Edible Indy Summer 2021 | No. 41 by Edible Indy

no. 40 | summer 2021

INDY

EAT | DRINK | EXPLORE

Stories from Indiana & Beyond

summer

2021 |

issue no. 40

MEMBER OF EDIBLE B COMMUNITIES TIES EES S

wa n d e r

WA N D E R

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CONTENTS

FEATURES 6 WONDERTREE FARM Retired Indianapolis Colts punter Hunter Smith builds family farm with a heart for community and sustainability.

16 DAZZLING DYNAMOS Why ruby-throated hummingbirds traverse the continent each year to feed and breed in our backyards.

DEPARTMENTS 2 HOOSIER THOUGHTS

4 FOODGRAMS 22 NOSH Go nuts with mezze on your next picnic

30 NOSTALGIA What happened to the tagline “Wander Indiana”?

32 OUTDOORS

Tempting trails and tips for healthy hiking munchies

36 FARM MARKET GUIDE 48 LAST SIP A cooling and healthy hibiscus drink

RECIPES 24 Summer Says Tabbouleh 26 Beetroot MuhaMara 26 Hoosier Walnut Dukkah 28 Roasted Eggplant Yogurt Dip 34 Kitchen Sink Trail Bars 35 Pick A‘ChickPea Trail Mix 48 Karkadeh

COVER photography: Elizabeth Hannah Studios featuring Mezze from page 22. edibleINDY.com

henever I hear the word wander, I think of that 1960s hit song The Wanderer by Dion and the chorus pops into my head:

They call me the wanderer Yeah, the wanderer I roam around, around, around ...

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PUBLISHER Rubenstein Hills LLC

Our Summer issue is truly about just that: being a wanderer and roaming around. Take a day journey, pack up a picnic and take a hike to any of our favorite spots listed in 5 Hiking Trails for Summer Recreation (page 32) or even your backyard. Pause to celebrate the beautiful Indiana weather, the hummingbirds that give us the gift of wonderment, the people who inspire us to wonder how they farm for their community in our feature on WonderTree Farm (page 6). Take short trip back to the 1980s when Indiana tourism embraced the tagline “Wander Indiana” with a red convertible Studebaker driving back country roads, exploring Indiana as a place people loved then and now. We challenge you to embrace this summer, to head to a local farm market and, most of all, to wander around wherever you can to experience something new.

COPY EDITOR Doug Adrianson

Hoosier Hugs, g

DESIGN Cheryl Koehler

EDITOR IN CHIEF Jennifer Rubenstein jennifer@edibleindy.com CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Jeff Rubenstein MANAGING EDITOR Francine Spiering

SALES jennifer@edibleindy.com

Jennifer Rubenstein, Editor in Chief

From the Editor

like to hike. I enjoy the physical effort, even when the going gets a little tougher. And meanwhile, I get to enjoy nature, spot wildlife and steal wild berries right off their thorny vines. Mind you, a good hike in my book always leads to a bit of a reward. The best hikes come with a great view, where I can linger for a bit, or they take me to a clear stream or lake to dip my toes. Many hikes ago I learned my lesson that I can’t hike when my tank is empty. My feet simply drag until I take on some more fuel, even just a bite of a banana or a handful of raisins. These days, I always pack plenty of nutritious things in my rucksack (or my husband’s, if I don’t feel like carrying anything). I hope summer inspires you, like me, to get out into the great outdoors. And perhaps the recipes in this issue will tempt you to try them and take them along on your next hike. Warmest,

Francine Spiering, Managing Editor

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WONDERTREE FARM A LITTLE HEAVEN ON EARTH Hunter Smith opens the family farm to the Zionsville community words: Charity Singleton Craig | photography: Jonathan Wayne Photography

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s this heaven? The words came to me as I jumped out of my car onto the driveway of WonderTree Farm. Like Ray Liotta’s “Shoeless” Joe Jackson exiting the cornﬁelds in Field of Dreams, I knew I’d arrived at something special on the edge of metropolitan Indianapolis. A cool breeze swept across the ﬁelds and with it the faint smell of farm animals. An eager Australian Shepherd ran my way, jumping up on my kneelength purple puffer coat and leaving muddy paw prints. “Sorry about that,” said the tall man in the aviator sunglasses, baseball cap and Carhartt vest walking toward me from the farm truck. “He’s just a puppy.” “No problem,” I said, with mask, notebook and phone in one hand, and the playful licks of the attention-hungry pup in the other. “Hunter Smith,” the man responded, holding back a handshake he would’ve freely offered in the Before Times of COVID-19. “And this is Ranger.”

Top photo: Hunter and Jen Smith here with their four children, clockwise: Josiah, Samuel, Lydia and Beau.

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Happy But Not Dirty Smith, a retired Colts punter from 1999 to 2008, is the owner of WonderTree Farm, where he lives and works with his wife, Jen, and their four children: Josiah, 16; Samuel, 13; Lydia, 11; and Beau, 8. They bought the 24-acre homestead at auction back in 2015. As only the third or fourth owners since the land was originally deeded, the Smiths opted for a life on the farm after his retirement from the NFL and some soul searching about what’s next. “I saw my kids happy but not dirty. They didn’t know how to work,” Smith recalls. “And just talking about it was one thing but giving them something to do was another.” Smith and his wife began looking for a place on the Northside of Indianapolis where they could have space to grow a garden, raise some animals and give their children the kind of upbringing Smith had on his parents’ ranch in Texas. “My dad was a true cowboy: fearless, strong, a maverick type. My mother is everything you’d expect from a Texas ranch wife: resilient, wise, a bit glamorous. Being raised by these two people in a working agricultural environment forged something in me I am forever grateful

for,” Hunter says. “They showed me how to work. Through weather, injury, uncertainty and loss. They always worked. Hard. And they brought us kids along to work.” But just as he said about his kids: Talking about owning a farm was one thing and doing it was another.

The Winning Bid The real estate market on the Northside of Indianapolis was hot at the time, and Smith was having trouble convincing any existing owners to sell to a former NFL player looking for a change. Eventually, a friend in Zionsville told him about an estate that would be coming to auction. The land was expected to sell for millions, and Smith ﬁgured he would be outpriced immediately. But he and Jen had fallen in love with the land when they’d scouted it out earlier, so they showed up at the auction anyway. The auctioneer threw out $1 million as the opening bid, and no one budged. The bid was backed down by the hundreds of thousands and 8

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finally, at $100,000, someone raised their paddle. The bidding raced upward fairly quickly from there in $25,000 increments, and when there was another stall, Smith finally made his first and only bid. The price was already at the top number he and Jen had agreed on, and it was his one shot. There were four other bidders still in at that point. Unexpectedly, the auctioneer paused, giving everyone a five-minute break to run numbers and presumably get back to bidding. But during the break, one of the other bidders approached Smith and asked what he was going to do with the place. When Smith told him he wanted to raise cows and kids, the man said, “Alright then, I’ll let you have it. My name is Wilburn Craft. I’ll be your neighbor.”

No Plans But Nostalgia “The old people around here laugh at me a lot,” Smith says, as he explains his naïve approach at turning the abandoned property into a working farm. One of the ﬁrst things they did was dam the ravine at the back of the property to make a pond. They cleared a lot of the brush by releasing a small herd of goats into the back pasture. And then there’s the big red barn. “I had no plans other than nostalgia,” Smith tells me. “I wanted a barn like the one I grew up with in Texas.”

Smith designed and built the barn himself. The color red was important, so were the two wings on each side of the barn’s gambrel rooﬂine and the large 16- by 16-foot doors. He ordered the supplies from an Amish company and then got to work with the help of a friend. “This is where we start the process of the kids learning to work around the farm,” Smith recalls. “You teach your children to work by showing them how to do it.” Within a year, the shell of the WonderTree Farm barn was complete, even though its full use as the hub of their burgeoning meat, egg and dairy business wouldn’t be fully realized for a few more years. Before we take a look inside, Smith tells me to wait until he opens the big doors—“It will help with the smell”—and turns on the lights. The lights were a good idea, because there was so much to see inside the barn. From the lofts and paneling built from the wood of an old fence that Smith repurposed, to the large walk-in coolers and freezers that store the products WonderTree Farm sells during their drive-thru market during the winter and their market days during the summer. On the left, I found the source of the smell: a litter of Old Line Duroc feeder pigs. And from one corner of the barn to another, edibleINDY.com

bouncing kittens, waddling ducks and a few strutting brood chickens. “These are just for ambience. The working ﬂock is out in the pasture,” Smith says, pointing to the poultry. Ranger bounds in and begins wrestling with the cats and playfully chasing the hens. I remember that Shoeless Joe line about heaven again, as I think about lions and lambs—or in this case puppies and chickens—lying down together.

If You Build It, They Will Come Chickens are, in fact, what got the Smiths into the “business” of farming beyond just a hobby farm. They started by buying 20 laying hens and 50 broiler chickens and ended up with enough eggs and meat to sell to a few friends and other members of the community. The next year, they saw an opportunity: Instead of just offering the products for sale, what if they brought people to the farm for an experience, too. So, they hosted a fall festival with more than 800 attendees. By the following year, they’d added a few head of cattle and hogs and began selling beef and pork, too. “By the end of that second year, we had just enough beef and pork to make people think we had enough,” Smith recalls. Now, as they prepare for their sixth year, they’ve acquired three additional farms, and they keep about 700 broilers, 350 laying hens, 90 head of cattle and 70 hogs at any given time, along with another 150 turkeys seasonally, plus the “ambience” chickens and ducks (which I dubbed “the talent”), ﬁve goats, three horses, two donkeys, six cats and four dogs. Their customers, 2,065 families within a seven-mile radius, are primarily their neighbors, a priority for Smith from the beginning.

