Lobster Roll Project

Michigan Beer Documentary: Beer People

Michigan Beer Documentary Kickstarter.com

I am a big fan of promoting local Michigan Food related kickstarter.com projects.

Allen Torres is a Senior at U of M who is making a documentary about Michigan Beer called Beer People.

His needs and funding request is minimal at $750 and he is already half way to his goal with 10 days left.

If interested, please check out this Kickstarter.com Fundraiser Page

Traverse City Food: Black Star Farms Hearth and Vine Wine Bar and Cafe

Hearth & Vine is located on the scenic grounds of Black Star Farms in Suttons Bay, MI.

It is a food must for visitors in the area, especially for Michigan wine tasting tourist.

Their specialty is wood fired pizza (menu).

Wood Fired Goat Cheese Pizza

It was raining the day I went there, but you can see in the picture that there is outdoor seating.

Along with pizza, they offer sandwiches, salads and a potato dish that features Leelanau Cheese Company’s famous Raclette.

Italian sandwich:Prosciutto, coppa, salami, fresh mozzarella, pickled onion, arugula & balsamic reduction on ciabatta

Black Star Vinery’s tasting room is just up the hill and they also have farm animals for the kids to check out.

Can Hold Four Large Pizzas

Goat

Summer Hours:
Sunday, Monday & Tuesday: 11 – 6
Wednesday,Thursday, Friday & Saturday: 11 – 9
231.944.1297

Traverse City Fudgies

When I come to a new area to enjoy the food the question I ask is:

“What is the thing here?”

The answer for Traverse City Michigan is Fudge.

The tourist are called Fudgies by the locals. There are two popular fudge shops down town

Fudge shops always have samples

Doug Murdick’s and Kilwins have locations downtown Traverse City on Front street.

Andrea’s Farm Market Traverse City

I passed this place every morning on the way to drop off Emily for her art classes. The sign aways said sold out, so I figured that the farm had harvested all of thier fruit and were done for the season.

But today the sign was open again, so I stopped.

Rick Coors mans the fruit/berry stand next to his 1800’s craftman style cobble stone house. The fruit stand was the brain child of his daughter Andrea during a sleep over when she was 12.

Rick says that she had the idea to start a farm stand because the location of their house would work. At 12 years old, Andrea was started the business, which is around today.

Rick tells me that she is now a teacher of economics.

Andrea’s offers cherries, blueberries, apricots, and a variety of raspberry.

Get there early, because he usually sells out. They do not grow the fruit themselves. He’s got the location and the farmers have the fruit. The relationship works out great.

Rick says Andrea’s idea of the business was to sell out early so she could get to the beach by 1:00PM.

Andrea’s Farm Market
4872 Long Lake Rd
Traverse City Michigan

Old Mission Peninsula Traverse City

Traverse City Michigan is home to two bays that I split between a narrow Finger like Peninsula called Old Mission.

There was a light house at the top of the peninsula, so I figured that I would take a coastal drive and check it out.

I had no idea that the peninsula was a center of agriculture for the area boosting miles of a scenic cherry, apple and grape orchards including several vineyards with tasting rooms (look for my post on Black Star Winery).

Jim Sullivan’s Cherry Capital Farm Market road side cherry stand shown above offers three varieties of cherries including sour pie cherries, sweet red cherries and gold cherries, which I tried for the first time.

Jim also offers ice cream cookie sandwiches.

One of the fun features of Jim’s farm stand his cherry pit spitting challenge.

You have to stand behind the pole of his tent and successfully spit your pit across the double yellow lines on the road a distance of 30-35 feet.

Winners get a free ice pop. Loser, who cannot manage to get their pit over the white line have to pay double Jim jokes.

My first try landed my pit square in the center of the white line. Jim gave me a second cherry and I was able to at least get my pit past the white line. Rolling counts. Jim says many kids win the contest.

Traverse City Farmers Market

The weather is a great up here in Traverse City Michigan.

I will be here for the week as a tourist. The Traverse City Film Festival ends tomorrow and I will be trying to get to a few films. The plan is to go to the whole thing next year.

I also checked of the Farmers Market up here.

There was a guy selling shittake mushrooms and he displayed fruiting logs.
 I am jealous because I have been trying to get logs all summer to grow shittake.

The idea would be to bring the fruiting logs to the market and cut them off to order.

Fresh Sweet Corn is in season and I manage to get almost the last six ears.

Other things at the market: Cherries, blueberries, Fudge, chanterelles, first of the season peaches, all sorts of baked goods.

We are staying at the Camp ground on the cheap, so the plan was to cook most of our food on a small butane camp stove with dinners consisting of mostly pasta, but as fortune would have it, we have access to a full kitchen with a frig and an outdoor gas grill.

Dinner tonight was cheese burgers with excellent meat from the market and corn.
 Food events about town: Paella in the park, which is a food and wine fest with music