Cooking Local Vermont: An Interview with Melissa Pasanen

Melissa Pasanen has been writing about Vermont food and agriculture for 20 years. She wrote regularly for the Burlington Free Press, served as the food editor for Vermont Life, and authored Cooking with Shelburne Farms, a New York Times Notable cookbook. Recently, the Burlington-based author and journalist, now a staff writer for Seven Days Vermont, harnessed her Vermont know-how to write a cookbook that celebrates the culinary traditions of the Green Mountain State: The Little Local Vermont Cookbook.

We sat down with her to talk about the best ways to use maple syrup, Vermonters’ fondness for lamb, and a certain Pulitzer Prize–winning author’s love of New England hot buttered rum.

What defines Vermont’s food? What truly sets it apart?

MP: Many foods considered typical of Vermont are rooted in the traditions brought by the earliest non-indigenous settlers—the English and other western Europeans. Since we lack ocean coasts, Vermont’s menu tends to be more land-based, and many dishes draw on the tradition of foraging, or wildcrafting, from the land, in practices like maple sugaring.

What are your three favorite recipes incorporating maple syrup, and why?

MP: You can’t beat granola with a good pinch of salt to balance the sweet kiss of maple. I’m also a big fan of maple with a kick of heat—for instance, maple-glazed nuts with chili powder. And one of my family’s all-time favorites is the maple-bacon biscuits from the King Arthur Baking Company, in which the maple gets all caramelized on top of the biscuits, like in an upside-down cake.

What’s something about Vermont food that most people don’t know?

MP: Thanks to a certain internationally famous ice cream company, Vermont is known for rolling hills dotted with black and white cows. But most people don’t know that before the arrival of dairy cows, Vermont was the nation’s top sheep-raising state! The sheep were raised largely for wool, but there was abundant lamb and mutton, too. To this day, Vermont still punches above its weight in pounds of lamb eaten per person.

Once you knew you would be writing this book, what was the first recipe that you knew you had to include?

MP: Those maple-bacon biscuits and my maple granola were on the immediate list, no question. I also felt strongly that I wanted to represent the region’s Abenaki heritage, since the native Abenaki people were among Vermont’s first inhabitants and their heritage is integral to our community. Over the last few years, I’ve spent time with some Vermonters of Abenaki heritage and have learned from them about their foodways. That led to the Abenaki Three Sisters Salad recipe, which is built around the three main pillars of the Abenaki diet.

What’s the most fascinating fact you learned while working on this book?

MP: I discovered that, early in her writing career, Pulitzer Prize–winning novelist Annie Proulx co-authored a manual on how to make hard cider! Turns out, she’s a big fan of buttered rum cider. I, of course, had to include the recipe!

Is there a recipe in the book that you like to make for a particular season?

MP: The strawberry-rhubarb crisp is a family favorite, and it marks the brief, early June cusp of summer, when rhubarb is still growing in my garden and the first strawberries come in at local farms.

Of all the recipes in the book, which one has the best origin story?

MP: Definitely the chocolate zucchini cake! As I was leafing through my collection of Vermont church and community cookbooks, it stood out. It combined with everyone’s favorite (chocolate) with the need to use up overabundant zucchini. I loved the touch of cinnamon and orange; the cherry on the top was that I recognized the name of the recipe contributor. She was the mother of a dear friend! She was so tickled when I tested the recipe and decided to include it.

What did you love about writing this book?

MP: I love sharing my love of Vermont, its landscape, and people through delicious recipes that bring those all to life.

Interested in local cooking? Explore the United States through cooking with the Little Local Cookbooks, a series that highlights landmark culinary destinations around the country, including Vermont, Maine, Cape Cod, New Orleans, Texas, San Francisco, Portland, Oregon, and the Southwest.