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“Because the family farm is gone, we want to be the family farm for our community,” Smith says. “Ultimately, we’d like to train other people to do this. I don’t know how we move forward as a society if don’t have something like this to be part of.”

Doing Things the New Old Way The Smiths aren’t just creating a modern version of the old family farm. Rather, they are attempting to use regenerative techniques to live lightly on the earth. Smith himself probably wouldn’t use that word; he tells me he’s not all that into the latest trends and terms. Instead, he explains how he’s doing things the old way: keeping old-line breeds of hogs and cattle, pasture raising all his animals, using his infrastructure and land for multiple purposes, even hiring local companies for humane meat processing that know how to prepare pastureraised meat for optimum taste and quality. “We have a commitment to being antiquated—out of necessity—to farm healthy,” says Smith’s business partner, Chris Jackson, who began with WonderTree Farm in 2020. “That means less tech, less infrastructure, lighter on the land.” That doesn’t mean Smith isn’t willing to innovate when necessary. For instance, Jackson brought with him the idea for “glamping” (a combination of “glamorous” and “camping,” though Jackson says it’s really just a term that means fully outﬁtted camping) at WonderTree Farm. They currently offer one “village” of four campsites where people can “come experience nature, culture and farm life.” 12

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“It’s another way we can foster relationships between people, land and animals so they can understand where their food comes from,” Jackson says.

The Wonder Tree Before the tour ends, Smith tells me he has one more thing to show me. “I hope it’s the Wonder Tree,” I say. And it is. As we walk along a muddy path to the back of the original homestead, I’m relieved Smith had warned me to wear boots. We pass a stand of trees, and then over to the left I see the large white oak rising just at the top of the hill. Even though its limbs were bare—I visited in early March—the old giant inspires wonder all the same. One branch that hangs low and protrudes off to the south is as big as most of the other trees in the area. “It’s 340 years old,” Smith says proudly. “At least that’s what the Internet told us,” he confesses. A Google search had given them a way to estimate the tree’s age by its circumference. “That means this tree was already 185 years old at the time of the Civil War.” We both stood quietly for a minute just taking it in. “We didn’t even know exactly what was back here when we ﬁrst bought the place,” Smith says. A neighbor had told them about a 200-foot limb coming out

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Interested in checking out WonderTree Farm yourself? There are several ways to join the Smiths for a family farm experience. Each Saturday from May through October (with soft openings and closings in April and November), join the Smiths on the farm to buy clean, locally raised pastured meats, farm-fresh eggs, raw dairy and local honey. You can also feed the animals, ride a horse, or play with the chickens while you’re here. The whole Smith family pulls together on Farm Days, so expect to see Josiah at the gate parking cars, Samuel helping with horse rides or with feed cups, Lydia making cotton candy, and Beau helping his brother fill feed cups. Jen offers horse rides on Sherman and Sunny, and Hunter pitches in wherever he’s needed.

of the side of an old tree, but there was so much undergrowth and so many other trees growing in an around it, that they weren’t able to assess its true size until the pasture was cleared. “After we found it and ﬁgured out how old it is, the kids and I started to wonder: How many deer have run past this tree? Did Union soldiers camp out under it? How many farmers were tempted to cut it down? So we called it the Wonder Tree.” Unfortunately, the old tree is dying. Smith expects they’ll have to cut it down later this year before it falls down. “It’s sad, but it’s part of what we’re imparting to our kids: All things die,” Smith says. They’ll turn the usable wood into something new for the farm, and they hope to leave a tall stump where they can build a deck to overlook the farm. “We’ll make it a place people can come,” Smith explains. “We’ll honor the tree by making it its own place.” The WonderTree name will carry on in other ways, too. Not only in the wonder of having such a beautiful piece of land for the community to visit and enjoy, but also the wonder, curiosity and willingness to try that have driven the Smiths from their ﬁrst day here. In fact, their whole story makes you kind of wonder: What would happen if a retired NFL player and his wife bought a farm and tried raising kids and cows and whole lot of chickens and hogs for a living? Well, it might just end up being like a little bit of heaven on earth.

The warmer months also mean glamping. WonderTree Farm currently has one “village” of four totally outfitted camp sites, including waterproof, bug-tight and breathable canvas bell tents stocked with everything from linens to lanterns. WonderTree can even pack a cooler of local meats to prepare on the fire or the grill that’s provided. Weekend campers also can “be a farmer” for a day with a full-farm tour on Saturdays. During the winter months, WonderTree offers a drive-thru market, where customers literally drive through the big red barn to pick out and pay for meats, eggs and other products. WonderTree Farm also has a membership program, WonderShare, which includes two customizable boxes of WonderTree meat, eggs and other products each month, free parking on Farm Days, special access to WonderTree events, discounts to the Glampground and other benefits. To learn more about WonderTree Farm, plan your Farm Day visit, register for glamping, or sign up for a WonderShare, check out WonderTreeFarm.com.

Charity Singleton Craig is the author of The Art of the Essay: From Ordinary Life to Extraordinary Words and Poetry and On Being a Writer: 12 Simple Habits for a Writing Life That Lasts. Her work has been featured in several publications, including In Touch Magazine, Fathom Magazine, The Joyful Life Magazine, The Write Life, Grubstreet Daily, The Curator, Christianity Today and Tweetspeak Poetry. You can find her online at CharitySingletonCraig.com or on Instagram @charitysingletoncraig.

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Because hummingbirds feed upon nectar from flowers, sugar water from feeders, and small insects, they may stop over on their journey for a few minutes or days when they find food available for fuel. This is why landscaping our yards with their favorite flowering pla ants and providing feeders can be helpful. 16

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Hummingbirds traverse the continent for summer feeding and breeding words and photo: Joni James illustration: Marisa Randles

s hours and warmth of sunlight increase, the flowers bloom, the insects become active and our ruby-throated hummingbirds (Archilochus colubris) return to the eastern United States during spring migration. They travel thousands of miles to spend summer here, to breed and raise their young. Migration, from Central America all the way to Canada, is one of the most incredible feats of this tiny bird that measures 2.8–3.5 inches in length with a wingspan of 3–4 inches and weighs just 0.1–0.2 ounces. And in fall, they migrate again—south this time. Some individuals will remain in the United States along the Gulf Coast and southern Florida. Most of our hummingbirds spend their winters in Central America and many will fly across the Gulf of Mexico. Before beginning their migration, they will increase their body weight by 25– 40% for their long journey. Hummingbirds fly alone during the day and will often use the same course they have used previously. They fly low, not far above treetops or bodies of water. These birds, affectionately called hummers, can travel as much as 23 miles in a day. Amazingly, those that traverse the Gulf of Mexico complete the 500-mile flight nonstop, dependent on wind and weather conditions. First arrivals in spring are usually males with their brilliant iridescent red throat, which can appear dark in poor light. Both sexes have emerald backs and crowns, with grayish-white underparts. The females have white throats and follow a couple of weeks later. Because hummingbirds feed upon nectar from flowers, sugar water from feeders, and small insects, they may stop over on their journey for a few minutes or days when they find food available for fuel. This is why landscaping our yards with their favorite flowering plants and providing feeders can be helpful. These early arrivals will benefit from sugar water provided in feeders when weather is still unpredictable and natural food sources are limited. Our hummingbirds usually return to the same feeders and plants each year. Most hummers nest soon after their arrival at feeders unless they are migrating farther north. Take comfort that you are helping to sustain these birds that return to your property to either fuel up and/or stay to raise their young. Hummingbirds need to feed constantly during the day to survive. They come close to consuming their body weight in nectar, sugar water and insects every day. Their resting heart rate is 250 beats per minute but during normal flight the rate can rise to 1,300 beats per minute. To get through the night they will conserve energy by becoming torpid. During torpor they slow down their body processes. A hummer’s body temperature drops below 60°, heart rate slows to fewer than 50 beats per minute and breathing can momentarily stop. Although birds are not dependent on our feeders, one can see how important a feeder can be in the early morning for these birds. How can you best support these incredible friends that return to our homes each year? The strongest impact you can have is to plant colorful native plants in your yards, plant pots and hanging baskets. Examples of native plants to grow are columbine (Aquilegia canadensis), cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis), grape Cont'd on page 20

