Shewmaker Center for Global Business
Northwest Arkansas Community College
Registration and Gathering begin at 11:30 at NWACC.
For #AWBU 2014 Foodie Friday, we are channeling the inner farmer in most of us and celebrating the bounty available to all of us locally in Arkansas. We are very fortunate to have presenters who are tremendous supporters of our Arkansas producers, farmers and crops. They believe in utilizing the abundant bounty that can be found right here in our home state and demonstrate that belief by highlighting the use of that abundance in their menus, photographs and work.
Taste Arkansas also believes in promoting our Arkansas farms, farmers and products. We are grateful to them for supporting Arkansas Women Bloggers in our efforts to further tell the story of Arkansas and its bounty.
We also appreciate Great Day Farms and their sponsorship of one of our presenters, Heather Disarro.
This year we are fortunate to be utilizing the wonderful facilities of the Culinary Classroom, the Peterson Auditorium and the Tyson Kitchen at Northwest Arkansas Community College in Bentonville for our Foodie Friday event. With the availability of these areas and the excellent technology resources, we just know this is going to be the best one yet.
No, we are not including one of your favorite events from the past two years — the Iron Chef Competition, but I promise you won’t miss it. These presenters will peak your interest and curiosity while preparing you for the kitchen, the camera and the community.
So grab your gingham and denim, leave the hoes and weeds at home and come celebrate the Abundant Bounty of Arkansas. Ya’ll don’t want to miss this!
Did I mention that there will be food? As in nibbles.
2014 #AWBU Foodie Friday Presenters
Matthew McClure
Executive Chef The Hive 21C, Bentonville Arkansas Bounty
Heather Disarro
Owner Heather’s Dish Creative Food Photography: Branding Yourself with Gorgeously Designed Food Photos (Interactive) Heather comes to us through the sponsorship of Great Day Farms
This summer Brooke and I moved into a little house on the south end of the University of Arkansas campus. I had been in the tiny apartment we moved from for three years, and it had just gotten smaller and smaller every year. It’s such a relief to move into a house and have some room to breathe.
The best parts though, are the spaces we have outside. When we first moved in, in early June, the ginormous yellow rose bush on the side of our house was in full bloom. Any time I was outside, people walking by would compliment it, and it seems to fit well as it’s on the side of our corner house that runs parallel to Rose Avenue. Just as that was running it’s course, a squat knobby tree at the very back of our yard, started popping out bright red cherries!
We discovered that they were cherries when my mom was visiting one afternoon and bravely popped one in her mouth. They are a sour variety, and have a pretty clingy pit. The bounty has proven difficult to keep up with. Every evening I need a bigger container to collect the ripening cherries. What ripens before I get to it falls on the ground below, which is completely covered with a perfect layer of cherries. These are for our birds, squirrels, and even a young buck to share.
With more cherries than I knew what to do with and more coming in every day, I began to scheme up some uses for them. Our first cherry dessert had to be sweet enough to compensate for and compliment the sourness of the cherries. And so, I landed on blondies. I usually find these sugary chocolate-less brownies overly sweet, so they are a perfect fit. There was nothing I’d change after my first try at them, so I’ll share that recipe without further ado!
Heat the oven to 350 degrees and line a square 9 inch pan with foil.
Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl.
In a large bowl, whisk the butter and sugar together. Whisk in the egg and vanilla until combined. Stir in the flour mixture until just incorporated. Stir in the chocolate chips and cherries.
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake the blondies until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs attached, 22 to 25 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through baking.
Let the blondies cool completely in the pan for about 2 hours before removing with the foil and cutting into squares.
Arkansas Women Bloggers https://arkansaswomenbloggers.com/
Paige, whose middle name is lorrabeth, lives to hear live music, experiment in the kitchen, and explore her neighborhood. She dreams of being the tambourine player in a band, has been baking gluten free for over a year, and can’t get enough of Fayetteville’s trail system.
