Farm, to Table, to Belly...

Tonight I got to do what I have dreamed of for almost ten years- attend a farm(er) to table dinner, ON A FARM. I was able to get tickets to the Lettuce Be Local Farmer's Dinner, held at the beautiful Mesa Farm in Rutland, MA. The goal of the dinner is to draw attention to the fabulous farmers that provide incredible products to local chefs, restaurants, and caterers. It was also an opportunity for the chef's that regularly source their products locally to really show them off, complete with beer and wine pairings. I have been giddy for almost a week- and when we pulled up I was almost twitching. 

I mean, c'mon, it's GORGEOUS. Mainly, I was relieved that I was able to get dressed and together in time- when my friends who I attended with arrived at my house, I was still in my towel trying to figure out what I was going to wear!! 

We entered the equestrian barn which had been all done up for the event- hay bales, lanterns, greenery. Long tables filled the center of the barn, with stations for beer and wine, charcuterie, crudite, fresh squeezed juice by Nu Cafe, black tea with blueberries and coffee by Reverly, and photo station with Meatloaf the very fake bull surrounding. Immediately we were offered fantastic hors d'oeuvres- the highlight was the liver meatballs with bacon and onion jam, served by my favorite waiter from Volturno! We kept going back for those and the pickled rhubarb and pickled snap peas. DELICIOUS. 

Once we were seated, we got to partake in a true culinary adventure. The chefs were Nick Geraci and Tim Russo from Volturno, Rob Fecteau from Birchtree Bread, Damian Evangelous from Armsby Abbey, Brian Treitman from BT's Smokehouse, and Alina Eisenhauer (yes, THAT Alina Eisenhauer, from Food Network's Chopped, Cupcake Wars, and the winner of Sweet Genius. Oh, yeah, and she just cooked at the James Beard house. No biggie, right???? Can you tell she's my chef-hero???)  from Sweet. There are really no words to describe the meal- it was just delightful from start to finish. Highlights were eating fresh greens, including clover, flowers, and herbs paired with heirloom tomatoes. Oh, and sitting across from the farmers, Catherine Bauman and David Beyer (B & B Farms) that grew and picked said delicious greens.  Ahh, and the grass-fed confit brassicas (I totally had to google brassicas- it means cruciferous vegetables, like cauliflower, brussel sprouts, broccoli, kale, and cabbage- basically every vegetable I love) with grilled onions and crunchy yum yum something or others...yeah, I'll just post pictures of the menu and wine/beer pairing list. The wine was from a variety of places, and the beer too- however, three were from Medusa Brewing, in little old Hudson, MA. I actually really liked the beers I tried, which for me, is kind of epic! Go check them out- I have it on authority that their pretzels are wonderful.

It was all just amazing. Who knew that you could make sweet pea and lemon thyme panna cotta??? And top it with fresh blueberries from B & B Farms in New Braintree? Um, Alina did. I have to say that being able to experience the dishes with the farmers that grew the raw ingredients was unreal. I so much enjoyed learning more about the process, and I left with a new appreciation for where my food comes from- starting with the people!

I guess the whole point of me going on and on is to say that FOOD IS AWESOME. Get it locally, grow it, cook it, enjoy it. Play with your food! Be brave, and eat the flowers! Go check out the restaurants and chefs that participated, you won't be dissappointed.

Oh, and obviously, get tickets for next year's Farmer's Dinner! It is such an amazing experience! 

Some Super Serious Thoughts on Summer...

And by super serious, I totally mean random things I think about while I retreat to my "other brain space" when my kids are in meltdown mode. Either way, they entertain me, and it's been a while since I have shared with the free world, which doesn't really give a hoot, what's going on in my head.

Summer is freaking amazing. I LOVE IT. I am a complete heliophile and while I have no "guns" to speak of, if the sun's out, my flabby batwing upper arms are out! Even with a crazy thick SPF 30 mineral based sunscreen, I am TAN. So are my kids. Well, aside from just above their thighs through their torso, to just above the elbow (I LOVE SPF RASHGUARDS- even though ours now look a bit like tye dye from popsicles, ketchup, paint, sunblock and the like). Again, honestly earned color. When I put sunblock on us we all look purple I apply it so thickly- some days, when J has his goggles on, he looks like that evil purple minion. It makes me giggle.

Second thing I love? VACATION. And by vacation I mean a trip WITH. MY. FREAKING. AMAZING. NANNY. She's epically awesome and has both the boys on behavior systems and oodles of positive reinforcement schedules. When she's with us, I am actually on vacation too, for some of the time. If I want to have dinner with just my mom, I can. If my bestie joins us, we can go out at night and go to fancy bars in Cape May- drink Pimm's cocktails seaside, and blood orange martinis at hip bars. Yup. It's that awesome. I got to have dinner with both my mom and my dad sans kids, separately. It was wonderful. As I get older, and more busy, those opportunities grow more and more special.

Another awesome aspect of summer? Getting to be totally goofy and spontaneous. Sometimes it works out great- going to a town concert, picnic in tow, with dear friends- craziness ensued with hand stands, a few tackles, and running barefoot in the grass. A wonderful night all around. Other nights, like tonight, total fail. Decided to be all cray-cray and take my kids to a 6:45 pm showing of the hot kid's movie- the movie theater is a mile away, I was like wahoo we are ON THIS! Until I went upstairs to get dressed (not lazy in jammies- still in the swimsuit from the day's festivities) and came down four minutes later to find Mr. M out cold on the couch and J-bird not far behind. So much for that adventure!!!

In all seriousness though, when I try to put the first half of the summer into words, it's hard- because it's been that wonderful. I am enjoying all of it. From Mr. M swimming on his own for the first time, to J dancing in the grass, to picking crabs, to seeing a dolphin crest, to lazy moments at a winery, to porch time at the Virginia with my mama- it's all been amazing. I can't wait for what the rest of the summer brings, and a little piece of me is mourning the impending fall. I can't even go there yet. One thing I am surprised that I enjoy? A separation from social media- my every move isn't posted; although I still share pics of our adventures, because it is a great way to connect with family near and far- but I don't care how many likes, or retweets, or what not occur. If someone needs me, they call me. And for once, I actually answer, because I have time to connect. It's splendiferous.

For now, I want splashing, dirt, sand, and sun.