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Six sweet stops from Texas to Ontario For a sweet fun approach to ruby-throated hummingbird migration, we imagined: “If I were a hummingbird, where would I hover for something local, sweet and delicious?” Thanks to our sister Edible magazines for their suggestions! From Edible Houston: SweetCup Gelato’s Texas Sheet Cake @sweetcupgelato; SweetCupGelato.com A Texas sheet cake is a cake baked in a sheet pan “the size of Texas.” SweetCup’s is a chocolate fudge cake, chopped up into delectable chunks that are folded into a creamy milk chocolate gelato. It is one of more than 200 rotating flavors created by owner and artisan Jasmine Chida. From Edible Memphis: MemPops’ Peach Pops @mempops; MemPops.com Think of a ripe, juicy peach. And then think of all that sweetness wrapped around a popsicle stick. The peaches in these pops come directly from Jones Orchard, a relationship that was forged in the local farmers market community. From Edible Kentucky: Crank and Boom’s Bourbon & Honey Ice Cream @crankandboom; CrankAndBoom.com What would a stopover in Kentucky be without a taste of bourbon? Even better when it comes mingled with local honey and churned into ice cream. Go on, pick the bourbon & honey ice cream sundae that comes with hot chocolate fudge sauce and candied pecans. From Edible Indy: Cone & Crumb’s Blueberry Buttermilk @conecrumb; ConeCrumb.com Blueberry Buttermilk sounds so poetic that it is easy to dream up blue-hued summer sweetness swirled in a rich and refreshingly tangy custard. Brimming with local blueberries, it is only one of 12 rotating flavors, all made from scratch. From Edible Finger Lakes: Spotted Duck’s Seneca Salted Caramel Ice Cream @spotted_duck_flx; SpottedDuck.com The Ancona ducks that live right by the Creamery didn’t just inspire the name Spotted Duck. Their eggs make the creamiest custard. Add to that homemade caramel with salt mined from beneath Seneca lake and you have a scoop that is all about farm life and couleur locale. From Edible Ottawa: Moo Shu’s Hong Kong Milk Tea @mooshuicecream; MooShuIceCream.com Moo Shu always has something unique churning, like a refreshingly aromatic Lime Leaf & Mint. Best-selling Hong Kong Milk Tea, an ode to owner/artisan Liz Mok’s Hong Kong heritage, is a secret blend of aromatic teas, all balanced with rich milky goodness.

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Bird Banding at the Mary Gray Bird Sanctuary The independent Indiana Audubon Society is the oldest conservation organization continuously operating in Indiana (founded in 1898) and the fourth-oldest “Audubon” in the country. The IAS is dedicated to fostering the appreciation of migrant and resident bird species that are present in Indiana and other regional areas of the world. Bird banding is one of the current research projects at the IAS’s Mary Gray Bird Sanctuary (MGBS) near Connersville, Indiana. Owned and operated by IAS, the MGBS is open to the public. Numerous trails traverse the diverse habitats within the 700acre sanctuary. Banding is conducted with songbirds, saw-whet owls and hummingbirds. Highlights from research data gathered from the banding of rubythroated hummingbirds at MGBS during 2020 included 544 new birds banded, 122 recaptures from banding in previous years and the oldest hummer banded was a female at least 6 years old. Bird banding is a fascinating activity for those interested in birds. These banding events are open to the public and the schedule can be viewed at indianaaudubon.org.

honeysuckle (Lonicera reticulata), Indian pink (Spigelia marilandica) and wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa). Native plants are critical for the biodiversity of our landscapes and this begins with our yards—even container gardens and hanging plants on an apartment balcony. This biodiversity sustains our ecosystems by benefiting pollinators, native insects, birds and other wildlife. Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants by Doug Tallamy (Timber Press, 2009) is an easy read to understand the power we have to make a difference in our environment through the interconnectedness of native plants and wildlife. Plants and animals are unique and fascinating. It is their adaptations that are so intriguing. Adaptations are those physical characteristics and behaviors that help a plant or animal survive in their environment. For hummingbirds, one of the most fascinating is their flight. Sit at a window and watch them at your feeder and you will be amazed at their acrobatics. They are capable of flying every direction including sideways, shooting upwards, downwards, and stopping to hover. They can even fly upside-down for short distances. As if that was not enough, they are known to fly up to 60 miles per hour and can flap their wings 20–80 times per second during flight. By contrast, most songbirds beat their wings about five times per second. These flight abilities are the result of the hummingbird’s elongated wings that are stiff and do not bend. Their wings have an oar-like look because of their short flight feathers. While other birds have flexible wings that beat in a “flap and glide” motion, hummingbirds appear to be rowing when they fly. Another flight adaptation is the ability to create power in both the downstroke and upstroke. Their upper wing bones rotate in the shoulder joint, which allows them to change the angle of the leading edges of their oar-shaped wings. If you have watched hummingbirds at feeders for very long you undoubtedly observed male ruby-throats aggressively defend the feeders and flowers. This results in spectacular pursuits and dogfights. These territorial aggressions by males are towards all hummingbirds—males, females and juveniles. Feeders are defended by males against all others. Another fascinating flight behavior is by the male. He performs a courtship display exhibited to females who enter his territory. The male flies in a looping U-shaped dive above the female—as high as 50 feet. It is a treat to witness this behavior. When it comes to family life, the female does all the work. Male and female rubythroated hummingbirds are together only through courtship and mating, which can be a few days or weeks. In Central and Southern Indiana, they tend to have two broods each year; farther north the tendency is towards one brood. The male then is on his own and no longer involved with the female and raising of the nestlings. The female builds the nest, a beautiful work of art high above the ground. Spider silk holds together dandelion down and thistles, all decorated with lichens. She incubates her jelly-bean-sized eggs for 12–14 days, feeding the nestlings after that for another three weeks. All with no assistance from the male. By the end of mating season, the male ruby-throated hummingbirds are often heading south for the winter. Females and the fledged young, having survived nesting season, begin autumn migration a month or two later. Once again the dangerous trek of thousands of miles begins. Birds provide us with a special reciprocal relationship and this is certainly experienced with hummingbirds. They enjoy our sugary nectar for sustenance and we enjoy a peek into their incredible lives and behaviors. I am always reminded of this relationship in April when I have been tardy in getting my feeders hung before the first arrival. Suddenly, to my surprise, I will see a movement at the window and there he is. Sitting up near the window with ruby throat flashing is one of “my” males who has returned and is asking, “Where are my feeders? I’m back.” Joni James is a retired educator and a life-long birder, naturalist and nature photographer. She enjoys journaling to document her observations and experiences. She lives in Central Indiana. Her website is jonijamesphotography.com.

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Hummingbird Feeder Tips Hummingbird feeders attract the little dazzling dynamos to your garden. arden. While theyy will never depend on feeders or minimize eating natural foods, hummingbirds do love the he extra energyy the feeders provide. And we get to enjoy watching them. When you put up a feeder, it is important portant to keep a few things in mind: •

If you make your own nectar (easy and very good for the hummers), mers), make sure you use white sugar in a 4:1 ratio (four cups water to dissolve 1 cup white sugar). gar). Plain white sugar best mimics the chemical composition of natural nectar, whereas the 4:1 ratio is very important as it best mimics the natural nectar in flowers. Boiling is not necessary. Keep refrigerated.

•

Do NOT use brown sugar, organic sugar, raw sugar or honey. These sugars promotes dangerous fungal growth and other sugars contain levels of iron which can be lethal.

•

If you do buy special hummingbird nectar, make sure it does not contain any chemicals or additives, including red dyes or food coloring. A clear solution is safest and healthiest.

•

Place feeders in a shady location with minimal sun and at least st five feet from the ground to protect the birds from cats.

•

Keep feeders clean. Rinse and refill every few days, more when en warmer. Iff you have one bird dominating a feeder try putting more feeders out. Individuals dividuals visit feeders approximately once every 30 minutes.

•

ber 15. Put feeders out by April 15 and continue feeding until November

•

Remember that hummers often return to the same locations/feeders feeders each year.

•

Keep the feeders up for several weeks after the hummingbirdss have left again, just in case there’s a straggler in need of a boost on its long trek south. th.

Our idea of a food pyramid.

H A N D M A D E H E A RT F E LT.

FASHION MALL AT KEYSTONE CROSSING 1103 NORTH COLLEGE 317.721.5525 BESTCHOCOLATEINTOWN.COM

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NUTS FOR MEZZE Walnuts add local flavor to old-time favorites words & recipes: Francine Spiering photography: Elizabeth Hannah

ezze make my world go ’round when I think of a picnic. Easy to pack in containers, any array of dips and spreads spells leisurely eating joy to me. I got spoiled for life with mezze when I lived in Cairo, Egypt, some 15 years ago. One of our favorite pastimes was to lounge along the Nile, leaning back on colorful cushions, watching feluccas (traditional wooden sailboats) cruising the river as we nibbled on pillowy pita hot from the wood-fired oven and sipped cooling drinks like crimson karkade, a tart hibiscus juice that is said to date back to the ancient Pharaohs. The only thing better would be to actually be on one of those feluccas and watch city life on the Corniche from the tranquility of the water. The air thick with the soothing scent of shisha tobacco wafting from bubbling water pipes, our table grew with little bowls and plates: lemony parsley salad, or tabouleh; silky hummus (sometimes topped with grilled chopped lamb, sometimes just sprinkled with herbs, always drizzled with a little olive oil); smoky mashed fire-roasted eggplant salad (aka baba ghanoush); and an assembly of pickles, fresh cucumbers and tomatoes, olives and breads. Oh, and often there was dukkah, a mix of coarsely ground nuts and seeds that you mopped up with pieces of olive-oil-soaked bread. Popular from the Balkans throughout the Middle East to North Africa, mezze (the spelling varies throughout the region) are appetizers. But really, that is just short for a tantalizing collection of small dishes that combine together in a veritable appetizer feast. Mezze can include anything from dips created from pulses, vegetables and spices; to salads, olives and pickles; to seafood and meats. Typically, mezze is eaten as part of a larger meal for lunch or dinner, although things like hummus, olives and pickles also appear for breakfast in the Middle East. And on a trip to Cyprus, I discovered that Cypriot mezze is a full-on meal of 30-odd dishes, and often include repurposed leftovers from yesterday’s meal. Mezze, in other words, can be anything you want them to be. Our days of lounging along the Nile at sunset are long gone. But to this day, mezze meals are part of our life. We regularly join together in the kitchen to whip up whatever dips we are in the mood for; wash vegetables, rinse herbs; knead and rise pita dough, heat up the oven and shove in the flattened dough balls; and—the best job of all—open goodies we picked up at a favorite Middle Eastern grocery. Summertime in particular is simply made for mezze meals. The recipes here—a twist on classic mezze using Indiana’s delectable walnuts—are perfect for a picnic. Gather a seasonal abundance of beets, radishes, summer squash and herbs. Throw in mixed olives, chunks of feta, walnuts and breads. Bring a blanket, and don’t forget some comfy cushions. It’s mezze time! Francine Spiering is a globetrotting food writer with a culinary degree from Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. She is also the author of collaborative cookbook Houston Cooks. Find her on Instagram @lifeinthefoodlane.

