Westport Farmers’ Market Opens for The 2023 Season May 11th Events Features Farmers Market CTbites Team April 28, 2023 Westport Farmers’ Market (WFM) is pleased to announce it will return to its home in the parking lot at 50 Imperial Avenue on Thursday, May 11, 2023, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and continue every Thursday through early November. This year promises to be the best in the market’s 17-year history, with multiple programs operating under our “who grows your food” ethos.“Our emphasis on knowing who grows your food means we will see enhanced community-inspired programming, vendors, sponsors, and activities this year,” said Lori Cochran-Dougall, executive director of WFM. Read More
Beastie Burger: CT Entrepreneur Creates Delicious Plant Based Burgers Ingredients Features Vegan Vegetarian Plant Based Ingredients Burgers Healthy Eats Health & Wellness April Guilbault February 07, 2023 This is the story of a plant-based burger patty that began with a wedding invitation. Our heroine, Lisa, receives her son’s wedding invitation in the mail one day. Joy! But, oh, on that day, she is feeling that she doesn’t want to be in the spotlight, walking down that aisle as the Mother-of-the-Groom, with everyone staring at her. So, to help counter her depression and anxiety, she soon finds a local fitness trainer. In walks trainer Joseph and Lisa’s life begins to change. Even more changes are to come down the road, including, oddly, a little incident with a meat grinder on Rt.8 on dark and stormy night.As Lisa Nicholas begins her transformation and changes the way she thinks about nutrition and exercise, Joseph suggests upping her daily intake of protein to build those lean muscles. Problem is, Lisa had tried the vegan lifestyle years before and was hitting a wall with food being interesting and, also, getting enough protein. Read More
Grumpy Dumplings: Small Batch Hand-Folded Fresh Dumplings Delivered! Features Dumplings Thai Pasta Asian Farmers Market Local Chef Vendor Highlight Homepage Stephanie Webster January 04, 2023 A few months ago, a friend whose taste I trust asked me if I had tried Grumpy Dumplings? I said I had seen the account on Instagram, and recognized them from the local farmers’ markets, but had yet to try these so called “grumpy” dumplings. I was however already somewhat obsessed with their Japanese anime style branding, so why not give it a go? A few days later, I was able to procure some of their small batch dumplings ordered through their Instagram account (they since have launched a web site with online ordering), and as a bonus…they even delivered within 20 miles of Norwalk. Dinner was saved. Read More
Vergelegen, South Africa’s 2nd Oldest Winery Comes To CT Features Ingredients Wine Ingredients Wine Chat James Gribbon November 10, 2022 Vergelegen, South Africa’s second oldest winery, was introduced in the U.S. for the first time this year. We had an opportunity to try these outstanding wines, and speak with the group responsible for bringing Vergelegen to America.Vergelegen's existence in the U.S. is one of the better success stories we’ve heard from the last two years, but its history dates back to the year 1700, when the Dutch East India co-founded the vineyard in order to have drinkable liquid on Cape Horn when traveling back and forth from India, Indonesia, and all points East.Vergelegen (closest pronunciation we can manage is VAHK-heh-lehn) means "situated far away," and the original estate totaled an absolutely whopping 74,000 acres. A bit smaller now, the current production is still 100% estate wine, and their V and GVB wines are still produced on specific blocks of the old vineyard, located around the corner from Stellenbosch. Cold currents of air coming from Antarctica at night, with hot weather from Indian Ocean in the day, plus variable soils at the base of the Helderberg Mountains have proven perfect for wine growing. Read More
Saugatuck Provisions Opens From A Local CT Chef (Matt Storch), A Butcher & A Fisherman (Copps Island Oysters) Ingredients Features Openings Westport Grocery Store Ingredients Seafood Butcher Specialty Market Homepage Stephanie Webster October 26, 2022 What happens when a chef, a butcher and a fisherman walk into a bar? Stay tuned and I’ll tell you…If you’ve noticed some activity behind the brown paper covering the windows of what was once Westport’s Saugatuck Craft Butchery, it’s not just wishful thinking. Big things are happening behind that masked facade …big things that involve a culinary power team including Chef Matt Storch and Susan McConnell (Match Burger Lobster, Match) in partnership with Jimmy Bloom of Copps Island Oysters, and butcher, Paul Nessal, whom you will recognize if you spent any time at the nose to tail butchery, Saugatuck Craft, back in the day. After 5 years of discussion, this group is finally getting ready to open the doors to Saugatuck Provisions, a new concept offering customers a curated selection of the very best ingredients from the land, sea and grocery, enabling guests to create beautiful restaurant quality meals at home.Saugatuck Provisions is conveniently located next to Match Burger Lobster in Westport, and will be ready for customers in early November, with Thanksgiving pre-ordering already live here. Read More
