Stone Barns!

Another family-filled weekend!

This time it was off to Tarrytown to spend some quality time with Jon's sister who is visiting from California. We met up at their dad's place and piled in the car and it was off to...

... Stone Barns!

Stone Barns is a farm in Pocantico Hills mostly known for being the home of Blue Hill at Stone Barns, an amazing restaurant that uses the daily harvest from their farm (and other local farms as well) to create their daily multi-course tasting menus. Blue Hills is unique in the way they present you with your meal options. In short, you don't get any. Instead of choosing a dish from a menu, you are given a list of the day's harvest and from there it's up to the chefs – but I'd trust them!

I am saving my pennies for someday when I will have dinner there.

ANYWAYS, enough of Blue Hill and my piggy bank.

One of the many rolling pastures

Stone Barns is beautiful. I think it was originally part of Rockefeller's land in the 30's. Now it's a non-profit working 80-acre farm committed to raising public awareness about the benefits of sustainable food and farming practices, growing quality and responsible produce and livestock, and even providing internships for aspiring farmers. The property is open to the public most days and offers tours, classes, demonstrations and a farmers market.

Small lettuce & herb garden outside the hothouse

Well it's not called Stone Barns for nothin'

Fortunately for us, we brought along our own tour guide, Eric. Eric is Jon's 5-year old half brother and besides being blonde, he's a spitting image of Jon– huge melon and all.

Our tour guide leading us around the farm trails

He was especially enthusiastic about the turkeys.

What do you call a baby turkey anyways? A turklette?

I am now convinced that turkeys are zombies...

I did feel that perhaps our tour guide was a bit confused when it came to the Berkshire pigs though. When Jon exclaimed "that's some fiiiine looking bacon", Eric became huffy as he sternly set Jon straight. "No, Jonathan! PIGS ARE NOT BACON!" Hmmmmmmmm.

Pork butt. HAHAHAHA!

So he was removed from his tour guide position and placed back in the role of little brother.

"again!"

Then it was on to the hothouse and beyond.

red onions hanging out in the hothouse

the secret to Stone Barns' success... CHIA!

itty bitty plant sprouts

Their hothouse was pretty neat. It had a retractable roof so on nice days, the plants could "go outside"

Guess what? A STONE BARN!

And then... yes. It was time to eat. We went to The Blue Hill Café, a little place on the grounds where visitors can pick up a fresh, quick lunch. Hey, it's from the Blue Hill kitchen, so I was excited!

Fresh grain salads, open faced sandwiches, chicken and frittatas were the offerings of the day

Onion and potato frittata, panzanella salad, and heirloom tomatoes with goat cheese on focaccia

Onion and corn on focaccia, pork and corn couscous, chicken, and panzanella salad

Ahhhh, fresh, tasty goodness. Everything tasted like it was right out of the ground and onto the plates. And again, with those summer tomatoes! This time paired with yet another one of my favorites, goat cheese.

Best part of the meal:

Me: Hmmm. I think my frittatas are better.
Jon: I think so too.

HA! Sherry: 1, Stone Barns: 0.

And then after a quick sweep through the farmers market (by quick I mean breakfast sausages, bacon, kohlrabi, red onions, fennel and a dreamy FRESH – like still warm from the oven  – blueberry galette from Red Barns Bakery), we were back in the car and on our way.

Talk about a free-range chicken!

Eric was kind enough to invite us over for a play date before we headed back to the city, so of course, we obliged him.

It was the least we could do in return for his wonderful tour guide services.

Coloring time

"Jonathan! Come in my tent!"