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SUMMER SAYS TABBOULEH With its vibrant green color and refreshing tang, tabouleh is a musttake on any summertime picnic. I love it all by itself, but I am also known to sneak it into an otherwise plain cheese and tomato sandwich. And it makes a killer veggie wrap: smear a little hummus on a wrap, top it with tabouleh and add whatever crunchy vegetables like cucumber, radish and carrot. Classic tabouleh has a bit of bulgur, but here it is local walnuts that add a flavorful crunch. Makes about a pint 4 cups finely chopped fresh curly parsley ½ cup finely chopped fresh mint 1 medium ripe red tomato, diced fine 1 medium/small red onion, diced fine 2 sprigs green onion, chopped fine 1 cup toasted walnuts, chopped fine 1 teaspoon sumac Juice of 1 lemon 2 tablespoons olive oil Fresh ground black pepper and salt to taste Combine parsley, mint, tomato, onion and green onion in a bowl. Add the toasted walnuts and remaining ingredients. Mix together well, cover and keep in the fridge until ready to use. It stores well for at least 24 hours.

edible INDY Summer 2021

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Join Us for The GOOD(s) Box Experience Virtual Cooking Classes Building Up Your Kitchen Experience

e invite you to join Goods for Cooks and Edible Indy for the next series of virtual cooking classes. From homebrewing a perfect cup of coffee to treating your senses with worldly ﬂavor, these live, one hour classes will include an experience box curated by Goods for Cooks, special guests, education, and mindful discussion of how to create intentional rituals for yourself in 2021. June 27 MEDITERRANEAN MEZZE: Mediterranean Mezze (ﬁnger foods) + Spice with special artisan guest Marlen Wensel of Apricot Sun and Francine Spiering of Edible Indy. August 22 ALOHA POKE BOWLS: Deconstructed Sushi Bowls with special guest Edible Hawaiian Islands and the Island Poke Cookbook author. CLASS 4 | October 17 NOT JUST ANOTHER CUP OF COFFEE: Learn how to brew a better cup of coffee: From French Presses to Pour Overs with special guest Jane Kupersmith from Hopscotch Coffee.

Each class + box begins at $75, reserve soon, classes are limited to 15 participants. Scan the QR code to learn more or to reserve your spot as they sell out quickly!

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BEETROOT MUHAMARA Edible Indy publishers’ youngest daughter is named Mara, and it’s why we call this one Beetroot MuhaMara. Based on classic muhammara (a dip of roasted peppers, tomato paste and walnuts), our magenta variation omits the tomato paste in favor of roasted red beets. It does, of course, have those tasty local walnuts. NOTE: Have organic dried beetroot powder? Here’s another use for it: Substitute fresh beetroot used in this recipe with a tablespoon (or to taste) beetroot powder. Beetroot powder will make your dip runnier, in which case you can eliminate 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Makes about a pint 2 red bell peppers, roasted, peeled and seeded 1 medium beetroot, roasted and peeled 1 clove garlic, crushed 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar* Juice of ½ lemon ½ teaspoon ground cumin ½ teaspoon smoked paprika powder Dried chili flakes or cayenne pepper, to taste Salt, to taste

HOOSIER WALNUT DUKKAH

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Dukkah is an Egyptian snack mix of toasted and fragrant coarse-ground nuts and seeds. A great way to enjoy it is to dip a piece of bread in olive oil and then in dukkah. But there’s more: Your roast chicken loves it, too. So does roasted cauliflower, squash soup, grilled lamb chops… and why stop there, right?

Chop the roasted and peeled peppers and add to the bowl of a food processor. Do the same with the peeled beetroot*. Add vinegar, lemon, garlic and spices and pulse until smooth but still has some texture.

Makes 1 (16-ounce) jar

Transfer to a bowl and add salt to taste. Stir in the coarsely chopped walnuts and olive all. Mix well, adding more balsamic, salt or cayenne pepper to finish to taste.

1 cup walnuts ½ cup dry-roasted peanuts 1 tablespoon coriander 1 tablespoon cumin seeds 1 teaspoon fennel seeds 2 tablespoons (black or white) sesame seeds 1 tablespoon chia seeds (optional) 2 tablespoons sunflower kernels 1 teaspoon sumac, or to taste 1 teaspoon ground black pepper, or to taste 1 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste

edible INDY Summer 2021

Toast each ingredient except peanuts (already dry-roasted), sumac, ground pepper and salt separately until fragrant, then transfer all to a small food processor and pulse until you have a coarse mix. Season with sumac, pepper and salt. Alternatively (and actually my preferred method): Pound each nut and seed lightly in a mortar and pestle until you’re happy with the coarseness, and then bring together in a bowl with sumac, salt and pepper. Note: You can find ingredients used here (as well as dried roselle for karkade, see Last Bite) at Saraga International Grocery (saragaindy.com) at 3605 Commercial Dr., Indianapolis

1 cup walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped

* Or you can use pomegranate molasses, that tangy sweet syrup popular in Middle Eastern cooking! The beets used in this recipe lend beautiful sweetness so balsamic vinegar works well here. If you like it sweeter, add honey to taste along with the balsamic vinegar.

Eat. Drink. Explore. Local.

photograph: Dave Pluimer

Indiana-based Huse Culinary restaurant group is known for the iconic downtown Indianapolis St. Elmo Steak House and their culinary masterpiece dishes including their famous shrimp cocktail. They own and operate seven fine-dining restaurants with locations in Fishers and Indianapolis and are committed to providing the best ingredients and service.

St Elmo’s Steak House 127 S. Illinois St. Indianapolis StElmos.com

1933 Lounge Downtown: 127 S. Illinois St., Indianapolis Northside: 9707 District North Dr., Ste. 1120, Fishers 1933Lounge.com

Harry & Izzy’s Downtown: 153 S. Illinois St., Indianapolis Northside: 4050 E. 82nd St., Indianapolis Airport: 7800 Col. H. Weir Cook Memorial Dr., Indianapolis HarryAndIzzys.com

HC Tavern & Bar 9709 E. 116th St., Fishers AtTheHC.com

SINCE 1902

S T E A K

H O U S E

THE PATRON SAINT OF

@ StElmoFoods stelmofoods.com

COOLER COCKTAILS edibleINDY.com

ROASTED EGGPLANT YOGURT DIP There’s something about roasting that transforms eggplant into a velvety-soft caramelized flavor bomb. Fair warning: This dip is addictive! Makes about a pint 1 large eggplant 1 cup plain yogurt 1 tablespoon tahini (optional) 1–2 cloves garlic, minced ½ teaspoon ground cumin ½ teaspoon smoked paprika 1 teaspoon sea salt Fresh-ground black pepper to taste To finish: 2–3 tablespoons dukkah Fresh mint, to taste Preheat oven to 400°F. Wash and dry eggplant. Pierce all over with a metal skewer and place on a baking sheet. Roast in the oven until shriveled and soft, turning once, about 25 minutes. Leave to cool. In the meantime, mix together yogurt, tahini, garlic, spices and salt to taste in a medium bowl. When the eggplant is cool, chop until it resembles a coarse mash. (Note: I leave the skin on but if you prefer a smoother final result, strip the skin). Combine in the bowl with the yogurt. When ready to serve, spoon the eggplant yogurt dip in a shallow bowl and sprinkle dukkah on top. Garnish to taste with fresh mint.

edible INDY Summer 2021

Whats in your glass? You’re invited

to watch two spicy gingers shake things up (literally) by making cocktails and jokes! 3 LIVE shows throughout the summer in person or watch from the comfort of your own kitchen.

MAKE IT AT HOME! Cocktail kits will be available for pre-purchase online with pick up Hotel Tango Tasting Rooms leading up to events. Swag & enter-to-win cocktail experience will be available for guests that attend the event.

