Officially, and for the first time, I am a One Local Summer participant.
At long last, I’m in real local food territory, with the lucky break of being as close to Vermont as possible without living there. This means, of course, that it’s super-easy to find stunning local cheeses, including this smooth chère from the Vermont Butter & Cheese Co., which I spread over local 8 grain toast from the Rock Hill Bakehouse and topped with local zucchini and pattypan squash (marinated and grilled with non-local EVO and soy sauce) and pea shoots from the Gill Greenery. For dessert, a small bowl of local low-spray cherries from the Williamstown co-op.
- Zucchini and pattypan squash (Williamstown, MA – 5 mi)
- Bread from Rock Hill Bakehouse (Glens Falls, NY – 63 mi)
- Chèvre (Websterville, VT – 157 mi)
- Pea shoots (Gill, MA – 45 mi)
- Cherries (Williamstown, MA – 5 mi)
Western MA is awash in farms, CSAs, and bakeries, and as I get to know the region better, I suspect I will be able to find food that’s even more local — regionally closer — than what I threw together for last night’s mini-feast. Sadly, it seems we’ve arrived just in time to be at the bottom of a thirty-person-long waiting list for the CSA at Caretaker Farm, which, when I stopped by last week, was overflowing with bunches of leafy greens, beans, herbs, and other sundry edibles. I sullenly traipsed off the farm, mouth watering, with a vow to sign up as early as possible next year.