Spring. You can almost feel its arrival on the morning breeze and in the sporadic, but glorious afternoon sunshine. Because of the changing of the clocks this weekend, I begin to feel a giddy, childlike excitement for what is surely to come with the warmth and longer days. Picnics and alfresco dinners. Long evening walks and icy cold white wines, barbecues and trips to the coast for oysters!
Sonoma’s never ending calendar of summer events are on the horizon, while local farms gear up for their busy growing season. With the warm and dry weather, many of those farms open their doors to visitors with tours, cooking classes and seminars in hopes of educating and stimulating our interest in our local food systems.
I wanted to share with you some of my favorite opportunities for visiting these farms in the coming months. Perfect opportunities for getting outside, petting a goat, milking a cow, tasting some cheese and supporting your local farmer. They fill up quickly, so be sure to make your reservations soon.
MALT, the Marin Agricultural Land Trust, was the first land trust in the United States to focus on farmland preservation. Founded in 1980 by a coalition of ranchers and environmentalists to preserve farmland in Marin County, California, MALT acquires agricultural conservation easements on farmland in voluntary transactions with landowners. Their programs are always exceptional opportunities to connect with our local agricultural system while supporting an important cause. This year’s highlights are a lamb butchering and cooking class at Nick’s Cove, a small tour of Strauss Dairy, and the Leiss Ranch wildflower hike. See malt.org/programs for their complete schedule.
Redwood Hill Farm, the award-winning goat farm and dairy in Sebastopol, has been sustainably farmed and family owned since 1968. Their cheeses, yogurts and kefir are 100 percent natural and 100 percent delicious. A visit to their farm is a rare opportunity to see their precious baby goats and their cheesemaking process. Their spring farm tours are on April 9 and 10, and then again on May 7 and 8. Find more information on their website at redwoodhill.com/news.
Petaluma’s McClelland’s Dairy, located seven miles west of Petaluma, is a modern family dairy farm with traditional values. Their 800 organic milk cows almost exclusively feed on fresh, green grass and produce a phenomenal European Style Organic Artisan Butter. The dairy’s tours are truly great and include a “Mother’s Day Brunch on the Farm” or my favorite, “Be a Farmer for a Day,” where you’ll help bottle feed baby calves, churn butter and even milk a cow by hand! Visit mcclellandsdairy.com for a complete listing and to make reservations.
If you have never had the chance to visit the absolutely stunning McEvoy Ranch just outside of Petaluma, here is your opportunity. Several times during the season they open their doors for tours of their olive orchards and to experience the olive oil making process, rare tours of their edible gardens with lunch, hikes, bird watching excursions, cooking demonstrations and more. Their website, mcevoyranch.com/events, has the complete listing.
The annual announcement of the Outstanding in the Field dinners bring me a mixture of pure joy and complete despair. These fabulous outdoor dinners are held at a selection of gorgeous farms all over the country – now the world – where local celebrity chefs prepare true farm-to-table suppers, which are then served on linen covered, candlelit tables. In a field. The pictures and menus look amazing, but I’ll have to take your word for it, because at more than $200 a person, I don’t think I’m allowed to attend. The locations are released on March 11 and tickets go on sale March 20. Not surprisingly, the seats go quickly! outstandinginthefield.com.
The annual “Sonoma County Farm Trails’ Blossom, Bees and Barnyard Babies Spring Passport” is one of my favorite behind the scenes peeks at our county’s finest food and agriculture. An opportunity to stroll through orchards and gardens in bloom, sample local honey and learn about beekeeping, see newly born calves and kids, and meet the farmers who grow your food. For $25 per vehicle – which benefits Farm Trails – your family can load up the car and map out a personalized day visiting dozens of farms not typically open to the public from Petaluma to Healdsburg. Space is extremely limited, the event sells out every year. More information can be found on the non-profit’s website at farmtrails.org or by calling 837.8896.
On the Menu
Wild spring goods at the Friday Farmer’s Market continue to surprise and delight me! Their season is sadly very short, so be sure to enjoy these unique, foraged goods while they are available. The French Farm has lovely wild Miner’s lettuce and the really-good-for-you greens named Chickweed. The mushroom man has exquisite and hard to find fiddlehead ferns, beautiful when simply sautéed. And, while not quite “foraged for,” Carson’s Catch continues to offer his gorgeous, wild-caught Alaskan smoked and fresh salmon. The Friday Farmer’s Market is from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. every Friday at Depot Park.
