{"id":2448916,"date":"2019-09-19T08:08:00","date_gmt":"2019-09-19T14:08:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/?p=313022"},"modified":"2019-09-19T08:08:00","modified_gmt":"2019-09-19T14:08:00","slug":"free-range-kitchen-wine-bar-invites-diners-to-meet-farmers-and-ranchers-at-the-table","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/local-news\/free-range-kitchen-wine-bar-invites-diners-to-meet-farmers-and-ranchers-at-the-table\/","title":{"rendered":"Free Range Kitchen & Wine Bar invites diners to meet farmers and ranchers at the table"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Kate McBride devoured the fresh pasta so fast that she can\u2019t remember what it looked like, but she can definitely describe the star ingredients: \u201cJos\u00e9 Miranda\u2019s water buffalo meat and water buffalo milk for ricotta, and Erin Cuseo\u2019s vegetables. (Chef) Chris (Krowicki) prepared the same product I so loved and turned it into something where I licked every morsel off every plate,\u201d she enthuses.<\/p>\n

The three-course \u201cmeet and celebrate our local farmers\u201d dinner at Free Range Kitchen & Wine Bar earlier this month was such a success that owners Robin and Steve Humble will reprise the event on Sept. 26. This time they invite McBride \u2014 proprietor of The Other Side Ranch in Old Snowmass \u2014 as a featured purveyor. McBride will provide organic, pasture-raised, GMO-free lamb, with one request: that Cuseo, of Erin\u2019s Acres Farm, supply her \u201csublime\u201d produce, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe both raise our products with such care that we do know everything that goes on \u2026 attention to minutiae is important,\u201d McBride says. \u201cIt\u2019s important that people get to know farmers because there\u2019s this tremendous insulation from who you are and how you live your life in this world of immediacy, including what you eat. You can\u2019t trust (food labels) any more. If you can get to know your farmer or grower, you\u2019re guaranteeing that risk is not there.\u201d<\/p>\n

McBride was even more impressed with Free Range when, in discussing the upcoming prix-fixe menu, chef Krowicki indicated that \u201che doesn\u2019t want the prized French rack or premium cuts,\u201d she says. \u201cHe said no \u2014 he wants to use a more common cut and work his magic there. Talk about Mr. Midas Touch!\u201d<\/p>\n

Cuseo echoes this sentiment. Though this summer\u2019s challenging growing season with lots of early rain meant many unknowns from week to week, Krowicki seems in his ultimate creative element on the fly.<\/p>\n

\u201cI felt really comfortable knowing that if I got a frost, (Krowicki) would made it work,\u201d Cuseo says of the last celebration. \u201cHe\u2019s going to bring it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Sept. 26 dinner at Free Range allows participating farmers and ranchers to share their personal backstory with potential customers. McBride will no doubt discuss The Other Side\u2019s raw dairy share program and full-service equine fitness and rehabilitation program \u2014 both launched as a means to care for her sick child, now 14. (As raw milk products are prohibited from direct sale by Colorado law, those will not be on the menu.)<\/p>\n

Cuseo plans to launch a six to eight week winter CSA share from Erin\u2019s Acres Farm, featuring fresh greens, sunflower shoots, radishes and hardy vegetables. Subscribers, who purchase a share of food in advance to help offset Cuseo\u2019s operational cost, will receive a box of bounty weekly until mid-January.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m planting fall greens: kale, spinach, Asian mustard greens, lettuce, microgreens, to keep those flowing,\u201d she says. \u201cAll the farmers in the valley would agree that there\u2019s a huge market for fresh greens \u2014 that\u2019s what gets people hooked. It\u2019s hard to go back to the grocery store.\u201d<\/p>\n

Connecting consumers with Colorado food has been Free Range owners Steve and Robin Humble\u2019s mission since they opened the restaurant in downtown Basalt three years ago this December.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve finally touched on what the community wants; my focus was always cleaner food, hormone- and antibiotic-free, as un-sprayed as possible, more sustainable practices, because of cancer,\u201d explains Robin Humble, who endured 14 rounds of chemo in the year prior to starting Free Range.<\/p>\n

That commitment has led the Humbles to seek ingredients from thoughtful area producers including Rock Bottom Ranch, Two Roots Farm, and Farm Runners \u2014 the latter, a delivery service, \u201cpivotal in keeping us true to the local-as-possible thing,\u201d Humble says. In the hands of masterful chef Krowicki (alum of The Little Nell and Roaring Fork Club), Free Range \u201chad a record-breaking, epic summer,\u201d she adds.<\/p>\n

A casual, camaraderie-focused format and gentle price point \u2014 $48 for three courses \u2014 that involves direct access to folks growing food defines Free Range, Humble continues.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Farm-to-table\u2019 isn\u2019t what this is; it\u2019s \u2018meet and celebrate the farmer.\u2019 It\u2019s an opportunity to open up relationships and educate those who want to be educated.\u201d<\/p>\n

As area farmers\u2019 markets approach autumn closure, the Roaring Fork Valley is entering a phase best described by Cuseo as \u201cthe last hurrah\u201d on summer crops such as tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers. Soon it\u2019ll be prime time for storage crops: potatoes, garlic, onions. Cuseo, who also raises water buffalo with partner Miranda at Rocking TT Bar in Carbondale, is looking ahead to a trip to California, where the couple will acquire a fresh herd of ranch animals. While there, they\u2019ll stay on a friend\u2019s vegetable farm, natch.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s funny,\u201d Cuseo says, \u201cwhen farmers take vacations they visit other farms. I\u2019m excited to experience that and see what other people are doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the average diner enjoys rare opportunities for such connection. Few local restaurants invite area farmers to participate in-house, though proprietors or chefs are increasingly keen to select certain ingredients to highlight in menu specials.<\/p>\n

McBride remembers when, years ago, Rustique Bistro in Aspen featured The Other Side Ranch pork chops from her heritage pigs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey ordered enough for the week and went through it the first night,\u201d McBride marvels. \u201cIt was a testament to the population seeking out the local, organic, pasture-raised product \u2014 people are understanding that that means something. It\u2019s synonymous with quality. I commend Free Range, Steve and Robin, for choosing to highlight what is important in making good health choices. They take the time to get to know their providers, and now they\u2019re sharing it with the public.\u201d<\/p>\n

amandaraewashere@gmail.com<\/a><\/p>\n

via:: The Aspen Times<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kate McBride devoured the fresh pasta so fast that she can\u2019t remember what it looked like, but she can definitely describe the star ingredients: \u201cJos\u00e9 Miranda\u2019s water buffalo meat and water buffalo milk for ricotta, and Erin Cuseo\u2019s vegetables. (Chef) Chris (Krowicki) prepared the same product I so loved and turned it into something where […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2448916","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-26 23:42:27","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSPN The Valley's Quality Rock","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2448916","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2448916"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2448916\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2448916"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2448916"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2448916"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}