*Must be 21 to attend. COVID restrictions may vary per location. All orders are final and must be picked from a Hotel Tango Distillery Tasting Room.

enter

to win scan th : e QR c ode to to win enter a private chance to a t cocktai ango univers ity l & coo king c an over lass + night st the ho tel tan ay at go farm .

es es Scan the QR codes t purchase your at l kit e cocktail home

me time erti mer Summ Cure for Sum “Episode 1” The Cure When: June 17th @ 6Pm

g Room ng Tastin Where: Fletcher Place Tasti

“Episode 2” Shaken Not Stirred When: July 15th @ 6PM

Where: Hotel Tango Fort Wayne

“Episode 3” Herbalicious When: August 12 @ 6PM

Where: Hotel Tango Zionsville @edibleindy @hoteltangodistillery @hoteltangogletcherplace @hotelfletcherfortwayne @hoteltan gozionsvill edibleINDY.com 29 e

Recalling Indiana’s Days of Wander Lust Wonder what happened to “Wander Indiana”? words: Brian Garrido | photography: Brian Welker cherry-red Studebaker in stop-motion rounds an uphill bend, while a Lawrence Welk– sounding chorus cheerily croons, “Wander Indiana.” During the 1980s and early ’90s it was an all-too-familiar TV commercial to Hoosiers. Indeed, the crimson convertible, unburdened by a driver, slid through winter trails, frolicked with beachgoers and swam with the other kids. How did this piece of Americana kitsch start, and why did it end? Under the auspices of then-Lieutenant Governor John Mutz, the Indiana Ofﬁce of Tourism Development launched the program to target those living in Indiana. According to Denise Miller, Indiana’s director of tourism development from 1989–92, “[They] realized they had only focused on [attracting] big meetings and conventions. ‘Wander Indiana’ was about locals traveling to see their state.” The marketing campaign debuted in 1982 and operated with a budget of $384,000. The powersthat-be created a stylized “Wander Indiana” logo, putting together a vigorous marketing campaign blanketing airwaves, radio and print. Concurrently, an informational travel guide offered short-drive ideas around Indiana. The publication, called Wander Indiana, detailed stops and places of interest; it also included an order form for branded items featuring the new logo. While the magazine offered areas of interest, it was also a catalog offering souvenirs for purchase such as caps, T-shirts, coffee mugs, glasses, Fun Flyer discs and luggage.

edible INDY Summer 2021

The state’s Bureau of Motor Vehicles got into the act with a brightly colored license plate. The metal placard debuted on the top-rated “Today Show” with celebrated TV personalities Bryant Gumbel and Jane Pauley. They made their way to Indianapolis, assisting in promoting the effort with a national shout-out to the millions of viewers in front of the late Hoosier Dome. Today little remains from the advertising and marketing blitz. A 10-second slice of a commercial exists on YouTube, as well as a 30-second spot showing the driverless car cruising down country lanes. Last year, Andrea Glenn, a librarian at the main branch of Indy’s Public Library, wrote a blog item about the “Wander Indiana” campaign. She said, “Back in 2016, for Indiana’s bicentennial celebration, I’d collaborated with a co-worker to create a display with Indiana license plates and some ‘Wander Indiana’ items. It seemed like a fun theme for a blog post, and it gave me a chance to look at materials such as newsletters and reports in the library’s collection.” Glenn, an Indiana native, even recalled, “When we were traveling out-of-state, the bright colors on the license plates made it easy to spot other Hoosiers. Also, I remember the catchy theme song and the red Studebaker in the television commercials. I liked the tune, but it’s a bit of an earworm.” But it’s not always remembered so fondly, even though it garnered national attention. When Governor Evan Bayh was elected, Miller took over the tourism division’s helm coming from South Bend’s

Convention and Visitors Bureau. She remembers, “The jingle was everywhere. You couldn’t turn on a radio without hearing it.” She increased the budget to $500,000 during her tenure, making the driverless car even more ubiquitous. But as much as all things gear up, they do have a lifespan and eventually run out of gas. “I had been at the agency for two years, and we gauged the effectiveness of ‘Wander Indiana’—this was before digital marketing—by the number of calls the tourism bureau ﬁelded.” At one time, Miller recollects, the agency would mail out thousands of travel guides. By 1992, the program sputtered to only a handful of inquiries. Even with a more robust marketing plan, “Wander Indiana’s” Studebaker, a product of the state’s onceprominent automotive industry, quit chugging along. “At the time,” Miller says, “Indy was still being called Naptown. It was a sleepy city without much of a thought, and the state wasn’t far behind. After ‘Wander Indiana,’ Hoosiers became proud of what one could do in their state. Ultimately, the campaign was a success.” And the cherry-red auto rolled into the setting sun, looking for new places to explore and “Wander Indiana.”

Brian Garrido has written food stories for LA Weekly, Clever Root and DailyMeal.com. He moved to Indy from Los Angeles with two dogs and his partner, Nick. Follow him on Instagram @briangarrido.

Edible Indy Seeks New Ownership Over the past eight years we have grown Edible Indy in ways that have championed and nourished the local food movement in Central Indiana. We have not only developed a print publication making an impact on people’s lives, but we have created a print, digital and social media company that has allowed Edible Indy to truly work with connecting our community both with our consumers and the businesses throughout the state and beyond. We are looking for new hands and hearts to carry on, elevate and grow the business in new and exciting ways. As we grow older, situations shift, priorities change and it is now the time for us to ﬁnd someone ambitious and excited to step into the ownership of this successful and growing publication. If you are interested in learning more about Edible Indy or stepping into the ownership role, please reach out to us. Email Jennifer Rubenstein at jennifer@edibleindy.com. Thank you for all the years you have spent with us, Jennifer & Jeff Rubenstein

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edible INDY Summer 2021

Hiking Trails for Summer Recreation

Plus: tips and recipes for healthy hiking munchies recipes: Skyler Hanka | photography: Jennifer L. Rubenstein

re you ready for a good hike? We’ve selected ﬁve exciting trails right here in Indiana for a great day outdoors. Make these protein- and carb-ﬁlled recipes the night before, pop them in reusable containers and you’ll have something nutritious and delicious to munch on while you wander. We all know how important it is to stay hydrated. But your exercising body needs more: It needs something good to burn. Make sure you fuel before your hike with a meal that is high in complex carbohydrates like whole grains, rich in (plant-based) protein, and fruits and vegetables. Think for instance a bowl of oatmeal with nuts and dried fruit, or scrambled eggs on whole-wheat toast and a fruity smoothie. Whether you’re on a short hike or a long wander, it is important to snack every one or two hours, and don’t forget that raw fruits, vegetables and hard-boiled eggs are also great additions to your hiking snack pack. Once you return home from a great hike, it’s time to refuel again: The postexercise window is when your body is most receptive to nutrient absorption.

Eagle Creek Park Located on the northwest side of Indianapolis, this park has many trails ranging from 1.25 miles up to 6.75 miles. Many of these trails intersect each other with breathtaking views of birds, including bald eagles, and the Eagle Creek Reservoir. The park includes an Earth Discovery Center, Ornithology Center, zip-lining and plenty of scenic picnic spots.

Knobstone Hiking Trail A 160-mile trail with four sections spanning from Morgan-Monroe State Forest to Deam Lake in Borden, Indiana, just north of Louisville. There are opportunities for everything from day hikes to backpack camping with beautiful forested hills, ridges, lakes, wildﬂowers and historic sites.

Hemlock Cliffs Just over an hour drive south of Indianapolis is a short (1.5 miles) national scenic hiking trail that is packed with waterfalls, cliffs, stunning rock formations and incredible wilderness. Perfect for those who want to wander and explore at a slower pace.

Turkey Run State Park An hour and half west of Indianapolis, this state park is home to more than 14 hiking trails from easy to rugged ranging from .5 miles to 3 miles. The trails showcase sandstone cliffs, a suspension bridge, Rocky Hollow Falls Canyon along with some historic landmarks including the Punch Bowl with glacial erratics—pieces of bedrock carried from Canada by the glaciers.

Spring Mills State Park About 2 hours south of Indianapolis, this state park covers seven hiking trails throughout 1,300 acres. The trails include caves, nature preserves, a historic pioneer cemetery and village, a lake and more. Trails range from easy to rugged with the longest trail around 2.5 miles. edibleINDY.com

KITCHEN SINK TRAIL BARS One night, before a hike, I wanted to make trail bars and just randomly picked what I had in my pantry. You can do the same: Use any nuts or seeds. And while blueberries have a higher antioxidant content than most other berries, you can totally swap them out for other dried fruits or berries you have. This is a high-calorie snack with a savory flavor that I’ve come to call “kitchen sink” bars. Makes 12 bars ⅓ cup raw quinoa (any color) 3 tablespoons honey ¼ cup almond butter or other nut butter ¼ cup coconut oil + extra 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 teaspoon salt 8 pitted dates, roughly chopped ½ cup shredded unsweetened coconut ¼ cup sunflower seeds ½ cup pumpkin seeds (raw, toasted, salted: personal preference) ¼ cup blueberries ½ cup rolled oats Cook the quinoa: Rinse briefly in a colander, drain and transfer to a saucepan. Add 1 cup water and bring to a boil.

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Simmer on low for 15 minutes. If the quinoa is still liquid, strain through a sieve and let cool completely (see Note). Line an 8- by 8-inch baking pan with parchment and grease with coconut oil (or use cooking spray). In a small saucepan heat honey, nut butter, coconut oil, cinnamon and salt for 2–4 minutes over medium heat (it helps the mixing process to evenly coat all ingredients). In a small food processor, pulse the chopped dates, coconut, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and dried blueberries for 1–2 minutes, or until mixture has a crumbly but still coarse texture. Add ½ cup of the oats and cooked quinoa, blend for 30 seconds

to 1 minute, until chopped. In a large bowl combine all of the ingredients and mix until you can press it together and it holds its shape (if needed add a bit more coconut oil). Press the mixture firmly into the prepared baking pan and refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour. Cut into 12 bars. Tip: Freeze any trail bars you make before going on a hike: No matter the kind of bar, this will ensure they hold their shape and stay fresh during your hike, especially in the warmer months! Note: If you prefer crunchy quinoa, change to 1 cup and add it raw. Or you can toast it in a single layer on a baking sheet for 5 minutes at 350°F.

