Carrot Zucchini Bread with Virginia Maple Syrup

In 2020, the spring equinox occurred on Thursday, March 19, which is earlier than it's been in over a century! Flowing maple syrup sap is one of the first signs that spring is on the way. For the first time, the 62^nd Annual Highland County Maple Festival which was to take place on March 14-15 and March 21-22, was postponed until further notice due to safety considerations regarding the coronavirus. The decision was understandable but does not dampen the disappointment we and thousands of others felt about not getting our Virginia maple syrup supply and missing their famous maple doughnuts this year. We’re hoping to visit Puffenbarger’s Sugar Orchard as soon as it is possible to restock their Virginia maple syrup for our gift baskets.

Needing a substitute maple syrup treat fix right now, we decided on making our own Carrot Zucchini Bread with Cream Cheese Walnut Frosting with warm spices and pure Virginia maple syrup. Give this recipe a try. It makes a moist, delicious rustic loaf. It’s a wonderful way to welcome spring.

 Carrot Zucchini Bread
Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 eggs
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups grated zucchini
1/2 cup shredded carrot
1/2 cup chopped walnuts optional

Cream Cheese Walnut Frosting
4 ounces cream cheese softened
1/4 cup butter softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup chopped walnuts optional

Instructions:

1.    Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat an 9" x 5" loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray.

2.    In medium bowl stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. Set aside.

3.    Add eggs and brown sugar to a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Add oil, pure maple syrup, and vanilla, and mix again until well blended. Add about half of the flour mixture and mix just until incorporated. Add remaining flour mixture and continue to mix until combined. Using a wooden spoon, stir carrot and zucchini into the batter.

4.    Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan. Bake 45 to 50 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool for 15 to 20 minutes before removing from pan. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

5.    Meanwhile, prepare the frosting.

6.    Use an electric mixer to beat cream cheese together with butter in a medium bowl. Add powdered sugar and mix again until incorporated. Add milk, lemon juice, and vanilla extract and beat until creamy.Frost the cooled loaf of bread and immediately sprinkle with chopped walnuts, if desired.

Highland County Chamber of Commerce introducing Maple Syrup Trail

March is Maple Month. Take a step back in time to Highland County, “Virginia’s Sweet Spot.” Travel scenic back roads and majestic mountain byways to the annual Highland County Maple Festival. In 2020, there will be a new sugar camp open, bringing the total to 9 open sugar camps with unique techniques and stories for you to explore. In addition to pancake dinners, doughnuts and entertainment, over 100 high-quality juried vendors take part in the festival each year. This year the 62^nd Annual Highland Festival takes place on March 14-15 and March 21-22.

Normally the Maple Festival is the only time visitors get to come by the sugar camps to see how the syrup is made. This year, though, the HIghland County Chamber of Comomerce is starting the Maple Syrup Trail, with ten sugar camps open all year for visitors to see how the trees do throughout the year and enjoy the scenery of Highland in other seasons. “Each one is unique. We go from modern to really traditional," said Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Chris Swecker. "There’s again farmers that have been doing this for generations to some first-generation producers. And there’ll actually be two sugar camps that aren’t normally open during the festival that you’ll be able to visit as well.” The trail comes with a passport, where visitors can get stamps from each camp and go into the chamber for prizes.

Bloody Mary Brunch

At any time during the year if you’re looking for a tasty Virginia food gift, visit TheVirginiaMarketplace.com to see our gift baskets and gift boxes that feature one of  Monterey, Virginia's sugar maple camps, Puffenbarger’s Sugar Orchard.