Popping the most delicious grape tomatoes in my mouth made a warm, sunny Sunday in July even sunnier at The Bernice Garden Farmer’s Market. Situated on the corner of 14th and Main streets in downtown Little Rock, it’s a welcomed oasis for those in search of locally produced fruits, vegetables, wildflowers, honey, coffee, and more. My dear friend, Kelly Brant, accompanied me on a journey to discover the wonder of the market. The vibrant colors, aromatic herbs and juicy flavors far surpass anything found in the produce section at your local commercial grocery. Meeting the farmers would serve to add another dimension to an already personal experience of hand picking locally grown food.
Robert of Willow Springs Market Garden provided a sampling of peppers and humor in his handwritten signs describing defiant tomatoes and cosmetically challenged garlic. He provided a lemon drop pepper for the recipe that began to unfold with a visit to each booth. This little pepper is known for its citrus flavor and packs a bit of heat that ranges from 30,000 to 50,000 on the Scoville Scale.
Kelly Carney of the certified organic North Pulaski Farms enticed us with heirloom grape tomatoes of a somewhat addictive quality and unmatched sweetness. Carney has been a fixture at this market since the first Sunday it began back in 2012. In addition to the tomatoes, there were overflowing pints of blackberries capable of inducing dreams of grandma’s homemade cobblers. With charming humor, Carney described his exclusive use of organic tools as more expensive and less effective.
Flat leaf parsley was the gem found by meeting Kevin Haggerty and Lauren Tyner of the North Little Rock Community Farm. All of their lovely vegetables and herbs were harvested from the student farm of Lakewood Middle School’s freshman campus. From seed to market, I thought of the work and pride that they poured into their colorful array from the garden. With corn on the cob from Barnhill Orchards and peaches from Val of the Russian Farmer, items from practically every vendor combined to make a sweet yet savory salsa idea. Small purple onions from Sara Fulton-Koerbling and Ryan Boswell of The Victory Garden and a touch of Sun Harvest Honey from Pat Cullivan’s apiary in North Little Rock were the final ingredients needed.
The Bee in my Bonnet booth was by far the most charmed as it was adorned with hand-tied bouquets of wildflowers. Katie, the farmer, allowed me to take her photo holding a bouquet and although we chose the lemon drop pepper over a jalapeño, her peppers were the prettiest. One of the fresh bunches of flowers had to come along for the journey and made a lovely display on Kelly’s dining room table.
From seed to plant, harvest to table, this adventure to create a recipe from The Bernice Garden Farmer’s Market was a rewarding experience with a great payoff. Here’s the recipe for a perfect summer salsa to keep you cool and refreshed.
1 to 1 ½ tablespoons minced purple onion (see tip)
½ to 1 small lemon drop pepper, seeds and membranes removed, minced
3 sprigs flat-leaf parsley, minced PLUS 1 sprig for garnish
¼ teaspoon red wine vinegar or to taste
1 light pinch coarse salt or to taste
1 teaspoon honey or to taste
Instructions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Roast corn for 15-20 minutes.
Meanwhile, dice the peaches and quarter the tomatoes.
Shuck corn and using a sharp knife, carefully cut kernels from cob. Discard cob (or freeze for another use such as making corn chowder).
In a mixing bowl, combine the diced peaches, tomatoes, corn, onion, lemon drop pepper and parsley and mix well.
Add the vinegar, salt and honey and stir well to combine. Taste and adjust salt, vinegar and honey, if needed.
Garnish with a sprig of the flat leaf parsley. Serve with tortilla chips or atop chicken breast or fish. Makes about 3 cups
Notes
Tip: To tame the bite of raw onion, soak it in cold water for 5 minutes; drain well and proceed with recipe.
By Kristie Jones {Love On Main Street}
Arkansas Women Bloggers https://arkansaswomenbloggers.com/
I love carbs and men who lie.
I’m nostalgic at heart and a lover of all things vintage.
Writing and photography have been passions since childhood, and I’m constantly amazed at the beauty found in what others may see as ordinary.
