Sunday night festivus: Barbecue brisket

Local Beef - nice and tender

After hitting our local farmers market this past Saturday, Katie and I decided to make some comfort food Sunday evening while I was anticipating my Syracuse Orange seed placement as the announced they 2011 Men's college basketball bracket. I'm sure Katie was more excited about the food. The brisket we purchased was from a local farm in our area. Lewis Waite Farm raises grass-fed and grass-finished beef and pasture raised pork on land that is Certified Organic by NOFA-NY. The cattle are not raised in confinement or on an unnatural grain diet. According to their website, they are quite happy in scenic pastures.

The practice of rotational grazing encourages the growth of native forage and the recycling of nutrients making for healthier soils. Our mixed breed pigs are happy pigs. The animals live a low-stress life. They run and root around, eating an amazing amount of forage from the pasture. They even enjoy preening, rolling around in mud and taking sunbaths in the middle of the field.

We have been lucky enough to try many of their cuts and are satisfied each time we eat. We accompanied the slow roasted brisket with a special dry rub with Katie's homemade baked beans, biscuits and honey (from a local honey farm) and a nice glass of nice red blend from Thumbprint cellars from St. Helena, CA.We loved their blends so much, we became part of their Wine Club and anticipate our wine delivery every three months.

It was a great meal to say the least.