Pretzel-and-Peanut Cheese Ball

Super Bowl parties make some us think as much about food as football. A Southern Living recipe for a Pretzel-and-Peanut Cheese Ball piqued my interest. I strongly recommend using The Peanut Shop of Williamsburg's super large blistered Virginia Peanuts. 12 (serving size: ¼ cup)

Ingredients:                                                               
1 cup miniature pretzel twists
1 cup salted roasted peanuts
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
8 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 2 cups)
3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
1 tablespoon grainy mustard
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
Crackers, for serving
Directions:
1. Place pretzels and peanuts in a ziplock plastic bag. Seal bag, leaving a 1-inch opening at one corner. Lay bag flat on a work surface, and lightly crush pretzels and peanuts with a skillet, meat mallet, or the flat side of a measuring cup. Set aside.
2. Combine cream cheese, mozzarella, dill, mustard, salt, and pepper in a bowl or the bowl of a heavy-duty electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Stir or beat on low speed until combined. Shape mixture into a ball, and chill 15 minutes.
3. Place pretzel mixture in a shallow dish. Roll cheese ball in pretzel mixture, pressing gently to adhere. Serve with crackers.

National Pie Day - January 23

National Pie Day was born in 1975 in Boulder, Colorado, thanks to a school teacher named Charlie Papazian. On January 23, his birthday, he declared that this day would be forever remembered as National Pie Day. Why did he do that, you ask? Well, for one good reason: Charlie really loved pie. In fact, he loved it so much he would have a “birthday pie” instead of a birthday cake. Since then, his idea for a National Pie Day has spread all over the United States.

Enjoy a slice of your favorite pie or try this staple of any Southern gathering: Crunchy Peanut Pie

Virginia Handcooked Peanuts

Ingredients:
3 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup dark corn syrup
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups chopped Virginia Handcooked peanuts
1 unbaked 9-inch pie shell

Instructions:
First, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Next in a medium-sized bowl, beat the eggs until foamy. Now add the sugar, corn syrup, butter, salt, and vanilla. Continue to beat until thoroughly blended. Now stir in the peanuts. Place the pie shell on a cookie sheet, pour in the filling, and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until golden. Cool in the refrigerator and serve!

Pie can trace its roots all the way back to the Greeks. The Greeks created what is believed to be the first pastry shell by mixing together water and flour. They would then fill these pastries with a variety of different things – everything from honey to fruits to meats. The Romans adopted these pies and began to improvise with them by filling them with a variety of fruits and nuts, meats, fish, and even mussels.

Throughout the Middle Ages, the Ancient Greek and Roman dishes evolved into a more modern version of a pie. These dishes were called pyes and they were usually filled with meats. These meats could be filled with either beef or lamb, wild duck or even pigeons and vegetables. The whole dish was then spiced liberally and was baked in an oven. Encasing the meat and vegetables in a pie kept them from drying out during the cooking process. It also made it easier to transport and preserve the dish as well.

Of course, while the pies of the Middle Ages were closer to modern pies than what the Greeks and Romans offered, they would still probably be unrecognizable to most Americans or Europeans today. That’s because these early pies were covered in a ton of dough. This kept the food inside from drying out and preserved the food once it was done, but it made the pie crust just about inedible. No one would eat the dough of the pie, it was pretty hard so they just ate the fillings. Another interesting thing about these early pies is that sometimes the crust would be reused for another dish. Yes, that’s right, Medieval crusts were that tough.

During the 17th century, the pilgrims made quite a few pies – namely pumpkin and pecan. Like their Medieval fore bearers, they did so to preserve their food. As the colonists began to spread across the American continent, they took the idea of pie with them. This led to many new pies being created as the colonists used the natural resources around them. From about the 18th to the 21st centuries, there would be an explosion in the number of pies made in the United States and around the world.

Some of Betty Crocker’s Favorite Holiday Ham Glazes that Make Them Shine

Baked ham just isn’t ham without the glaze. Here are some super easy delicious glaze recipes that you can make up from scratch that have four ingredients or less and can be made in less than five minutes from Betty Crocker. You can brush the glaze on the entire time the ham is in the oven or add the glaze towards the end of your ham’s cooking time. Each of these recipes makes enough glaze to coat a family sized ham (6-10 pounds). One final tip: Cutting a criss-cross diamond pattern into the top of your ham will ensure that the glaze soaks all the way through, making the meat extra flavorful and tender.