I think there’s a bit of love in everything if you’re willing to see and feel it. My journey is to find love in the places, people, food, communities and stuff of life.
Adventure awaits!
One of my favorites for summer dining is a simple cheese and fruit plate, such as this Feta with Peppered Honey and Toasted Almonds served along with locally grown Arkansas peaches. This plus a fresh-from-the-garden salad (or local farmers’ market) and probably some crunchy bread might easily be a meal at our house. If needed, a simple protein, perhaps a chicken breast, thrown on the grill could round it out.
The fruit and cheese plate serves two roles: as an appetizer or as a dessert. It’s summer in the south, ya’ll and that means it’s hot! While most Southern belles “glisten,” I sweat, especially when the oven comes on. Fortunately, Hubby’s great with the grill and the smoker, and he really doesn’t mind a light meal at all.
The man has will power. He does so well with his weight. I wish that trait passed on to me by osmosis. Or something that doesn’t involve dieting and exercise (aka work). But he does have a weakness for desserts, nuts and cheeses.
Ta – dah! This Feta With Peppered Honey and Toasted Almonds works perfectly to satisfy his cravings (and mine), and it borders on healthy when served alongside fresh, locally grown summer fruits. I think peaches , such as those we get from our Arkansas Grown friends at Peach Pickin’ Paradise (Twitter) in Clarksville or Barnhill Orchards in Lonoke, are perfect but you can use whatever fruit you like. I usually use slivered almonds, but here again, you can use toasted walnuts or pecans if that’s what you have and what you prefer. I prefer the honey I get from P. Allen Smith’s Moss Mountain Farm hives. If you’re lucky enough to have your own hives, or have a neighbor who does, then definitely use that.
Don’t limit yourself to feta for this dish either. Goat cheese or homemade ricotta (check that out next week on Dining With Debbie) work very well. I like feta because of its sharpness which contrasts nicely with the sweetness of the honey. And you just won’t believe what the cracked pepper does until you give it a try! Not a pepper fan? Leave it off. There’s nothing hard and fast about the cheese plate — always suit the tastes of yourself and your family. Be brave. Experiment. Some of my best dishes, okay and some of my worst, have been through experimentation.
If you have edible flowers available, such as nasturtiums, use those as garnish. The peppery flavor of the nasturtiums goes quite nicely with this dish. Or, garnish with basil or mint for a different palate pleaser.
Summer is all about relaxing, and this dish definitely fits that bill. Take it easy, ya’ll.
What are some of your go-to summer dishes? I hope you’ll share.
When ready to serve, pour honey mixture over feta and arrange fruit around the cheese.
Garnish
Serve with crackers, if desired.
By Dining With Debbie
Adapted from Gourmet's Casual Entertaining
Adapted from Gourmet's Casual Entertaining
Arkansas Women Bloggers https://arkansaswomenbloggers.com/
Debbie Arnold serves as a co-administrator for Arkansas Women Bloggers and pontificates and eats at Dining With Debbie. She and her Hubby split their time between Central and Northwest Arkansas. She loves to cook, develop recipes and have play dates with her two perfect grands. Mostly, she has play dates with the Perfect Ones. If you’re interested in writing for Foodie Friday, she’s the one to contact.
Note: Chuck McCool was a recent panel participant in #Farm2Home14 sponsored by Arkansas Grown, The Arkansas Agriculture Department and P. Allen Smith. He is an avid participant in the National Farm to School Network, active in the Arkansas Division of Farm to School and shares just a little of his passion for the program with all who are willing to listen and learn. He welcomes your inquiries and comments
Imagine if you will, students pressed together in lunch lines at a small country school, their eyes glancing up and down the steam table trying to get a glimpse of the menu being served. A smile fills their sweet little faces as they see their favorite item—watermelon. This day couldn’t come fast enough. This wasn’t any ordinary watermelon. This one was made possible through the Farm to School Program and was grown by someone they knew, a neighboring farmer. This, they knew, was what it meant to “eat local.”
