By Laura Sorkin, Free Press Correspondent • Friday, January 22, 2010

Savorvore
Masterful meats make little Green Top a big draw:

Vermont has a way of surprising you in that you can find the most delectable food in the most unlikely of places.

Traveling through the rolling hills between Morrisville and Stowe, you will see acres of pasture, a few clusters of houses, but mostly uninhabited space. As you come to a four-way stop sign on the corners of Stagecoach Road and Morristown Corners, it will become clear that this was once a focal point for the town of Morrisville; but it’s now much quieter since commerce has moved to Vermont 100.

On one of those corners is the Green Top Market with a wide, inviting porch and amber light from within, illuminating a bustle of shoppers perusing and shopkeepers assisting.

Enter the front door and you will be greeted with a tableau of gourmet, local food from fresh vegetables to dried pasta. Pass through the store, and you will hearken upon one of the finest meat cases in all of Vermont. Contemplate the scarcity of habitation outside with the cornucopia of food inside and you may scratch your head and mumble, “What the ... ?”

You have discovered one of the best culinary assets of the Stowe area — a truly gourmet market with Cole Ward, a top-rate butcher who elevates the market from a really good food store to a destination spot well worth the trip off the beaten path.

The market has that rare combination of feeling both rustic and clean. The old wooden floors have been maintained, and the shelves and counters feel as if they have a history of housing food for many years though all of the offerings look tantalizing and fresh. Store owner, Joe Padulo estimates that about 75 percent of its products are locally grown or manufactured right down to the soap. There are vegetables from Pete’s Greens and Valley Dream farms. Bread is delivered from Elmore Mountain Bakery and dairy products from Mansfield Creamery.

There is a small kitchen area where they prepare soups, paninis and hot subs for takeout. The freezer is filled with homemade items such as black bean and chicken burritos, and Shepherd’s pie. If you are in the mood to cook yourself, they have all the necessities from eggs, milk and dry goods to a whole wall of wines in a wide range of prices.

Make your way to the back of the store, however, and you will discover why folks are traveling from as far away as Colchester to come here. Ward has stocked the meat counter with an astonishing selection. Along with the expertly butchered roasts and chops are Ward’s prepared items such as his homemade sausages and roulades. Ward has recipes for more than 100 different sausages; generally between five and seven are available daily. On the day I visited, he had a Polish sausage with garlic, the porketta, made with peppers, Parmesan, lemon and parsley and the most popular, chorizo with red wine and brandy. I took a sampling of each home and have one word of advice for them: Don’t bury them in a sauce or stew. They are so excellent that you will want to savor their flavor without masking them with something else.

Ward also makes roulades from boneless chicken breasts which are dipped in buttermilk, coated with bread crumbs and feature stuffings that range from apple, cranberry and cheddar to asparagus, cheddar and prosciutto. Even the burgers have pizzazz. In the case were two of his specialties the pork, cheddar, orange and garlic and the Boyden beef with blue cheese.

In the summer, Ward assembles a variety of marinated shish kabobs that have found such a following that at the peak of summer he was selling 250-300 every weekend.

The deli case features Applegate brand deli meat, which is antibiotic, hormone and nitrate free. The turkey breast and roast beef are both made fresh, in-house. The majority of the raw meat is from local farms such as North Hollow Farm in Rochester for lamb, beef and pork; Boyden Farm in Cambridge for beef and Stonewood and Misty Knoll Farms for poultry. Ward has made it a point to visit each farm to see for himself that the animals are kept in clean, humane conditions.

He even has rabbit available, sold to him by an enterprising 14-year-old who came into the store with samples and literature about his product. The boy so impressed him that Ward took him on as a purveyor. Recognizing that locally raised meat is not in everyone’s budget, western beef and Niman Ranch pork is also available.

Butcher since 14

It is rare to meet an experienced butcher in this era, but Ward is the real deal. Growing up in Franklin County, he started butchering when he was 14 in his godfather’s market. In the years to come, he worked in the meat departments of many other markets, such as the IGA and Grand Union, as well as at a slaughterhouse in New York. In 1977, he moved to California and managed a gourmet market in Los Angeles but returned to Vermont in 1982. Since then he has worked with Jim Blaise at Shelburne Market (whom he describes as “the best in Vermont”) and behind the counter at Sweet Clover in Essex. When the opportunity to run his own show at Green Top came up, he jumped at the chance.

Ward not only uses his expertise to cut for the store, but he also teaches classes on butchering that have sold out at every offering. Using the meat locker space at the store, he gives classes with titles such as “Beef Fore Quarter” and “Whole Pig Refresher.” His students are generally people who keep a small flock of livestock for consumption who want to make the most of their investment. Taking a class like this is a rare opportunity since the only way to learn otherwise is to apprentice under a butcher. “Meat cutting,” as Ward refers to it, is a disappearing art as the average age of a butcher in the United States today is over 50.

Go hungry and try one of their prepared meals or go with a lengthy shopping list for a special dinner. Either way, if you are in the Stowe, Morrisville or Hyde Park area, treat yourself to a trip to Green Top. It is yet another surprising little gem in our glorious foodie state.

Laura Sorkin runs Cave Moose Farm in Cambridge. Have a question about your food or growing issues? E-mail her at laura.sorkin@hotmail.com.

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