Pickled in Pennsylvania!

Our friend Bryan is the proprietor of Almanac, an awesome store in Springtown, Pennsylvania. He's doing a special Rick's Picks tasting this Saturday, June 28th, from noon to 5 PM. If you are anywhere near Bucks County, please stop by for a pickle!

Get pickled at:

Almanac
3291 RT 212
Springtown, Pennsylvania
610 346 7509
www.almanacgoods.com

PICKLED RAMPS!

Last night the whole Rick's Picks gang got together at my house and engaged in one of our favorite rites of Spring... pickling ramps. If ramps are unfamiliar to you, they are a fern-like root that grows wild on the forest floor for a short period in Springtime. They are similar to a leek or scallion in appearance once trimmed, and have a spectacular pungent earthy flavor. They are great sauteed or pureed in a soup, and as pickles... well, they are just sublime. Ramps have an interesting history. In the old days, they were considered suitable only for poor folk... not the stuff of epicurean desire. Now, they are prized by top chefs who pay a premium at the Greenmarket for the best ramps. They are truly the caviar of spring vegetables. We tried two pickling styles last night. The first was a white vinegar brine with muddled pink peppercorns and dried hibiscus flowers. Part of the ramp's stem has a reddish-purple cast, and the pink peppercorns and the hibiscus reinforced the beautiful color while lending a sweet astringency to the flavor of the pickle. The other approach used a white wine vinegar brine with muddled green peppercorns and whole coriander seeds. There's an earthiness lingering in the ramps... the terrior... and these spices amplify it. We'll see which one comes out better. The goal is to introduce pickled ramps as an official Rick's Picks' pickle in 2009 for our Greenmarket and online customers. One thing is certain...we've already got the name: ON-RAMPS. When I told our friend Will the Chef at the Barnard Inn, in Barnard, Vermont about Project Ramp he responded thusly: if baby leeks are called ramps, what are old leeks called? Answer: Gramps.

We'll be here all week!

Rick's Picks at Share Our Strength's Taste of the Nation TONIGHT!

We're thrilled to join 50 of the top restaurants in NYC along with several other artisanal producers at tonight's Taste of the Nation benefit at Roseland Ballroom here in New York City. The reason for the event is this: NO KID HUNGRY. Tonight there will be Taste of the Nation events in over 20 cities each with this same theme, to raise money to help feed hungry kids. If you'd like to learn more about Taste of the Nation and what you can do to help, visit newyorktaste.org.

RICK AND ANNE SAXELBY TALK ABOUT THE BUSINESS OF SLOW FOOD

Friends: tonight I am speaking with my favorite neighborhood cheesemonger, Anne Saxelby about the business of Slow Food. Here's the invite:

SLOW U :THE BUSINESS OF LOCAL

Join successful, "slow", entrepreneurs,
ANNE SAXELBY, of SAXELBY CHEESEMONGERS, who sells only regionally produced farmstead and artisan cheese and
RICK FIELD, of RICK'S PICKS, who pickles only produce grown in our region.

Anne and Rick will talk about why they got into and how they became successful in the businesses of purveying and producing local food. There will be a Q&A period accompanied by Anne's excellent cheese and Rick's superlative pickles, all washed down by locally brewed beer.

WHEN:
Tuesday, April 29th 6p - 8p

WHERE:
Neighborhood Preservation Center
232 East 11th Street
(btwn. 2nd and 3rd Aves.)
Manhattan

TICKETS:
$20 - Slow Food Members
$30 - Non-members
Available ONLY at
www.brownpapertickets.com

SLOW U - The Business of Local

SLOW U is an educational program of Slow Food NYC, the local chapter of Slow Food USA, a national, not-for-profit association dedicated to achieving a Good, Clean, and Fair food system, where food is REAL and delicious, where it is produced sustainably and humanely, and where producers are compensated fairly and each eater has access to good, clean food.
Visit www.slowfoodnyc.org.

chicago here we come!

Lauren from Rick's Picks will be making a bunch of appearances at some of our favorite Chicago stores this weekend. Here's the schedule of events... spread the word!

Friday, April 25:

Whole Foods Lincoln Park
1000 West North Street,
12 noon - 3 PM

Pastoral
53 E. Lake
(Pickle and Cheese pairings!) 4 PM - 7:30 PM

Saturday April 26:
Fox & Obel
401 East Illinois
11 AM - 3 PM

Provenance
2528 N. California
(Pickle and Cheese and Wine pairings!)
4 PM - 6 PM

Sunday April 27

Whole Foods Lincoln Park
1000 West North
2 PM - 6 PM

See you there!

Dr. Don Downing, 1932-2008

Friends:

We're saddened to learn of the passing on February 29, 2008 of Dr. Donald Downing, founder of the Food Venture Center at Cornell University. The Center has provided invaluable regulatory guidance and scientific analysis for Rick's Picks since we began in 2004, and Dr. Downing has been at the heart of all the Center's work for countless food and wine businesses since 1988.

A Memorial Service will be held on April 12, 2008 at 2 PM at the Geneva Country Club in Geneva, NY.

Rick's Picks in Tinseltown!

Friends:

Over the next several days (February 6-10), I will be making store appearances in the Los Angeles area sampling Rick's Picks. Dates, times and locations are below... spread the word!

WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 6

Whole Foods Thousand Oaks
740 North Moorpark Street
Thousand Oaks 91360
11 AM-2 PM

Whole Foods Woodland Hills
21347 Ventura Boulevard
Woodland Hills 91364
3:30 PM - 7 PM

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7

Whole Foods 3rd and Fairfax
6350 West 3rd St
Los Angeles 90036
4 PM - 7 PM

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 8

Whole Foods Santa Monica
2201 Wilshire Boulevard
Santa Monica 90403
3 PM- 7 PM

SATURDAY FEBRUARY 9

Whole Foods Pasadena
3751 East Foothill Drive
Pasadena 91107
11 AM - 2 PM

Whole Foods Arroyo
465 South Arroyo Parkway
Pasadena 91105
3 PM - 7 PM

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 9:

Cheese Store of Silver Lake
3926-28 West Sunset Boulevard
Los Angeles 90029
12 noon - 3 PM

Olives Gourmet Grocer
3510 East Broadway
Long Beach 90803
3:30 PM - 6 PM

Spread the word and hope to see you out there!

Rick