I recently returned from a trip to England where I got to taste many amazing cheeses, and each one was incredibly fresh. These cheeses I ate in England inspired me to help you find local, fresh cheese in Missouri.

Featured last fall in Feast magazine, Baetje Farms – located near Ste. Genevieve, Missouri –  produces several flavors of goat cheese. The cheeses have a light and fluffy taste, without the heavy gamey flavor that sometimes comes with a goat cheese. My favorite is the Coeur de la Crème because it is shaped into a heart, reflecting its name.

Moving across the state to the Kansas City side, Green Dirt Farm makes their artisan cheeses from sheep’s milk. The “Wooly Rind” is a Camembert-style cheese and is similar to a mild brie. A big step up from that is the “Bossa” cheese – thick, creamy, and full of flavor. The “Dirt Lover” is a triple crème, practically a buttery spread.

You can shop online for another Kansas City cheese from Yummy’s Choice, who has created a variety of feta cheese spreads marinated in extra virgin olive oil. Flavors include regular, mint, and spicy, as well as a Sun Dried Tomato Lebaneh, which is a combination of feta, cream cheese, with several spices and herbs.

In the middle of the state is Goatsbeard Farm, located in Harrisburg, which is about 20 miles northwest of Columbia. Goatsbeard offers a selection of Fresh Rounds, Fresh Tubs, Soft-Ripened Cheese, Feta, and Raw Milk Cheese. More information can be found on their website at http://www.goatsbeardfarm.com, and their artisan goat cheeses can be found in wine stores such as The Wine and Cheese Place and The Wine Merchant.

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To learn more about the cheeses in this post:

You can find Baetje Farms online at http://baetjefarms.com or at the Maplewood Farmer’s Market in the Schlafly Bottleworks parking lot on Wednesdays from 4-7pm.

You can find Green Dirt Farm online at http://www.greendirtfarm.com or in the cheese section at Whole Foods Market.

Yummy’s Choice is online at http://shop.yummyschoice.com or you can purchase their spreads at the closest Whole Foods Market.

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Michelle Marcus is a web developer, music lover, and food aficionado. To read more from Michelle, visit her blog: http://michelleamarcus.blogspot.com/.

Colorado Coffee Merchant

Colorado Springs isn’t a huge town, and if you took it away from the Rocky Mountains, it would be much like the hundreds of other mid-sized cities around the country.

The handful of tourist destinations here that have helped draw people to the community are mostly Rocky Mountain-centric (two exceptions that come to mind immediately are the United States Air Force Academy and Focus on the Family’s Visitor Center).

Colorado Coffee Merchants

Two things about Colorado Springs that I like to share with friends who visit — and which are not Rocky Mountain-centric — are its coffee shops and its micro brews. One of my favorite recent discoveries has been Colorado Coffee Merchants, a coffee shop and roaster on Fillmore Street in Colorado Springs.

Air Roaster at Colorado Coffee Merchants

Colorado Coffee Merchants roasts its coffee right in the coffee shop using an air roaster. I’ve not yet been there while they were roasting, but one of the baristas had explained to me that air roasting provides an even roasting of their beans.

Latte at Colorado Coffee Merchants

And while I’m not sure how or why air roasting would make a difference, she also told me that they boast that their coffee won’t leave the drinker jittery. I’ve been buying my coffee beans (the Roswell Park blend, if you’re curious) at Colorado Coffee Merchants now for well over a month, and unless I find a roaster I like better, this is my coffee shop of choice.

Colorado Coffee Merchants is an industrial sort of space that serves coffee, yogurt, and a few pastries. The shop is located near I-25 and Fillmore, at 302 East Fillmore in Colorado Springs. For more information, visit their website.

As many times as I’ve moved in my adult life (Colorado Springs is city #8, and Colorado is state #6…I think), you’d think I’d be an old pro at making new friends and finding my niche in a new community. I wish that were the case!

I’ve become a little bit desensitized to a concrete sense of “home” as a result of my many moves, but that doesn’t mean it’s any easier to move somewhere new, where I don’t know many people, and where I don’t know how my skills, my personality, or my life experiences fit in. That’s why, as excited as I am about attending my first Community Dinner, I’m also a little bit nervous.

Despite my anxieties about fixing a recipe for 15 (I usually cook for 1 or for 2), and despite not having decided yet what I’m going to cook… Despite the fact that this event is designed to highlight local foods, and I don’t even know what foods are native to Colorado besides game meats like Elk and Bison… Despite only knowing two women at this big dinner… and despite being scared I’ll spend the whole evening sitting awkwardly by myself… I’m going to give it a shot.

