What a pleasure this morning, Monday Feb 17, 2020, to appear on WRAL in the Raleigh/Durham area to share six ways to Eat & Drink Local.
I’m glad you enjoyed the segment – what follows is a quick recap of all you saw.
Don’t Miss Any of the Delicious Details
Then to get all the delicious details in a pair of back to back blog posts, simply subscribe to HeidiBillottoFood.com as prompted. The subscription blog is in the upper right hand corner of the home page. The pop up is to subscribe to my email newsletter with a recap of all of these posts, plus info on my cooking classes in Charlotte, culinary events around the state and more.
Drink Local with Chemist Gin from Asheville NC
We started this line up with a trio of award winning gins from Chemist Spirits in Asheville, NC. All three of these locally made elixirs are available in ABC stores across the state of North Carolina. If you can’t find it, ask and they will order it for you. Read more in my Made in the Carolina’s post from last week. Then come back for a follow up post to find out why they call it Navy Strength! When you are in Asheville, visit the distillery and the adjacent 1920’s style cocktail bar – called Antidote! For more info, visit the website.
Asa Food for Babies from Waxhaw, NC
This is Asa, and he is very excited to tell you about the seasonally baby food his mom is making, not just for him, but for babies, everywhere. It is packed with just picked veggies from Asa’s family farm. Two varieties available right now -no preservations, no additives, just fresh from the farm veggie, pureed and frozen hours after harvest to seal in the flavor. Learn more and order today from the website.
Locals Seafood Bar & Market from Raleigh NC
Have you been to eat at Transfer Hall in Raleigh, yet? if not, what are you waiting for? Usually my eat and drink local posts are about products, not about restaurants. But in this case, this restaurant featuring fresh and often locally caught seafood, is also building a line of grab and go products. Among them a fabulous smoked trout pate and cured seafood charcuterie! As you saw in the WRAL segment, they even have seafood-centric treats for your four legged friends. Check it all out here.
Holman Distillery in Moravian Falls, NC
Another fabulous way to drink local, one that dates back to Colonial days in America. Real American Apple Jack. The man who brought the process back after a 100+ year absence is John Holman, he calls his spirits Apple John. The story of how john knows Jacked is one you are going to want to hear. Its all about North Carolina apples and how they are jacked into a drinkable spirit that concentrates the flavor of the fruit. Stay tuned for more, but meantime, pick up a bottle at your local ABC store. More info on product, tastings and tours here and get more in the story plus all sorts of fun swag here.
Cloister Honey from Charlotte NC
Cloister Honey was in my very first Eat Local round up. Since that time this local Charlotte “Mom and Pop”, owned by my friends Joanne de la Rionda and Randall Young, is all grown up. Cloister Honey is now available in 40+ states across the country! Randall works the bees. It’s a hobby turned profession, that started in 2006. Joanne thought Randall needed something to do with his spare time and gave him a bee box and the rest is history. Read more about all of their sweet products here.
Carolina Creamery Yogurt, Kefir and Smoothies
Carolina Culture is a dairy in Bahama, NC, just north of Raleigh. Farmer and yogurt maker Cindy Hamrick traded in her corporate briefcase for a farm with the intentions of producing quality, Grade A Dairy products. She has succeeded and now makes her yogurt & kefit fresh on the farm in Durham County, NC. Can you guess the secret ingredient that makes the Yogurt, Smoothies and Kefir so delicious? It is creamy, whole milk from their herd of Jersey cows who graze on grass all day. All of the products are minimally processed, with no preservatives or artificial ingredients. Probiotics? Yep, there are billions of them. Learn more on her website.