JABA's Roasted Pear-Butternut Squash Soup with Crumbled Blue Cheese

This recipe comes to us from Sarah Lanzman, the head chef at Top Broccoli Catering, which serves the Jefferson Area Board of Aging (JABA).
Serves 6

2 ripe Bartlett or Bosc pears, peeled, quartered, and cored
2 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 2-inch chunks
1 small-to-medium onion, peeled and quartered
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1⁄3 to 1⁄2 cup roasted almond butter
1⁄2 tsp. salt
1⁄8 tsp. cayenne pepper, or to taste
4 cups vegetable broth, or reduced-sodium chicken broth
2⁄3 cup crumbled blue-veined cheese (Everona Dairy in Rapidan makes
a semi-soft blue cheese called Blue Ridge that would be delicious here)
1 Tbsp. thinly sliced fresh chives (or scallion greens)
1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Combine pears, squash, onion, garlic, oil,
1⁄4 tsp. salt, and pepper in a large bowl; toss to coat. Spread evenly on a large rimmed baking sheet. Roast, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, 40 to 55 minutes. Let cool slightly.

2. Place half the vegetables, the almond butter, and 2 cups broth in a blender; puree until smooth. Transfer to a large saucepan. Puree the remaining vegetables and 2 cups broth. Add to the pan and stir in the remaining 1⁄4 tsp. salt.

3. Cook the soup over medium-low heat, stirring, until hot, about 10 minutes. Divide among bowls and garnish with cheese and chives.

Never mind the fact that a hand-cranked pasta maker is an atypical 14th birthday present. Austyn Bessette, inspired by a pasta-making neighbor, got right to work and soon had the hang of making fettuccine. Before long, Bessette, now 15, was selling her homemade noodles beside the eggs, pastured chicken, vegetables, and other products available at her folks’ Bessette Family Farm in Esmont.

She’s since branched out to ravioli and lasagna noodles, and is also experimenting with a grain grinder to make her own flour. “I’m trying to perfect my whole-wheat pasta recipe,” says Bessette, who hasn’t yet started selling the whole-wheat variety. “For some reason, it’s a lot more crumbly.”

Accordingly, the 10th grader has been tinkering with amounts of olive oil and eggs, which, along with flour and salt, are her only ingredients. The free-range eggs she uses come straight off the family farm with bright orange yolks that lend her noodles a deep yellow color. The family’s herd of Jersey cows also plays an important role—Bessette’s favorite way to eat her own noodles is in a cream sauce. “Fresh cream,” she says, “is just so much better.”

To place a noodle order, call Austyn at the Bessette Family Farm at (434) 831-2084; a one-pound package of fettuccine costs $5. (During market season, you can also find her pasta at the Nelson County farmers’ market.) —Andrew Jenner

Diane Flynt knows that her favorite apples—the antique varieties Ashmead’s Kernel and Pomme Gris—are worth preserving. “I’m spoiled by the stimulation of flavors,” she says of the complex tannins and vibrant acidity. “They make me never want to buy those bland grocery store apples.”

Flynt, an apple grower and cidermaker at Foggy Ridge Orchard in Dugspur, Virginia, has turned this passion into a mission. In 2008 she founded AppleCorps, which educates the public about growing and preserving rare antique apples that have fallen out of favor with commercial growers. It also preserves a part of American culture, encouraging anyone and everyone to grow or graft new apple trees.

The response from the public has been overwhelmingly positive. Though there is no formal membership, AppleCorps is averaging 100 new people each month who sign up to receive emails about the group’s applerelated activities, including classes, orchard walks, and tastings.

The hope is that by exposing us to some of the 300 varieties that were grown by farmers a century ago, more of us will feel spoiled, like Flynt, bywhat we taste and discover. For more information, go to www.foggyridgecider.com and click on “Learn” and then “AppleCorps.” —Elizabeth Weaver

Virginia is full of venison—the ultimate free-range, natural, local meat. And Virginia has plenty of families in want, struggling to put healthy food on the table.

Enter Hunters for the Hungry, a nonprofit based in Big Island, Virginia, that pays dozens of processors throughout the state to butcher deer donated by hunters, then distributes the meat to local charities. The organization has provided nearly 3.75 million pounds of venison to food banks and church food pantries statewide since 1991.

“Deer have been coming in pretty steady this season,” says Gary Peak, a Hunters for the Hungry partner and owner of Peak’s Slaughter House near Lynchburg. Peak processed several hundred deer for the organization last year.