Wish me luck on my recipe, and on meeting new people. Hopefully an even like this one will draw like-minded people who are just as hungry (nerdy pun fully intended) as I am to build a sense of community around them here in Colorado Springs. After going for a short run this morning, I’m going to visit Mountain Mama Natural Foods in search of cooking inspiration in the form of a locally-grown key ingredient.

When’s the last time you tried something new, went somewhere alone, or put yourself far outside of an existing comfort zone? How did it work our for you when you did? Maybe your comments will inspire me as I continue to explore my own sense of “home” and community here in Colorado Springs.

Wildwood Farmers Market, photo by Bruce Clithero

Guest Post by Bruce Clithero

A local TV station recently aired the special “Cutting Edge Fighting Fat”.

About one-third of U.S. adults (33.8%) are obese, and approximately 17% (or 12.5 million) of children and adolescents aged 2-19 years are obese. One of seven low-income, preschool-aged children is obese. You don’t have to look far to find statistics.

Because there is a direct relationship to the food you eat and your health a fantastic way to take a stand against obesity in Missouri is to eat locally grown foods. We are blessed in the St. Louis area with the many markets and natural food stores. I shop at one of the many local Farmers Markets every week.  Some of my favorites are Wildwood, Ellisville and Maplewood. You can find a local grocery store, farmers market or farm near you on localharvest.org.

Ellisville, Missouri Community Farmers Market, photo by Bruce Clithero

My challenge to you is to eat naturally grown food that comes from a garden or a farm that has not been modified to resist pests or has had chemicals added to ward off diseases.

If you want to take it a step further (and get some extra exercise), you can even grow your own food. If you need help with your own garden, call up your friends, family, your neighbor or tweet with me to find helping hands.

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Bruce Clithero is a fresh food advocate who’s interested in sustainable farming, helping busy people, entrepreneurship, and loving life. Follow Bruce on Twitter of visit his business website, Concierge Services of St. Louis.

As a work at home Mom, I love to cook healthy meals for my family, but I also love convenience. This is why I absolutely LOVE shopping at the Dardenne Prairie Produce Market.

The market sits on the corner of Highway N, right outside of my lovely little community of Winghaven. I frequent this place quite a bit, in fact, I walk in and they know me!

Dardenne Prairie Produce Market, photo by Elisabeth Cutshall

The two owners, Shannon Yates and Jean-Paul Doyen, are helpful and approachable. Every time I am there, they are quick to show every customer how to pick out the perfect fruit or veggie, and they’ll even carry it to the customer’s car if it’s too heavy.

Besides all of their wonderful produce, Shannon and Jean-Paul also carry some fantastic local products (coffee, bread, spices, jams…). Both Shannon and Jean-Paul pride themselves on the quality of their products.

Dardenne Prairie Pineapple, photo by Elisabeth Cutshall

On more than one occasion I have heard them tell customers (myself included) that if we are not happy with our purchase, they would be more than happy to refund our money. They’re also more than happy to peel and core your pineapple, free of charge!

On the Dardenne Prairie Produce Market Facebook page, they update what new produce has arrived and also what is on special for the week. Since I am there so much, and since I’m such a social media dork, I always make sure to check in and tease them in some way or another…like requesting bloody mary’s or mimosas!

Dardenne Prairie Produce Market, photo by Elisabeth Cutshall

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The Dardenne Praire Produce Market is located at 7397 Hwy N in O’Fallon, Missouri. You can find Dardenne Prairie Produce Market on Facebook, and you can reach them by phone at 636-240-3990. The stand’s hours are Monday – Friday from 9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m., Saturday from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. and Sunday from 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

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Elisabeth Kuebel Cutshall is a work at home mom, freelace makeup artist & fashionista, & former Fashion Editor.  For more by Elisabeth, visit her blog, follow her on twitter, and like her Facebook Business Page; Makeup By Elisabeth. You can also subscribe to her website here!

Busy Little Beaders Earrings, photo by MilliGFunk

I found these on Sunday at the Pikes Peak Community Cupboard food swap, and I was beyond thrilled when Amy, the woman who designed them, was equally inspired by my home made black and white photo note cards. I was a happy swapper on Sunday afternoon.

One Happy Swapper, photo by Mr.MilliGFunk

Pikes Peak Community Cupboard, photo by MilliGFunk

On Sunday afternoon, we attended our first food swap hosted by Pikes Peak Community Cupboard at Care and Share – a food bank for southern Colorado - in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

I’d never attended a food swap before, and I was on an absolute high by the end of this one. The event drew 20 or 30 people total, about half of whom brought items for swap, barter and trade.

