At the Market January 26-29

Big doings at Local Roots this week! On Saturday, join us for the "Get Back To Your Roots" Festival, celebrating our first anniversary as a store. You'll find music and games for kids, a cooking contest (with lots of samples) for everyone, and more.

And throughout the week, you'll find the following on my shelves:

--Baguettes (plain and garlic-herb)
--Cheese-herb artisan bread: cheddar-dill, chèvre-rosemary, and feta-oregano
--Cinnamon-pecan bread
--Homestyle rye bread
--Honey spelt oat bread (NEW!)
--Maple oatmeal bread
--Pain aux noix
--Pizza crusts (large and personal-size)
--Pumpernickel bread
--Sesame thins
--Spelt bread
--Zaatar flatbread

And if I get inspired, I might try one or two new things -- stay tuned!

In the bakery case, you'll have your choice of two different kinds of vegetable rolls:

--Spicy Thai pac choi is back again this week, with pac choi and carrots from Breezy Hill, onions and garlic, and a spicy peanut butter sauce. No dairy, just plenty of wonderful savory flavor!

--Squash-feta, with homegrown butternut squash, onion, rosemary from Karen's Garden Delights, and feta cheese from Lucky Penny Creamery. This will definitely warm you up inside on a snowy day.

Comfort yourself with bread this week!

This Week at Woo's Brews

Looks like the almond croissants are quite the hit at Woo's Brews Cafe and Coffee House! Thanks, everyone!

This week, you'll get fresh almond croissants as well as a handful of chocolate croissants. Same buttery, flaky dough but with a bar of quality semisweet chocolate in the middle and a drizzle of bittersweet chocolate on top.

If you like the new croissants, tell Leigh Ann and her crew -- and we'll see about getting you more in future (certainly for the upcoming Chocolate Daze!)!

At the Market January 19-22

AKA Oven Fail!

That's right, my oven is on the blink -- bottom element has burned out and the replacement won't be in until later this week. Fortunately, my dear friend and neighbor has graciously allowed me to overrun his kitchen so that I can bake for market, but it's going to be a lighter-than-usual selection this week:

--Baguettes
--Cheese crackers
--Cheese-herb artisan bread: cheddar-dill, chèvre-rosemary, and feta-oregano
--Cinnamon-pecan bread
--Maple oatmeal bread
--Pain aux noix
--Sesame thins
--Spelt bread
--Zaatar flatbread

You'll find two varieties of vegetable rolls in the Local Roots bakery case, too:

--Spicy Thai pac choi with peanut sauce -- back for another moment in the spotlight!
--Squash-apple with homegrown squash, Moreland apples, onions, and rosemary, plus shredded Miami Erie Canal cheese (Swiss-style) from Canal Junction Farmstead Cheese.

Here's hoping all the problems will get worked out by this weekend so that I can get back up to full speed next week!

Ready for a Pizza Party?

I've been making homemade pizza for several years, and in my book nothing beats the flavor and texture of a fresh crust using some whole grain flour. I've finally tweaked the recipe to make these spelt pizza crusts for sale at Local Roots, in both personal and large sizes.

Just add sauce and toppings, bake at 400 F for 15 minutes, and eat. What could be easier?

At the Market January 12-15

If it's January, expect snow! We're having a blast of wintry weather this week, and it's definitely got me motivated to bake. It's a good time to enjoy a bowl of soup and maybe some toast made from Grain Maker bread, don't you think?

Here's what you'll find at Local Roots this week:

--Baguettes (plain and garlic-herb)
--Cheese-herb artisan bread: cheddar-dill, chèvre-rosemary, and feta-oregano
--Cinnamon-pecan bread
--Homestyle rye bread -- same general flavor as the artisan loaf, but in a sandwich loaf
--Maple oatmeal bread
--Pain aux noix
--Pumpernickel bread
--Sesame thins
--Spelt bread
--Zaatar flatbread

If you're stopping by Local Roots for lunch, you'll find two varieties of vegetable rolls in the bakery case:

--Three Sisters: The classic Native American agricultural combination of squash, beans, and corn finds new life in this spicy, savory roll. I've blended homegrown buttercup squash with cooked Tiger Eye beans (also homegrown), dried corn, dried tomato, onions, and a warming dose of ground cumin, chili powder, and cayenne pepper. No cheese here, for those of you looking for a non-dairy treat.

--Greens-feta: The wonderful folks at Breezy Hill Farm are back with their excellent winter produce, and since I've been craving dark leafy greens lately, I'm happy to share with you. This roll combines Breezy Hill spinach and broccoli raab (kind of a cross between broccoli and mustard) with Lucky Penny Creamery feta cheese and lots of garlic. Good for what ails ya!

I've got more breads in development, so stay tuned! And stay warm and safe out there!

Fresh at Woo's Brews This Week

Thanks to all of you who are stopping by Woo's Brews for your daily dose of java -- and for my home-baked pastries! I've had to restock again this week, and now you have plenty more to choose from:

--almond croissants
--baklava (back by special request)
--scones (lemon-ginger and orange-mint-chip)

If you haven't stopped in yet, what's keeping you?

New Treats for Woo's Brews!

I delivered fresh croissants (plain and almond) and scones (lemon-ginger and orange-mint-chip) to Woo's Brews earlier this week, but I had the feeling I might just get an urge to try something new. So today I'm delivering some sweet treats:


--Orange-walnut blondies: This is a new recipe for my repertoire, taking a simple brown-sugar blondie recipe and adding fresh orange juice and zest as well as walnuts. If these don't chase away the winter blues, what will?


--Cinnamon brownies: Maybe chocolate is more your speed. If so, these rich and densely chocolatey brownies laced liberally with cinnamon (inside and out!) might just warm your heart and your stomach.

--Espresso chip shortbread: Always a favorite at Local Roots, this buttery shortbread jazzed up with brewed coffee, bittersweet chocolate chips, and maple syrup is now also available at Woo's Brews.

Stop in and try something new!

At the Market January 5-8

Happy New Year! I'm going to start the new year with a slightly reduced variety and quantity of breads at Local Roots, but behind the scenes I hope to experiment with some new recipes to share with you when they've met my approval.

Here's what you'll find at the market this week:

--Baguettes
--Cheese-herb artisan bread: cheddar-dill, chèvre-rosemary, and possibly Black Swamp Gouda (from Canal Junction Farmstead Cheese) with sage
--Cinnamon-pecan bread
--Homestyle rye bread -- same general flavor as the artisan loaf, but in a sandwich loaf
--Maple oatmeal bread
--Pain aux noix
--Pumpernickel bread
--Rosemary cider bread
--Rosemary walnuts
--Sesame thins
--Zaatar flatbread

I'm hoping to unveil a variation on the pain aux noix later in the week -- a tender but hearty spelt loaf with no dairy products and no nuts -- something simple to appeal to people who might be trying out new ways of eating for the New Year. Let me know what you think!

Only one item in the bakery case this week: curried cabbage rolls, with Weavers' cabbage, homegrown onion, Indian spices, and no dairy, wrapped in the usual wheat artisan dough. It's sure to fill you up for lunch on a cold day!

The only sweet stuff this week will be at Woo's Brews: almond croissants, plain croissants, and two kinds of scones -- orange-mint-chip and lemon-ginger. Stop in for a cup of something warm and delicious to go with your sweet craving!

And stay tuned for new developments this year!