By Thanksgiving 2009, Hunters for the Hungry had already collected more than 300,000 pounds of venison—on pace for a record year, but far short of demand. In fact, as of press time, the organization had to stop accepting deer because there was simply no more funding to pay for butchering the animals. It costs about $40 to have slaughterhouses like Peak’s process one animal, yielding about 50 pounds of venison.

“Our distributors could use so much more than we’re currently able to supply,” says director Laura Newell-Furniss. The biggest need, she says, is financial support so they can continue with their mission. “Talk about organic,” she adds. “Venison is a very nutritious and delicious food.” For more information or to make a donation, go to www.h4hungry.org. —Andrew Jenner

COUNCIL CHEWS FOOD ISSUES

It’s a fact that we all eat food. So where it comes from is an issue that affects everyone. And the more of it we can get from right here in Central Virginia, the better it is for the local economy and probably for our health. With that in mind, a group from UVA and Virginia Cooperative Extension established the new Virginia Food System Council to solve the problems of our state’s food system.

To determine just where the difficulties lie, the council, which meets at least four times a year, will assess the strengths and weaknesses down to a local level. Then it can make policy recommendations that could help with such issues as shrinking the obesity epidemic, revitalizing rural Virginia and low-income urban neighborhoods, and improving the state’s food security.

One of the council’s first endeavors was with Virginia’s farm-to-school week this past November. “We try to support efforts to get local foods into schools, hospitals, institutions,” says the council’s Eric Bendfeldt, who is also a community viability specialist for Virginia Cooperative Extension. “We feel that institutions can play a critical role in developing local and regional food systems. And that’s a good strategy for making long-term societal change.”

Bendfeldt sees great potential in what can be accomplished. “Local foods can be an economic recovery strategy,” he says. “Look, for example, at how much food is produced in a given area, how much is exported, and how much is imported. That makes clear the great opportunity for local production.”

MARK IT DOWN: WINTER FARMERS' MARKETS

This time of year, farmers’ markets tend to be about as plentiful as sunburns. But there are still some that hang on throughout the winter, making it possible to get fresh, local products all in one place.

“In the summer, people enjoy chatting and shopping outside, but in the winter, people are here because they are committed to local food,” says Josie Showalter, manager of the Harrisonburg Farmers’ Market. “There’s a different sense of commitment on the part of the vendors and the customers.”

Winter offerings tend to include root vegetables like potatoes and onions, which keep well throughout the season, as well as greenhouseraised items like lettuce, tomatoes, and peppers.

But many carry items beyond produce. The vendors at the Rockfish Valley Community Center Market, for instance, sell cheese, yogurt, milk, and freerange chicken. And many markets have a selection of preserved fruits, dried herbs, breads, pies, and teas.

In fact, the Orange County market is the only source for from-scratch baked goods in town. “That’s one reason the market does well,” says director Donald Jennings. “Regulars come in to pick up fresh bread for the week.”

This winter, we’re certainly looking forward to visiting the following markets (check their websites for days and times):
• Dayton Farmers’ Market www.daytonfarmersmarket.com
• Harrisonburg Farmers’ Market www.harrisonburgfarmersmarket.com
• Lynchburg Community Market www.lynchburgcommunitymarket.com
• Orange County Farmers’ Market www.orangecountyfarmersmarket.blogspot.com
• Rockfish Valley Community Center Community Market rockfishvalleycommunitycenter.memberlodge.com —Veronica Gutierrez

DIGITAL DINING

Tweet…tweet…what is there to eat? In the age of Twitter, Facebook, and instant information everywhere, local restaurants are turning to technology and social networking to share with patrons everything from daily specials to favorite recipes and upcoming events.

L’etoile restaurant in Charlottesville, for one, joined Facebook early this past fall and has seen an increase in business. “Many people don’t consider going to a fine-dining restaurant for lunch,” says Stu Hartman-Marg, who manages L’etoile’s online presence. “But the Facebook updates have allowed us to let diners know about our $10 lunch plates.”

Twitter makes it possible for foodies to get updates sent straight to their cell phones, where they could have read about, for instance, the free chocolate cupcakes with toffee-vanilla icing that were being given away at Healthy Foods Coop in Lexington on one particularly chilly winter afternoon. Or about the lunch specials and quirky new ingredients being served up at A Bowl of Good Café in Harrisonburg—where social networking is also used as a forum for dialogue on food issues important to the community. Isn’t technology delicious? —Sara B. Teaster