Dinner On The Deck Begins this Friday!
To kick off the first Dinner on the Deck will be Grilling Out, Organic-Style! Enjoy Live Music, Wine, Beer and lots of fun on the farm for all! Choose from an Organic Burger, Brat, or Grilled Portobella! Dress your sandwich or Brat with lettuce, tomato, TPC cheese, sauteed peppers and onions. The sides will be yummy homemade Macaroni and Cheese and Napa Cabbage Salad with green onions, sunflower seeds mixed in a sweet Asian Vinaigrette.
Kid Friendly Option: Organic Hot Dog along with yummy Mac & Cheese, and Napa Cabbage Salad
Beverages: Choice of ice tea, lemonade, water
Adults $15
Kiddos $ 7
Rain or Shine ... Outside on the Deck or Inside the Barns... the fun goes on!
*Specialty Beers and Wines available for purchase*
Green Market
• Friday, May 1st • 4 – 8 p.m. •
Summer Green Market Starts Friday Evening!
Bring your recyclable shopping totes and prepare to stock up on the first fresh, local produce of the farmer's market season. The market runs from 4-8 PM. We're happy to have most of the Winter Market vendors back with us, but we'll also be joined by a few new faces, and some popular vendors from last summer's Green Market.
From last summer, please welcome back Ed and Heather Devlin of New Leaf Farms and their exquisite organic fruit and veggies; Dan Stout of Magnolia Farms, who brought the beautiful asparagus many of you enjoyed last year and Gabrielle Johnson of Pet Lover's Organic Bakery, the young lady who developed quite a following not only because she is our very youngest vendor, but because dogs all over love her pet treats.
We are also being joined by several new vendors with innovative products for your table, plus a group of creators of high quality artwork. Prepare to be surprised.
Returning vendors from Winter Market:
* Aboubakar Allal -handmade silver, leather and wooden works, as well as traditional drums from Niger, Africa
* Bluffwood Creek Honey-honey sticks, hand cream, lipbalm, honey candy-no honey this week!
* Country Mouse City Mouse-condiments, dips, soups and dressings made from generational recipes
* Farming For Life-lacto-fermented vegetables and more
* Fields of Agape-chemical-free grains (Omega III golden flax, hard red wheat berries, hard white wheat berries)
* Flower Child Aromatherapy-handmade soaps, sachets, teas, incense, and perfumes
* Harvest Cafe Coffee Company-freshly brewed coffee, a variety of freshly roasted coffee beans or freshly ground beans, and now loose tea
* Harvest Lodge Catering-a variety of tamales, sweets (including sweet potato bread), soups, salsas, and granola
* Literally Divine Toffee and Truffles-chocolate and vegan truffles (made with organic ingredients) and almond toffee (both vegan and organic)
* My Puppy Cakes-handmade dog treats made from organic ingredients
* Phelps Family Farm-a variety of meats and sausages, and eggs
* Redwine Farm- fresh produce, hot pepper sauces and ground shakers, beef, and eggs
* Seven Springs Farm-beef, chicken (whole and parts), lamb, eggs, and popcorn
* The Swiss Connection-unique (and delicious) cheeses, meats and ice cream, plus a variety of pet products (Animal Welfare Approved Farm)
* Valentine Hill- variety of whole wheat breads, English muffins, pasta, European style lemon pound cake & their famous spritz cookies (all made with Certified Organic Ingredients)
Please Note: The weather report looks uncertain for this Friday night, so if it is raining and you don't see the farmer's tents out on the pasture, you can find the farmers in the Red Barn just as for winter market. Remember, our market is never cancelled!Please be prepared as most of the vendors accept only cash and check for payment.
Davis and Devitt Play the Green Market
5 p.m. - 7 p.m. Rain or Shine!
Great Live Entertainment will be provided by Sharlee Davis and Will Devitt, of Bloomington, IN, a duo with a rootsy sound of folk rock, blues, country and acoustic pop/jazz. Davis & Devitt have shared the stage with k.d.lang, John Prine, Cowboy Junkies, Greg Brown, Tuck and Patti, Carrie Newcomer, Shelby Lynn, and Billy Jo Shaver to name a few...Toe Tappin' Music for all to enjoy!
Traders Point Creamery is pleased to be a sponsor of Orchard In Bloom!
