GARDEN, ON THE ROCKS

Where in the world did devil’s Backbone Brewing company get the inspiration for the wackily refreshing watermelon-serrano-pepper margarita it’s serving up this summer? Its own backyard, it turns out.

That’s where the wintergreen resort–area restaurant-brewery planted a garden that is now supplying fresh ingredients to the kitchen and the bar. “We love creating seasonal food, so want to apply the same mindset to our cocktails,” says general manager and resident mixologist chris trotter. “We make changes off the cuff based on what we’re picking on any given day.” The concept kicked off earlier in the summer with a strawberry-basil martini, made from garden basil and berries grown at nearby twin springs farm. the bar is also using site-grown tomatoes in Bloody marys for sunday brunch, and even making its own mint and rosemary syrups. “Premade syrups have a longer shelf life,” says trotter, “but we like handcrafted cocktails.”

As for the watermelon-serrano-pepper margarita, well, you have to sip it to believe it. “it has a bit of heat,” says trotter, “especially as the oil seeps out of the pepper. I was curious to see the response, and our bar crowd loves it.”

dbbrewingcompany.com; (434) 361-1001.

FIELD TRIPS

Local-food fans can get even closer to the action (and dirt) this summer with a series of tours of local farms, put together by market central, a nonprofit organization that supports charlottesville farmers’ markets.

“People want to know where their food comes from,” says kathy kildea, secretary of market central. “it’s more than just putting a seed in the ground.”

Most of the participating farms are vendors at area farmers’ markets. the first tour, dubbed hazy, hot & Bloomin, will spotlight two flower growers on august 5, starting at 8:30 a.m. in september (date to be announced), you’ll have a chance to tour several area vegetable farms.

For $10, you board a shuttle that takes you to the various farms—and you’re treated to some locally grown refreshments. tickets are available at the market central table every saturday during the charlottesville city market or by emailing kildea at marketcentral@bnsi.net. —Jamie Kennedy

SHARING YOUR SHARE

Heading out of town during the summer is a rite of passage. But what to do with your CSA share—that weekly basket of garden goodies—you’ll miss? Will it just go to waste?

Not if UVA creative writing grad student Mark Parlette can help it. He’s the president of the nonprofit Charlottesville Community Food Project, which works to hook up the city’s low-income families with the fruits and vegetables that won’t be picked up in any given week.

The idea came to him when he was making deliveries for a food bank and realized much of his load was processed, packaged, and not-so-healthy. “Food banks do a great job of making sure people don’t go hungry,” he says. “But given the social, environmental, health, and economic benefits of eating local produce, we ought to make that option available to everyone.”

Last year he connected 60 families with about 180 shares of fresh, local produce from area CSA s. Ploughshare Community Farm and Roundabout Farm have each donated a few shares of produce every week, too— so Parlette always has something to pass along. “It’s almost embarrassing how grateful people are to receive fresh food,” he says. “One lady even called to let us know what she made with it.”

To donate your share (or support the organization), call (434) 806-6441 or email cvillecfp@gmail.com. The families will then pick up the food themselves (all pick-up spots are conveniently located downtown). Because fresh local food is good for all of us.

OBAMA FEASTS ON T.J.

Thomas Jefferson was such a believer in gardening and fresh vegetables, our 44th president is now trying to emulate our third president’s green thumb. In April, White House assistant chef Sam Kass came down from D.C. to marvel at the Monticello garden, and took some of it back with him to plant in the Obamas’ much-publicized, chemical-free 1,100-foot vegetable garden. Namely, many of Jefferson’s favorites: tennis ball lettuce, brown Dutch lettuce, globe artichokes, savoy cabbage, Marseille figs. “I gave them oodles of seeds,” says Monticello director of gardens and grounds Peter Hatch. “Jefferson was our first epicurean president. He had a great love for food and wine - especially vegetables. Monticello has a revolutionary garden that inspired a revolutionary cuisine.”

The White House even has devoted a special section in the garden to Jefferson, and Hatch was able to visit it with his family (a privilege not granted all visitors). “I talked up the Jefferson legacy in food and gardening,” he says. “It seems really relevant for people looking for sustainable eating - local food, fresh food.”

In addition to visiting Monticello yourself, you can learn more about Jefferson’s garden from Hatch at the Heritage Harvest Festival, to be held on September 12 at Monticello’s Montalto. For more information go to www.monticello.org and www.HeritageHarvestFestival.com.

GLUTEN-FREE GOODNESS

For many Americans, an allergy to gluten means a lifetime without treats like cookies, cheesecake, or bread. So Cranberry’s Grocery & Eatery in Staunton is making a point of now offering more appealing options—and more local options—for those afflicted.

The popular Staunton spot has recently been certified for its gluten-free menu by the Gluten-Free Awareness Program, which aims to serve people with celiac disease or other allergies to wheat, barley, and rye.

