Eating Local First (And As Often As Possible)

Posted on August 9, 2012 by Judy

By coincidence (or maybe not), I attended two similar events within three weeks, each focusing on the local food movement.  I have already written about the Change Comes To Dinner panel and book signing at 6th & I Historic Synagogue.  There was also a panel discussing locally-sourced products in celebration of Eat Local First Week (July 15-21) at the Phillips Collection.  Unlike at 6th & I, however, this one also featured local food, drink and an audience of local food professionals.

First, the panel: Introduced by June Blanks of Penn Quarter Bodega and moderated by Pamela Hess, editor of Flavor Magazine, it featured Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms, Ann Yonkers of FreshFarm Markets, Jim Epstein of Blue Ridge Produce, Tommy Langford of Dawson’s Market, Erin Johnson of Sandy Spring CSA, Matt Mulder of Arcadia, and David Winer of EatWellDC.

A wide-ranging discussion ensued, about bringing the message of the local food movement to restaurants, grocery stores, farms, CSAs, markets, and artisanal products.  Here are some of the excellent points made by the participants:

  •  A big problem with raising food locally is land abandonment, coupled with the aging of the farm population.  The price of land is a big factor near cities.  We need to interest and train youth to try out this profession.  Montgomery County’s Agricultural Preserve is planning a training program to address this.
  • Regulations inhibit integration of food production into cities and suburbs.  Space requirements for keeping chickens, and negative attitudes of officials regarding schoolyard gardens are two examples.
  • We  are just beginning to realize the value of “terroir” in this country.  We must determine what grows best where and concentrate on maximizing that advantage.
  • Climate change is inevitable.  We must develop climate-resilient agriculture.
  • Small farmers must have a safety net.  There is no crop insurance available to them, as there is for agribusiness.
  • Small farmers must have an assured market for their specialty crops.  Relationships with restaurants, CSAs, bespoke distribution networks are ways to solve this problem.

Then, the proof of the pudding: a reception featuring products from Tryst, Local 16, Whipple Farms, Goûter, Copperfox Distillery, DC Brau, and Barboursville Vineyards.

Tryst is the restaurant at the Phillips.  The produced a very nice selection of three salads: mixed rice, green beans and peas, and a tomato and mozzarella salad.  They did a good job of filling the gaps in the menu of products offered by the artisans present.  I met Jocelyne DeHaas, billed as General Logistical Ubiquitous Executive (GLUE), at Tryst.  I guess she holds it all together!

V of Goûter displayed her raw vegan products and tonics.  She had a (mostly) willing helper.

Local 16, lead by Edan Macquaid, brought a wonderful spread of their house-cured meats.  There was cappicola, lomo (pork loin cured with garlic and paprika), speck (smoked prosciutto), and braciola (beef cured with juniper and bay leaf); all delicious. 

There was a colorful and tasty display of local vegetables from Whipple Farms, including heirloom tomatoes.  I may have accounted for more than my share of these.

To drink, Jeff Hancock of DC Brau brought extremely fresh beer – he told me he had canned one variety just that morning.  (Is this a Good Thing?  I know nothing about beer.  I brought one home for my husband, who assured me it is.)

Likewise, Copperfox Distillery was offering tastes of single malt and rye whisky.  My samples effectively doubled my consumption of these spirits for the year.

 

 

 

I was more partial to the offering of Barboursville Vineyards.  Luca Paschina offered a white wine selection from their award-winning vintages.  I learned from him that the vineyard not only produces wine, but hosts the world-class Palladio Restaurant and accommodates guests in their own inn.

Mingling with the other attendees, I met Julie Sproesser, of the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington.  These are the people who produce the Rammys, the annual restaurant awards for the Washington, DC region.  I was glad to know that the RAMW is aware of the advantages of the local sourcing of food for restaurants.

Pamela Hess  told me that she had willingly taken a pay cut to become editor of Flavor Magazine.  I’m so glad we still have Flavor to read, since Edible Chesapeake is no longer being published.  I do hope that Flavor will have more articles focused on Maryland in the future.

I also ran into Caroline Taylor of the Montgomery Countryside Alliance, working to promote policies in support of the Ag Reserve; Ype von Hengst of the Silver Diner (have you seen their menu full of locally-sourced food?), who promised to take a turn as a demo chef at OFAM, now scheduled for October 28; and Rebecca Layton Gunter of operation:eatery, who did a splendid job facilitating the Eat Local event.