The Westport Farmers' Market Is Back for the 2021 Summer Season with 50+ Vendors Features Ingredients Farmers Market Westport Healthy Eats Farm To Table Farm Fresh Ingredients Farm Stand Local Artisan Bread Bakery Food Truck CTbites Team May 25, 2021 The need to eat strikes in many different forms. Craving something healthy? At The Westport Farmers’ Market, you can grab some freshly grown produce to satisfy that yearning. Want something refreshing? Stop by the handmade popsicle stand to cool down. How about something sweet? Head to the various artisan bakers selling freshly baked pastries and bread.After a brief intermission from the end of their winter season back in March, the Westport Farmers Market has reopened to serve the community fresh produce, baked goods and everything in between. Open Thursdays from 10-2 on Imperial Avenue in Westport, the market is something you will not want to miss.With over 50 vendors determined to provide market-goers with healthy and fresh products, Westport residents can look forward to grabbing organic, local ingredients to prepare a healthy meal, or even a pre-made breakfast or lunch… after visiting all the other vendors…of course.Visit the Westport Farmers Market to enjoy goods from any of their over 50 vendors or check out a few of our favorites below! Read More
Wise Guys Marinara Sauce: Locally Made and Distinctively Delicious Features Ingredients Local Artisan Ingredients Tomato Sauce Specialty Products Stephanie Webster January 22, 2021 Ah, red sauce…most Italian families have their own recipe, and they generally keep that recipe close to their hearts, fiercely guarded. It’s part of the ancestral family lineage, and while there are shared characteristics based on region, each recipe is unique.We first met the folks from Wise Guys Sauce close to 7 years ago during their stint at The Sono Marketplace. They debuted the Wise Guys Sauce product line for use in their retail pizza shop, called, not surprisingly, Wise Guys Pizza. Sadly the Sono Marketplace/food court was slightly ahead if its time, and they closed the complex, but Co-Owner, Chris Polidoro, decided to keep the sauce alive. Guests were such fans of the tomato sauce, they made the decision to keep on making it. They grabbed some mason jars, slapped a label on, and started selling…and boy did they. Manufactured out of New Haven, Wise Guys Sauce can now be found in local grocery shops both large (Shop Rite) and small (see list below) as well as specialty food stores throughout the state of CT. They even made it onto the TODAY Show with Kathy Lee.P.S. CTbites readers get $10 OFF with Code: ctbites through January 30th. Read More
Westport Winter Farmers’ Market Opens November 12th Features Farmers Market Westport Stephanie Webster October 28, 2020 Westport Winter Farmers’ Market (WFM) is ready to open their doors for the Winter season– this year, with a few safe and fun twists only a pandemic could provide.The winter market opens Thursday, November 12, and will run every Thursday through March 11, 2021 from 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. at Gilbertie's Herb Gardens at 7 Sylvan Lane, Westport. Holding the market on Thursday instead of Saturday will ensure continuity among the community of shoppers and vendors who have supported and grown with the market over this challenging year.Over 35 vendors will provide high-quality locally grown or raised fruits, vegetables, meats, cheeses, milk, baked and prepared foods, as well as some handmade items consumers have come to expect from WFM. For our higher at-risk shoppers, we invite you to shop from 1:00 – 2:00 where we will lessen the numbers of people in each greenhouse and provide an even safer market environment. Additionally, pre-ordering is available with a large number of our vendors – see website for details. With pre-orders, you are able to shop before you arrive and swiftly grab your items throughout the market hours. Read More
