Simsbury Connecticut restaurants Metro Bis, The Mill at 2T, and Tulmeadow Farm and brewer Farmington River Brewing Company will be among the participants in Connecticut’s largest and oldest event to raise funds to save the state’s dwindling amount of farmland. The Celebration of Connecticut Farms will take place Sunday, Sept. 11 from 12:30 to 4 p.m. at Jones Family Farms in Shelton. The event features some of the state’s best chefs preparing amazing dishes that highlight Connecticut grown ingredients. This year it will be co-hosted by Tony Award winning actress Christine Baranski, WNPR’s Two Time Peabody Award winner Faith Middleton, and celebrity TV chef and author Jacques Pepin.
“Since 2001, the Celebration has raised hundreds-of-thousands of dollars that have been used to help the Connecticut Farmland Trust continue its work to prevent farms from being lost to development.
We’re thrilled to have these three Simsbury restaurants and Farmington River Brewing participating this year,” said Dawn Adiletta, Interim Executive Director of the Connecticut Farmland Trust. “This is the must-attend event for anyone serious about wonderful cuisine and the freshness that only locally raised foods can provide.”
Don Tuller of Tulmeadow Farm along with a number of restaurants and a brewery in Simsbury, is taking part in the upcoming Celebration of Connecticut Farms this September.
“I am excited to once again be participating in the Celebration of Connecticut Farms,” said Don Tuller, owner of Tulmeadow Farm. “For many, it may be a surprise to find out how many different types of wonderful foods Connecticut farms produce. Once again we’ll be serving our award winning ice cream, which is always a big hit. This is an excellent opportunity to expose foodies around our state to our restaurant and help preserve our rich agricultural heritage at the same time.”
Tulmeadow Farm will bring its signature flavor, red raspberry-chocolate chip, to the celebration, Tuller said. Tulmeadow farm produces greenhouse vegetables, field vegetables and grass-fed beef on 265 acres in West Simsbury.
“This farm has been in my family since 1768,” Tuller said. “The only way it could pass (as a working farm) to another generation was through an easement from the trust, since the development value is so high.”
Tickets for the 2011 Celebration of Connecticut Farms are $150 per person ($75 is a tax-deductible donation). In addition to the delicious food and drink, the celebration will include musical entertainment by Bone Dry, a silent auction, and farm tours. To purchase tickets and for a list of participating chefs, restaurants, wineries, breweries and distilleries, visit www.CelebrationOfCTFarms.org.
Tulmeadow Farm – Hand packed Ice Cream Pints
For newcomers to the celebration, it might come as a surprise to find out how much Connecticut farms produce. There are many amazing items, from fresh vegetables to fruits, meats, seafood, dairy and wines. These farm-fresh products are then given to some of the state’s best chefs, who transform them into dishes that would be at home at any four-star restaurant. One can easily spend the entire afternoon grazing from table to table, eating samples of foods ranging from organic pizzas to goat cheeses, pork to beef dishes. Then they can walk over to another table for a glass of award-winning chardonnay, cabernet franc, or local craft-brewed beer to wash it all down.
“Although we move the event each year to a different farm in the state, and attract new friends, we continue to see familiar faces make the drive to wherever it takes place,” said Adiletta. “This year we’re delighted to be hosted by the Jones Family Farms in Shelton. They were our first home in 2001, and owner Terry Jones is a passionate voice for farmland preservation. His farm contributes to our state’s agricultural heritage by producing strawberries, blueberries, pumpkins, Christmas trees and fantastic wines and will be the perfect setting for this year’s event.”
In addition to the delicious food and drink, the celebration will include musical entertainment by Bone Dry, a silent auction, and farm tours. To purchase tickets and for a list of participating chefs, restaurants, wineries, breweries and distilleries, visit www.CelebrationOfCTFarms.org.
The Connecticut Farmland Trust is a non-profit organization formed to preserve and protect Connecticut’s working lands through the acquisition of farm property and easements. The group works with farmers, landowners, land trusts, town officials and state agencies to protect agricultural land. Since its start, CFT has protected nearly 2,100 acres of farmland on 26 family farms, assisted partners in the preservation of over 800 additional acres, and has become the state’s leading private resource on farmland conservation.
For more than ISO years, the Jones family has been working the lands on their farm in Shelton, Connecticut. Today their 400-acre farm offers one of the finest harvest-your-own picking experiences in the area. Generation after generation of farm guests visit the farm each year, not only to savor the delicious strawberries or to find the perfect Christmas tree, but to enjoy time with their families while experiencing the rustic beauty of the farm. For more information visit www.JonesFamilyFarms.com.