Posted in Eating, Events | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Fancy Food Show Part 3: Viva Italia!

Posted on August 3, 2012 by Judy

In the Italian Pavilion, there were Parmesan cheese and prosciutto in abbondanza.

There was a very engaging young Italian slicing a leg of prosciutto.  I lost track of the number of  cheese wheels and hams being displayed and sampled, but suffice it to say that I spent a lot of time on that part of the floor.  The olive products (oil and cured), baked goods, pasta, wine, and other products were truly overwhelming.

The region of Apulia was featured in the demonstration kitchen.  I sat in on a session with Chef Domenico Maggi, and watched as he created a three-course lunch of five dishes (not counting the olives and pickled vegetables on the table, just in case we were starving) and then sampled it all.

Looking at the menu, I realized that Chef Domenico would cook this meal 4 times that day, and had cooked other multi-course meals 4 times each during the other two days of the show; yet he remained cheerful and willing to answer questions about the food and other attractions of his home region.

I learned that Apulia forms the heel of the Italian boot. It contains 60 million olive trees (or 10 for each citizen).  Some are thousands of years old.  It should therefore not be surprising that Apulia produces 40% of Italy’s olive oil; and the cuisine, at least as produced by Chef Domenico, is delicious!

Down the aisle from the kitchen I saw a display of farro.  As I was anxious to try this grain which has become very popular recently, Ursula Castor, the representative for the importer Italian Products USA, agreed to send me some to try.  She sent a vacuum-packed kilo.

Farro is a form of wheat reputed to be relatively high in protein and low in gluten.  It can be cooked like risotto or boiled in a large quantity of water like pasta.  When it’s done, it still has some “bite” to it and an agreeably nutty taste.  I found a recipe for Farro with Mushrooms, Balsamic Vinegar and Thyme on Italian Products’ website: http://www.italian-products.com/recipes.

We agreed that it was delicious.  I wasn’t sure how much farro would expand in cooking, so I halved the recipe quantity (serves 4-6), as I was cooking for just the two of us.  One and one-half cups of farro made enough for two people to have this dish for dinner and lunch the next day. It was excellent cold, as well as hot!

Posted in Cooking, Eating, Events | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Crisfield Its Ownself

Posted on July 25, 2012 by Judy

This is how we spent the day in Crisfield while waiting for the Crab & Cruise.

We were tempted to take a cruise to Tangier or Smith Island (where the cake comes from), but decided to stay on the mainland.  We ambled down Main Street to the Somerset County Tourism Office, where we stocked up on brochures and advice from the nice gentleman in charge.  He advised us to start by leaving the office by the back door and proceeding across the parking lot to the J. Millard Tawes Historical Museum, so we did.

There were exhibits about both crabbing and oystering, as well as decoy carving and other industries.  I was amused to see that the “Keys to the City” of Crisfield consisted of a crossed oyster “stabber” and crab knife.

A display of empty cans from old shucking houses was a poignant reminder of the decline of this once abundant resource.

 

After we finished with the museum, we walked around the Marina awhile until it got toward lunchtime.  We had asked in the museum if there was a place we could eat on the water, and the local girl behind the bookstore desk pointed out the door to a large, unpromising-looking green building on the other (yes, the third) side of the parking lot, and said, “That’s the only place in town with waterside seating.  Don’t worry, it’s got really good food.”

So we walked over.  On the other side of the building was a shady deck with picnic tables, ceiling fans providing a cooling breeze, and sure enough, it was right on the water.

Our hostess was related to the eponymous Capt Tyler.  She assured us that the crabs were very fresh, and we got a chance to see that for ourselves when Miss Betty moored next to the deck and unloaded a few bushel baskets full of crabs.

We were assured, however, that if we waited a few minutes, a buy boat would pull up to the wholesale business next door and unload many bushels of crabs.  We had finished a light lunch (excellent crab soup and an ear of corn for me), but decided to wait.