The National Farm to School Network links local farmers with schools in their communities. The program’s goal is to provide local homegrown produce to area children. Produce harvested today is served on the students’ plates tomorrow. Farm to School links children to nearby small and mid-size farms and ranches that produce fresh, healthy and minimally processed foods that are served at their schools.
McCool Farms, along with other participants in the Farm to School program, believes that healthy eating habits are essential to an individual’s lifelong well-being. In particular, children should have access to fresh, healthy foods as part of a nutritionally-balanced school meals program. Studies show that students will eat more fruits and vegetables when they are fresh and picked at the peak of their flavor. Students are also more likely to try new foods when they are part of a Farm to School program.
Not only does Farm to School improve nutrition for school children, it strengthens local economies by expanding markets for small and mid-size agricultural producers and food entrepreneurs whose products have typically been unavailable at school.
It also enhances children’s “food literacy” by familiarizing students with foods grown nearby, teaches them how and where their food is grown, builds knowledge about how to prepare healthy foods, and educates them about the health, nutrition, social and environmental impacts of food choices. Farm to School can also be a great way to build positive relationships among students, parents, farmers, educators and other members of the community. (www.farm2school.org)
This program has opened up a whole new market for the produce grown at McCool Farms . “The National Farm to School Network (NFSN) is an information, advocacy and networking hub for communities working to bring local food sourcing and food and agriculture education into school systems and preschools. http://www.farmtoschool.org/about”
McCool Farms is a family-operated farm dedicated to raising thirty acres of heirloom vegetables. A goal of the farm is to provide its customers with the freshest, best-tasting produce and to ensure that children know they are the future of the farm.
As summer winds down most farmers are winding up our production. But at McCool Farms, and other Farm to School farms, another round of crops is being planted for the school season. Our fall sales will more than double our spring sales and prepare us to supply area schools with fresh, locally grown , nutritious vegetables. It’s a win for the schools and a win for the farm.
McCool Farms realizes that there is more to the Farm to School program than just selling produce to school. As ambassadors to the schools, McCool Farms has been blessed with the opportunity to teach children the source of some of their food . Students get to visit the farm and experience what farming is all about.. We get to experience a whole new joy when a small child runs up and thanks us for bringing them a watermelon or when mother tells you that her child who use to hate vegetables, now cleans his plate. Or it might be when a father,with the encouragement and help of his children, now plants and harvests from the family garden.
McCoolFarms believes we are educators as well as farmers. By allowing schools to bring students to the farm, letting them dip their fingers into the soil, planting a seed, harvesting a tomato or a pumpkin, or even sitting on a tractor seat, we feel we are making an investment not only in the farm but in the lives of children as well. Our firmly believes that the more kids know about the food they are eating — where and how it was grown — the healthier will be their choices. Who knows? Someday one of those kids may be the farmer who is selling home grown produce to local schools, continuing the tradition begun at our farm.
It isn’t necessary to have acres and acres of produce in order to sell to schools. All that is needed is a small garden and a desire to see children enjoy the fruit of the harvest. Interested in selling produce to your local school? Contact Chuck McCool at (479) 264-9182. If you live in west central Arkansas and are interested in the Farm to School program, there is an informational meeting scheduled Tuesday, July 15, 2014 at 6:00 pm in Danville, Arkansas. RSVP Chuck via phone. There will be experts there that can assist you learning about selling your produce.
Sign up to receive The Arkansas Grow Healthy newsletter which contains information on farm to school programs from around the state, guidance on getting started, availability of seasonal produce, policy information, and special event invitation.
What will you do today to support your local farm and farmers, Farm2Home and Farm2School?