Easy Maple-Mustard-Rosemary Ham Glaze
This sweet glaze, packed with earthy rosemary, mustard and maple flavors, will make your holiday ham a star.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup real maple syrup
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons coarse-grained mustard
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary

Steps:
1. In small bowl, beat all ingredients with whisk. Brush over ham the last 45 minutes of baking.

Easy Brown Sugar-Mustard Glaze

Made from common ingredients you probably have on hand, this deceptively simple brown sugar glaze for ham adds deep, complex flavor to a baked ham dish. It adds a touch of sweetness and an extra punch of flavor to grilled or baked pork chops or pork roast, too. The key to this glaze is the brown sugar and honey, which caramelize on the surface of a ham or pork roast as they bake.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons honey

Steps:
1. In small bowl, mix all ingredients with whisk until well blended.
2. Brush glaze over ham during last 45 minutes of baking.

Here’s one with some heat: Easy Honey-Sriracha Ham Glaze
Honey, garlic and Sriracha come together to make a sweet and spicy glaze—the perfect foil to a salty ham.
Ingredients:

½ cup honey
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons Sriracha sauce
1 clove garlic, finely chopped

Steps:
1. In a small bowl, stir together all ingredients. Brush over ham the last 45 minutes of baking.
One more, with a sweet kick: Easy Root Beer-Barbecue Ham Glaze
Creamy root beer adds a perfectly sweet kick to this three-ingredient barbecue-inspired glaze that pairs perfectly with ham.
Ingredients:
3/4 cup root beer
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
1/2 cup packed brown sugar

Steps:
1. In a small bowl, beat all ingredients with a whisk. Brush over ham the last 45 minutes of baking.

Peanut Pecan Pie

It's only fitting that pecans are joined by another product of the South, peanuts, in this holiday pie recipe. Peanut butter gives an additional peanutty boost to the sweet filling.


Ingredients:
1 unbaked piecrust for a 9-inch pie
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
3 eggs
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup coarsely chopped pecans
1/2 cup coarsely chopped peanuts
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Fit pastry into pie plate. Decoratively flute edge. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, whisk corn syrup, peanut butter and eggs until smooth. Whisk in granulated sugar and vanilla, then stir in pecans and peanuts. Pour into crust.
3. Bake at 350 degrees F for 50 minutes or until browned and center is set. Let cool completely at room temperature on a wire rack. Dust with confectioners' sugar before slicing an serving.

Servings Per Recipe: 16

We recommend extra large style blistered Virginia Peanuts.
We recommend The Peanut Shop of Williamsburg All Natural Peanut Butter

All Natural Peanut Butter

Graves Mountain 2019 Apple Harvest Festival - Celebrating 49 Years

Graves Mountain 2019 Apple Harvest Festival - Celebrating 49 Years

Oct. 5-6, Oct.12-13, and Oct. 19-20

One of the longest-running apple festivals in Virginia is the Graves' Mountain Apple Harvest Festival, now in its 49^th year. The area is surrounded by rolling mountains, and during the fall, the hills are blanketed in gorgeous fall colors. You can pick your own apples at the festival or purchase them pre-picked.  Graves' orchard features: Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Empire, Stayman, Rome, Mutsu, York, Winesap, Granny Smith, Fuji. In addition to fresh apples, you can get every kind of apple dish imaginable at the festival, such as apple butter made right in front of you. Take an educational tour of the farm property, get through the hay maze, jump on a hay ride, or climb the festival’s famous “hay mountain” with the kids.

Graves Mountain Apple Butter

Graves Mountain Lodge established its cannery in 1980. They use family recipes to make their old-fashioned preserves unmatched for their quality and goodness. They cook their preserves in open kettles. The batches are kept small and each product is made as needed. They use the finest quality fruit, pure cane sugar and all natural seasonings in creating a product they feel is as good as "Grandma used to make." Graves Mountain Apple Butter is incredibly smooth and perfectly spiced.