Do not strain. Place in refrigerator to chill overnight.
4. Using an ice cream or sorbet freezer, place sorbet base in machine and “spin” sorbet until mixture has a “milkshake” consistency (according to directions given on the specific machine).
5. Have a rubber spatula and container ready. Place the semi-frozen mixture in freezer overnight to freeze.
6. You should be able to scoop and serve the following day!

 

Source: Dig in VT Trails

The Floating Bridge Food and Farms Cooperative’s Fall Foliage Trail provides visitors opportunities to frame the season’s glory in the intimacy of family farms in and around Vermont’s bucolic “Pond Village”, Brookfield. From lattes on hoof and farm fresh dinners to cider pressing, harvest markets and world class music, unique opportunities abound to enjoy the splendor and awe of seasonal change from the ground up.

 

“Our guests appreciate the seasonal bounty of our neighborhood farms and forests. Lee (Ariels’ chef) knows better than to hide the natural beauty of fresh produce and grass fed meat. And I look for fun ways to integrate seasonal treats in our drink menu,” Says Richard Fink of Ariel’s Restaurant.

 

Mari Omland of Green Mountain Girls Farm notes,“Farms used to be part of the background in the photos of leaf peepers.  Increasingly visitors focus on fresh food with foliage as a backdrop. Visitors seek connection and refill their wells by taking in smells, sights and sounds of our farm.”

 

Fat Toad Farm’s Judith Irving catalyzed the neighborhood collaboration. “We started the Floating Bridge Food and Farm Cooperative to improve sustainability for our family farms and rural enterprises and to serve visitors who are hungry for authentic experiences in working agricultural communities.” Fat Toad Farm’s Farmstead Goat’s Milk Caramel is available in fine food stores across the country, via the farm’s website and on sale at the farm. 

 

Below is a list of opportunities to explore local food while “leaf peeping” including our Fall Harvest Market, Sunday October 13th where Coop members will offer visitors and residents the opportunity to celebrate the harvest season with fresh local produce, meats, and farmstead products ranging from pickles to wood-fired oven pizzas and goat’s milk caramel to fresh apple cider. There will also be a cider making demonstration, all at Brookfield’s Old Town Hall. 

 

About the markets, Marda Donner of Brookfield Bees noted, “Our FBFF Farmer’s Market is a perfect confluence of community fellowship and the localvore movement.” 

 

Check out FloatingBridgeFoodandFarms.com for updates and more details. And for even more ideas on how to incorporate Vermont’s bourgeoning farm and food deliciousness into your travels, explore the new statewide website www.DigInVT.com, an overview of authentic culinary tourism opportunities.

 

 

Meet some of the Floating Bridge Food and Farms Cooperative’s Members:

 

Regular Offerings

 

·         Meals: Ariel’s Restaurant serves hyperlocal fare Wednesday-Sunday 5:30-9:30

 

·         Farm Tours:  Fat Toad Farm & Green Mountain Girls Farm

 

·         Giftshops & Farmstands: Fat Toad Farm, Ariel’s Restaurant & Green Mountain Girls Farm

 

·         Farmstays and lodging: Green Mountain Girls Farm, LH Stowell & Sons Christmas Trees, Green Trails Inn

 

 

Scheduled Events

 

·       October 5th Floating Bridge Food and Farms goes to Brooklyn for EscapeMaker’s Annual Local Food and Travel Expo

 

·       October 10th Making Chevre at Home 5:30pm at Green Mountain Girls Farm

 

·       October 11th Scrag Mountain Music and Farm Supper at the Green Mountain Girls Farm   5-9pm

 

·       October 13th Harvest Market, cider pressing and demonstrations, Old Town Hall, Pond Village, Brookfield, 12-4 pm

 

·        November 3rd Red Tail Ring & Pig Roast Green Mountain Girls Farm 4-8 pm

 

·        November 29 – December 22 (Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays) LH Stowell & Son Choose & Cut your Christmas              Tree 9 AM to 4:00 PM

 

·        December 7th & 8th Floating Bridge Food & Farms Cooperative Annual Holiday Market

 

·        A new series of skill building workshops and Cooking classes are currently being scheduled for late 2013 and                    2014.

