Pig Out

Last summer, my husband and I did one of Ben Bebenroth's Plated Landscape Dinners. The first stop was New Creations Farm in Geauga County. Our climb up a hill to visit the pigs, raised humanely and sustainably and without hormones or antibiotics, was memorable. The animals wander in large open wooded spaces and much to our surprise, they were gentle and friendly. They live a good life until it's time give it up for us humans.

Their delicious and highly prized meat, served at a number of area restaurants known for offering locally-sourced food, is the centerpiece of a Feb. 27 class at The Loretta Paganini School of Cooking in Chesterland. Taught by the school's director, Stefanie Paganini, it includes preparation demos for pork sliders with spicy tomato jam, split pea soup with ham, and roasted chestnut and apple stuffed pork chops. Kristen Boehnlein, who owns and operates the farm with her husband, Scott, and their eight children, will be on hand to talk about the how and why of what they do.

The 2.5 hour class starts at 6 p.m., and the cost is $55. Pre-registration required. If this one's sold out, there are many other interesting sessions coming up, including "Advanced Methods for Pork" for more experienced cooks in March.

Spicing Up the Options

I’m happy to be the bearer of some really good news. The recently formed culinary dream team of chefs Ben Bebenroth and Andy Strizak, both highly regarded champions of sustainable agriculture and the local food movement, are going beyond the catering they’re known for and the on-farm dinner series Plated Landscapes that’s done nothing but grow since Bebenroth launched it five years ago. The duo is starting a restaurant, a first for both. But the vision is for something that goes way beyond the ordinary arrangement of tables and chairs. Over drinks at Flying Fig, Ben and his wife, Jackie, shared the details of the multi-part, multi-phase project.

Spice Kitchen + Bar will open, once renovations are completed, in the spot at the corner of Detroit and West 58th Street that has recently housed a succession of restaurants (La Boca, Roseangel, and the short-lived La Boca Barrio). No date yet. But you can follow the progress of the transformation at thespiceblog.com. The space became available unexpectedly, and as Ben tells it, “We saw this as an incredible opportunity that fell in our lap. But we had only seven days to react and make a decision.” They went for it. In keeping with the philosophy and made-from-scratch style the chefs are known for, expect a menu of simple, familiar dishes rooted in the best of what’s grown and raised in Northeast Ohio. Think of it as good in every way: good tasting; good quality; good for your health, the environment and the community.

In stage II, sometime in 2012, The Spice Rack, inspired by Karen Small's Market at the Fig, will be doing business in a small connected storefront, offering a selection of local, artisan food products, prepared items from the restaurant and maybe even some supplies for home gardeners. Conceivably, you could stop in to pick up a lunchtime burrito to go, a jar of salsa plus a pound of stone-ground cornmeal to use later that night and a package of heirloom tomato seeds. Then there’s the plan to reinvent the patio with edible landscaping in containers and raised beds so it can accommodate diners and also supply the kitchen, with more ingredients coming from a plot of land behind the parking lot that they’ll put under cultivation and the 10,000-square-foot garden, complete with two hoop houses to extend the growing season in Ben and Jackie’s backyard. All these agricultural efforts are grouped under the name Spice Acres.

This location is also going to be headquarters and home base for Spice of Life, the parent company for this whole family of brands and projects, including the well-established catering operation, Plated Landscape events, and farmers market food stands.

They acknowledge that their undertaking is an ambitious one. It’s going to be a slow, incremental, step-by-step process. Let’s wish them well, show our support by showing up when the lights go on and count ourselves lucky that these people are committed to pursuing their dreams here.


Image by Bloom Photography, courtesy of Spice of Life

More Dirt

Last week I wrote a post titled One Night [Farm] Stands about a couple of special fieldside dinners. Turns out there’s a veritable bumper crop of chefs going rural this summer. More meals cooked and served where animals are raised and produce is grown are scheduled for August, so I’m spreading the word.

