A gourmet slow food paradise in the Smoky Mountains.

In the misty foothills of eastern Tennessee’s Smoky Mountains, Blackberry Farm is a delightful and unusual hotel offering a gastro-luxe farm-to-table experience, with southern hospitality.

This being Earth Month, we’ve been reflecting on various ways we’re bringing nature into our homes, for example with micro-sized sexy urban gardens. This rural hotel/farm is at the other end of that scale, a vast 4,200 acre estate with a range of animals including sheep, which produce milk (for cheese), wool and meat; pigs, for sausages and pork; and hens (free-range, naturally), for their eggs. The animals also regenerate the pasture, fertilize, control pests and consume waste products from the farm’s food production.

The gardeners produce heirloom varieties (organically developed over generations, un-genetically-modified) of fruit and vegetables, such as apples, beans and carrots, while wild mushrooms are foraged from the woodlands. They even have black truffles – perfect with fresh eggs for breakfast.

Foodies will truly find heaven, care of the artisans of the farmstead as well as the gardeners. The farm has its own bee-keeper, for instance, and cheese-maker, butcher, plus a preservationist who makes jams, pickles and preserves. There’s a cooking school with celebrity chef guests, as well as a packed program of other food and wine events.

Accommodation is either in a beautiful private house and cottages, or guestrooms in the guesthouse: all is comfortable and classic, with four-poster beds, low-key prints or chintz in muted tones. All rooms and houses have fireplaces, high-speed internet, and integrated surround-sound systems. As well as the outdoor pool, with mountain views, there’s the spa with a wet treatment room offering the latest technology, such as various high-pressure water therapies; yoga classes are also available. Croquet, wildflower hikes and horse-and-carriage rides are other low-impact activities designed to get you in tune with nature, without harming it.

Rates from $345 excluding tax (two night minimum).

Photos: Blackberry Farm

Places & Spaces is a travel guide that will inspire you to carve out a vacation on your calendar. All of the gorgeous locations and accommodations in our guide share our concern for the environment. From tent glamping to lavish built environments, fair warning, you’ll feel compelled to pack your suitcase.

The post Places & Spaces: Blackberry Farm, Tennessee appeared first on EcoSalon.

The markets are full of every kind of produce imaginable. At the same time, backyard gardens burst with bounty, and the feral fruit trees in my neighborhood litter the sidewalks with juicy bombs. The harvest is upon us.

The cooks that I know are in a rush to preserve what is so abundant now for those days of kale, cabbage and rutabaga that we all know are ahead. So here’s a little inspiration from around the web.

Before you start, here’s an overview of helpful canning tips and recipes from Simple Bites.

Sour Cherries are a super short season crop so if you see any in your market, take them home and try this recipe for preserved sour cherries from Doris and Jilly Cook. They’ll taste mighty good in December.

From Put up or Shut up, there’s an interesting sounding Mexican Strawberry Jam recipe with candied hibiscus.

I love Japanese pickles. They always showcase the best qualities of the vegetables and aromatics used without overpowering with vinegar. And they’re great alongside just about anything from rice to noodles to meats to sandwiches. I’m trying this recipe from Japanese Food Report next time I have a bounty of cukes.

Image: Vanessa Barrington

The post Get Canning! 3 Recipes Plus Preserving Around the Web appeared first on EcoSalon.

As healthy food and eating locally have gained more traction, pickling is no longer an old-fashioned past-time of our grandmothers. Eco-friendly folks are aiming to re-gain control of the food supply, and many of us are looking at ways to preserve local, organic food while it’s in season. What better method than pickling?

Brooklyn is particularly known for embracing the locavore movement, which I read in a NY Times article over a year ago. Case in point, when I last visited, I checked out a flea market in Fort Greene, and was amazed at the number of people selling their home-pickled wares. I was notably impressed with the number of pickled beets on the scene. I’ve since learned that you can pickle just about anything!

Not surprising then, to discover a plethora of pickling activity in San Francisco. For example, I found the Happy Girl Kitchen Co. at the Ferry Plaza Farmer’s Market a couple weekends ago. The Happy Girl Kitchen Co., based in Oakland and certified organic, is known for its highly refined preserving techniques and sells pickled beets, carrots and dill pickles, as well as sauerkraut and kombucha. (And fruit preserves. And canned tomatoes. And, and.)

I’ve been meaning to try pickling myself after tasting a friend’s pickled beans that were inspiring. But where to start? Happy Girl Kitchen Co. offers a variety of workshops. Classes are a bit pricey, but then again, you’re paying for a lifetime of knowledge. I also heard from a friend that the Joy of Cooking has a great recipe, and I noticed that Alice Waters included a recipe in her most recent book, In the Green Kitchen: Techniques to Learn By Heart. With all the Persian pickles and tiny, fresh carrots at the farmers’ markets right now, I’d say it’s high time to start pickling!

Image: rachel is coconut lime

The post Preserving Local Flavors Through Pickling and the Happy Girl Kitchen Co. appeared first on EcoSalon.