Fall 2017 Checklist
Philly is home to artisans who uphold traditions and innovators who follow no rules. This list includes our favorite seasonal comestibles, both brand-spanking-new and tried and true.
Jacob’s Raw Kraut
At Jacob’s Raw, the process is simple: “We cut up vegetables, add salt and let it ferment,” co-owner Scott Grzybek says. The result is crunchy, probiotic-rich, straightforward kraut with simple flavors: classic, caraway rainbow, spicy and (our favorite) garlic. It’s great on sandwiches, in salads and—how Grzybek eats it every morning—atop fried eggs. It’s also easy to demolish an entire jar by the forkful. Pick it up at Philadelphia-area Whole Foods Markets, Essene Market and Kimberton Whole Foods. jacobsraw.com
Sam’s Morning Glory Ketchup
If you’ve ever had the stellar morning potatoes at Morning Glory in Bella Vista, we hope you’ve doused them generously in the housemade ketchup. It’s a loose condiment, almost like a tangy tomato sauce, that the brunch spot makes from scratch each week. It’s delicious on frittatas, fries and sandwiches. Morning Glory sells the addictive stuff by the bottle, so you can take one homeand put it on everything.
Sam’s Morning Glory, 735 S 10th St., 215.413.3999, themorningglorydiner.com
Golden Russet Cider
Early this year, Big Hill Ciderworks released its rst batch of golden russet cider, made with its own apples pressed on site, slow-fermented over the winter and aged in oak barrels for a year. At 8.5% alcohol, you can treat it like a wine. Its barely sweet, slightly vanills flavour pairs nicely with funky cheese. Get it at Local 44 or Bella Vista Beer Distributor and keep your eye out for it at bars around the city. 717.836.0062, bighillcider.com
Red Brick Barrel Aged Whiskey
The new distillery in Kensington makes whiskey with 100% barley, grown and malted in Pennsylvania, and sells it straight out of the barrel at full cask strength—114 proof—for an intensely flavorful spirit. Keep your eye out for Red Brick’s late-fall release of Birch Wood, too: it’s a whiskey made with wildflower honey,demerara sugar and black birch bark (collected by the distillers),with a flavour that’s less sweet and more satisfying than birch beer soda. Get a bottle at the distillery in Kensington or at area farmers’ markets. Red Brick Craft Distillery, 2628 Martha St., 267.603.3790, redbrickcraftdistillery.com
Termini’s Ossa di Morti
Keeping with Sicilian Day of the Dead (November 2) tradition, Termini’s makes hundreds of Ossa di Morti (Bones of the Dead) cookies every October/the dough,mad with flour,water, clove oil and sugar, is shaped into bones by hand using Giuseppe Termini’s original clay molds. As the cookies bake, the sugars boil and ooze out to form a caramelized base. Third-generation co-owner Vincent Termini recommends dunking them in an aromatic tea. Available October through November 2. Call ahead to order—they sell out fast. Termini Bros Bakery, 1523 S 8th St., 215.334.1816, termini.com
Speckled Butter Beans
The Farm at Bartram’s Garden specializes in crops brought from Africa throughout the diaspora, including okra, sorghum, blackeyed peas and beans. This fall, look out for farm co-manager Chris Bolden-Newsom’s favorite, Mississippi Speckled Brown Butter Beans (outside the South, butter beans are known as lima beans). He sells them fresh and recommends cooking them with scallions, garlic and hot pepper and thickening with a bit of butter for a protein-rich stew. Find them at the Bartram’s farmstand from 3:30 to 6:30pm every Thursday and at the Saturday market at Clark Park. Bartram’s Garden, 5400 Lindbergh Blvd., 215.729.5281, bartramsgarden.org