We were not disappointed!  The buy boat was low in the water with crabs.  No one minded if a couple of outlanders hung around while she was unloaded.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The crabs went from the boat to the truck.  “They’ll be in New York by morning,” said the truck driver.  Mace McGrath posed for me with a bushel of crabs.  When I took a picture of a bushel basket lid with a label and a desperado, he gave me another label.   He couldn’t say why only this one has Chinese on it, though. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After that, we drove around Crisfield and out to James Island State Park.  On the way, we saw wild turkeys and some free enterprise.Then we drove back to Crisfield and ate lots of crabs!

Posted in Eating, Events | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Boloco Opening – Do We Need Another Burrito Joint?

Posted on July 21, 2012 by Judy

Bethesda is full of restaurants.  The whole DMV would seem to be saturated with fast-food burrito joints (even near my house in the wilds of upper Montgomery, there’s a Cal Tort), so do we need yet another?  And an interloper from Boston, at that?

That was my question when the invite came to attend the opening of the first Boloco outside of New England on Tuesday.  I decided to see if I could get a reasonable answer.

My first hint that Boloco stood out from the crowd was in the restroom.  The wall was lined with murals of places around Boston.  A sign on the wall explained that the painter, Sean Boyce, was commissioned by the founder of Boloco to paint the neighborhood of each branch as they opened.  He also painted two scenes of Bethesda, which are displayed in the ordering area.

I talked to John Pepper, co-founder and CEO of Boloco (which is a contraction of Boston Local Company), and learned some more: they strive to be socially responsible on many levels.  They are certified green (first thing: ditch Styrofoam); they pay employees the highest salaries in the industry; they are committed to having options for all dietary restrictions and preferences – such as having “mini”  and “small” sizes for burritos and drinks, with calorie counts available on-line.  They consider themselves part of any community they open in, and participate with enthusiasm (in support of that, I noticed a blackboard community event calendar in the store).

But enough of the preliminaries, let’s get to the most important thing:  how does the food taste?  There are many choices beyond the traditional Mexican-style burrito, and we got to taste several of them, in the form of passed halves of mini-sized wraps.  The Buffalo was very tasty.  The Classic Mexican with steak was also good, though the Tikka Masala with tofu was too bland.  On the other hand, the Cajun was a touch spicy for me, but could be the best if you roll that way.

There were bowls of sides to try.  There were terrific mango salsa and guacamole, and the corn salsa had a bright, fresh flavor.  Samples of drinks proved deadly to the diet for this reviewer – the Nutella milkshake could be my next guilty pleasure.  But for pleasure without guilt, there is also a dynamite mango passion smoothie made with frozen yoghurt.So to answer my own question, Boloco’s addition to the local burrito scene is thoroughly justified.  Welcome!

Posted in Eating, Events, Restaurant Review | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Change Comes to Dinner – And Sixth & I Street

Posted on July 21, 2012 by Judy

The Book

Katherine Gustafson has written a compulsively readable book full of optimism that we can overcome our nation-wide dependence on big agriculture and addiction to obesity-causing fast food.

She writes about initiatives across the country – of individuals, families, and organizations working to bring sustainable, healthy food and services to appreciative consumers.  With her descriptions of pioneers, from adding gardening to school curricula to bringing affordable fresh produce to inner-city food deserts, one reads this book and hope springs anew that we won’t all dissolve into puddles of fat and inertia by the end of the decade.

In each chapter, she visits and interviews farmers, distributers, and consumers who are subverting the ways many of us grew up eating – frozen and canned supermarket food, fast-food restaurants and school menus devised from surplus commodities.

At the end of her travels, she had an epiphany: “It dawned on me that the answer…was a system designed to bring people and their food into a closer relationship…[to] shrink the distance between farmers and eaters in…areas of knowledge, finance, and labor.”  Not such an easy thing to implement, but we are making a start as a country and in hundreds of individual communities.

The book comes with an extensive chapter-by-chapter bibliography of her sources, which would be useful for further research on specific topics.  I found myself wishing for an index, though.

Katherine Gustafson, Change Comes to Dinner, St. Martin’s Press, New York, 2012. (http://us.macmillan.com/changecomestodinner/KatherineGustafson)

The Event

Four local avatars of the sustainable food movement joined Ms. Gustafson at the 6th and I Historic Synagogue to tell their own stories and discuss the future of fresh, local  and healthy eating.  Moderated by Danny Harris, founder of People’s District (“A People’s History of Washington DC”) and Feastly (a supper club), it included Mike Curtin, CEO of DC Central Kitchen; Sarah Polon, owner of Soupergirl; and Bernie Prince, co-executive director of DC FreshFarm Market.

