This Saturday, March 5th was Davis Farmers Market's 20th annual Pig Day, celebrating pigs, food and local agriculture, in Davis.
As this was my first pig day I hardly knew what to expect, but pig, pig paraphernalia, and pulled pork sandwiches. At Pig Day one find baby pigs, people in pig costumes, farm animals from California Education Through Animals, and pig crafts for kids.
There was a petting zoo of piglets and craft booths where children can make pig tails, pig noses as well as piggie masks; booths are sponsored by the Davis Parent Nursery School, Davis Community Church Nursery School and UC Davis Rotaract Club. Pony Ranch Parties provided the pony rides.
For the 20th annual Pig Day, the spotlight is on John Blesdoe of Bledsoe Pork. You'll find pork ribs, pulled pork sandwiches, pork on pizzas, and pork stir-fry. And all of it will be sourced from Bledsoe Pork. John Bledsoe has enjoyed rock star status at the Davis Farmers Market since he first started selling pork there seven years ago.
Farmers market shoppers and local restaurant chefs love Bledsoe pork.
Local restauranteurs Kevin and Shar Katz of Caffé Italia have partnered with Artisan Baking on Wheels to cook up "pizzas with a purpose"–benefiting Davis Farm to School–at Davis Farmers Market. Shar Katz says their pizza toppings will be sourced from local farmers and producers and will change seasonally. "For today's Pig Day, we'll be doing pizzas with local endive, blue cheese, pears and reduced balsamic vinegar; a potato pesto pizza (Bledsoe bacon is optional); and a bianco potato pizza with the Caffé's crowd-pleasing white sauce." They'll also offer a pizza with Bledsoe pork for the meat-lovers.
Caffé Italia will also be selling Bledsoe Pork ribs with Kevin's special recipe rub that the Caffé uses on other meat products at their restaurant. Shar adds, "We rub the ribs with Kevin's special recipe, slow smoke them over hickory, cut them up and toss them in barbecue sauce and then heat them at a high temperature to caramelize them."
Sutter Davis Hospital's Live Cooking Station will also be on-hand, preparing and sampling pork stir-fry, using Bledsoe pork and other market-sourced vegetables. In addition to giving out samples, the hospital will hand out recipe cards for the stir-fry created by Josue Montalban, operations manager of the hospital's Nutrition and Food Services. Montalban grew up in Puerto Rico where his father was a pig-farmer, and he loves cooking pork. He says, "Farm-fresh food is such an important part of our happiness and good health. We're looking forward to sampling John Bledsoe's delicious, all-natural pork for Pig Day."
Jaymes Liuu, owner of Fat Face, will offered her breakfast sandwiches–fried eggs with either pulled pork or bacon on foccacia. Rhonda and Tony Gruska, and Jim Eldon, owners of the new Monticello restaurant in Davis, will offered their pulled pork sandwiches. Trudy and Mo Kalisky's Upper Crust Bakery offered pig pops (sweet French bread on a stick in the shape of a pig's head), and Gold Rush Kettle Korn offered piggie popcorn. The Yolo County Food Bank also hosted a FREE to the public farm breakfast of pancakes, bacon and juice with proceeds benefiting the local community.
This was in pork extravaganza that takes part during the traditional Davis Farmer's Market, where Asparagus season has begun and the Market’s local vendors offer a wide selection of the best-tasting, fresh seasonal fruits, vegetables and meats grown or raised in California, including certified organic produce, pork, lamb, beef, chicken, cheese and local eggs, olives and olive oil, plus fresh baked goods, flowers and plants. A craft faire at the north end of the market features unique crafts such as beeswax candles, goat’s milk soap, pottery, quilted crafts, and more.
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