Day trip, Part 1: Food!

Shannon and I have been talking about going on a trip to Charlottesville area wineries for over a year now, and a couple of Saturdays ago we set off to do just that. We had a wonderful day trip, and found some fun food stops as well as spectacular new favorite wines.

Our first stop was Feast!, a cafe and market on Main Street in Charlottesville. The tiny space is well used, and full of beautiful specialty foodstuffs. I walked out with a bottle of Lillet wine, (local, no- beautiful, yes) one of the tastiest vegetarian sandwiches ever (the Local- goat cheese, tapenades and artichoke hearts) a side of white bean salad and a chocolate covered, cheese stuffed fig. Pretty much my dream lunch.

Shannon says:

I loved this place. It can be a bit hectic, so it may not be the right spot for a quite restful meal, but if your up for a bit of deli-market style energy then you will be well rewarded. The amount of delicious food that surrounds you, wines and hard ciders you can't find in Richmond, the cheese counter, the olives and olive oils, candies and chocolates, and packages of prepared foods made with local eggs, chicken, dairy and greens, all give you plenty to look at while you wait for your own meal to be served. I had the Polyface chicken salad sandwich and I dare say it was the best chicken salad sandwich I have ever had. Served on Albemarle Baking Company bread the chicken was finely pulled or maybe slightly pureed for a nice texture. Smoked Gouda cheese and some kind of slightly spicy Dijon mustard topped it off. I had mine with a small salad of fresh greens. I could barely finish I was so full, but it was so good I didn't waste a bit.... delicious!

One flaw with the whole set up is the restroom issue. There is a one person bathroom in the common area connecting the various shops however, it is locked and you need to get the code in order to open the door. That worked out, we did a quick walk through of the connected kitchen wares shop and headed two doors down, straight to Gearhart's Chocolate! Well, almost "straight," as we walked past the shop entrance twice before finding the small but well appointed shop. We each got an 8 piece chocolate box as an Easter treat for family. You can pick out your own beautiful chocolates from the case or take a pre-packaged box. An eight piece box will cost you about $13 (about half the price I paid for 8 turtles at Godiva earlier this year). I picked out the Earl Grey, The Michigan, the Maya and the Mint Julep to name a few. So far not one has disappointed, which I can say because my husband has generously shared with me. The chocolate is made there for the Charlottesville shop, and now also for the new location on Libbie Ave. in Richmond.

This is the perfect fueling stop before taking on the Charlottesville wineries. It is easy to get to from 64, and in a lovely part of town. Stay tuned for Day Trip, Part 2- Wine! where we get lost and get found with some of Virginia's best wines.

Now in Season!

With the Farmers Market startup just around the corner I was thinking about what foods are at their best now. Now is time for delicious eggs. The grass is green and juicy, the chickens can happily eat their fill of tender grubs and bugs and the eggs will be all the better for that. Lettuce, spinach, swiss chard, asparagus, arugula, kale, collards, fresh spring herbs like thyme and parsley and sage have all put out their tender new growth. My radishes are up and my beets are well on their way. Perhaps most exciting are those tender red fruits the Strawberries! They are available now at places like the Chesterfield Berry Farm Market (for now you have to let them pick, their u-pick starts may 1st.) The Berry Patch on Richmond's Northside is where I went last year. Their website says they minimize spraying. Their festival on May 15th looks intriguing. Planning on Gorging yourself? Check out the vast nutritional data here.

Local Milk 3 Very Different Ways

Here is a few quick bits on three very different approaches to local milk. First, on Homestead Creamery... Last year I did some online research to find out all that I could about the western Virginia company and it's practices. Details were a bit to vague for my taste really and Erin and I have been trying to plan a field trip out there all year. We still hope to check out the dairy, located near Smith Mountain Lake, sometime this spring. Meanwhile Whole Foods has an updated video about Homestead Creamery. It all look pretty good, pastured cows, no added hormones or antibiotics, low temp pasturization etc. They even grow most of the supplemental grains for the cows right there on the farm. Check it out Here. You can get Homestead Creamery milk, butter, cream, and ice cream at Kroger and at Whole Foods. I love the milk and the butter. The Ice cream contains high fructose corn syrup and would not be my top pick for a good ice cream. There is a two dollar deposit for each bottle. Simply return the bottles to customer service counter for a cash reimbursement.

If your interested in Raw Milk one option is Avery's Branch. Check out This post I did a while back. Avery's Branch Milk is available by purchasing a "Cow Share." Basically you become buy into the cow and in return you get milk. There are different pickup locations around town including several farmer's markets and shops like Olio on Meadow and Good Foods Grocery in the Westend at Gaskins and on Southside. The owner of Olio has enough room in his refrigerated case to store the milk until shareholders have the opportunity to come and pick it up. Check out their complete drop site list here.

Finally.... Breast Milk anyone??! Okay, this is one time when knowing your source might be a little awkward. Check out this unusual blogger story and Washington Post article about a respected restaurants dabbling with breast milk cheese! Warning... the comments on the Post site get a bit raunchy.

Asparagus from Agri-berry at St. Steven's Tonight

Agri-berry will be at St. Steven's Church selling their fresh picked asparagus from 4:00-7:00 pm!

Crop Mob This Saturday at Byrd House!

The second 'Crop Mob' at William Byrd House will take place this Saturday to add rows and plant crops for their 'Farmlet.' The idea of the crop mob is that a large group of people are invited to descend upon a small farm and in short time they have achieved a huge amount of work. It's a kind of party meets hard labor meets education type thing! For more information check out the project site started by two VCU students. Email richmondgroundup@g-mail.com for more information.
Richmond Ground Up at Blogspot
Richmond Ground Up at Facebook
First Byrd House Crop Mob

Asparagus is Back!

Everyone is always asking us when asparagus will be available... Well, it's here! Last week we received an e-mail from a reader who said she had "scored" some at one the renegade markets around town (Blanchard's coffee on Saturday morning, or Byrd House on Tuesday evening?) Last week was also the first week of my mother-in-law's CSA with Olin-Fox Farms, and she had a lovely batch of asparagus for Easter dinner.
This week Elwood Thompsons has asparagus as well. If I remember correctly it was from about 70 miles southeast of Richmond. By the time I came across it yesterday the heads were looking rough as they had become dried out and somewhat fallen apart. Still, I snapped the stalks, using the "no pressure method" of course, blanched them, and then quickly sauteed them with olive oil and garlic. They were delicious, and hopefully I can enjoy naked and nearly raw asparagus this week as the Fall Line Farms Co-op has an abundance of fresh picked asparagus for it's members. When it rains it pours!

New Book: The Town That Food Saved

For those of you who read Barbara Kingsolvers Animal, Vegetable, Miracle you might remember her summer vacation trip that took her to Hardwick, Vermont. This small town was built on the granite industry. When that industry shifted to China the town floundered. Kingsolver introduced readers to a family that built first a diner and then a meat processing plant just to preserve one the remaining sources of income for local residence, farming. Her description of the diner that was started in this small town just to provide an outlet for the goods of local farms was truly inspiring. Filling, fun, locally grown, and prepared hot meals for just ten dollars! Where is the Richmond version of this place?!
Now there is a new book by journalist, and Vermont farmer Ben Hewitt that tells the story of this towns revitalization and the vital role local and artisanal foods played. Check out The Town That Food Saved. I just started reading my copy this morning, and it promises to be a great read on the subject of local food and it's importance to our health as individuals and our communities.