Chuck McCool is farming land that was homesteaded by his family in the 1800’s. He is a farmer dedicated to providing only the best to his customers through safe, environmentally-friendly farming practices. “If we don’t take care of our soil, water, resources and environment, we won’t have any customers.” You can follow McCool Farms at: Facebook Twitter
Email: McCoolFarmsandPumpkinPatch@yahoo.com
When I was asked to do a post for the July fourth Foodie Friday, my brain started thinking in red, white and blue. There were plump blueberries, juicy strawberries, food colorings of crimson and cobalt and a lot of creamy dairy products swirling around in my head-blender. Then it dawned on me, it’s summer, we’ll be outside… S’MORES! That’s all the excuse I needed. My tri-colored ambitions were out the window.
At our Independence Day gatherings, people usually sit with their families. Our guests aren’t inclined to circle around a fire; they want to be facing the blazing, popping, whistling and flickering. Not conducive to s’moresy goodness, unless IT’S ON A STICK!
I’ve seen people dip a skewered marshmallow into melted chocolate and then roll the sad thing in graham cracker crumbs. I, on the other hand, have very strong convictions about marshmallows being thoroughly melted down to their core! I am one of those people who meticulously turns my marshmallow over the perfect embers for, what looks to people of lesser moral fiber, like days. When it has attained a crackly golden skin and turns independently of the roasting stick, it’s ready. (My chocolate and cracker halves will have been waiting for it on a warm flat rock, because I will judge you for reconciling yourself to cold chocolate too.)
In place of graham crackers, I almost took a rolling pin to some sugar cookie dough, but pie crust is so good with everything; heck, it‘s good by itself.
So here’s what you‘ll need:
Prepared pie crust, (though you could certainly make your own)
Milk chocolate
Mini marshmallows
Small popsicle sticks
1. Cut room temperature crust into equal pieces (an even number) with a large cookie cutter or cut into squares about 50% larger than a gram cracker half.
2. Sandwich the stick, broken pieces of chocolate, and two mini marshmallows between two pieces of pie crust. Be sure the stick is placed against the bottom crust and pressed in slightly, so that the s’more will hold on and behave like a lollypop after baking.
3. Press the edges of the crusts together to seal in the new inhabitants. Bake per the instructions for cooking a baked shell, on a cookie sheet.
4. Let cool, but not too much, and serve.
This is a quick and easy idea for any potluck or picnic, but for the Fourth of July? Imagine a sparkler in one hand and one of these treats in the other! It’s what our forefathers would have wanted!
Make sure to check out my video, where I show you how I made s’mores on a stick. Our four year old twins even got in on the action.
Or, how about a S’mores Cake?
I’m a stay-at-home dad of 4 kids & a VW Bus. ‘Busvlogger‘ is my family and lifestyle brand, dedicated to living intentionally!
Life is what you make it, let’s get our hands dirty!
You know, this time of year, when it is so hot you don’t go out to pick berries till 7:00 pm so you don’t fall down from heat exhaustion, and come dragging in with your berries at dark, then crave a cobbler but wild horses couldn’t drag you toward turning on the oven and releasing one more Btu of heat into the house? And so you make the easiest cobbler ever – so easy you can prepare and cook it outside in an old toaster oven you use for summer baking so you don’t heat up the house? No? Just me?
Well, even if you don’t resort to setting up outlandish outdoor cooking areas to keep the house cool, this super quick cobbler will still simplify your summer. It has only four ingredients – flour, sugar, butter, and berries – and is yummy enough to satisfy this berry-snob family.
My sister and I grew up working at my grandparents’ pick-your-own strawberry, blackberry, and blueberry farm in Fouke, Arkansas. My grandmother had a variety of cobbler making techniques, and my grandfather’s favorite was a very complicated “berry roll.” Make a pie crust and roll it out, not too thin, into a long rectangle on a clean dishtowel. Then sprinkle with sugar and dot with butter, and top with a layer of fresh blackberries. Then, oh so carefully, use the towel to help you roll it up – wincing when the lumpy blackberries poked through the crust. Gingerly roll the whole thing off into a pan. Brush with cream and sprinkle with sugar. Bake until golden and bubbly. He loved this cobbler because it had lots of crust. The crust was his favorite part. Can you tell I miss my grandparents? I start to cry just thinking about the lunches we used to have…
Anyway – although I do love that blackberry roll and have made it from time to time, I don’t have the mile long sparkling white tile countertop for rolling out pie crust, nor the talent for putting out a hot cooked lunch with dessert every single day at noon sharp, like my grandmother had. I have a hot and very busy day to come, followed by about 150 more in succession, and if I wait till a cool day to bake a cobbler, then I will be waiting till the berries are long gone. So I will take my four ingredients and my toaster oven and run with it. Truth is, I made this cobbler many times for my grandparents and they thought it was fantastic.