Growing a greener community for 20 years, Orchard In Bloom features exhibits and activities focused on environmentally friendly gardening and living. A springtime institution in Indianapolis, this year's anniversary event celebrates the fusion of art and nature. Please join us at Holliday Park, May 1-3, to enjoy this event and raise funds for outdoor education programs. Shop 100 local and national vendors. Browse professionally designed landscapes and gardens. Learn tips and techniques to make your garden beautiful. Eat delicious treats, including Traders Point Creamery Ice Cream! Play in the children's entertainment village, and enjoy green activities for the whole family.
There is truly something for everyone and we hope to see you there! For more information, please visit www.orchardinbloom.org and be sure to pick up a coupon for $2 off admission at the gate the next time you stop The Loft or Farm Store.
14th Annual Garden Walk
Indianapolis Garden Club
14th Annual Garden Walk
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
9:00am-4:00pm
Enjoy a walk through beautiful private gardens at your leisure!
The garden walk proceeds are returned to the community as funding for worthwhile community projects.
For ticket information and specific details please call 317-255-1681 (after May 1st) or visit their website www.igcgardenwalk.com
Sunday Brunches on The Farm
The Loft has launched a new Brunch menu!
Try our new Sunrise Wrap filled with scrambled eggs, Spanish rice, peppers, onions, chorizo and fleur. How about Bacon Hash Benedict made with Gunthorpe bacon and topped with tomato hollidaise? Experience a Savory Crepe of chicken confit with blueberry compote, or one of wild mushrooms, herbs, and goat cheese. Wanting something sweet? Try maple fromage, banana, pecan crepe.
Our Sunday Brunch will be recognized as, "The Best Brunch" in Indy!! Look for us in the June edition of Indianapolis Monthly where we will be honored with a People's Choice Award.
Our Garden, Not Our Gardener, Runs in Circles
Last year, Trader’s Point Creamery’s gardener, Norm Sill, installed a circular garden. Circular? But why? Norm would be happy to explain the finer points when you stop by, but basically, it’s about efficiency, beauty, and unity.
Circular gardening gives the greatest output for the least input. The garden is tilled without stopping or changing directions and compost (the pile is in the center) takes the shortest route to where it is used. Even watering is efficient - rotating sprinklers in the middle assures no waste.
Our garden, like a circle, is a symbol of unity, with no beginning or end. Next week, we’ll enrich the soil with compost and begin planting some unique heirloom varieties. In the summer, we will marvel at its amazing growth and beauty then reap the bountiful organic rewards to serve in our farm restaurant! In the fall, we’ll harvest some plants and herbs for the winter…we can’t wait for all the weeks of yummy Indiana fresh organic tomatoes and basil to go with our own fresh mozzarella!! And the garden “leftovers” will be composted in the pile, where they will enrich the soil for next year’s cycle of growth.
Like so many things on the farm, our garden minimizes the bad (chemicals, pests, work, wasted resources) and maximizes the good (nutrition, crop yield, balance with nature, aesthetics). Stop by this summer to sample the garden’s bounty in the Loft Restaurant, say “hi” to Norm, or ogle the tomatoes! We’re happy to have you as part of our circle of life!
Quote of the Week
Like the hunter-gatherer picking a novel mushroom off the forest floor and consulting his sense memory to determine its edibility, we pick up the package in the supermarket and, no longer so confident of our senses, scrutinize the label, scratching our heads over the meaning of phrases like "heart healthy," "no trans fats," "cage-free," or "range-fed." What is "natural grill flavor" or TBHQ or xanthan gum? What is all this stuff, anyway, and where in the world did it come from?
-Michael Pollan, from The Omnivore's Delimma: A Natural History of Four Meals
Recipe of the Week
Charred Corn Guacamole
Ingredients
4 ears corn
2 tbls. Canola oil
3 ripe avocados – peeled, pitted, diced
1 serrano chili, finely diced
1 small red onion, finely diced
Juice of 1 lime
¼ chopped fresh cilantro
corn chips
salt & pepper to taste
Directions
1) Pull back husk from ears of corn, remove silks, replace husks & tie ends with string. Soak ears in salt water for 10 minutes.
2) Remove corn from water, place on grill, close cover and cook 15-20 minutes on medium heat, turning every 5 minutes.
3) Place avocados in a medium bowl and mash slightly with a fork. Add corn kernels, Serrano, onion, lime juice, cilantro, oil, salt & pepper. Gently stir to combine.
Serve with corn chips.
Upcoming Events
May
May 1 - Green Market & Dinners on the Deck Begin!!
May 10 - Mother's Day Brunch