“Responding to what customers want is our stock and trade,” says Cranberry’s owner Kathleen Stinehart, who has seen one person after another come in and ask for good-tasting gluten-free foods when they dine out. Area bakers that supply Cranberry’s are also responding to demand. From just down the road in Staunton, Grains of Sense bakery brings in gluten-free loaves of cinnamon-raisin and hearty grain-and-seed. Blue Ridge Baby Cheesecakes, made in the Blacksburg area, includes a gluten-free crust that appeals to even those without the allergy. And out of Norfolk comes Lucy’s Cookies, in flavors like cinnamon, oatmeal, and chocolate chip.

“We are very Virginia-foods oriented,” says Stinehart. “We’re always on the lookout for good local foods - and good gluten-free foods.” So now everyone can indulge. www.GoCranberrys.com; (540) 885-4755.

THE PEACH PIE LADY

When people tell Dot Preis her peach pies are better than their grandmothers’, it’s the ultimate compliment (and ultimate family betrayal). But when Preis, assistant manager and “pie lady” at BreadWorks in Charlottesville, hears such praise, she attributes it not to her hard work in the kitchen but to the fresh peaches she buys in Crozet from Chiles Peach Orchard, Henley’s Orchard, or Great Valu (a grocery store that carries fruit from both orchards).

She’s been using local fruit in her pies for about five years, when she realized the price was good and the appeal was even better. “It just made sense to buy from my neighbors and be able to market the pies as containing fresh local peaches at a time when buying local was just catching on,” Preis says. “Fresher is always better, so you’ve got to figure that the nearer you are to the source, the better it will be.”

In the off-season, she has to use frozen peaches, which, she says, taste like an entirely different fruit. So to get the real thing, now is the time. And, dare we say, do it often, since new varieties of peaches are constantly making their way into her larder. Her pies may taste better than Grandma’s, but from week to week, they won’t taste exactly alike. www.breadworks.org; (434) 296-4663.

HOPS TO IT

It’s harvest time for one of beer’s key ingredients - hops - and Blue Mountain Brewery in Afton started early, thanks to a spell of warm, rainy weather. The staff works the 300 plants in three fields, snipping the strings that hold the 10-foot plants upright and severing the stalks at the bottom. Then they are taken to an airconditioned area, where the blossoms are plucked and kept whole.

From there, they become an important ingredient in Blue Mountain’s Full Nelson Pale Ale, giving it a citrusy, herbal finish. “The hops grown here have proved slightly less grapefruity than the same variety grown in the Pacific Northwest,” says coowner Taylor Smack. “Also unique is our water, drawn from a 300-foot well and from a very protected watershed. Water, as much as anything in beer, is really part of our terroir.”

The great thing about growing hops at the brewery, Smack says, is that people learn about beermaking—and can explore the hops plants on a visit. “We’re brewers, not farmers,” he clarifies. “This is a fun side project that fulfills 10 percent of our hops needs, but that’s 10 percent less that we have to buy.” www.bluemountainbrewery.com; (540) 456-8020. - Serena Weaver

YES, IN MY BACKYARD

When someone in a chicken suit shows up at a Harrisonburg City Council meeting, people notice. Even though the costumed character - a member of the Harrisonburg Backyard Chicken Project (HBCP) - sat quietly at the back of the room, the point was made. HBCP is serious about residents being allowed to raise egg-producing hens.

“We hope to be a resource to city officials as they consider the issue and to educate city residents,” says Nicholas Detweiler- Stoddard, a member of HBCP who presented to city council in April. HBCP isn’t opposed to regulation, members told city officials. Its proposal includes limiting owners to six chickens, requiring a nominal permit fee, and banning raucous roosters.

The group distributed Edible Blue Ridge’s winter 2009 article about a Charlottesville backyard flock to council members to “illustrate that the movement is nationwide, and that it’s not just a hobby of ‘crunchy granola’ types,” Detweiler-Stoddard says.

Advocates are pleased about the council’s recent vote to consider a proposal for permitting hens within city limits and to hold public hearings, but it could be the end of summer - or longer - before chickens can return to their urban roost. hburgchickenproject@gmail.com. - Dawn Medley

IT'S IN SEASON

What’s locally available this summer...

JULY

apples • beets • blackberries • blueberries • cabbage
cantaloupe • corn • cucumbers • eggplant • green beans
herbs • nectarines • peaches • peppers • potatoes
raspberries • squash • tomatoes • watermelon

AUGUST

apples • beets • blackberries • blueberries • cabbage
cantaloupe • corn • cucumbers • eggplant • grapes
green beans • herbs • nectarines • peaches • pears
peppers • raspberries • squash • tomatoes • watermelon

SEPTEMBER

apples • beets • broccoli • cabbage • cucumbers
eggplant • grapes • green beans • herbs • pears • peppers
pumpkins • raspberries • squash • tomatoes • watermelon