Move over, kombucha. Jason and Caitlin Elberson of Wild Rhythms Farm in Marshfield, Vermont have a new way for people to help their gut flora — Sobremesa fermented products. And judging from the response at farmers’ markets in Vermont, the couple is on to something.

Jason and Caitlin began their careers in engineering and education. After learning about the industrial characteristics of much of the country’s food system, however, they were inspired make a change. They moved to Vermont, where they established their homestead, Wild Rhythms Farm, with the goal of eating local year-round.

Of course, with a climate like Vermont’s, eating local vegetables throughout the winter requires some planning. Though the Elbersons practice many forms of food preservation, including canning, freezing and dehydrating, they prefer fermentation because it requires fewer ingredients—just produce, salt, and a knife—and provides such nutritious results. In 2014, they started a fermented vegetable and drink line, Sobremesa (a Spanish word that connotes lingering after a meal with your fellow diners), with the mission to nourish the body, mind, and soul throughout the seasons. They also thought their fermented vegetables would make a welcome complement to other vendor offerings at the local farmers’ markets.

The couple had been drinking shots of the leftover brine from their sauerkraut and kimchi, and incorporating it in salad dressings because they found it tasty and refreshing. When they bottled it for sale at their farmers market stand, they were pleased with the reception it received. “Many people are familiar with kombucha,” Caitlin says of another probiotic beverage whose popularity has soared. “Brine is different as it is savory rather than sweet. We often get customers raving that they have always loved drinking it and that they cannot believe we sell it so they can have a whole bottle in the refrigerator!”

Caitlin and Jason source the vegetables for Sobremesa products from their own farm or from other certified organic farms in the state. “We strive to honor diverse food traditions while putting our own spin on flavors and highlighting the best vegetables Vermont has to offer,” Caitlin says. And several of the brine flavors definitely reflect their twist on tradition, from the garlic punch of Fiesta Roja to the slow heat of the Curry & Turmeric flavor. The couple’s favorite? The gingery heat of Gateway Kimchi brine. “It’s so invigorating,” Caitlin says.

Jason and Caitlin Elberson—Farmers and fermenters
Marshfield, Vermont
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In late 2011, Debra Townsend needed a plan. After a divorce and a round-the-world trip with her children, she was ready to find her next adventure. On a whim, she brought some of her homemade shortbread to sell at the holiday market in Richmond, Vermont. After seeing the overwhelming popularity of her treats, she knew she had something, and Douglas Sweets was born.

“It’s something I’ve been making all my life, and people really like it,” she says of her decadent cookies. “I created a job for myself. But it’s more than just a job now. There’s more to it because it’s so connected to my mom.”

Townsend’s mother, Hannah Douglas, immigrated to the United States from Scotland as a young girl. To recreate a beloved treat from her homeland, she developed the recipe that is now Douglas Sweets’ traditional shortbread. But this family recipe isn’t the only thing Douglas gave her daughter. “She encouraged me to take on things,” Townsend says. Unusual for the era, Townsend’s mother had a career. “Not one of my friends’ mothers worked, but my mom loved what she did. She worked hard.”

Like her mother, Townsend knows how to work hard. After running Douglas Sweets out of her condo’s kitchen for a couple of years, she and her daughter— who is named after Townsend’s inspirational mother—have grown the company into its current location in the Vermont Artisan Village in Shelburne. They have expanded the flavors of their shortbread, as well, including a foray into savory biscuits, and gained new markets, including Whole Foods.

Though wholesale production is their primary focus, the new space allows them to have a retail bakeshop where they offer additional products. In keeping with using ingredients from local companies in the shortbread—King Arthur Flour, Cabot, and Vermont Peanut Butter Company—they’ve collaborated with Waterbury-based Artisan Coffee and J’Enwey Tea Co. in Massachusetts to sell Douglas Sweets–branded beverages. Earlier in 2017, Townsend brought on baker Barbara Hunton, who creates the unbelievable pastries that tempt shoppers from the front case. Currently the team rolls, cuts, bakes, and packages all the cookies themselves—not to mention the dipping, for the chocolate-covered varieties. But with new retailers carrying the shortbread, Townsend envisions changes in production to accommodate new growth at some point.

Debra Townsend and her daughter, Hannah. Photo courtesy of Douglas Sweets.

Hannah Douglas was able to witness her daughter’s business in its early days, but sadly, she passed away last year. However, her lasting influence can be seen in Douglas Sweets’ success, from the black-and-white photos of a 16-year-old Douglas gracing the bakeshop’s wall to the tea they sell there. “It’s very much her. I don’t think my mom ever drank a cup of coffee,” Townsend says. “My mom… everything she did, she did well.” And it appears that, along with the original recipe, that family tradition has been passed down from mother to daughter to granddaughter as well.

Debra Townsend – Co-Owner, Douglas Sweets
Shelburne, Vermont
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Top image: Signature shortbread from Douglas Sweets. All photos courtesy of Douglas Sweets.

The post Continuing a Family Tradition appeared first on Take Magazine.

Seven years ago, Tim Danyliw made his first metal drum from a propane tank in his workshop in the heart of Burlington’s South End Arts District. Since that somewhat clunky creation, he has streamlined the design into a piece of playable art. This musician-cum-metalworker initially saw his drum as a musical instrument, but his background in meditation led him to a different vision.

Instead of the staccato rat-a-tat-tat of a typical drum, these instruments produce complex, long-lasting tones, similar to those of Tibetan singing bowls used in traditional meditation. Danyliw wondered if these singing drums, as he calls them, could help children prepare their minds for learning. After working with several teachers throughout New England, he has discovered that they do indeed.

His “mindfulness with music” program, called Heart to Hand, features two drums per classroom, with students taking turns playing and focusing not only on their own drum’s music but also on their classmate’s playing. The drums are tuned to a pentatonic scale—usually G major—so they produce complementary tones. Danyliw recommends teachers use this two- to three-minute program at least twice a day—at the beginning of school and after recess—though some educators incorporate it into any time of transition. Like a taste of sorbet to cleanse the palate, playing the drum helps students delineate their thinking, clearing their thoughts of English, for example, and opening their minds to the math lesson to follow.

Rather than just handing over the drum to eager little hands to beat on, Danyliw demonstrates a gentle way of playing it. “I introduce it as our kindness drum. We play it kindly,” he says, gently striking a mallet on the curved surface as the harmonious tones resonate. “Once you do that, they get the idea that it’s not for rock and roll.”

Elizabeth Weaver, an early childhood special educator in the Burlington School District, uses the drum program in her preschool class. “We have kids who are peer models, as well as kids with speech and language issues, special needs, and intense autism,” she says. “The drum is a common language.” It’s this equalizing effect, the breaking down of barriers—whether of language or social structure—that the drum brings to classrooms. “We have kids who have a really hard time participating, but the second I start playing it, they sit and focus.” She also sees the drums as a confidence builder, especially for the increasing number of English learners she teaches. “Some kids are really shy about communicating,” she says. “You can do this and speak any language.”

Danyliw envisions the program as a way to create community. “Kids want to do things cooperatively, which is really in our nature. We teach competition in our society, but survival of our species was all about cooperation,” he says. Instead of starting each day with kids being told to stop talking and keep their eyes on their own papers, the drum-playing routine encourages community. “That’s the whole basis of everything: to make a connection,” he says.

Tim Danyliw—singing drum maker
Burlington, Vermont
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All photos courtesy of Tim Danyliw

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