Fresh Tomatoes, photo by MilliGFunk

I saw fresh cut flowers from one woman’s garden, home made soaps and oils, fresh produce from several different family’s gardens, hand-crafted jewelry, and an assortment of home-canned jellies, jams and preserves.

Chocolate Vegan Cupcakes, photo (and cupcakes) by MilliGFunk

I baked homemade vegan chocolate cupcakes with vegan butter cream frosting (both made using recipes from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World) and vegan chocolate sprinkles. I packaged the cupcakes in pretty boxes and wrappers I found at Michael’s craft store, placing them on the table for trade, four cupcakes per box.

I also brought eight hand-made greeting cards featuring my own black and white photography. I bundled the cards together in two groups of four. Next to each of my items, I placed a swap sheet – a small piece of paper listing my name, the items available for swap, ingredients included in baked goods, and a number of blank spaces where other traders could write down their own names and what they were willing to swap for my goods.

I was surprised that my cupcakes were only bargained for by one woman, while my greeting cards were significantly more popular. To be honest, it was exhilarating to see so many people’s names listed on the greeting cards. Who knew that my photos would be so well-liked? It was exciting!

The swap lasted for approximately two hours, during which time we mingled with other swappers, tasted samples of edibles, and checked out the goods available for swap with the people who’d shown interest in swapping for our cupcakes and cards.

Fresh Produce, photo by MilliGFunk

At the end of the swap, we came home with a huge bag of fresh produce and herbs as well as a beautiful pair of hand-crafted earrings made by a Colorado Springs company called Busy Little Beaders. I can’t wait for the October swap!

I’ll be watching for other events organized by Kathya Ethington, the woman who organizes the PPCC. Here’s her blog post on this week’s swap. Give her photography some love if you have time – she’s got an amazing set of skills for food photography, and I think you’ll be impressed by her capture of color and light.

To learn more about Pikes Peak Community Cupboard, visit them online.

I was graced with the good company of several friends who also blog, tweet, and Yelp! about St. Louis-area restaurants; @offeatenpathstl, @4leafclovergirl, @gotarchoptions, @stllegend, @misseinstein007, @tojosan and @nanna_j.

Because I move to Colorado in a week, this dinner was a bittersweet one for me. It’s unlikely that I’ll have dinner with my St. Louis friends again before I hit the highway for the day-long trip to Colorado Springs.

Bridge has a big city meets country cabin kind of feel on the inside. Dark hardwood floors, and a beautiful bar with floor-to-ceiling shelves of wines and beers behind it, give the bar a polished and contemporary feel. Chandeliers made of tree branches and a lofted dining area make the space feel cozy and warm.

Our group was seated quickly and easily just before our 6:00 meetup time, and drink orders at the table ranged from my own Argentinian Malbec to a green apple cider and various beer selections from my companions. Having forgotten my own camera, I didn’t try to take pictures of the wonderful vegan bread and oil that were served prior to our entrees.

The menu was – surprisingly, considering the restaurant’s location and trendiness – reasonably priced. I ordered the Cuba, Missouri sandwich as a tribute to my Small Town Missouri heritage, and it was wonderful. In between two fresh buns were mojo roasted pork, ham, emmenthaler, pickles and mustard. On the side were St. Louis’s own Billy Goat Chips. All of this for $8. (For the record, the Malbec I ordered was also $8).

The space was a little bit loud, which made conversation at a table of eight guests nearly impossible. The service was great though, and the  manager stopped me on my way out to make sure that I had been pleased with the meal. He also gave me a tip-off that Bridge will be featuring a new menu soon. If you live in St. Louis, it might be worth checking out.

Bridge remains one of my favorite St. Louis bar destinations for its huge selection of imbibements. Bridge serves more than 200 beers, 55 of which are on tap. There are also more than twenty wines by the glass and over a hundred total wines.

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Bridge Wine Bar & Tap House is located at 1004 Locust Street in St. Louis Missouri. For more information about Bridge, visit their website.

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From the evening’s other blogger guests:

Tojosan’s Blog Post
Tojosan’s Photostream
Nanna_J’s Photostream

This event was special for me because my beau, who lives out of state, happened to be in town. When we arrived at Nebula Coworking – a seriously rad coworking space - near Cherokee Street in South City, St. Louis, we were warmly greeted by Angela and asked to write our name and our blog’s URL on a “Hi, My Name is…”-style paper label nametag.