Jim Denevan, founder of Outstanding in the Field, is the unofficial granddaddy of the forks-in-the-field concept. He started doing it in California in 1999 and later took the events on the road, partnering with acclaimed regional chefs around the country. The bus (there really is one) stops at Thaxton’s Organic Garlic, a picturesque 10-acre spread in Hudson on Friday, Aug. 5, 2011. Fred Thaxton, a science teacher at Cleveland Heights High School, and wife Lisa, in the same profession, started planting as a hobby in 2000. They now harvest a dozen varieties that are prized by local chefs and sold at area farmers markets. The menu is in the more-than-able hands of our own Jonathon Sawyer, of Greenhouse Tavern and Noodlecat fame, so no doubt the food will be extraordinary. garlic harvest at Thaxton family farm

But be prepared for some sticker shock: The price, $180 per person, is set by Denevan’s organization, not Sawyer. If this doesn’t scare you off, best to make your reservations immediately to be sure of getting a seat at the communal table.

Next up is an Emerging Chefs shindig on the evening of Friday, Aug. 19, with Kimberly McCune. She’s the founder/owner, with partner Scott Roitblat who’ll be cooking with her, of Vine and Dine, a company that offers catering and personal chef services with an emphasis on healthy, locally sourced products. They’re calling this casual family-style supper in Geauga County ReHival because McCune is introducing her very own microbrew, ReHive Ale. It will be produced by Buckeye Beer Engine and available to the public in September, which just happens to be national honey month. But guests at this “Return to Earth Dinner” on Meadowlane Farms in Newbury, five minutes from Chardon, will get first sips of these suds along with dishes made from ingredients gathered within a 50 mile radius of where you’ll be eating. Go to the website to purchase tickets ($69.57 each and get information about overnight accommodations.

Plated Landscapes, the on-the-farm dinner series created by Ben Bebenroth of Spice of Life Catering, has been going strong since 2006. These well-planned and perfectly executed multicourse feasts combine the trappings of fine dining with the laid-back beauty of natural settings. He has three scheduled for this month that aren’t sold out … yet: Saturday, Aug. 13, Muddy Fork Farm in Wooster; Friday, Aug. 19, Auburn Twin Oaks Winery in Auburn; and Friday, Aug. 26, Morgan Farm Stay in Ashland. To make reservations, get driving and ask questions about the menus, call 216-432-9090 or email jess@spiceoflifecaters.com with the subject "Plated Landscapes." Check out the online calendar to see what’s planned for September and October.

Muddy Fork Farm, Plated Landscapes, 2010

Putting the Out into Dining

In my line of work it’s not unusual to eat good food in beautful places. But last harvest season, I had one of the more memorable meals of my career. It had all the trappings of an elegant evening: wines thoughtfully paired with each course; crisp white linens, fine china and flowers on the table; candlelight and live music. The menu was a masterpiece of sophisticated culinary creativity featuring a mix of local farm fresh and artisan ingredients with rare and pricey things like truffles, saffron, wild boar and antelope. But I was on a farm, not in a restaurant, seated beside the barn along with 19 other guests and within sight of the woods where we had foraged for the wild ginger and puffballs, a type of fungus , that were washed, chopped, and tossed in a bowl minutes after we found them.

The occasion was a Plated Landscape dinner. The brainchild chef Ben Bebenroth, this is the 4th year he’s setting up a kitchen in fields and gardens. His idea is to give people a fun first hand taste of what eating locally and seasonally really means by bringing them where ingredients are actually grown and made. Bebenroth, who also runs Spice of Life Catering out of a Lakeseide Avenue building, is passionate about forging a deeper connection between eaters, the wild and wonderful paces where food comes from, and those who do the hard work of coaxing it into being.

Our hosts for the event I attended were Tom and Wendy Wiandt of Killbuck Valley farm in Burbank, Ohio. They raise oyster, shiitake and lion’s mane mushrooms and gather other varieties from their own 46 acre certified organic forest. Meeting them- along with their kids and dog- learning about what they do, and hanging out at their place only added to the night’s many pleasures.

The food was extraordinary, the setting charming, the spirit friendly, and when darkness wrapped itself around our gathering something kind of magical took hold. I have thought about it many times during the intervening months. There are four more Plated Landscape dinners scheduled for 2009 and my problem is I can’t decide which to attend.

-Urban Garden eating in Chef Karen Small’s Backyard, Tremont 8/9

-Heirloom Veggies at Muddy Fork, Wooster 9/20

-Fall Fungus Forage at Killbuck Valley Mushroom, Burbank 9/27

-Goat roast and Goat cheese at Mackenzie Creamery, Hiram 10/11

Each is sure to be an unforgettable experience. Reservations are required (216-432-9090). Make yours. I have no doubt you’ll be glad you did.

Photos courtesy of Barney Taxel