At the Market 4/30 and 5/1

I spent last Friday at Lucky Penny Creamery in Kent, and though I hope to write up more about that another time, I mention it because you'll find Lucky Penny's chèvre and feta cheeses in more of my products this week:

--Sesame thins
--Cheese-herb artisan bread: four varieties -- dill-cheddar, chèvre-thyme, feta-oregano or Ludlow (creamy and caramelized like a 1-year-old Gouda) with fresh sage and tarragon
--Artisan baguettes
--Maple oatmeal bread
--Pain aux noix (two loaves with pecans; I ran out of walnuts!)
--Pumpernickel bread
--Whole wheat pita (in bags of four)

I'll be doing a breakfast cooking demonstration at Local Roots Saturday morning from 9 to 11 AM, and I'll showcase my whole wheat pita by making pita pizzas -- topped with scrambled eggs, local cheeses (like the Lucky Penny items), fresh greens, and maybe even some local salsa. Stop by and taste!

For the bakery case, I'm bringing in two new items:


--Peppermint brownies, densely chocolatey and cake-like, but with a refreshing bite of freshly picked homegrown peppermint. They're not overly sweet, so if you like your chocolate fix to focus on the intensity of the chocolate flavor, not the sugar, these are for you.


--Savory cheese palmiers, a twist on the classic French pastry that normally has sugar rolled into it. For the filling, I'm using a paste made from Lucky Penny feta cheese, olive oil, dried parsley, and freshly ground black pepper. I nibbled on a couple fresh from the oven this morning, and you'll be lucky to see any in the bakery case -- I'm hooked!

What will be on your plate this weekend?

At the Market 4/23 and 4/24

This weekend, you'll find the usual weekly offerings on my shelf at Local Roots:

--Sesame thins
--Cheese-herb artisan bread: three varieties -- dill-cheddar basil, chèvre-rosemary, or Ludlow (creamy and caramelized like a 1-year-old Gouda) with fresh sage and tarragon
--Artisan baguettes
--Maple oatmeal bread
--Pain aux noix (most with spelt but two loaves with wheat)
--Pumpernickel bread
--Whole wheat pita (in bags of four)

For the bakery case, I decided to try out one new-to-Local Roots recipe and one new-to-me recipe:


--Espresso-chip shortbread, a buttery and light dessert that's not too sweet and laced with bittersweet chocolate chips and coffee -- featuring butter from Hartzler Family Dairy, maple sugar from Gortner's Maple Syrup, coffee from Al's Beanery, and homegrown buckwheat


--Firelands corn muffins, with the smoky kick of chipotle-studded Firelands Cheese Curds from Blue Jacket Dairy -- also features local eggs, milk, and butter, plus chives from Por-Bar Farms

See something you like? Let me know!

At the Market 4/16 and 4/17

By mid-morning, I'll have my shelf at Local Roots full of good stuff:

--Sesame thins
--Cheese-herb artisan bread: three varieties -- garlic cheddar with basil, chèvre-rosemary, or Ludlow (creamy and caramelized like a 1-year-old Gouda) with fresh chives
--Maple oatmeal bread
--Pain aux noix
--Pumpernickel bread
--Whole wheat pita (in bags of four)

In the bakery case for Friday, I'll also have:

--Buckwheat Butter Cookies using homegrown buckwheat and Hartzler Family Dairy butter


--Cheddar-Scallion Rolls, with garlic cheddar curds from Blue Jacket Dairy, scallions from Breezy Hill Farm, whole wheat flour from Stutzman Farms, honey from Schmidt Family Farm, butter from Hartzler Family Dairy, and homegrown dill. They smell very good fresh out of the oven this morning!

On Saturday, you'll also find a special treat:


--Whole Wheat Croissants, buttery and flaky and fresh from the oven Saturday morning. Ingredients include whole wheat flour from Stutzman Farms and butter and milk from Hartzler Family Dairy. Get these early!

If you're around the market between 9 and 11 Saturday morning, be sure to check out Betsy Anderson's French toast demo. She'll be using a selection of breads from Local Roots producers, including my maple-oatmeal bread.

Enjoy!

Pita Chips

When life hands you lemons, you make lemonade, right?

Well, I had two packages of whole wheat pita breads left over from last week's market, so I tucked them into the refrigerator for a couple of days until I had time to turn them into pita chips.