The discussion was wide-ranging and enlightening.  Here is a collection of anecdotal information from my notes.  Attribution is given as initials after each point.

  • Is healthy food a social good? DH
  • For the first time, schoolchildren’s life expectancy is less than their parents’. BP
  • College students are now demanding sustainable food from their foodservice suppliers. MC
  • The corn harvest may be devastated by drought, raising the cost of everything, but – small farmers with diverse crops won’t be affected as much. SP
  • Kids with schoolyard gardens love raw kale salad! BP
  • DC Central Kitchen has proven that inner-city patrons will buy fresh produce from corner stores by subsidizing the stocking, then charging wholesale prices when the experiment was a success. MC
  • Why buy in farmers markets?  For one thing, there will be produce you won’t find in supermarkets. BP
  • Soupergirl buys products from DuPont Circle Farmers Market to use in her soup; she knows her producers and the produce. SP

To conclude, Katherine noted that “local food” is not the simple or only answer; there needs to be a more comprehensive solution.  Change in the marketplace depends on consumer demand.  Consumer education leads to change.  There has been great progress in the last ten years.

All of these folks, and so many more, are working toward that change.  Keep up the good fight, everyone!

Posted in Eating, Events, Food Book Review | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Fancy Food Show Part 2: Two Tastings

Posted on July 16, 2012 by Judy

The show provides many opportunities to learn about specialized products and markets.  I took advantage of two of them, one on appreciating Korean food and one on rare tea.

Decoding  Korean  Cuisine: A Guided Tasting, first presented an overview of the increasing interest in Korean food in the US, and then led us through a tasting of some of the more commonly used Korean ingredients.

I was familiar with some of them, like seaweed and soju (one of my favorite alcoholic drinks), but many were new to me.  There was kimchee in a new form – freeze-dried! Ginseng was presented as a concentrated drink.

We learned that fermentation is key to many Korean foods.  Besides kimchee, we sampled gochujang, red chili pepper paste, sweet, hot, and with a wine-like fermented flavor.  We followed the directions to take a little gochujang and wrap it in gim – seaweed – and eat it, savoring the sensation of “swimming with your mouth open.”

As we left, we were given a cookbook of  Western recipes utilizing gim, a joint effort of the Korean Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corporation and the Culinary Institute of America.

The Rare Tea Republic sponsored a tasting of their line of small parcel single estate teas.  A boutique division of the Republic of Tea, the RTR is devoted to hand-selecting the very best of the tea harvest from the world’s tea-growing regions.

They personally inspect the growing and processing practices of all the farms they source from.  We tasted eight teas, each distinct, and noted their appearance both dry and wet (after steeping) to see the differences of leaf size and level of fermentation.

Their level of detail extends to the hand-written labels.  Each package lists the place of origin of the tea, the plucking date, and the recommended teaspoons per cup, water temperature (in degrees Fahrenheit) , and steep time (in minutes).

My favorites were Kangra Wah Handrolled Green, with a lovely smoky tinge due to the traditional pan-fired processing method;  and the Kenya Kangaita White Needles 2011, full-bodied and complex.  This event broadened my appreciation of tea and the efforts of all those devoted to bringing the very best possible  product to the market.

Posted in Eating, Events | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Eating Well in Crisfield – The Crab & Cruise

Posted on July 14, 2012 by Judy

Last month, we were kindly invited to a two-day celebration of Maryland seafood hosted by Greg Cain, proprietor of The Crab Place, a restaurant and seafood shipping business in Crisfield.  I had never been to Crisfield despite living in Maryland for 39 years and accounting for my share of the delicious products of Bay and ocean, so we took this opportunity to rectify that situation.

Greg told us that the shipping business has been established for 15 years, but the restaurant is only two years old.  The Crab & Cruise event is well on its way to becoming a tradition, attracting people from all over the U.S. and a few from abroad.

On Friday night, a seafood dinner was served under a huge tent set up next to the restaurant.  The seafood paella was cooked on the spot by Chef Max Hardy and several assistants.  It was excellent – clams, mussels, and jumbo shrimp nicely set off with sausage and vegetables in a spicy broth, served over rice.

Chef Max had come from Miami to cater this event.  For those who may not have cared for paella (I can’t imagine who), there were fish tacos featuring fried grouper.

