FLORIDA TRAVEL
Thar's some fine eatin' down on the farm
BY DIANE DANIEL
Special to The Miami Herald
CITRA, Fla. -- The most ''boaring'' day of my life? That's an easy one. The afternoon I spent at Rosas Farms feasting on a wild-boar extravaganza created by chef Al Rosas.
We were served larb, the Laos/Thai traditional salad dish made with ground meat, mint, cilantro, lime, and hot peppers; South American pupusas, or stuffed pancakes; and mofongo, the version from Colombia, Rosas' heritage, with fried pork and yucca instead of the usual plantains. We topped off many dishes with Rosas' take on aji, the piquant red sauce found on tables across South America.
This was my second time dining at Rosas Farms, just north of Ocala, and I'd learned the hard way to pace myself. The first time I ate a five-course meal here I had no room left for dessert. This time I didn't repeat that mistake, and so was able to enjoy the boiled pears fresh from the backyard, served with a sharp cheddar cheese.
''Chef Al,'' 45, and Erin Rosas, 44, his wife and business partner, have since 1989 owned this 100-acre spread in central Florida, a former thoroughbred horse farm that had been in Erin's family. Over the years the couple has turned the business into an all-organic livestock farm, as well as a tourist and corporate retreat.
Visitors can sign up for anything from a gourmet meal to an overnight farm stay or a full gourmet weekend. The lodging is on a peaceful corner of farm property across a field and over the hill from the Rosases' home. Up to eight guests can stay in the four-bedroom double-wide trailer remarkably made over into a luxury getaway featuring reclaimed wood furniture, organic sheets, bamboo towels, wrought-iron beds, and state-of-the-art electronics.
The energetic, photogenic couple met in their home state of Wisconsin in 1985, when Erin took a job as a waitress where Al was the chef.
''I gained 40 pounds the first year we dated,'' she notes with a laugh.
They left the farm from 1993 to 1996, when Al worked as a traveling corporate food and beverage director. 'When we came back in 1996, I said, `I'm never leaving again,' '' recalls Erin, who grew up on a farm in Wisconsin.
The family lives in a casual, well-appointed ranch home atop a hill just off Highway 301. The couple's children, a son, 16, and a daughter, 12, are home schooled by a tutor.
OUT IN THE FIELD
Farm field trips are just out the back door, where 600 laying chickens roam the property. (The farm also has quails and sells those eggs as well.) Farther out in fenced fields are bison and cows, while wild boar keep themselves nice and muddy in their pens.
''We buy the them from a trapper who traps boars that are displaced by development,'' Erin explains. ``During the high [tourist] season we sell three to four a week, so we also breed them.''
She calls the pig pens ``a carbon sink. We have zero food waste. Well, I can't say zero since the pigs won't eat onions.''
While some meat and eggs are sold through their farm store that fronts the highway, much more is shipped to restaurants in Florida and beyond, including Swan and Dolphin Resort at Disney World, Ravenous Pig in Winter Park, and Polo Grill in Longboat Key.
The couple has won numerous awards, including Florida Trend magazine's Small Business Best Practice Award in September for their organic farm practices and environmental contributions to their community.
They also travel around the country to teach ''Pragmatic Organics,'' which relies on ''the 80 percent solution,'' Erin explains.
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