At the Market September 23-25

Fall is here! It hasn't brought cooler weather for today, but since I'm starting to crave fall flavors, you'll find them showing up with more regularity in The Grain Maker baked goods.

Here's what I plan to have at Local Roots this weekend (starred items available starting Thursday):

--Artisan wheat bread*
--Basil pesto flatbread*
--Cheese crackers*
--Cheese-herb artisan bread: chèvre-rosemary, cheddar-dill*, feta-oregano*, Black Swamp Gouda (from Canal Junction Farmstead Cheese) with sage, and Lock 21 (Brie-style from Canal Junction) with peppercorn
--Cinnamon-pecan bread*
--Garlic-herb baguettes*
--Garlic pesto flatbread*
--Light rye bread*
--Maple oatmeal bread*
--Pain aux noix*
--Rosemary walnuts* -- remember these savory treats from last winter?
--Sesame thins*
--Whole wheat pita

You'll find two kinds of vegetable-cheese rolls in the bakery case, too:

--Rockin' Roots! Yes, I'm bringing back the combination of Banzhaf Garten beets, local carrots, homegrown chard, a honey-mustard vinaigrette, and creamy Lucky Penny chèvre for another week. Limited quantities.
--Roasted tomato and feta: Combine Banzhaf Garten organic heirloom tomatoes, roasted in a slow oven with olive oil and oregano, with tangy, salty Lucky Penny Creamery feta, and you've got something that will definitely perk up your taste buds!

Come Friday, I'll bring back pear-hazelnut torte, with pears from Banzhaf Garten Organic Farm, hazelnuts from Bud Luers' farm, Hartzler Dairy butter, Stutzman Farms whole wheat, and Gortner's maple sugar. This may be the last week for it as my pear supply is dwindling, so enjoy it while you can!

Pear-Hazelnut Torte

Here's one of my favorite fall desserts, a recipe I found a few years ago in Local Flavors, the gorgeously tempting farmers' market cookbook by Deborah Madison. As always, I have tweaked the recipe a little to feature more local ingredients: whole grain wheat flour from Stutzman Farms, maple sugar from Gortner's, hazelnuts from Bud Luers, pears from Banzhaf Garten Organic Farm, eggs from Autumn Harvest Farm, and unsalted butter from Hartzler Family Dairy. With an array of good ingredients like that, you know this has to be seriously good stuff!

What I like best about this cake is how the toasted hazelnuts, finely ground, add a rich complexity to the buttery ripe pears without demanding too much sweetness. This is a somewhat dense, not too moist cake that -- I must confess! -- would make a good breakfast cake as well as a dessert.

So look for it today and tomorrow at Local Roots Market. And if you like it well enough, I might consider repeating it next week!

At the Market September 16-18

It's the end of county fair week here in Wooster, and I don't know about you, but I've had my share of fair fun! Now it's time to get back down to business, and the rain this morning is helping to keep me inside, baking up lots of great bread.

So here's what I plan to have at Local Roots this weekend (starred items available starting Thursday):

--Artisan wheat bread*
--Basil pesto flatbread*
--Cheese crackers*
--Cheese-herb artisan bread: chèvre-rosemary, cheddar-basil*, cheddar-dill, feta-oregano*, Black Swamp Gouda (from Canal Junction Farmstead Cheese) with sage, and Lock 21 (Brie-style from Canal Junction) with peppercorn
--Cinnamon-pecan bread*
--Garlic-herb baguettes*
--Garlic pesto flatbread*
--Light rye bread*
--Maple oatmeal bread*
--Pain aux noix*
--Pita chips* dusted with cinnamon sugar
--Sesame thins*
--Whole wheat pita*

You'll find two kinds of vegetable-cheese rolls in the bakery case, too:

--Tomatillo salsa! Once more, I've brought back these rolls featuring Adonai Acres tomatillos, Banzhaf Garten tomatoes, Adonai Acres onion, and Ohio Farm Direct pepper jack cheese. Spicy, but so good! This is your last chance this season to indulge in these tasty rolls.
--Rockin' Roots! OK, I know I'm corny, but I can't help but think that the combination of Banzhaf Garten beets, local carrots, homegrown chard, a honey-mustard vinaigrette, and creamy Lucky Penny chèvre will rock your lunchtime world. Don't be put off by the girly-girl pink filling -- it's all hearty and delicious!

Come Friday, I'll have one of my favorite fall desserts in the bakery case: pear-hazelnut torte, with pears from Banzhaf Garten Organic Farm, hazelnuts from Bud Luers' farm, Hartzler Dairy butter, Stutzman Farms whole wheat, and Gortner's maple sugar. I can hardly wait for it myself!

See you at Local Roots!

Pear-Date Bars

Now that my camera software is reloaded, I finally have photos to share! Here's a sneak preview for this week's pear-date bars (available at Local Roots):


The base is a simple blend of local oats, local whole wheat flour, unsalted butter, maple sugar, salt, and secret spices.


For the filling, I cooked together chopped dates and fresh pears from Banzhaf Garten Organic Farm with enough water to make it a little creamy.


Add a little oat-maple streusel on top, bake, and there you have it -- not too sweet, but full of good fall flavors.

What are you waiting for?

At the Market September 9-11

Good news! The computer problems have been resolved, so there should be no difficulty in posting weekly product updates from here on out. (Fingers crossed!) I don't have my camera software reloaded yet, but photos will return soon, I promise.

That said, here's what I plan to have at Local Roots this weekend (starred items available starting Thursday):

--Artisan wheat bread*
--Basil pesto flatbread*
--Cheese crackers*
--Cheese-herb artisan bread: chèvre-rosemary*, cheddar-dill*, Black Swamp Gouda (from Canal Junction Farmstead Cheese) with sage, Miami (Swiss-style from Canal Junction) with parsley, and Lock 21 (Brie-style from Canal Junction) with peppercorn
--Cinnamon-pecan bread*
--Espresso chip shortbread* in boxes of 2 or 4 pieces
--Garlic-herb baguettes*
--Garlic pesto flatbread*
--Light rye bread*
--Maple oatmeal bread*
--Pain aux noix*
--Pita chips* in two flavors: pesto spice and cinnamon sugar
--Sesame thins*
--Whole wheat pita

You'll find two kinds of vegetable-cheese rolls in the bakery case, too:

--Tomatillo salsa! A big hit at our Salsa Party a couple weeks ago, I've brought back these rolls featuring Adonai Acres tomatillos, Banzhaf Garten tomatoes, Adonai Acres onion, and Ohio Farm Direct pepper jack cheese. Spicy, but so good!
--Chard raisin: Homegrown chard meets savory browned onions, sweet home-dried raisins (from local Reliance grapes), a splash of balsamic vinegar, and the creamy tanginess of Lock 21, a Brie-style cheese from our favorite, Canal Junction Farmstead Cheese.

And as an added treat, pear-date bars return in the bakery case! These buttery, oat-laden squares thick with pears from Banzhaf Garten Organic Farm and sweet dates sold out at last week's market, and I can take a hint -- I'm making more.

On the herb tea front, I'm all out of Lavender Lemonade for now (possibly for the summer) and have limited quantities of Lemon Mellow and Midsummer's Dream left. I'll be testing some fall and winter blends soon and hope to have those at the market before the nip in the air gets to be too constant. Will let you know what results!

Hope to see you at Local Roots this weekend!