This is a good proportion for a square baking pan. Butter the pan and pour in the berries.
Sprinkle ½ cup sugar over the berries - feel free to use more or less sugar according to your preference and the ripeness of the fruit.
In a bowl, mix flour, ½ c sugar, and one stick of softened salted butter with a fork or pastry cutter until crumbly.
Sprinkle this topping evenly over the fruit in the pan. Shake the pan a bit to encourage the topping to settle amongst the fruit.
Pop it in the oven at 375F and bake 30-40 minutes until browned and bubbly. I
Notes
If you start with frozen fruit, it might take a bit longer.
This topping works with all kinds of fruit - with peaches it is wonderful! Youcan use any kind of flour - I used whole wheat pastry flour with these cobblers and it is delicious. Gluten-free, whole grain, nut flours, plain old white flour - any of it should work.
By Georgiaberry Mobley of Sunshine for Dinner
Arkansas Women Bloggers https://arkansaswomenbloggers.com/
Enjoy!
Georgiaberry Mobley grows veggies in her hometown, Fouke, Arkansas. Since 2007, she and her husband, Kandan, have been selling their locally grown food in the Texarkana area through their Sunshine for Dinner subscription veggie delivery service. It’s the farmer’s market that comes to you! In her spare time, she teaches their two kids at home, is an active La Leche League leader, and helps out with their landscape design/maintenance firm. Find out more about her market garden and farm life, and how to sign up for Sunshine for Dinner at http://www.SunshineForDinner.com. Join the conversation on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/SunshineforDinner. You can also find Georgiaberry onpinterest at http://www.pinterest.com/georgiaberry/ and Instagram at http://instagram.com/georgiaberrym.
It’s Election Day in Arkansas. Hopefully, you’ve already taken advantage of Early Voting and cast your ballot for the best Arkansas candidate. If not, why not hop on over to your polling place and do that right now. What an important freedom we have to participate in the electoral process.
You may be as tired as I am of all of the campaign ads (which, of course, will be with us through November anyway), the political flyers and events, and the robocalls. Hubby just told me that I was wasting my time trying to carry on a conversation with the robocall guys. But I figure if they can get all personal asking me how I’m going to vote, then I should return the favor and ask about whether or not they have on clean underwear and all. My momma would be so proud of me for that.
In addition to voting for your public officials, it’s also time to enter your the Arkansas Times “Best of Arkansas” vote, and I seriously hope you will take a moment from your day to go do that. The voting ends on June 23.
While you’re there, could you take an extra minute or two to locate the Best Blog category? Keep moving on through the pages. I promise it will eventually show up. Your vote for ArkansasWomenBloggers.com would be lovingly appreciated. Or, any of our #ARWB member blogs if you are otherwise inclined.
I promise. (Don’t most politicians do that?) There will NOT be any campaign materials sent to you through the mail. Nor will you receive yet another robocall. Actually, I won’t even friendly call you. Sorry. You don’t have the time for that, and I probably don’t either. Retirement does have a way of keeping me busy.
Anyway, it’s probably raining again today so you can’t get outside to lounge around the pool or plant zinnias or marigolds in the garden. While away your time by filling in at least 10 of the voting categories on the “Best of Arkansas” form (online or in print)…it will at least be an interesting read.
Farm2Home14 
. Or, any of our #ARWB member blogs if you are otherwise inclined.