 

 

 

Available by appointment:

 

·         Brookfield Bees: See cider pressing and learn about boiled cider

 

·         Fieldstone Farm: Farm tour and pizza making. Ian and Chandra Blackmer’s outdoor wood-fired brick oven turns out delicious farmstead pizza year-round, they will be baking most Sundays. Call to schedule a tour.

 

·         Green Mountain Girls Farm: Lattes on the Hoof, Cheese Classes and Farm Experiences

 

·         LH Stowell & Son Christmas Tree Farm: Farm Tours with Christmas trees being shaped and trimmed in preparation for the Christmas season and Balsam Fir, Fraser Fir and Colorado Blue Spruce boughs being harvested for wholesale buyers for use making wreaths, kissing balls, garlands, and other decorations.  See a mix of technology and hand craftmanship

 

 

·       Newe Start Farm: If you are lucky, observe Sheri as she makes Indigo for dyeing wool.

 

·       Pagoda Pond Gardens: Farm tours, herbs, daylilies. Pagoda Pond has over 700 varieties of daylilies growing at the farm – all of them labeled with name, hybridizer, year, height, etc.  Though best enjoyed in bloom between June and September, fall visitors will find it a treat to talk all things lily with Ellen Shepheard.

Source: Dig in VT Trails

Ground cherries go by several common names – I regularly hear ground cherry, husk cherry, cape gooseberry, golden gooseberry and pineapple tomatillo used for the same thing. They’re small golden fruits in a papery husk that are ripe at the very end of a Vermont summer. They’re not too sweet, great for snacking and I’ve seen them in jams, salsa, and as pie filling too. I’ve used them in a banana cream pie for a part-tropical part-local sort of flavor that was delicious.

 

But ground cherries have one big problem – lost of people eat them when they’re not quite ripe. I’ve even seen them served in restaurants that way. For a fruit that isn’t terribly sweet to begin with, you don’t want them to be on the green side!

 

Some people describe the color of a ripe ground cherry as looking like an egg yolk. That’s pretty much it. All golden – no green.

 

The other thing to look for is the husks turning ugly. The husks of a ground cherry make pretty little mini-lanterns as they ripen, and it’s tempting to eat them in the pretty stage, but if those husks aren’t dried out, brown, papery covers, the fruit probably isn’t ripe. For some reason the husks look fairly nice in all the pictures I took, but that’s a trick of the camera.

 

The good news is that ground cherries ripen quite nicely after being picked. They often fall off before they’re ripe and when I harvest them, it’s almost always from the ground beneath the plant (which might explain the name). This is particularly good news because in some areas of Vermont it’s hard to get the fruits totally ripe before the danger of frost. No problem, lop off the plants and bring them inside to sit on newspaper and finish up the ripening process. If you buy a not-ripe pint from the market, let those sit for a while too.

 

I assume that there is also the danger of an over-ripe ground cherry, but I’ve never encountered one. After all the patience it takes waiting for them to be well and truly ripe, I don’t let any sit about for longer than absolutely necessary.

 

Read more of Helen’s writing at http://discoveringflavor.com/

Source: Dig in VT Trails

King Arthur Flour and Killdeer Farm and Farm Stand have been partners for 10 years. Being just a stone’s throw from one another in Norwich, VT makes it easy for the KAF bakers to stroll over on Friday afternoons and pick out the featured ingredients for their popular “Pizza Night” creations. During the growing season, you’ll find Killdeer’s fruits and veggies in the Cafe’s vast selection of sweet and savory pastries and used in the baking classes. Scott Woolsey, Killdeer Farm Stand Manager and Partner, has even taught “Farm to Fork” classes at the Baking Education Center about the basics of cooking and eating fresh, local food. King Arthur Flour values Killdeer Farm’s philosophy of organic and sustainable practices so much that they gladly subsidize CSA shares for their employees. 

Norwich is worth a visit any time, but plan one around the King Arthur Flour Baking Conference featuring a Bakers’ Harvest Fundraising Supper on Friday September 6th to benefit Hunger Free Vermont and featuring delicious tastings from Ariels, Simon Pierce, Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery, Killdeer Farm, and more! Check out the Norwich Trail on DigInVT.com for suggestions of area attractions. Before you go, read up about the Norwich Farmers Market in a recent Seven Day’s Bite Club article!

Source: Dig in VT Trails