Large filets of grouper were deep fried and garnished with a creamy sauce and piquant salsa.  Of course, one could have some of each.  Of course, I did.

 

Beer and wine were available, and also some excellent vodka cocktails sponsored by Van Gogh Vodka.  For dessert, a local specialty: Smith Island cake.  After dinner, a band played for dancing in the parking lot until midnight.

On Saturday afternoon, we returned to The Crab Place tent for a grand crab feast.  All the steamed crabs we could eat, plus steamed clams, fried clam strips, corn-on-the-cob, hush puppies, coleslaw, french fries, meatballs, and chicken wings.  Beer, of course, and soft drinks to wash down the food.  Oh, and more Smith Island cake for anyone with enough room left for it.

This cake has been designated as the official dessert of the state of Maryland.  It dates back to the 19th Century, developed by watermen’s wives on tiny Smith Island, which is accessible from the mainland only by passenger ferry.  From 8 to 15 thin layers of cake are stacked, separated by icing, then the finished cake is frosted.

I wish we had been able to go on the sunset cruise which followed, but we had to return home right after the crab feast, to get up early Sunday morning for the farmer’s market.  I hope next year we can make arrangements to stay over in Crisfield so as not to miss a minute of this event! Coming: What we did in between the eating – Saturday in Crisfield.

Posted in Eating, Events, Restaurant Review | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Fancy Food Show Part 1: Show Floor

Posted on July 11, 2012 by Judy

The Fancy Food Show was held in the Washington Convention Center in June.  This annual event, open only to the trade, is a chance for specialty food producers to show their latest products, take orders, scope out their competition, and socialize.  It was a chance for me to wander the aisles looking for likely subjects to photograph, products to taste and people to meet!

The show is a mix of all sizes of producer, from the mom-and-pop shop with one or two highly specific products to the biggest corporations.  I found delicious products and clever presentations at all levels.

Here are some of the best visuals from the show floor.

The Yellow Tea Road

Bellocq Teas had an eye-catching display which made good use of their yellow packaging.  They have a highly rarefied line of teas and tisanes, and an atelier in Brooklyn.

The Jolly Truffle Hunters

Joe Czarnecki (on the right in the photo) and his son Stefan market a line of truffle-infused oil and sauces, under the name of The Czar’s Fine Foods.  They source their white truffles from Oregon, and claim to use only squirrels to find the underground mushrooms.  I will be writing more about them in a future post.

The Road to Morocco

There were many pavilions sponsored by countries, composed of individual manufacturer’s booths combined with a central feature; often a kitchen, sitting or sampling area, or combinations of same.  (First prize goes to the Italians for all three.)  Morocco, one of the smaller pavilions, had a tea pourer.  He was a very friendly chap, inviting visitors to sit down for a spell and join him while he poured tea from the wonderful silver tea service.

Jump Right In!

These folks not only had a terrific presentation – that is not a trick of perspective, they really were giant wine glasses full of chocolate sauce, available for sampling – but a catchy name: Somebody’s Mother’s Chocolate Sauce.  And here I quote their business card: “Naturally rich. Velvety. Perfect as a topping. Cold. Or hot. Especially good in the middle of the night.”  Even good in the middle of the show floor.

Keep On Truckin’

And speaking of big corporations, Lucini Italia and Delverde, a major Italian producer, drove a moving-van sized truck onto the show floor and held a Zonin Prosecco party at the end of the day.  The truck had a full kitchen, equipped with three chefs who turned out many tasty dishes using Delverde products.  They featured as special guest Top Chef: Texas Finalist Chef Lindsay Autry.  This was completely separate from the Italian pavilion, the hands-down pavilion winner as I mentioned above.  Viva Italia!

Natty Natalie’s

We wandered into Natalie’s Orchid Island Juice Company, attracted by the large backdrop of an orange grove and the coolers full of juice.  We stayed to chat with the exceedingly friendly salesmen, all tie-coordinated in wonderful tropical pastels.  They even posed willingly for a picture, all the while plying us with delicious juice and amazing facts (they’ve been voted “Best Tasting Orange Juice” by multiple polls).   We even met the CEO, Marygrace Sexton – the eponymous Natalie is her daughter.

More posts on the Fancy Food Show coming!  Stay tuned!