SUBSTITUTES Tahini is a great substitute for any nut butter. Looking to replace coconut oil? Use grapeseed oil (neutral), avocado oil or olive oil (not neutral).

PICK A’CHICKPEA TRAIL MIX Trail mixes can quickly go from healthy to a little bit too much if you’re not mindful about the amounts of nuts, seeds, chocolate, dried fruit and any other ingredients you decide to mix in. Don’t mix too many high-calorie foods together; keep it simple and choose highquality antioxidant-rich ingredients for a trail mix you can enjoy in handfuls.

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Join us for a creative event or make up your own!

Makes about 5 cups

August 14th - Crab Fest

1 can chickpeas

September 10th - Fall Festival of Wine

1 teaspoon olive oil

October 24th - BBQ and Music Festival

Pinch salt 1 cup toasted, unsweetened coconut flakes 1 cup roasted, unsalted pumpkin seeds ½ cup walnuts ½ cup sunflower seeds

November 13th - 70s Groovy Dinner and Dance November 20th - Hotel Tango

Pop-up lunches and teas

½ cup dried berries of choice Preheat oven to 400°F. Drain chickpeas from can and toss with oil and a pinch of salt; lay them out on a sheet tray. Bake for 20 minutes, until crispy. (Alternatively, purchase crunchy chickpeas already toasted.) To toast the coconut, lower oven temperature to 350°F. Spread coconut flakes in a single layer on a baking sheet and toast for about 5 minutes, or until browning. Let cool. Combine all ingredients and store in a glass jar for up to 2 months.

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FRESH & LOCAL N 2021 Edible Indy Summer Farm Market Guide 2021 has shown us how essential knowing where our food comes from and supporting local farmers, producers and makers truly is. Use this guide to expand your knowledge of some of those markets that will deliver Hoosier hospitality, exceptionally fresh products and positive impacts with sustainable practices that truly make a difference from the ground up. We are all in this together. #LocalTogether

ANDERSON

Anderson City Market

BLOOMINGTON

FARM MARKET

People’s Cooperative Market

802 E. 5th St.

FARM MARKET

Ppchog.org/acm

909 E. 2nd St.

SAT 8AM-NOON MAY-OCT

Asparagus Annie’s

FISHERS

FRANKTON

10402 N. College Ave.

Fishers Farmers Market

Frankton Town Market

RosiesGardens.com

FARM MARKET

3 Municipal Dr.

102 S. Church St.

PlayFishers.com

FranktonTownMarket.com

GREENFIELD

Rosie’s Gardens GARDEN CENTER

CLOVERDALE

PeoplesMarketBtown.org

SAT 9AM-1PM APR-NOV

Cloverdale Farmers & Makers Market

SAT 8AM-1PM MAY-SEPT

FARM MARKET

Saxony Market

FARM

Woolery Mill

302 S. Main St.

FARM MARKET

5885 N. State Rd. 9

FARM MARKET

CloverdaleMainStreet.org

13640 E. 131st St.

ARCADIA

Wilson Farm Market

2250 W. Sunstone Dr. BloomingtonWinterFarmersMarket.com

SAT 8AM-NOON APRIL-SEPT

FARM MARKET

1720 E. 256th St. WilsonFarmMarket.com

MON-SUN 9-6PM YEAR ROUND AVON

Avon Farmers Market FARM MARKET

8244 E. US Hwy. 36 AvonGov.org

TUES 4-7PM JUNE-SEPT BATESVILLE

Batesville Farmers Market FARM MARKET

Main St. & Boehring St. BatesvilleFarmersMarket.com

SAT 8AM-NOON MAY-OCT

BROWNSBURG

Brownsburg Farmers Market FARM MARKET

61 N. Green St. BrownsburgParks.com

THURS 4-7PM JUNE-SEPT

SAT 8AM-NOON MAY-SEPT

COLUMBUS

SaxonyMarket.com

SAT 9AM-NOON JUNE-AUG

FARM MARKET

FARM

123 Washington St.

701 S. Maple St.

5332 N. 400 E.

ColumbusFarmersMarket.org

Facebook.com/ FortvilleFarmersMarket

BrandyWinecreekFarms.org

SAT 9AM-12:30PM MAY-SEPT

CUMBERLAND

THURS 4-7PM MAY-SEPT

11501 E. Washington St.

1465 N. County Rd. 800 W.

7738 N. Old 41

Town.Cumberland.in.us

SmithFarmsIndiana.com

TUE 4-7PM; SAT 8AM-NOON MAY-OCT DANVILLE

Carmel Farmers Market

Danville Chamber of Commerce Farmers Market

FARM MARKET

5 Center Green

Jefferson St. East side of Danville Square

CarmelFarmersMarket.com

SAT 8-11:30AM MAY-SEPT

Farmers Market at the Fairgrounds FARM MARKET

FRANKFORT

FARM MARKET

CARMEL

BlueRiverNaturalFoods.com

FARM MARKET

FARM

MON-SUN 10AM-6PM MAY-OCT

6001 E. 500 S.

Brandywine Creek Fortville Farmers Market Farms

FARM MARKET

Facebook.com/ Big-Peach-936988086647074

FARM

Columbus Farmers Market

Smith Farms

The Big Peach

Blue River Natural Foods

FORTVILLE

Cumberland Farmers Market

BRUCEVILLE

SUN 2-5PM MAY-OCT

620 N. Apple St. HoosierHarvestCouncil.com

SAT 8AM-NOON YEAR ROUND

Hoosier Harvest Market FARM MARKET

FRANKLIN

Discover Downtown Franklin Farmers Market

802 Apple St. HoosierHarvestMarket.com

SAT 8AM-12:30PM MAY-OCT

FARM MARKET

5 E. Jefferson St. DiscoverDowntownFranklin.com

SAT 8AM-NOON MAY-SEPT

DanvilleChamber.org/Farmers-Market

SAT 8AM-NOON MAY-SEPT

Our farm grows sustainably grown, chemical-free produce and plants. Join our CSA program, volunteer on our farm or find us at the Noblesville Farmers Market. 10980 E. 221st St., Noblesville TeterOrganicFarm.com edibleINDY.com

Southeast Indiana - Dearborn County

Tuttle Orchards

Indiana Black Farmers Market

5717 N. 300 W.

FARM MARKET

TuttleOrchards.com

4052 E. 38th St.

Historic Lafayette Farmers Market | Downtown

IndianaBlackFarmers.com

FARM MARKET

MON-SAT 9–6PM YEAR ROUND GREENWOOD

SAT 1-4PM JULY-OCT

5th St. between Main St. and Columbia St.

Greenwood Farmers Market

Indianapolis Original Farmers Market

SAT 8AM-12:30PM MAY-OCT

FARM MARKET

525 N. Madison Ave.

222 E. Market St.

Facebook.com/Greenwood-IndianaFarmers-Market

IndyCM.com

SAT 8AM-NOON MAY-OCT

FROM OUR FARMS TO YOUR TABLE...

Come g! Shoppin

FarmTableSoutheastIndiana.com

: Greystone Farm

Lawrenceburg, Indiana

: Beiersdorfer Orchard Guilford, Indiana

: Phillips Berry Patch New Alsace, Indiana

: Salatin’s Orchard Moores Hill, Indiana

: Busse’s Farm

Aurora, Indiana

HeartOfLebanon.org/Lebanon-CityMarket

Ellenberger Park 5301 East St. Clair St.

FARM MARKET

IrvingtonGardenClub.com

SAT 8AM-NOON MAY-OCT

Broad Ripple Farmers Market FARM MARKET

BroadrippleFarmersMarket.org

SAT 8AM-NOON MAY-SEPT

St. Leon, Indiana

Specialty Spirits : Great Crescent Breweryy Aurora, Indiana

FARM MARKET

FARM MARKET Herron High School 110 E. 16th St. IndianaBlackFarmers.com

SAT 9AM-NOON JUNE-OCT

Riverside Farmers Market FARM MARKET

MARTINSVILLE

Morgan County Farmers Market / Martinsville FARM MARKET

460 S. Main St.

FRI 4-7PM MAY-OCT

SAT 9AM-1PM MAY-SEPT

Snakeroot Botanicals

MONTICELLO

GARDEN CENTER

Monticello Farmers Market

5547 Bonna Ave. IndysFoodCoop.com

MON 5-8PM MAY-SEPT

Fresh Wednesday Market

1052 Virginia Ave.

FARM MARKET

SnakeRootBotanicals.com

AtTheIrving.com

FRI & SAT 9AM-NOON YEAR ROUND

Garcia’s Gardens

SoBro Farmers Market FARM MARKET

2201 E. 46th St. WED 4-7PM MAY-SEPT

FARM

: Holtkamp Winery

FARM MARKET

Garfield Park Conservatory Dr. GarfieldParkFarmersMarket.com

SAT 9AM-12:30PM MAY-OCT

Growing Places Indy Summer Farmstand FARM MARKET

edible INDY Summer 2021

SAT 9AM-1PM MAY-SEPT

Indy.gov

Garfield Park Farmers Market

1-800-322-8198 www.farmtablesoutheastindiana.com

LintonFarmersMarket.com

2420 E Riverside Dr.

GARDEN CENTER

Get the Map!

