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Local Table
A Guide To Food And Farming In Middle Tennessee
Spring 2013
Views from the table and beyond

Publisher’s Blog

Posts Tagged ‘Provence’

Support Local This Holiday

Thursday, December 1st, 2011

I can’t believe it – but our very first Holiday Bazaar is this Sat., Dec. 3rd at the Nashville Farmers Market from 5:30 – 8:30 PM. It’s designed to showcase many of the vendors in our recently released Holiday Gift Guide to encourage folks to think local this holiday season!

This Saturday’s event will feature local foods – both whole and artisan prepared, bakers, cheese, beverages, sauces, preserves and artisan craft folks. We’ll also have some of our favorite community groups on hand if you’re interested in investing not just in stuff, but in your community.

Make your holiday gift giving personal and unique. You’ll be the star this holiday gift time for stepping away from the mall and finding something uniquely special for your family and friends. It’s also the perfect place to find the perfect thoughtful item for a hostess gift.

In addition to gift items, there will be beverages to keep you warm and others to make you fuzzy! Our friends at Louisiana Seafood will also be offering an oyster bar at the new Grow Local Kitchen!

Come celebrate with us this Saturday!

If you’re not able to come see us this Saturday and haven’t had a chance to see our new Holiday Gift Guide, check out the pdf of the full issue on the cover of www.localtable.net.

First ever Local Table Holiday Guide

Wednesday, November 16th, 2011

I’m so excited to let everyone know about our first ever Local Table Holiday Guide – it’s a gift catalog of local vendors selling items for the holidays. We have so many talented, passionate and creative individuals and families doing such wonderful work in our area. We’ve got farmers who do value added products such as soaps, body care items, CSA gift certificates, artisan producers creating cheese, sausages, coffees, sauces, preserves, and much more. And, if you need some help with your holiday meals, there are bread makers, bakers and cooks galore to help you serve the best holiday meal ever. Some of our most unique and quality crafts folks are also included. Please support our local vendors and consider making your holiday gift giving a local thing!

Too much stuff in the world, think about giving to two of our favorite community organizations, WCTE-TV and The Land Trust for Tennessee. Both groups working to help preserve our farmland and support our local farmers. A small gift to The Land Trust will help keep our state ‘green’.

Also, don’t forget the good works and beautiful products from Thistle Farms – one of Nashville’s most successful community organizations.

The new Local Table Holiday Gift Guide has been made possible with help from the Nashville Farmers Market and in conjunction with the guide, we’re going to do a Holiday Bazaar on Sat, Dec. 3rd at the Market. It will be from 5:30 – 8:30 and include Holiday Guide vendors and Markethouse favorites. It will be similar to a Night Market with wine, beer, music and more! I know it’s a busy time of the year, but mark this one on your calendar for a great night of local food and gifts!

And, it wouldn’t be Local Table without a guide to seasonal farms – so it can only mean Christmas trees! Make a trip to a local Christmas tree farm for not only your tree, but all your holiday greenery and many farms also carry ornaments and other decorating items.

It’s a great start to the Holiday season and I hope you’ll Give, Live, Love Local!

Flowers Blooming in the Weeds

Tuesday, April 12th, 2011

It has been a hectic spring – I’m behind on delivering magazines, getting my garden planted, I have to file for a tax extension, and am just getting started on the summer issue. My first baby goats are due in two weeks, chicks are arriving this week, the barn cat has been sick and my little dog Pickles has been poorly – and I’m working hard to do a good job for my publicity clients.

This past weekend, I put it all aside and went outside. I dug, I hoed, raked, weeded and even planted potatoes. It was hot and even a bit humid. It was amazing. Earlier in the week, my new copy editor had come by for a meeting and commented that my flower borders looked like they had been weeded and said she was enjoying her flowers blooming in the weeds. I worked non stop all weekend and never got very far down the ‘to do’ list – but I enjoyed the flowers in the weeds. I could hear turkeys gobbling up on the hillside, the first hummingbird of the season showed up at the feeder I’d only just hung (how long had she been waiting?) and then last evening the sound of the first whippoorwills bounced around in the woods. Maybe because of last year’s flooding, this year’s wildflowers are spectacular and every time I can go for a walk, the under scape along the lane changes it’s colors.

It’s a lesson to be learned. It’s time to get back outside and enjoy our amazing spring. Spring plant and herb sales are happening all throughout Middle Tennessee (check out events on www.localtable.net), many farmers markets are opening this month with bright and shiny leafy greens, onions and most exciting – strawberries are back (check out our list of strawberry patches in the Spring issue).

Do yourself a favor and head outside and find yourself some fresh air and fresh food!

Rhubarb poking through the straw

Stumpy enjoying the creek