Posted in Eating, Events | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Ah, Love! Ah Love: Ah Love Oil & Vinegar

Posted on July 7, 2012 by Judy

We took a field trip down to The Village at Shirlington, a chichi little shopping and dining district in Arlington, to visit the Ah Love Oil & Vinegar store, on the occasion of their first anniversary.  They were having chef demos and offering samples of their products and dishes made with them.

The shop carries a wide range of olive oil, vinegar, and a select assortment of specialty items.  I asked the owner, Cary Kelly, how she selected items to stock.  “I look for people who have their hands in their food,” she said.  Quality and integrity are her criteria.  “And the difference in olive oil speaks for itself.”

When she demonstrated how to make pesto in a food processor, that difference was apparent in the taste of the finished product.  Artisanal oil results in the noticeably superior taste of this combination of just a few ingredients.

 

 

Two of her suppliers were there, all the way from Sparta.  Diamontis and Dino Pierrakos import Laconiko olive oil.  When I asked them how old their trees are, they looked a little apologetic when admitting that they are only about 30 to 80 years old. ( In Greece, trees many hundreds of years old are still bearing.  Gives the growers in California something to emulate!)

The many plain and flavored olive oils are sold from large stainless steel air-tight fusti (Italian for tanks).  This arrangement facilitates tasting before purchase.  Cary encourages tasting as many as you like to assure satisfaction.

The tasting samples were delicious and plentiful.  They included popcorn with black truffle salt and white truffle olive oil; tortellini with tomato, Parmesan,  olive oil and za’atar; dark chocolate walnut zucchini cake with olio nuovo; fig and olive confit; and my favorite, dark chocolate topping for cream cheese with candied orange flowers and lavender sea salt.  And to drink, a little peach white balsamic vinegar mixed with Champagne.

There were friendly gourmets, tasty nibbles and interesting stories.  A fine time, and I left wishing we lived closer to the Village.

Posted in Cooking, Eating, Events | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

The Petit Tour of Europe, Part 4: Slovenia

Posted on June 27, 2012 by Judy

The fourth and last (I promise!) entry about the EU Embassy Open House on May 12, 2012.

As our last embassy, we arrived at Slovenia.  Sometimes the small embassies are the most enthusiastic about welcoming folks and showing them a good time, and we found it to be true in the former mansion on California Street.

In one big room, the smallest space of all the embassies that we visited, they had crammed live music, dancing, a wine tasting table, tourist information, Slovenians in native costumes, food displays, a separate food demo table, and just a little room for circulation.  Luckily, it was beautiful weather to enjoy their nice wide deck.

Alas, we got there too late for the wine, but there was still some surprisingly tasty pumpkinseed oil.  A very dark color, it looked unpromising but was really very good.  The handouts claim that it can be used medicinally as well as with cheese, over ice cream (I imagine its effect would be similar to real, aged balsamic vinegar), and on salads and other dishes.  It would be a superb finishing oil, if only it were more widely available.

The Slovenians had actually published a schedule of food demonstrations on their website, so we tried to time our visit to catch at least one of them.  (It was a good thing that we had saved Slovenia for last, we realized, because we may not have ever left.  The food demos were scheduled from 10:30 right thru to 4:00 p.m.)  They were running a little late, so we were in time to catch the potica demonstration.

No, I didn’t know what it was either, so I’ll tell you: potica  (pronounced Po-teet-sa) is pastry rolled out thin and filled with a rich mixture of nuts, butter, cream, honey, sugar, and sometimes raisins. Rolled up like a jelly roll and baked, it is traditionally eaten on holidays.  It’s so rich, it only takes a little to satisfy your sweet tooth.

 

Nick Carmody and his mother, Mary, had traveled from Conifer, Colorado to demonstrate the art of potica making.  They have a small company, Rocky Mountain Potica, which will mail-order many flavors of this pastry, including Strawberry Rhubarb Cream Cheese, Hazelnut Milk Chocolate, and Cherries Jubilee.  See www.rockymountainpotica.com

They had only brought the traditional kind to taste, but no matter -the samples disappeared in no time.  Because their company makes every potica to order, they will try to accommodate special flavor orders.   Hmmm- I wonder if they would consider a pumpkinseed oil potica? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in Cooking, Eating, Events | Tagged , , | 1 Comment