J’s Homemade Elderberry Syrup: Boost Your Immune System with this Locally Made Product Features Ingredients Ingredients Gourmet Ingredients Kid Friendly Specialty Market Local Artisan Shop Local Vendor Highlight Amy Kundrat August 25, 2020 Julie Messina had a problem to solve. What could she do to proactively combat the cold and flu season when it inevitably hit her own home? As a Kindergarten teacher and a new mom, she knew she would be a vector for viruses for her family and wanted to get ahead of the inevitable sniffles, or worse, influenza. When she discussed her concerns with her pediatrician, she learned about elderberry syrup, which some studies have shown can shorten the severity and duration of flu in adults. Drawn to its properties as a natural food, she wanted to give it a try but she hit her first roadblock when trying store brands. She didn’t like the taste or price of the elderberry syrups readily available, so she decided to try making her own. Although Julie wouldn’t officially sell her first bottle of elderberry syrup for several months, J’s Homemade was born on that fateful day at the pediatrician’s office. Like many entrepreneurs solving a problem, what followed wasn’t a straight path, but a lot of trial and error, perseverance and support from her wife Alicia and her (now) two children.Each bottle of J’s Homemade elderberry syrup reflects its natural products and represents her own ongoing research and development. Read More
Westport Farmers’ Market Opening July 9th For Day-Of Shopping Features Farmers Market Westport Local Farm Shop Local Shopping Specialty Market Stephanie Webster July 06, 2020 After careful consideration and due diligence through state and local officials, the Westport Farmers’ Market will open this Thursday, July 9 for day-of shopping. During the hours of 10:00 – 2:00 in the 50 Imperial Avenue location, you can find your beloved farmers, bakers, cheese mongers and more.WFM will take the following actions to ensure safe shopping for all: require masks to be worn at all times, single direction traffic while shopping (one way in and one way out), hand sanitizer stations, social distancing and lots of fresh air. Read More
Tips to Maximize Your CSA From Mike's Organic Delivery Features Ingredients CSA Local Farm Ingredients How To Shop Local Mike Geller June 11, 2020 Having connected farmers to consumers for 10 years in Fairfield & Westchester Counties, Mike's Organic owner Mike Geller knows a thing or two about CSAs. And if there was ever a time to give a CSA a chance, it's now! First and foremost, our farmers need us. As many farms rely significantly on business from restaurants and other sources, a great way to support our farms right now is through signing up for a CSA.This crisis has highlighted the importance of small, local farms. If planes stop flying or processing plants close, it is they that will feed us...let us never forget that. Second, it is a way to guarantee that fresh, healthy, local food will be on your table for a period of several months. There is so much uncertainty in the world and this is one way to regain some control over your food. Also, so many of us are home cooking and a CSA allows you to be creative and introduce new things to your family!If you take care of your produce, it will take care of you. It's so fresh when you get it, and if you just give it a little love it will give a whole lot back. Read More
Shitake Parmesan Sliders Recipe from Westport Farmers' Market Features Recipe Recipe Farmers Market Vegetarian CTbites Team May 21, 2020 Even the most devoted meat eaters cannot deny the deliciousness of this “Meatless Monday” recipe. Shiitake mushrooms are the best fungi choice to make a crumb-coated base for tomato sauce, mozzarella, and parmesan because they are firm and hold their shape. The following recipe outlines versions both to shallow fry and bake the shiitakes. You can choose even the breading: fresh breadcrumbs are exceptionally good, but panko (Japanese breadcrumbs) adds a super crunchy textural element, for the taste buds and the eyes. Read More
Guide To CSA's in CT: Support Your Local Farmer, Sign Up Now! Features CT Farms Farm Fresh Farm to Table CSA Ingredients Best of CT Stephanie Webster April 25, 2020 Need a CSA Share? Here's Connecticut Food and Farm Magazine's Field Guide to Connecticut Community Supported Agriculture: https://bit.ly/2VWuS7GThese farms have CSA shares still available (organized by county), click through for additional details on each. Sales are very brisk this year, please act quickly! Read More
Ben To Table: Food Subscription Launches To Promote Small-Batch Producers of Gourmet Pantry Items Features Ingredients Delivery Service Home Delivery Ingredients Gourmet Ingredients CTbites Team April 24, 2020 So, we all like to support our local vendors, especially at times like these, but occasionally you need something a little “extra” or specialized, that you may not find at your local shop. Enter food-lover, cook, and long-time advocate Ben Simon, a New Haven native who is bringing high-quality, small-producer pantry staples and non-perishables to front doors across the United States with his new subscription box company, Ben to Table.Ben to Table is a New Haven-based monthly subscription box inspired by Simon’s years of working on environmental and human rights campaigns across the globe, with a focus on preserving and promoting sustainable agriculture. Read More
