Richmond's birthday is in June, when the farmers' markets are starting to fill up with fresh veggies and strawberries are at their peak.

This feast was one of my four-part Exploring Italy series, set in northwestern Italy: Piedmont, Liguria, and Valle d'Aosta. Most of the dishes came from Anna Del Conte's The Classic Food of Northern Italy with a couple from the Silver Spoon Cookbook.

We had:

• We opened the meal with an antipasto of Fontina Valle d'Aosta cheese and artichoke hearts, white anchovies, and olives, refreshed by a bottle of good Lambrusco, and some Martini and Rossi Dry Vermouth on the rocks.
• This was followed by the Ligurian Cappon Magro, an awesome structure of seafood on a mound of steamed vegetables, held together by a fabulous piquant green sauce.
• Next came a Roast Beet and Cheese Ravioli with Pesto alla Genovese and a Green Bean Tourte.
• Then came White Truffle Risotto, a classic Piedmont flavor, accompanying a rich Chicken with Mushrooms and Cream featuring multiple types of mushrooms.
• With the meal we enjoyed a Batasiolo Barolo 2001 and an Alessandria Barbera d'Alba 2009.
• We finished with the non-Italian but seasonal Frozen Strawberry Torte.

The feast was held on Sunday, 19 June 2011.

Attendees were John and Lorna, Richmond and Annette

Destination: The annual Common Ground Fair in Unity, ME.

Best of Show: The pasture-raised pork from Tide Mill Organic Farm

The Common Ground Fair is just about the antithesis of the Big E (see last week). It is smaller and quirky, in its own way. But the biggest difference is that it is hosted by MOFGA, the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, and so is a venue exclusively for organic and sustainable agriculture.

MOFGA has a number of fearless farmers growing produce that you probably never heard of and that you'll probably never see on the shelf at Stop & Shop, like the German Beer Radishes pictured here. That's one of the best things about coming to these events.

This year was the 30th annual Common Ground Fair. It has grown quite a lot since Lorna and I first visited it in 2001. Then is was certainly smaller, and the organic farmers and other vendors there were more likely to be the pioneers of the movement, the true believers making it happen in a difficult business environment.

The 2010 fair was much, much larger: 60,000 people were expected! There was a three-mile wait to park on Saturday afternoon, and then a 10-minute walk along a muddy woodland path after we'd parked. It was much further than when we'd parked for the Big E the previous week.

Destination: The annual Eastern States Exposition in West Springfield.

Best of Show: The Wild Maine Blueberry Pie at the State of Maine building

The Big E is the biggest "agricultural fair" in all of New England. I put "agricultural fair" in quotes because the ag part of the show is much diminished behind the neon glare. Behind the mad bazaar of offbeat products, the enormous midway, the huge evening crowds for the country music performances, the BMX stunts and the juggler there were livestock and farmers, a cheese competition, and close-ups on regional specialties by state.

Destination: The annual September Brimfield Antiques Fair.

Best of Show: The Leverett Village Coop 

Saturday's adventure started with one of our three annual expeditions to the awesome Brimfield Antiques Show.

You really can't imagine the sense of remote rural deep-hemlock-hillside-dark isolation until you drive through Leverett, turn left on Rattlesnake Gutter Road, and visit the Leverett Village Coop... I got Kombucha and local Irish Stout from Lefty's Brewing, Bernardston, MA.

Destination: Provincetown, MA

Best of Show: A Royal Bermuda Yacht Club cocktail at Bubala's.

P-town is great fun in the summer, and those who enjoy shopping can find some interesting treasures. I'm not much of a shopper, so I typically sit someplace with coffee to work and write while Lorna shops.  

On this particular occasion, I had a foodie goal: I had been learning about the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club cocktail (see link above) and I have even made up a batch of that mysterious elixir known as Falernum Syrup to get the authentic flavor. But it still wasn't working for me; I needed the help of a pro.

Billy's instincts did the job. Billy is one of the barkeeps at Bubala's, on Commercial Street in Provincetown. I think he dreads when I come in because he knows I will want something that nobody else has ever asked for. But he also seems to enjoy the challenge, and always does a great job.

I had brought my Falernum in a little glass jar. He knew trouble was brewing when I set it down on the bar beside my clipboard and pen. I showed him the recipe and told him my troubles - the lime juice was beating up the other ingredients, but if I let up on it then it was too sweet. Alas! I had never had one properly made so I didn't even know what I was shooting for.

He drily said "You're shooting for a good drink, you fool." Then he took the Falernum and lickity-split he had shaken up a delicious Royal Bermuda Yacht Club Cocktail.

I asked him how he did it, and he said he'd just done it. I asked if he could do it again, and measure it this time.

Destination: Vermont Garlic Festival

Best of Show: Tasting 19 kinds of garlic and 21 varieties of heirloom tomatoes!

The journey was memorable, too - we also enjoyed local Mocha Joe's coffee, grass-fed beef and local veggies at the Chelsea Royal Diner in West Brattleboro before we ever got to the Garlic Fest.

After we left the Garlic Fest, it was too early to head home, so wecrossed Vermont on country  roads en route to ... dinner and Benton Lane pinot noir at Giuseppe's in Meredith, NH (well, it's sort of on our way...)

Destination: The Caledonia County Fair, Lyndonville VT

Best of Show: Fresh cheese curds from the cheese-maker truck

The Caledonia County Fair in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom is a good old-fashioned county fair with all the required accoutrements: cows and goats, the draft horse pull, corn-dogs and maple cotton candy - they do it right.

You might think that your source for the classic corn dog might not be fertile fields for foodie fun, but you just have to look around and maybe you'll get lucky.

We did. Way up in the back, beyond the center ring with the fairway and the draft horse competition, just to the left of the cattle barns, we found the Dairy on the Moove, a cheesemaker on wheels with an educational program and samples of tasty fresh cheese curds! 

 The lady with the white Bengal tigers was pretty cool, too!

Destination: Richard Thompson live at Prescott Park, Portsmouth, NH

Best of Show: Shared Reggiano Parmigiana and fresh peaches in the park

Honorable Mention goes to Colby's for an excellent late lunch 

Destination: The Union Fair, Union, ME

Best of Show: Steamers at The Boathouse on the harbor

The best steamers we'd ever had, served with draft Allagash White Ale - heavenly!

Destination: Provincetown

Best of Show: The Beehive Tavern

Any summer sunday expedition to Cape Cod must take into account that you won't be getting off-Cape before the traffic subsides, you may as well plan to dine well and slowly.

The Bee-Hive is a homey, comfortable place with local Cape Cod Beer (a vacation in every pint!) and Cape Cod comfort food.

See also the very excellent Dunbar Tea Room.

Destination: Bennington VT and Hoosick Falls, NY

Best of Show: Peppermills, Bennington

Destination: Boothbay Harbor, ME

Best of Show: Cafe Mirabelle, Portsmouth, NH

Another honorable mention to Becky's Diner (nothin' finer!) 

Destination: Woburn, MA

Best of Show: A Sazerac at the Sichuan Garden bar

We went to Woburn for dinner this Friday after dropping Melissa off at Logan Airport.

I had wanted to come here for the highly-regarded authentic fare ever since visitng the Yin-Yu-Tang House at excellent Peabody-Essex Museum in Salem, and listening to a series of lectures on 5000 years of Chinese history. The classic cocktails were a very pleasant surprise.