A rose is a rose, is a rose.

Except if it’s a wild rose- especially wild rose, hunny- then it’s nothing short of awesome.

My pick this week has a sweet romantic taste with floral undertones to finish. It can be used for tea time, dessert time or my personal favorite: eating it with a spoon and peanut butter.

This honey is raw and unfiltered. Since it’s not heated, this wild rose honey maintains all the natural residue bees bring to the hive. Supposedly helps with allergies because it boosts your immune system- I know, fascinating.

I find that honey can be infused throughout your menus- drizzled on fresh bread with cheese, over a pork roast with apples or maybe a wild rose panna cotta? Oh my.

Hope to see you at the upcoming farm dinner with Lyon Hall!

Until next time…Stay Fresh!

CBV  

Day-o, me say day-ay-ay-o. Come, Mister tally man, tally me (pink) banana squash...

I'm so excited about this winter squash! And look who came to help showcase my pick this week, Lyon Hall's Chef Andy Bennett and Wine Director Andrew Limberg. Long-time friends, Andy and Andrew were kind enough to take time out of their busy schedules and travel from Arlington, VA to help me introduce Fresh Link's pink banana squash.

As you can see this squash is JUMBO. While I used to be a champion shot putter back in the day- I was unable to hoist this delicacy (that's why I invited Andrew). 

Pink banana squash features a dry, firm delicious yellow-orange colored sweet flesh and begs to be used in pies, baking, soup or canning. It was extremely popular in the 19th century among American pioneer families for its versatility and ability to feed many mouths!

You'll be able to find Fresh Link's pink banana squash on Lyon Hall's menu. "Right now we're using a lot of it raw, in salads. It's got a great cucumber mango flavor," Chef Bennett said.  

 If you're smart you'll follow suit and incorporate this winter squash in your restaurant today!

 Until next time...Stay Fresh!

CBV

p.s. We'll be doing a Game Dinner with Lyon Hall on October 23rd at Locust Hill log cabin! For more information see the post below!  

Sunday, October 23rd 

5 courses with wine pairings - $100 per person (plus tax & tip). Email sarah@thefreshlink.com about local pricing

5pm arrival - 6pm dinner 

I can't tell you how excited I am for this season. Fresh Link is really ramping up their fall produce with kabocha squash, baby greens, pears, raspberries and plenty more! These next few months are going to be busy for me, I'm going to have difficulty deciding what to feature-  not to mention, there's a baby on the way. 

Now back to the task at hand...It's pumpkin season folks. These small round, some might call "cute", pumpkins really pack a punch.  While I myself am a jack-o-lantern perfectionist, these Amish pie pumpkins are super meaty and way better suited for pie-making and freezing. This year they're coming from a family owned and operated farm called Public House Produce in Luray, VA (Hi David, Heather & Lauren!) 

Whether you're making pumpkin bread, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin soufflé, pumpkin crème brûlée or the classic pumpkin pie, you can't go wrong with putting these little Amish pie pumpkins on your menu. 

Now last time my good friend Charlie from Rounton Farm (we get lots of wonderful herbs from them)  visited Fresh Link, he kindly asked if he could try one of our Amish pie pumpkins. My ladies, said "Of course!" and sent him home with a petite pumpkin that he turned into... 

A lovely, heart-filled pie. Way to go Charlie!

Until next time...Stay Fresh! 

CBV 

This week I wanted to highlight a "last of the season" product like it's going out of style- because, well...it is.

Miller Farms' sweet corn crop is finally coming to an end and what a sad week it is. This, by far, is some of the best sweet corn I've ever had. And I'll say it again- this is some of the BEST sweet corn I've ever had.

It is so tasty I know you could incorporate it into every course: corn fritter appetizers, corn chowder, corn salad, frittata - if you make it- you should add this corn to it. It's a guaranteed way to make any dish better.

Hurry- you don't want to miss sweet corn's final days! It would be a tragedy...

Until next time...Stay Fresh!

CBV

Ciao amici!

Can't believe it's September already...we're gearing up at Fresh Link for fall produce- mmmm- butternut squash.

BUT my pick of the week this go round makes you want to break into song: "When the moon hits your eye, like a big pizza pie- that's amore" Ahhh, don't you just love Mixed Italian Sweet Peppers? I sure do, they're so versatile in the kitchen- you can stuff, chop, layer, roast, bake, puree these tasty treats!

They're so good I even invited my friend Chef Grey over for a sample. These Italian peppers are a must-have on your late summer menus!

Until next time...Stay Fresh!

CBV

Spice UP your life with my pick this week...Chocolate habaneros from Virginia State University's Randolph Farm (Petersburg, VA). This is one of the hottest large-fruited habanero types (it packs a punch up to 425,000 Scoville units)  and is a favorite in the Caribbean to make barbecue sauces and marinades. This uniquely rich flavor can't be duplicated by any other pepper - hence my pick of the week.

It can be dried or smoked- like the Chipotle- guaranteeing a wonderfully flavored sauce. Did I mention it's a beautiful chocolate brown?

Until next time...Stay Fresh!

CBV



Randolph Farm is a 416 acre agricultural learning center, home to agricultural related research, demonstration and instruction activities. In addition to producing the region's traditional row crops, the farm is utilized for research and education in areas of new and niche crops, alternative cropping methods, horticultural crops, nutrient management, water quality, animal production and aquaculture production. The farm also hosts numerous annual events such as field days, workshops, farm conferences and professional training to share valuable information and promote the agricultural industry. Also important to note, 100 percent of the profits from Randolph Farm supports VSU’s scholarship program.

The goal of Randolph Farm’s specialty produce program is to diversify Virginia’s growing capabilities through research and test products. VSU’s Horticulture Extension Specialist Dr. Reza Rafie contacted Fresh Link for assistance in exposing test products to DC chefs. He also hopes to get feedback from area chefs about ways to improve Randolph Farm’s produce. Fresh Link is super excited to be offering these unique Virginia-grown products to our restaurants, including papaya, white guava, baby ginger, bitter melon, long beans, chocolate habaneros and more! All are grown in traditional hoop houses or hot houses specifically designed to protect the tropical fruits during colder months.

Interested in learning more? Contact Mollie Visosky at mollie@thefreshlink.com or Sarah Ridgeway at sarah@thefreshlink.com



Ahoy good friends! Hope you're having a splendid week thus far - I sure am...rolling in watermelons and all. These fresh watermelons are from Chandler Worley Family Farms in Cerro Gordo, North Carolina. These folks have been farming for 7 generations and it shows. Their seedless watermelons are excellente! Beautiful pink flesh and no seeds to jumble their flavor- now that's my kinda melon. Below I've strategically taken a photo of myself standing next to a watermelon so you can judge size. Yes, I'm aware my stomach is slightly shaped like a watermelon- so is Mollie's these days...

But on a serious note, these watermelons are dying to be placed with some heirloom tomatoes in a salad or made into a cool soup (no pun intended). Please consider working them into your menus!

Until next time...Stay Fresh!

CBV

My, my it's been hot lately in Locust Dale...perfect for lounging in the shade and enjoying a Ward's Grapes (Pratts, VA) cocktail platter. That's right it's grape season folks and this year they're better than ever. Pictured here are two varieties: Concord & French Sweet - both are exquisite in taste and in look. I prefer to use the Concord (seed and seedless) as table or juice grapes. The French Sweet, is just that...sweet. Excellent for baking, sauce and everything in between. 

I hope you'll consider incorporating these fine fruits into your menu- maybe in-house grape soda pop?

Until next time...Stay Fresh!

CBV