10 + CT Restaurants & Wholesalers Now Selling Groceries To The Public Features Grocery Store Specialty Market Ingredients Shopping Emma Jane-Doody Stetson April 10, 2020 Trips to the grocery store are becoming increasingly difficult. In addition to the risks associated with heading out into the crowd, shelves are picked over and ingredients are low. In order to make premium foods more accessible, some Connecticut restaurants and food wholesalers are making their meats, produce, and other staples available to the public as groceries. We have compiled this guide to let you know which restaurants have grocery programs and which wholesalers are now offering their goods to the public. Read More
Westport Farmers’ Market Launches Pilot Farmers' Market Program Ingredients Features Farm Fresh Farmers Market Specialty Market Stephanie Webster March 27, 2020 The Westport Farmers’ Market understands the value of the local food community, and the importance of access to healthy fresh food…food that has traveled a lesser distance and handled only by the purveyor and buyer. We know this local food community is important to our economy as it keeps the money spent by you and then the vendor here supporting our neighbors.Market Director Lori Cochran says “We, also, know we will find our way back to our gathering place on Imperial Ave and eventually back to Gilbertie's next winter BUT for now, it is in our blood to get you local food. To do so, we are launching a pilot farmers' market program under the strictest guidelines for shopping and collection of your purchases. The well being of you, ourselves and our vendors is the utmost priority.” Read More
Turning Sap Into Syrup At Ambler Farm's Tap-A-Tree Program Ingredients Features Farm to Table Local Farm Ingredients kids activity Kid Friendly Natalie Levitt February 24, 2020 It was a warm February morning and my son and I joined a group of families as we gathered at Ambler Farm in Wilton, CT to kick off the maple sugaring season. We were greeted by Program Director Kevin Meehan and received an introductory lesson on how to tap a maple tree. Most of us stood in awe as the sap started to drip out of the tree upon tapping it. Many cheered with excitement for what was about to begin was a fantastic winter farming adventure and a great lesson in farm-to-table. We then received our buckets from Assistant Program Manager Jennifer Grass and proceeded to carefully select our “Giving Trees” on the farm. We hung our buckets on the trees and captured photos to commemorate the day. (Our tree was number 42 and pretty far from the sugar shack! It was an adventure after all!) Then we waited. We waited a week. During that week, many of us wondered just how much sap we would find in our buckets when we returned to the farm. Read More
Guide To Our Favorite CT Summer Farm Stands Ingredients Features Best of CT Farmers Market Farm Stand CT Farms Local Farm Farm to Table Maddie Phelps July 26, 2019 With the glorious warmth that summer brings to Connecticut comes a plethora of delicious fruits, vegetables, and other produce that are sure to highlight any and every meal of the season. If you’re looking to get a taste of the incredible produce CT offers when the temperature is at its hottest, you’ll surely want to make a trip to some local farm stands. As late July is upon us, however, the number of summer days left are ticking away at a startling speed. But fear not; your life just got a little bit easier. Some of the best summer farm stands in the state are listed below, ranging from the eastern most points of Connecticut to down in Fairfield County. All you have to do is find one that catches your eye and take the drive. Read More
Chef-at-the-Market Competition @ Westport Farmers' Market Features Farmers Market Chef Maddie Phelps June 13, 2019 Watching the chefs of the hit TV show “Chopped” scramble to cook up their finest creations while the clock ticks away is truly entertaining. But watching such a competition in real life takes the cake. While the Westport Farmers’ Market didn’t bring the cast, crew, and chefs of “Chopped” to downtown Westport, they did emulate the cook-off with their very own version: “The Chef at the Market Competition.” Here’s a recap of the first “Chef At The Market” throw down, but there are many more to come. Check out the schedule below. Read More
Local Boxing Trainer Creates Hot Lady Hot Sauce Brand Ingredients Features Ingredients Hot Sauce Local Artisan Andrew Dominick May 28, 2019 The hot sauce market is stacked with thousands of brands trying to win over your taste buds and into your pantry, but few have roots right here in Fairfield County. Cue Hot Lady Hot Sauce, created by Adam Colberg, a Connecticut resident who grew up in Westport. For Colberg, hot sauce wasn’t always in his overall plan. “Before I graduated from Staples High School, I always embarked on different projects, I always did things differently,” he said. “I wasn’t ready for college, but I wanted to do something adventurous, so I joined the Marines.” His time in the corps, where he was a jet mechanic, granted him the opportunity to travel the world, including a tour in Spain. Read More
