Posted in Farms & Gardens, Produce, Producer Profile, tagged Beck Grove, California, Coke Farm, Full Belly Farm, organic, Produce, Riverdog Farm, T&D Willey Farm, Veritable Vegetable on November 24, 2012 | Leave a Comment »
The Team at Full Belly Farm
As many of you know, the local produce season is winding down and we’re seeing a lot less variety coming in from the fields. Like much of the country, we look to California for fruits and vegetables when our own region cannot sustainably supply them. (more…)
Posted in Farms & Gardens, Food Science, Produce, tagged companion planting, crop rotation, farming, Ferdinando Zanusso, food, intercropping, Mario Zanusso, organic, soil, soil test, sustainable agriculture, terroir on May 10, 2012 | 1 Comment »
Seedlings at Red Fire Farm
At Formaggio Kitchen, serious consideration is given to the impact of the land or terroir on each bottle of wine, wheel of cheese and bar of chocolate — for familiarity with soil and its composition yields a deeper understanding of the relationship between the Earth and our food. Many of our biodynamic and natural wine producers emphasize the importance of soil composition as it relates to the health of the vineyard as well as to the expression of the wine. I Clivi winemakers, Ferdinando Zanusso and Mario Zanusso, produce, “as ‘transparent’ a wine as possible, in which soil, climate and tradition may come fully through and be perceived without interferences.” (more…)
Posted in Education, Farms & Gardens, Food History, Food Science, Produce, tagged crops, F1, genetically modified, GMO, heirloom, heirloom seeds on February 23, 2012 | Leave a Comment »
Heirloom Tomatoes
For a lover of words, leafing through an heirloom seed catalog is almost as delicious as eating the fruits and vegetables pictured on each page. The poetry of heirloom seeds is unabashed, starting with names such as Amish Deer Tongue lettuce, Moon and Stars watermelon, Rouge Vif d’Etamps squash, Yellow Dent corn and a personal favorite, Radiator Charlie’s Mortgage Lifter tomatoes. Nomenclature aside, heirloom crops possess a long, distinguished past. (more…)
Posted in Education, Farms & Gardens, Food History, Produce, Producer Profile, tagged Ananas Reinette, apples, Black Gilliflower, Duchess of Oldenburg, Esopus Spitzenburg, heirloom, heirloom apples, Hudson’s Golden Gem, Lady Apple, Roxbury Russet, Scott Farm, Sheep’s Nose, Zeke Goodband on October 6, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Top to bottom: Franc Rambour, Duchess of Oldenburg, Lamb Abbey Pearmain and Gravenstein.
Crisp autumnal air. The sweet smell of leaves. Dashes of yellows and oranges and reds and browns. A quintessential New England fall. And nothing says fall to me like apples and apple picking.
As a child, roaming the orchards, climbing up the ladder to pick the fruit, and biting into a juicy red McIntosh was what thrilled me. Now that I’m a bit older, I still love to pick apples but, as a produce buyer here at Formaggio Kitchen Cambridge, what really gets my motor going is the sheer variety of apples available today.
There are, of course, the old standbys like Granny Smith and Galas. The New England staples like Cortlands and Macouns. And, with the help of seed savers and the grace of a handful of dedicated growers, like Zeke Goodband of Scott Farm in Dummerston, Vermont, there are heirloom apples. The names themselves are reason to cheer: Ananas Reinette, Hudson’s Golden Gem, Duchess of Oldenburg. (more…)
Posted in Farms & Gardens, Produce, Producer Profile, United States, tagged barley, eating locally, eggs, farm, farms, flour, food, grains, hops, local farms, locavore, Maine farms, Massachusetts farms, organic, Produce, Red Fire Farm, Rockville Market Farm, sod, Sparrow Arc Farm, sustainable, Vermont farms, wheatberries on August 6, 2011 | 2 Comments »
Harvesting at Rockville Market Farm*
The cheese counter at Formaggio Kitchen is pasted with articles, vintage cheese labels, stickers, helpful tips and lovely old pictures from our early days in business. All are interesting to peruse, but one sticker in particular always resonates with me as I pass it daily – a small, hardly noticeable, green sticker right at the entrance to the counter. It reads, “No Farms, No Food.” This statement may seem obvious, but in a time where triple-washed, packaged, pre-cut and peeled vegetables are the norm, it is difficult to remember that everything we eat was grown by farmers in wide spaces, deep in the dirt. By maintaining close relationships with the farmers that produce our food, the gap from field to consumer is ultimately closed and enormous benefits are immediately apparent. Not only is it now possible to know the exact date of harvest, but we can discuss the pest management techniques used on the farm, inquire about the diet of livestock and poultry, and even know the farmer’s most recommended crop of the week. With this in mind, Formaggio Kitchen aims to be an equally transparent connection between our customers and farmers. We are happy to talk at length about the practices of each farm and alert customers as to when we receive produce from each grower. Recommending the perfect fruit or vegetable comes naturally when we are so highly tuned into what is happening on the fields! In that spirit, here is an in-depth look at some of our favorite farms and growers in the New England area. (more…)
Posted in Farms & Gardens, Produce, United States, tagged Allen Farms, asparagus, chives, cooking, fiddlehead ferns, food, foraged, foraging, herbs, local farms, local produce, radishes, ramps, spring on May 20, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Local Radishes
Traditionally, the beginning of spring is marked on a calendar date, but many believe in other signs of a new season. Some watch for the first crocuses and tulips. Others await opening day at Fenway Park. Still others believe spring arrives only after Formaggio Kitchen fires up the grill and begins the sidewalk barbecue season.
But for me, spring officially arrives with locally grown vegetables, farm fresh eggs and wildly foraged edibles from hearty New England soil. (Though I certainly won’t turn down BBQ for lunch on Saturdays.)
At Formaggio Kitchen, we work with as many local farms as possible to bring in a wide variety of produce. Although spring is arriving decidedly late this year, we’ve already received a bounty of fresh vegetables from some of our favorite farmers. (more…)
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