6 Reasons To Love Vermont

In spring 2018, we launched a series of illustrated books that’s near and dear to our hearts: the Little Local Cookbooks. Each one of these small, giftable books acts as both a cookbook and a travel guide: celebrating the quintessential flavors and landmarks of its place of origin.

One of the most recent books in our Little Local series, The Little Local Vermont Cookbook, honors a small state that looms large in our collective imagination; a place whose very name connotes ‘vacation’: Vermont. Our Burlington-based author, Melissa Pasanen, has deep roots in the Green Mountain State, where she’s been writing about food and agriculture for two decades. In her recipe selection, she deploys beloved Vermont staples (maple, cheddar, rhubarb) in hearty dishes that are as comforting as a crisp day in the mountains. Meanwhile, illustrator Courtney Jentzen evokes the state’s bucolic setting with glowing watercolor images of fall foliage and covered bridges, rolling hills and placid lakes.

We couldn’t be happier to shine a spotlight on this magical place, where summer, winter, and fall are equally glorious, and every dish is, somehow, still more delicious than the last. Here are six reasons to love Vermont:

1. Cheddar

Vermont actually has the most cheesemakers per capita of any US state. Perhaps that explains how—despite having just 623,989 residents (making it the second smallest state by population)—the state consistently ranks among the top ten for cheese production. And it isn’t just about quantity: local cheese-makers are renowned for their creativity, and the proof is in the prizes. Last year, Vermont cheesemakers took home 43 awards from the American Cheese Society Judging & Competition. And while the raclettes, blues, chèvres, and sheep’s milk cheeses shine, perhaps no varietal is more beloved than Cheddar. We love eating Vermont Cheddar in many forms and fashions: baked into mac ‘n’ cheese, mingled with brown ale in a hearty soup, paired with apple in a savory-sweet pie, or, simply, à la carte. While you can’t go wrong with any Vermont Cheddar, we particularly love those made by Grafton Village Cheese Co—a Windham County company founded in 1892.

2. Fall Foliage

As the weather cools, hills and dales across Vermont explode in brilliant swathes of color. Forests blanket three-quarters of the state, and one in every four of those trees is a sugar maple: the head-turning star of the fall show. Throughout September and early October, these trees turn vibrant yellow, flame orange, and ruby red, while the hickories, birches, scarlet oaks, and mountain ashes around them put on stunning displays of their own. Vermont’s fall foliage is so impressive that, every year, it inspires legions of “leaf peepers”: fall color fans so fanatical, they follow the Vermont Department of Tourism’s Foliage Forecaster in order to ensure that they visit at just the right time to bask in the glow.

3. Maple Syrup

The sugar maples put on a fabulous fall show, but locals know it’s what’s on the inside that really counts: the sweet sap that sugarmakers will refine to make Vermont maple syrup. This year, the state produced a record 2.2 million gallons of the treat, accounting for half of all US production. And Vermont takes its syrup seriously: to be classified as Pure Vermont Maple Syrup, a syrup must pass tests to ensure it meets strict guidelines for clarity, density, and taste.

Each April, syrup super-fans gather in the small town of St. Albans to celebrate their love for the sweet nectar at the annual Maple Festival. The festivities include a pancake breakfast and a parade, sugarhouse tours and a “sappy” art show. Diehard devotees can easily find ways to incorporate Vermont maple syrup into every meal, in the form of, say, ginger-maple muffins for breakfast, maple baked beans for lunch, maple-glazed ribs at dinner, and maple cream pie for dessert.

4. Lake Champlain

Come summer, as the weather warms and the days get longer, Vermonters head to the water. With some 800 lakes and ponds scattered throughout the state, there are plenty of options, but one is particularly well-loved: Lake Champlain. Slung between Vermont, Quebec, and upstate New York, Champlain is a whole world onto itself: 120 miles long, up to 400 feet deep, and dotted with islands, some of which boast their own lighthouses! The lake draws sailors, kayakers, fishers, swimmers, and even beach bums, who soak up the rays on the lake’s eastern shore, at Sand Bar State Park in Milton.

Champlain is also part of UNESCO’s Champlain-Adirondack Biosphere, the Northern Forest Canoe Trail, and—last but not least—Vermonters’ collective imaginations. The lake’s deep waters are allegedly home to Champ, a lovable lake monster with a long neck, humped back, and flippers. In fact, Champ is so popular, he’s unofficially protected by the Vermont’s state legislature, he has a plaque dedicated to him in Burlington, and he’s the inspiration behind the state’s minor league baseball team, the Lake Monsters.

5. Apples

On May 10, 1999, Vermont’s General Assembly passed a resolution which deemed the apple to be the Vermont state fruit, and apple pie to be the Vermont state pie. (The resolution went on to stipulate that, when serving apple pie, a “ ‘good faith’ effort shall be made to serve the pie with a glass of milk, a slice of Cheddar, or a large scoop of vanilla ice cream.”) The Vermont law is delightful, but not necessarily surprising, considering that the state produces about 40 million pounds of apples each year, and that picking your own apples is a popular fall pastime. And just where do all of those Honeycrisps and Galas and Northern Spies wind up? Vermont apples find their way into dishes of all sorts, including desserts (pies, crisps, tarts, cider donuts), accompaniments (apple butter, crabapple jelly, cider vinaigrette), and beverages (hot cider, apple brandy, and even cider slushies).

6. Snow

It’s not for nothing that skiers love Vermont: The Green Mountain State boasts 50 resorts (20 downhill and 30 cross-country), and it’s renowned for snow. Often, the first flakes fly in October and, by midwinter, a blanket of white covers much of the state. The numbers themselves are impressive: with annual snowfall averaging 81.2” in Burlington, 94” in Montpelier, and 243.6” at Mount Mansfield, the state’s highest point. But what really stays with you about Vermont snow is the experience of it. The sight of long, delicate tree branches covered in frost, sparkling softly in the winter sun. The feeling of snow crunching softly underfoot as you walk through the forest. And the sound of absolutely nothing except your own breath, with everything else quiet, at peace.

P.S. Full disclosure, our founder Leslie Jonath went to Middlebury, so she is partial to the Green Mountain State.

For more reasons to love Vermont, check out The Little Local Vermont Cookbook, available on Indiebound and wherever books are sold.