Humphreys Park

FARM MARKET

GarciasGardens.com

#theplace2play

Linton Farmers Market

East Side Marketspace

: At the Barn Winery

Whiskey City Festival November 6, 2021

TUES 4-7PM JUNE-AUG

Near North Farmers Market

The Forest Flower

New Alsace, Indiana

98 W. Main St.

LINTON

11717 E. 42nd St.

Logan, Indiana

FARM MARKET

SUN NOON-3PM JUNE-OCT

5505 E. Washington St.

: Lobenstein’s Farm

Irvington Farmers Market

Binford Farmers Market BinfordFarmersMarket.org

LEBANON

Lebanon City Market

FARM MARKET

6620 Northview Way

LafayetteFarmersMarket.com

WED 9:30AM-1:30PM MAY-OCT

INDIANAPOLIS

Second Presbyterian Church 7700 N. Meridian St.

Orchards, Farms & Markets

LAFAYETTE

ORCHARD & RETAIL

727 N. Oriental St. GrowingPlacesIndy.org

THURS 2-5PM JUNE-SEPT

3205 W. 71st St. TheForestFlower.com

MCfarmers.org

FARM MARKET

1210 N. 6th St. MonticelloINFarmersMarket.Weebly.com

SAT 9AM-1PM MAY-OCT

MOORESVILLE

Morgan County Farmers Market / Mooresville FARM MARKET

50 N. Monroe St. MCfarmers.org

KOKOMO

TUES 3-7PM MAY-SEPT

Kokomo Downtown Farmers Market

MORRISTOWN

FARM MARKET

Mulberry St. & Washington St. KokomoFarmersMarket.com

SAT 9AM-1PM JUNE-SEPT

Berry Goods Farm LLC FARM

E. 600 S. BerryGoodsFarm.com

MUNCIE

Farmers Market at Minnetrista FARM MARKET

1200 N. Minnetrista Pkwy. Minnetrista.net

SAT 8AM-NOON MAY-OCT NASHVILLE

Nashville Indiana Farmers Market FARM MARKET

Brown County Inn 51 State Rd. 46 NashvilleIndianaFarmersMarket.com

SUN 11AM-2PM MAY-OCT

NOBLESVILLE

Full Hand Farm FARM

3844 State Rd. 13 N. FullHandFarm.com

Mallory Farmstead FARM

SEYMOUR

WESTFIELD

25625 State Rd. 37 N.

Seymour Area Farmers Market

Wild Feather Farm

Mercantile37.com/WheelersMarket

FARM MARKET

FARM

105 S. Chestnut St.

2109 State Rd. 38 E.

Wheelers Café and Market FARM MARKET

8AM-NOON YEAR ROUND

PENDELTON

Pendleton Farmers' Market | Falls Park FARM MARKET

Pendleton County Fairgrounds 68 Fairgrounds Rd. Facebook.com/Pendleton-Farmers-Market

SAT 9AM-2PM JUNE-OCT

PLAINFIELD

Noblesville Farmers Market FARM MARKET

Federal Hill Commons 175 Logan St.

WED & SAT 8AM-NOON MAY-OCT

WHITESTOWN

SHELBYVILLE

FARM MARKET

18 N. Harrison St. MainStreetShelbyville.org

2280 S. US 421

FARM MARKET

FARM

105 S. East St.

1581 N. 1100 E.

Plainfield-IN.com/Farmers-Market

TUES & FRI 10AM-1PM; THURS 3-6PM YEAR ROUND

WestonFamilyFarm.com

ZIONSVILLE

WED 4-7PM JUNE-SEPT

SPICELAND

Zionsville Farmers Market

RICHMOND

Caprini Creamery

Corner of W. Pine St. & Main St.

FARM

ZionsvilleFarmersMarket.org

Richmond Farmers Market FARM MARKET

47 N. 6th St. RichmondIndiana.gov/Resources/FarmersMarket

FARM MARKET

7052 S. County Rd. 425 W. CapriniCreamery.com

SAT 8-11:30AM MAY-SEPT

WEST LAFAYETTE

Teter Organic Farm

Bent Arrow Acres

Purdue Student Farm

FARM

10980 E. 221st St.

2809 S. 750 W.

TeterOrganicFarm.com

BentArrowAcres.com

#LocalTogether

FARM MARKET

WonderTreeFarm.com

Weston Family Farm

SheepDogFarms.com

Scan QR code for our extensive digital guide for local farms, markets and garden shops.

ZIONSVILLE

SHERIDAN

RUSSIAVILLE

BY APPOINTMENT APRIL-OCT

THURS 5-8PM JUNE-SEPT

WonderTree Farm

Sheepdog Farms

SAT 8AM-NOON MAY-OCT

Whitestown.In.gov

SAT 8AM-NOON JUNE-SEPT

SAT 8AM-NOON YEAR ROUND

NoblesvilleMainStreet.org

Whitestown Farmers Market 4286 S. Main St.

Shelby County Farmers Market

Plainfield Chamber Farmers Market

10978 Greenfield Ave. MalloryFarmStead.com

SeymourChamber.com/Farmers-Market

FARM

9300 N. 450 W.

FARM MARKET

1491 Cherry Ln. purdue.edu/hla/sites/studentfarm/

4-7PM (SUMMER) 4-6:30PM (WINTER) YEAR ROUND

PRESENTED P PR ESE BY:

SATURDAYS S S

9AM-12PM (June 5-Aug 28) 131st & Olio • Fishers, IN Over 30 Local Vendors! @SaxonyMarket Where farm-fresh and community come together! WWW.SAXONYMARKET.COM

edibleINDY.com

E A T. D R I N K . T H I N K . How we inhabit this planet and envision its future is more critical

—consumers who have the power to reshape the world we live in. Every

now than at any time in our history. This past year has certainly taught

farmer, rancher, entrepreneur and organization we champion is better off

us that—it has exposed our vulnerabilities, our frail insignificance in the

because of you. You read, learn, take action and vote with your forks. It will

scheme of things. Yet during this turbulent and challenging time we have

be you who ultimately tilts the scale toward a more sustainable future, a

also found hope.

more sustainable food system.

On the following pages, we bring you the first in a series of thought lead-

Thank you for joining us as we collectively set our sights on creating a

ership stories that span topics on sustainability, hunger, restaurant revital-

future that is nothing less than extraordinary. One that binds the ecosystems

ization and regenerative agriculture. These are the values that Edible Com-

of our lives to Mother Nature without a disconnect between what is on our

munities, as an organization, has been devoted to for the past two decades.

plates and where it comes from—where all of the seemingly smaller choices

Our work lends itself to the singular notion that excellent storytelling has

we make today add up to massive, beautiful and everlasting positive change.

the power to change lives; and that by exploring and elevating important conversations like these, we can create massive change.

Tracey Ryder

We also know that change is impossible without the support of our readers

Marshall Johnson, Vice President of Conservation Ranching for Audubon standing in a field of prairie grass. Photo courtesy of Audubon

Words Bill and Katie Delaney Photos Jesse Brantman

edible INDY Summer 2021

edible Communities |

S I G N AT U R E

S E C T I O N

Co-Founder, Edible Communities

T H E BI R DS & T H E BE E F WO R DS

Joy Manning

P H OTOS

Candice Vivien

You’ve seen the headlines: Beef is destroying the planet.

now means adding 1 million acres of land to the 2.5 million

You’ve heard all about the greenhouse gases and pollution a

acres that have already been certified as bird-friendly. “It means

typical beef operation produces. But the idea that beef is an en-

a lot to partner with an organization that has built its brand in

vironmental disaster isn’t quite that simple. Those dire warnings

alignment with our core values,” says Johnson.

are based on one kind of beef: The conventional, factory-farmed

Darrell Wood, founding Panorama rancher, was the first in

kind. And it is, by far, the most commonly consumed beef in

the network to get certified. “I volunteered. I wanted to see how

North America. In fact, 97% of the beef in the US food supply

it went and what the level of difficulty would be for ranchers,”

is grain-fed, feedlot beef.

he says. And he discovered the benefits greatly outweighed any

But there’s another way to produce beef, a way that actu-

extra effort. In large part, the certification is an acknowledge-

ally enriches the environment. And it’s happening across at

ment of what Panorama ranches, all of which were already or-

least 3.5 million acres of American grassland. Kay Cornelius,

ganic, have been doing for years.

a fourth-generation rancher and new general manager at Pan-

As part of the program, each ranch gets an annual visit from

orama Meats, intends to add another million acres to that total

a rangeland biologist who takes soil samples, measures the veg-

by 2030 through a groundbreaking new partnership with an

etation, and assesses how the ranch affects bird life. Then Audu-

unlikely ally: The National Audubon Society.

bon creates a habitat management plan for the rancher with suggestions for improvements. “The ranches enrolled are going

A N E W S E A L O F A P P R OVA L “All of our data proves that grassland birds are the most im-

to become even more bird friendly, but they were already doing great things,” says Johnson.

periled group of bird species in America. Grassland birds have lost 53% of their population since 1970, and 95% of all grass-

FA R M E R S F I R ST

land birds live on cattle ranches,” says Marshall Johnson, vice-

Cornelius isn’t new to dramatically growing a network of

president of Audubon’s conservation ranching initiative. The

environmentally friendly farmers. Before taking the helm of

nonprofit’s “Grazed on Audubon Certified Bird-friendly Land”

Panorama Meats as general manager last September, she dou-

seal was established to recognize ranches that are managed in a

bled sales in her role as vice president for the biggest and best-

way that protects those birds. Saving these birds is a vital part of

known name in humanely raised meats, Niman Ranch. “I spent

maintaining biodiversity. Like bees, birds are important pollina-

12 years there working for farmers, and in my new job I’m still

tors, and they help maintain the delicate balance of a grassland

helping farmers earn a living,” she says.

ecosystem.