• The Sonoma Community Center’s Beer-vana, an annual two-month beer celebration, started in January with an amateur beer brewing competition and culminates this Saturday, March 12, with a beer and food tasting party, and an announcement of the winners. Tickets are $30 per person, and include beer, wine, and food tasting, live music, and a commemorative beer glass with official Beer-vana logo, designed by Chris Villalovoz. The party, for ages 21 and over, begins at 5 p.m. Proceeds benefit Sonoma Community Center’s arts education programming. 276 East Napa Street. For more information, a list of participating vendors, or to purchase tickets, call 938.4626, ext. 1 or visit sonomacommunitycenter.org.
• This month’s Dining Club Rive Gauche, on March 12, celebrates Italy: From Florence to Rome, with a menu of Italian specialties including a Tuscan chicken liver crostini, a hearty bean soup, Roman lamb chops and a ricotta tart. The event begins at 7 p.m. and tickets are $30 per person, b.y.o.b. For details and to make reservations, call Wild Thyme at 996.9453.
• March is Girlfriend’s Getaway Month in Sonoma and there are many fun and delicious happenings for visitors and locals alike! I’ll keep you up to date on all the girlie fun week by week. This weekend and very Friday in March, girlfriends can enjoy two for one wine tastings, while getting to know the Mayo Girls at Mayo Family Winery. Mayo Family Winery’s tasting room is located in Glen Ellen at 13101 Arnold Drive. While the ladies can enjoy $5 margaritas everyday at La Casa Restaurant and Bar, Friday, March 11 at 5 p.m. it’s a real girl’s party, dubbed “Critical Mass!” Be sure to grab your best girlfriend and join in the fun! La Casa is on the Plaza at 121 East Spain Street. Release your “inner Lucy” with a private after-hours chocolate tasting and hands-on class with wine, at Wine Country Chocolates. For more information call 996.1010. Wine Country Chocolates is located at 14301 Arnold Drive in Glen Ellen. For a complete listing of Girlfriends Getaway offers, visit sonomavalley.com/girlfriends.
• Vintage House celebrates St. Patrick’s Day with a festive Irish luncheon at 1 p.m. next Thursday, March 17. This year they will be serving a hearty, homemade Irish beef stew, Irish soda bread, sides, dessert and beverages. Guests can listen to lively piano music and sign along to a few Irish favorites. Please call 996.0311 to make your reservation or for more details. The cost is $15 per person. Vintage House is located at 264 First Street East.
• Be sure to make your reservation for an authentic and festive New Orleans dinner at the Valley Wine Shack prepared by chefs Rob Larman and New Orleans native – and my hubby – Stephen Viguerie, on Friday, March 18. Guests can enjoy fresh, raw oysters from the oyster bar for $1.50 each and then tuck into a three-course feast of New Orleans specialties that will include shrimp rémoulade, chicken and seafood gumbo, and Brennan’s fabulous bananas Foster. The dinner is $32 per person, while perfectly paired and affordable wine and beer will be available to purchase by the glass or bottle. Call the Valley Wine Shack to save your seat at 938.7218. 535 West Napa Street.
Polenta with Redwood Hill Farm’s Smoked Goat Milk Cheddar
Recipe by Richard Allen of Willowside Cafe, Santa Rosa
3 1/2 cups boiling water
1 cup polenta
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. pepper
2/3 cup grated Smoked (or Sharp) Redwood Hill Goat Milk Cheddar
1/3 cup grated parmesan
3 ounces butter
Add salt to boiling water. Slowly add polenta while whisking. Continue to whisk until polenta starts to thicken. Add butter and pepper. When the polenta is very thick add the cheeses. The polenta should be very thick and pull away from the sides of the pot. Add any more salt or pepper if necessary. If soft polenta is desired, serve immediately. If firm polenta is desired, butter a baking dish and spread the polenta. Cool until set. Cut polenta into desired sizes or shapes. Grill or bake until warmed through.
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