A little more hearty and wholesome than most crackers, these pita chips get brushed very lightly with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkled with a mixture of herbs. Today I decided to give the chips a pesto flavor, with dried basil, homemade garlic powder, salt, and pepper.

These smell so good while they bake and cool -- it's all I can do this morning to keep myself from snacking on them all!

But don't worry, I'll have these at the market on Saturday in a limited quantity. Give them a try!

Mill, Baby, Mill

This past Saturday, I got out of the kitchen and headed a few miles east to Kidron and Lehman's Hardware, in order to do a demonstration of their grain mills for customers.

A couple of months ago, Lehman's reached out to Local Roots to see if any producers would be interested in demonstrating equipment and spreading the word about Local Roots, and I decided I could find some time to show off my grain milling skills and to offer samples of whole grain goodies made with fresh flour.


They set me up in the "buggy barn" where they often run movies or have live music, and they pulled out their big Diamant mill as well as the Italian roller mill (both of which I have and use at home). They also brought out buckets of grains, bowls, utensils (including a flour sifter), and other things for me to use.


I brought along fresh buckwheat butter cookies and sesame crackers made with freshly milled spelt flour, offering them as samples of how good things taste when you use fresh flour. I also mixed up a small bowl of muesli once I had rolled some oats -- combined with pecans, raisins, and local honey, it made a simple treat.

A number of customers came in to see what I was doing, and while many looked around, nibbled a cookie or a cracker, and left quietly, others lingered for a demonstration of the equipment, to ask questions about baking with whole grains, or simply to talk about local foods (which then gave me the chance to plug Local Roots). Some of the more interesting characters I met included a French couple who bake and sell artisan bread at their local farmers' market; a group of older gents wearing leather chaps and Harley-Davidson t-shirts; and an ex-Marine who is so into self-sufficiency and knowing where his food comes from that he talked with me for about an hour total over the day.

I'll do another demo next month, as well as team up with another Local Roots producer later this month for a cooking demo, so I think we'll start to spread the word about the market in another area. A very good thing!

At the Market 4/9 and 4/10

This weekend at Local Roots, I'll have a very full shelf:

--Sesame thins
--Cheese-herb artisan bread: three varieties -- dill cheddar, chèvre-rosemary, or Chouda (Cheddar-Gouda combination) with fresh chives
--Maple oatmeal bread
--Pain aux noix (mostly spelt, but two loaves use all wheat)
--Pumpernickel bread
--Whole wheat pita (in bags of four)

Yes, the Chouda artisan bread is back, so I could use up the block of cheese. The Chouda is a new cheese from master cheesemaker Brian Schlatter of Canal Junction Farmstead Cheese, and it's deliciously salty and creamy all at once. This week it's paired with fresh snipped chives from Por-Bar Farms for a truly savory treat.

For the bakery case, I've made hickory-oat scones -- something light and not too sweet, featuring hickory nuts from Bud Luers, organic oats and whole wheat flour from Stutzman Farms, maple sugar from Gortner's Maple Syrup, egg from Valley Grass Farm, and milk from Hartzler Family Dairy. These scones are just the right size to quell that mid-morning craving for a little something with your coffee or tea.

Enjoy!

At the Market 4/2 and 4/3

If you come to Local Roots this weekend, here's what you'll find on my shelf:

--Sesame thins
--Cheese-herb artisan bread: two varieties -- dill cheddar or Chouda (Cheddar-Gouda combination) with lemon thyme
--Maple oatmeal bread
--Pain aux noix
--Pumpernickel bread
--Whole wheat pita (in bags of four)

I'm especially excited about the Chouda-thyme artisan bread: the Chouda is a new cheese from master cheesemaker Brian Schlatter of Canal Junction Farmstead Cheese, and it's delicious. The salty creaminess of the cheese is balanced by dried lemon thyme, savory but with a fresh citrus sparkle on your tastebuds.

Saturday morning, you'll also find fresh pains au chocolat in the pastry case. Using homemade croissant dough, rich with local butter, milk, and egg, these pastries have a hidden bar of quality semi-sweet chocolate tucked inside the flaky layers. These little rolls tend to sell out, so stop by early to get yours!

And enjoy the brilliant sunshine and warmth this holiday weekend!