Finding ways to grow and protect a rancher’s livelihood is a

Through Audubon’s new partnership with Panorama, every

high priority for Cornelius personally and central to Panorama

ranch in Panorama’s network will earn that Grazed on Audubon

Meats’ mission. “I grew up in a rural community during the farm

Certified Bird-friendly Land seal. “We began the project of in-

crisis years. My mom and dad really struggled,” she says. The

troducing this certification in 2013, and we enrolled our first

experience of watching her once-thriving farming community

ranch in 2017,” says Johnson. Joining forces with Panorama

dry up back then informs everything she does today. “At Niman

edibleINDY.com Visit ediblecommunities.com for more photos and podcasts

Ranch, we really celebrated the family farmer doing the right thing and we’re doing the same thing at Panorama.” The simplest way to keep these family farms in busi-

4 Ways to Shop for Sustainable Meat

ness is to ensure they are able to get their product to market and to be paid a fair price. Being part of Panorama’s network helps them accomplish these goals, and the Audubon’s bird-friendly seal provides a major boost, a way to make these special packages of meat stand out from everything else in the butcher’s case for environmental conscious consumers.

Not every supermarket is stocked with grass-fed, grass-finished and bird-friendly beef—yet. If you can’t find it at your store, there are still ways to purchase sustainable steaks, chops, and burgers wherever you are. Here are some tips to get you started. 1. SHOP ONLINE

Panorama has partnered with online retailer CrowdCow.com and you can find their beef as well as meat from other high-quality sustainable ranchers there.

2. BUY A COW SHARE

In many communities, smaller farmers and ranchers will sell onehalf, one-quarter, or one-eighth of a single animal to you. Check out EatWild.com to find one near you. Red-winged blackbird

SAV I N G G R ASS L A N D The connection between beef, birds, grassland, and climate change isn’t immediately obvious. To understand how a properly managed ranch can actually help remove carbon from the atmosphere, you have to understand the long history of North America’s grassland.

3 . S H O P AT YO U R FA R M E R S M A R K E T

Farmers markets are typically a great place to connect with the kind of farmers and ranchers who are passionate about sustainability and land stewardship.

Before they were hunted nearly to extinction in the late 19th century, wild bison grazed an area just the right amount to promote the growth of a complex and robust root system without killing the plants. Domestic cows, if left to their own devices, will eat the grass down to the bare earth, destroying the grassland. To make them more like their ancestors, ranchers must use rotational grazing, moving them from spot to spot to achieve that ideal level of grazing. “Cattle can mimic what historic bison used to do. That’s why we need them,” says Johnson. Continued...

edible INDY Summer 2021

edible Communities |

S I G N AT U R E

S E C T I O N

4. ASK QUESTIONS

When you’re shopping, ask your butcher where the beef comes from and how it was raised. This educates you and lets them know there’s a demand for sustainable beef.

e edi edibleINDY.com ble le eIN IND ND N DY.c .co c om

43 43

edible INDY Summer 2021

edible edi edibleINDY.com dibl ble ble lleIND e ND NDY.co co c om

45 5

edible INDY Summer 2021

Darrell Wood and Kay Cornelius of Panorama Organic

Without animals grazing, grassland becomes overwhelmed

these eco-minded ranchers can only protect the grassland, the

with weeds and invasive plant species. The soil quality is de-

birds, and the whole ecosystem it supports if they can earn a

graded, and animal life, birds and pollinators like bees lose their

living doing it.

habitat. Vernal pools dry up and disappear. Without well-man-

That’s where you come in.

aged grassland, some species can even become extinct. “There’s a vernal pool on my ranch that hosts an endangered species called

A M A R K E T S O LU T I O N

fairy shrimp,” says Wood. “I have a stream that goes through

The way Kay Cornelius sees it, people are looking for three

my property that’s one of the major salmon spawning streams

things when they’re shopping for grass-fed beef. “They want

in California.”

to know it’s organic, they want to know that the animals were

And then there’s the matter of carbon. It’s true that cows emit

treated humanely, and they want to know about the environ-

carbon into the atmosphere, about 80 tons annually for a ranch

mental impact,” she says. “With the USDA organic seal and the

of 150 acres, according to the Texas Department of Agriculture.

Step 4 animal welfare standards, we had the first two covered.”

There’s also a certain amount of carbon emissions associated with

But until this new partnership with Audubon, Panorama had

the farm equipment (32 tons). But well-managed grassland, with

no iron-clad way to convey their commitment to the environ-

its deep root systems, lush vegetation, and rich soil, is actually

ment in a way easily understood by busy shoppers.

able to remove 500 tons of carbon from the atmosphere per year,

The Grazed on Audubon Certified Bird-friendly Land seal

giving it an overall positive effect on the environment rather than

requires third-party certification. Audubon is one of the most

a negative one. It should be noted that this only applies to cattle

trusted names in conservation. This means, in an era of spuri-

ranches with high standards for land management and environ-

ous label claims, the Audubon seal stands out as meaningful.

mental stewardship--not conventional factory farms.

According to Johnson, since the first ranches were enrolled in

Raising beef cattle on pasture this way does take longer:

the program in 2016, bird abundance has increased on those

Cows don’t fatten up as quickly without the grains provided by

grasslands by 36%. This is a good indication that other species,

feedlots, and they expend more energy grazing than on a feed-

especially bees and other pollinators necessary for the food sup-

lot. It also requires more space. As a result, a rancher practicing

ply, are flourishing as well.

this kind of regenerative agriculture cannot produce the same

“Consumers buy grass-fed beef to vote for a change in the envi-

volume of beef on the same acreage as a factory farm. Their beef

ronment. Paying a little more for beef is a nudge in the right direc-

must therefore be sold at a premium.

tion,” says Cornelius. It’s a small price to pay for doing your part to preserve America’s grassland and the birds that call it home. e

The preservation of this land is important to everyone, but

edibleINDY.com 47 ediblecommunities.com

DRINK LIKE AN EGYPTIAN Brew up a batch of hibiscus tea words & recipe: Francine Spiering | photography: Jenn Duncan

Crimson red and refreshingly tart, karkade (kar-ka-day) is a popular drink in Egypt steeped from dried calyses of roselle (Hibiscus sadbariffa). Enjoy it chilled on a hot summer day, or hot on a cool night by the campfire. Be sure to bring a bottle on your next hike. Health benefits attributed to hibiscus tea include relief from high blood pressure and high cholesterol. It is also believed to be beneficial to the digestive system. 5 cups water 1 cup dried roselle calyces Ice cubes Local raw honey Fresh mint and lemon for garnish Bring the water to a boil. Add the dried roselle. Boil for 2–3 minutes. Remove from heat and let the tea steep for at least 20 minutes. Strain into a pitcher and cool. Sweeten with local raw honey and serve in a tall glass over ice, garnished with fresh mint and a slice of lemon. From our friends at Edible Houston.

edible INDY Summer 2021

edibleINDY.com

, d o o F f o y it n u m A Com . y d In s g in h T l l A d n Drink a 1FPQMF DPNF UP 5IF (BSBHF UP HFU GFE CZ UIF CFTU UIF SFHJPO IBT UP PƊFS FOUSFQSFOFVST XIP QVTI CPVOEBSJFT TIBQF UBTUFT BOE 1FPQMF DPNF UP 5IF (BSBHF UP HFU GFE CZ UIF CFTU UIF SFHJPO IBT UP PƊFS FOUSFQSFOFVST XIP QVTI CPVOEBSJFT TIBQF UBTUFT BOE QVU *OEJBOBQPMJT PO UIF DVMJOBSZ NBQ 8F SF B NBSLFUQMBDF GPS MPDBMT USBOTQMBOUT WJTJUPST BOE FWFSZPOF JO CFUXFFO TFBSDIJOH GPS QVU *OEJBOBQPMJT PO UIF DVMJOBSZ NBQ 8F SF B NBSLFUQMBDF GPS MPDBMT USBOTQMBOUT WJTJUPST BOE FWFSZPOF JO CFUXFFO TFBSDIJOH GPS IF YOU’RE AS HUNGRY FOR EXPERIENCES AS WE ARE, COME TO THE GARAGE. BO BVUIFOUJD UBTUF PG *OEZ BO BVUIFOUJD UBTUF PG *OEZ IF YOU’RE AS HUNGRY FOR EXPERIENCES AS WE ARE, COME TO THE GARAGE.

@GARAGEINDY @GARAGEINDY

LOCATED IN THE BOTTLEWORKS DISTRICT | 906 CAROLLTON AVE, INDIANAPOLIS | GARAGEINDY.COM LOCATED IN THE BOTTLEWORKS DISTRICT | 906 CAROLLTON AVE, INDIANAPOLIS | GARAGEINDY.COM

Edible Indy Summer 2021 | No. 41

Articles inside

Karkadeh

Kitchen Sink Trail Bars

Summer Says Tabbouleh

COVER photography: Elizabeth Hannah Studios featuring Mezze from