Brunch @ Sugar & Olives in Norwalk

The weekend morning meal. This sacred cow for many, consists of copious amounts of coffee, newsprint (for you digital hold-outs), and a healthy combination of carbs and protein. In addition to providing fuel for the errand-filled, kid-chaffeuring day ahead, brunch can also be one of the most frequently debated destinations of your weekend.

Since they began serving brunch just a month ago, Sugar & Olives in Norwalk has easily moved to the top of my brunch list. House-made ingredients, a green certification and a happy space make Sugar & Olives the type of place you can drop-in with your friends, a gaggle of kids or simply fly solo and enjoy this most important of weekend meals.

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Dinners at the Farm Opening Weekend

CLICK ON IMAGE ABOVE TO LAUNCH PHOTO GALLERY

Last Thursday marked the opening weekend of Dinners at the Farm's 2011 season. This year, Jonothan Rapp of River Tavern Restaurant and his team of top notch chefs will park their big red truck at two farms; Barberry Hill Farm in Madison, CT and White Gate Farm in Old Lyme. Dinners at the Farm started in 2007, long before "farm to table" fare became mainstream, and they continue to delight guests with exceptional menus, farm tours, and insight into the life of a farmer in CT.  View the Photo Gallery here.

"Dinners at the Farm is a series of benefit dinners celebrating Connecticut's local farms, food and community as a way to generate awareness of the importance and vitality of our local farming community and the delicious, wholesome and abundant food it provides us. Recreating a sense of connection to farming, cooking and eating is what Dinners at the Farm is all about." --Dinners at the Farm

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Savor Pizza: Norwalk's Healthier Pizza (& Gluten-Free)

Pizza is easy to love.  Who doesn’t relish gooey mounds of cheese over even the most basic sauces and crusts? But for diners concerned with their health,  it is no secret that most pizza is loaded with fat and sodium.  For those with gluten allergies or intolerance,  pizza parlor pizza is off limits.

SAVOR PIZZA in Norwalk is a dream come true for pizza lovers with gluten sensitivities and diners who are mindful of eating lower fat, less salt and organic ingredients. For those with gluten intolerance, it may become your go-to spot for take out pizza, the meal you thought you would never be able to eat again.

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Cap'n Crunch Milkshakes @ The Filling Station

The Filling Station Company is kicking it old school for the month of February with their Cap'n Crunch milkshake.

Always partial to cereal infused frozen dairy desserts (think Momofuku Milk Bar), you'll know where to find me tomorrow...New Canaan.  

Spring 2011 CSA's Are Open for Registration via FGFG

Attention locavores or really anyone interested in getting farm fresh produce while supporting our local farming community. According to Analiese Paik of The Fairfield Green Food Guide, the 2011 Spring CSA's are opening up new shares at several farms. This is your chance to share in our local harvest. Act fast however, these CSA's fill up quickly. 

Sport Hill Farm in Easton, The Hickories in Farmingville, as well as Fort Hill Farm and Clatter Valley Farm in New Milford are all accepting new registrations. 

Click here to view the wonderful article in the Fairfield Green Food Guide for detailed information on how to contact these farms and get started on a whole new way of enjoying farm to table food. 

Graze Home Delivery: Fresh Food is a Click Away

I’m not much for New Year's Resolutions, but I do know that by making small changes, we can impact our health, the planet and the way we raise our kids. Something as small as where you buy your food can be one of those changes, so I was eager to check out Graze, a local farm-to-fridge online grocery delivery service “on a mission to bring fresh, wholesome and sustainably produced foods directly from small local family farms in Vermont to your front door.” Graze sells pasture-raised beef, just-picked local organic produce in season, award-winning artisanal cheeses and even home-cooked meals.  

After a long weekend, capped off by a nasty blizzard, my supplies of fresh milk, eggs, fresh cider, meat and other staples have dwindled down to nil, and our fridge is pitifully bare. Normally, at this juncture, I’m faced with the quandary: Do I bundle up, shovel out and brave the unplowed back roads so that I can then fight the crowds at Whole Foods or Stew’s? Not anymore, thanks to Graze (grazedelivered.com).

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Kaia Cafe at Kaia Yoga in Westport

Yoga devotees and newcomers alike celebrated when KaiaYoga, a complete wellness center, opened in Westport in June of this year.  An offer to explore the new center with a deal called “30 days for $30”,  enticed 2500 new students of all ages to take classes and explore this new studio.   With 10,000 square feet and two thoughtfully designed levels, this location offers a large selection of  yoga classes and wellness services for all members of the community.  Now members and non-members alike can rejoice again.  Husband and wife duo Stan Woodman and Gina Norman have finally opened KaiaCafe, an organic juice bar that offers a carefully edited selection of salads and wraps, in addition to freshly squeezed juices, boosts, smoothies and remedies.  Over 20 organic teas are offered by the cup or pot, as are coffee, espresso and capuccino with any kind of milk you can imagine.

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Sport Hill Farm: Caring for the Land & the Community

Sustainable, seasonal, local, organic, and green might be popular phrases these days among the media and the masses, but to those who truly care about where their food comes from, whether they contain pesticides and want to support their communities, these are very powerful words indeed. By buying locally, seasonally and organically, the consumer never has to worry about food recalls. More importantly, the consumers know not only where their food comes from, but get to know their farmers by name. These are the people who also truly care about the future of their children and of children for generations to come… These are the people who truly care about preserving the world around them.

Patti Popp of Sport Hill Farm is just this type of person.

