Last weekend, my friend Michelle and I drove up (well, Michelle did all the driving while I snapped photos of fall leaves through the window) to Vermont to take a pie-making class with Joy the Baker. But, oh no, the fun did not stop there.
After the class ended, we continued on the road for another hour to Cabot, VT, where we spent the night at our friend’s farm, Hooker Mountain Farm. The farm specializes in pork, beef, chicken, maple products (maple soda!), and soon, whiskey and hard cider.
We arrived at the farm around 7:30pm, and it was pitch black outside and drizzling rain. It already felt like the start of winter up in Cabot. Cody and Monty, the two dogs on the farm, greeted us as we pulled up to the house. After a long day of driving and making pies, it felt nice to step inside a quiet, cozy house and be greeting by friendly faces.
What followed was one of the most comforting dinners I’ve eaten in a long time–cheese (from the farmer’s market), crackers, pickles, and homemade sausage; boiled salt potatoes; roasted Brussels sprouts; and pork roast with onions and a spicy chimichurri sauce–with homemade hard apple cider to drink. Any food scraps around the house got “re-used” as food for the chickens.
After some chatting and story sharing, Michelle and I pulled out the pies that we made earlier in the day. Our lovely hosts enjoyed multiple helpings of the pies, a sign that a. farmers are super hungry and b. Michelle and I made some mean pies.
The next morning, we put on our sweaters, jackets, scarves, and boots and headed outside for a mini “tour” of the grounds.
Look at all that wood. Apparently the house does not get above 50 degrees Fahrenheit in the winter. I’m cold just thinking about that.
Pictured above are three of the six pigs that were on the farm, enjoying their breakfast. Pigs are always my favorite animals to see when I go visit small farms. I love their big bodies and little curly tails.
When Michelle visited the farm this past summer, these guys were just little piglets. Oh how quick they grow.
The chickens meandered around in little groups, except one of the chickens decided to hang out in the mud with the pigs.
Chickens get slaughtered directly on the farm, while the larger animals are sent out for slaughter and then returned.
Cody the cutie. Cody had so much energy, frolicking around wherever we went.
These are mangel beets. The beet tops get used to feed the pigs, and if I remember correctly, the mangels are also being used for whiskey and drink experimentations.
We also checked out the cow and her calf, and two hungry boars. They all came to greet us, mostly because they were hungry for the food. I wish I got a shot of the pink boar eating the porridge. His mouth would open up as he chewed and the milky porridge spilled out the sides. A gnarly thing to witness. Ha.
The calf was so cute, it had little horn nubs growing from its head. Darling.
I still can’t get over how peaceful it was outside. I am sure this place is gorgeous during the summer, too.
It was a short but sweet trip. I already miss waking up to this view.
Until next time!
Figsinmybelly 
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