MilliGFunk, photo by Nick

I did exactly as instructed, my clever, clever boy toy got…well…clever. Nick isn’t a blogger, so while my name tag said, “@MilliGFunk” and “SmallTownGirlsGuide.com”, here’s what he wrote on his name tag:

"What Blog?" photo by MilliGFunk

Once everyone arrived, Angela introduced herself and explained that this course would be a wine tasting only (not a food and wine pairing), and was designed to be a sort of a Wine 101; an introduction to generic styles of wine rather than a tasting to highlight particular wine makers or vintages.

Angela gave us a handful of tips on handling wine, including tips on wine storage. She explained that wines should be stored in a dark, temperature-controlled environment like a closet or a wine cooler,and that wines shouldn’t be stored in direct sunlight.

STLWineGirl's Will Write for Wine, photo by MilliGFunk Photography

Wines shouldn’t be stored in a room where temperatures tend to fluctuate, Angela explained. And do you know which room in your house has temperatures that change the most in any given day, month or year? Your kitchen! What does that tell you? Don’t store you wine in your kitchen, silly. Store it in a room were temperatures are more stable.

And for those of you wine your wine collection sitting on the top of your fridge? For shame! It’s all kinds of hot up on that fridge, so go right now and move that wine someplace cooler.

Speaking of moving wine, wine doesn’t like being moved around a lot. What does that mean? If you’ve got a cross-country move planned, maybe you should invite all your closest friends over to help you drink you wine. Okay, maybe that’s not necessary, but your friends would probably appreciate the invitation, and there is a chance that your wine might go bad in transit.

Another tip Angela offered was the 30/30 rule for chilling wines. Red wines should be put into the fridge to chill roughly 30 minutes before you’d like to serve them. Whites, on the other hand, should start out chilled and should be removed from the fridge 30 minutes before you imbibe.

One of the things I didn’t know before this class was exactly why it is that a server will let you taste a small pour of the wine you select while dining out. It’s not so that you act hoity-toity and return the wine if you don’t like it. The only time it’s okay to send the wine back is if the wine is “corked”; in other works, if the wine has turned bad in the bottle.

Here’s where it gets neat, IMHO;  the restaurant doesn’t take a loss on the corked bottle. They sent it back to the distributor, who sends the restaurant a new bottle. And the wine maker replaces that bottle for the distributor. The lesson here is that if you’re poured a glass of wine that’s gone bad, you can return it without feeling guilty, since the restaurant won’t be hurt in the pocketbook (and neither will your server).

Missouri Rose, photo by MilliGFunk Photography

Through the course of the class, we tasted a Sauvignon Blanc, a Chardonnay, a Cabernet Sauvignon, and a Missouri rose, discussing the basic characteristics of each wine. Angela provided us with a helpful glossary of terms often used to describe wines, and I got the impression that all 20 of us in the class learned at least a few new things about wine.

Angela was one of the first friends I made after moving “home” to Missouri two and a half years ago.  I genuinely enjoy her classes, and I think she’s building a good business. Her mission is, “Creating a personal experience with food & wine that is approachable & accessible”, and she’s done this and more in each of the wine experiences I’ve shared with her.

Thanks for another great class, Angie!

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Sharing this class were: @cityjars, @MoEats, @kimberly9938, @ironstef, @maddie_em, @katiethatcher, @goblueELTblog, @mamamarcus17 @stlsouptonuts, @citydiva, @deliciousstl, @4leafclovergirl, @stlveggirl, @hannahviolin, @eatlocalstl and @howmomrolls

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Other bloggers’ write-ups on the Will Write for Wine Event:

Bridget McGuire’s Filling Station

City in a Jar

Every Little Thing

Hannah Violin

Michelle A. Marcus

Tony Loves Food

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To learn more about STLWine Girl, visit her online!

This event is open to any St. Louis area food bloggers or social media friends who’d like to join us, but it would be helpful if you would RSVP by commenting here that you’d like to attend. If we end up with more than just a small group, I’ll make a reservation for our group in advance.

What: A Blogger’s Dinner Meetup
Who: St. Louis Food Bloggers (and Social Media Friends)
Where: Bridge (1004 Locust Street, St. Louis)
When: Friday, August 12th
What Time: 6 p.m.

R.S.V.P. by leaving a comment

While I’ve only had the cheese plate and drinks at Bridge, I really enjoyed the restaurant’s wine and beer selection and its interior decor. If you’ve not eaten at Bridge yet, please consider joining us for this Food Bloggers’ Meetup.