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CT Taste Organic Festival 2010

Save the Date. Join CT National Organic Farming Organization to celebrate the 10th annual TASTE! ORGANIC CT 2010 on September 19th at Manchester Community College from 10 am to 4pm.

Experience the only LOCAL & ORGANIC festival in Connecticut offering a farmer's market, fresh prepared food, live music, sustainable vendors, artisans, free workshops and free kids activities!

Head Chef, John Turenne is busily sourcing the finest and freshest ingredients from Connecticut Farms to be on the event's menu. Three local celebrity chefs are designing recipes that will showcase our local and organic food. Chef John Turenne, fresh from his recent TV stint with “The Naked Chef” Jamie Oliver, will be cooking and running the NOFA Food Booth show.

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Westport Farmers Market: Guest Chef Lineup

You've waited all Winter. You've been patient. You've eaten produce flown in from countries far away, and had daydreams involving fresh blueberries. But now, your wait is over. It's time to rejoice with fresh local farm fare. The Farmers Markets are back in session!

Throughout the season, we will bring you coverage from Farmers Markets around Fairfield County, but we wanted to make you aware of an exciting culinary opportunity that can only be found at The Westport Farmers Market this Summer. Under the new leadership of "market master" Lori Cochran Dougall, this year's great roundup of 30 farms and vendors will be accompanied by a weekly "Guest Chef," and wait till you see the lineup. Mark your calendars people. I don't know about you, but some of my favorite chefs in Fairfield County are on this list. Don't miss your chance to meet and greet the people who make your mouth water. 

The Westport Farmers Market will be held every Thursday from 10-2 at the Imperial Avenue Parking Lot adjacent to the Women’s Club through mid November. For more information about opening dates and vendors at the Farmers Markets near you, check out The Fairfield Green Food Guide. 

Read on for the complete Guest Chef Program Schedule:

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Whole Foods Market Opens in Darien

On Monday night, I joined the 1,900 person throng that descended on the new Whole Foods store in Darien for a "Sneak Peak Party."  My two boys and I were treated to dozens of tastings, all from local vendors, that spanned the perimeter of the store, from appetizers to desserts. 

First up was raw oysters, handed over by Captain Northrop, a local aquaculture farmer who informed us that the shellfish were pulled from the water in Westport just an hour-and-a-half ago. They were large, fresh and worthy of any reputable raw bar. Other raw offerings at the store include clams and other oysters, plus tuna, salmon, eel and shrimp sashimi.

We sampled sashimi tuna steak, served Tataki syle with Whole Food's wasabi aioli

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Green Food Tips To Reduce Your Footprint

One of the easiest ways to make Earth Day every day is to green your kitchen. Here are some delicious and fun ways to reduce your family's "foodprint" while eating well. You can also view some of Analiese's tips on this Channel 8 news segment. 

1. Buy locally grown food from a farmers' market and learn to cook with the seasons.

Michel Nischan's (of The Dressing Room) latest cookbook is perfect for anyone looking for inspirational ways to cook with the seasons

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Green Gourmet To Go: Healthy Eats in Bridgeport

If you discover sweet potatoes and spinach in your fudge brownies at Green Gourmet to Go don't be surprised. OK, you can keep that a secret from your kids because the veggies are not detectable in these moist, chocolatey bites or in the Blondies with a sweet potato base.  The chocolate (anti oxidants a plenty!) masks the veggies and you will be better off for having added a few more to your daily intake.  My fave desserts were the peanut butter chocolate chip cookies and the almond oaties.  They tasted most like what I would expect (read: crave) from a cookie. Imagine eating your veggies in your dessert!  I didn't mean to jump to the end first but I was so enthralled by the ingredients list that I did exactly that!

Linda Soper-Kolton has been open in Black Rock for only 5 weeks but she is well on her way to establishing herself as a resource for healthy meals and nutrient dense foods.

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Join Sugar & Olives for Supper Saturday Night!

 Still looking for that perfect Saturday night reservation? I just got wind of this dining event. Check it out...

 JOIN SUGAR & OLIVES FOR SUPPER SATURDAY NIGHT!

SATURDAY, APRIL 17th

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Here's a small slice of the pie they'll be offering:

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Learn While You Lunch @ Sport Hill Farm: Season 2

Whether you were lucky enough to have experienced last year's Meet Me At The Farm lunch event at Patti Popp's Sport Hill Farm, or if you got shut out of this series, now is your chance to sign up! Educator and cooking coach, Amie Guyette Hall, (as well as certified holistic health counselor), has returned to walk small groups of guests though a lively lunch discussion centered around incorporating beneficial ingredients into your mealtime repertoire. But this is no lecture. This is learning through eating, and Annie demonstrates these valuable cooking technique while preparing a fresh seasonal lunch based on recipes you can take home with you. Of course, your kitchen may not be as idyllic as Sport Hill Farm's rustic outdoor open dining space, but the recipes were just as creative and flavorful at home. 

Sitting beside the rows of Sport Hill Farm's latest crops, Amie also gave us guidance on how to cook the locally harvested produce you run into at your Farmers Market or receive in your CSA (Community Supported Agriculture, or farm shares). This is a unique Fairfield County happening you won't want to miss. Read our review from last season to get the full scoop on this lunch series. RSVP is required. Email Patti @ farmgal596@yahoo.com

"Meet Me At The Farm" Dates

Tues May 18th, Tues June 15th, Tues Sept 21, Tues Oct 19th