By Traci Brosch, BuyLocalBG.com
Saturday, September 28th, 2013 7:00 AM CST
Birch Bragg is the genius behind the wonderfully delicious artisan one of a kind fresh from scratch Pizzas at SKY Farmers Market. Producing a hand tossed piece of edible art like that is not easy. There is a lot of work that goes into each customized pizza and that help comes from his brilliant team. Not only are they talented beyond measure but they are so good looking!…just like Birch. The first ingredient that goes into these edible works of art is passion. Passion is what drives Birch to do what he does. He makes each of the doughs by hand at his home cafe.
Quality ingredients lend themselves to the wonderful flavor combination your taste buds experience when you first bite into the entirely handmade creation. Depending on if you order the breakfast or lunch you have a wide variety of bases to choose. If you go with the breakfast edition you get to enjoy a delish gravy that is made from scratch that morning…did I mention their morning starts at 3:30 AM…yep that’s the time their alarms go off and they start heading to their spot in the lot. They set up tents and all to pass health codes. So back to the pizza. The gravy is made FROM SCRATCH.
They use locally grown and processed bacon and sausage from Au Naturel Farm. Paul and Alison Wiediger treat their pigs like family…or maybe better than family. I sometimes treat my family like pigs but they are…but not like these little four legged wonders… these little piggies are rotated and moved every other day to gain access to fresh grass and finds. And when they forage they start with the best stuff available. No dessert last for them…. it is FIRST on their agenda.
The farm has been chemical free for over 20 years so nothing but the good stuff is in the feed so nothing but the good stuff is in the pigs. When you cut into the bacon you first notice the aroma and nice texture. The fat is so white because it is so healthy….no chemicals ,steroids, hormones…no nothing but fresh air water and food. Even the butcher says they have some of the pork this side of the Mississippi. After the bacon and sausage are cooked up in a skillet the flour and water is added accordingly and the gravy process begins. while that is in development and evolving the other ingredients are prepared. The local mozzarella cheese from Kenny’s is grated by hand. Not only is it grated by hand but only so much of it at a time is prepped…this will lend itself to even a fresher taste and you can discern it in the end product.
Quality really matters to these guys so quality is what you are going to get… The peppers and onions are also from Paul and Alison Wiediger and boy are they good! The onions are a special variety from Italy. No one else in the region has these so they are extra special. Grown in their amazing chemical free dirt the taste really shines in recipes like Birch’s pizza. Heat is an element that when you add it to a food the flavors just really come out and shine…. they just explode on your taste buds. The crunch factor that you experience in the first few bites is just incredible. Because they are fresh ingredients there is an unsurpassed combination of flavors and textures. By now your nose is in sensory overload speaking of smells …the aromas of the wood that burns in the pizza oven is about enough to make you want to pack up and move to the mountains and live in a cabin in the woods.
Other local ingredients include tomatoes and fresh basil… both are sourced from Beechmont farms. The eggs that are served on the breakfast pizza come from Peacefield Farms and if you take a look at the yolks they are a golden yellow and do not pop when you crack the shell. That just screams QUALITY. All of these locally sourced chemical free ingredients total up to a wonderful tasting pizza that is served up in about a 10 minute turnaround…and they take call ahead orders ! 270-349-9392. Also this week at the market there will be…..drum roll please…..double ginger scones !!!! YES they are back for a LIMITED TIME so come and get them while you can.
Alison is taking pre orders for any of her scones she is currently making and you can order them in quantities of 12… frozen. Simply prepay and pick them up the following week. They will be available and at your disposal all week. So when you feel like a scone fix at 3 am on a week night…by golly you can get it and not have to wait until the weekend. I always studied better on a full stomach back in the old college and I am sure you are the same.
So from our farms to your tables… we look forward to seeing you at the SKY market this weekend ! Bring a friend or just bring your appetite!…or both. Traci Brosch this messagae is Madi approved.
