Fall Events for Foodies

Here’s 21 special fall events for foodies. From Bedford’s now famous Oktoberfest to a new one we found, the Hudson Valley Bacon Bash. Plus local harvest dinners, benefits featuring top local chefs and all of the Westchester Community College’s A Taste of Westchester cooking classes in our area. 

Family Dinners with Mario Batali’s Chefs – New York Botanical Garden: Enjoy a garden-to-table meal prepared by Chef Matt Abdoo and Chef Melissa Rodriguez from the Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group’s acclaimed Del Posto restaurant. The three course menu starts with grilled peaches, heirloom tomatoes and burrata salad. For the entree they will prepare a  marinated grilled flank steak with salsa verde, Ukon Gold potato salad, slow cooked rainbow chard. Followed by tiramisu for dessert. Plus hands-on gardening and craft activities and live cooking demonstrations by top chefs in the outdoor Whole Foods Market®. Programming geared for kids ages 4 to 12. Sun, 9/13: 5-7:30pm. (2900 Southern Blvd. Bronx; www.nybg.org)

Norwalk Seaport Association Oyster Festival: Arts & Crafts show, harbor tour cruises, vessel tours, a Ferris wheel, a New England Seaport Village, Go Green environmental demonstrations, and a Kids Cove with circus and puppet shows, music, and arts & crafts (for the kids), an International Food Court with craft beer (for the adults), celebrity oyster slurping contests and … OYSTERS, OYSTERS, OYSTERS. With musical entertainment on Saturday night (last year the headliner JOAN JETT AND THE BLACKHEARTS) and Family Day specials on Sunday including free admission, discount rides, kids’ specials at food courts and special entertainment. Yowza! How did we miss this all these years? Fri, 9/11: 6-11pm, Sat, 9/12: 11am-11pm, Sun, 9/13:11am-8pm. (Norwalk Veterans Park, 42 Seaview Ave., Norwalk: www.seaport.org)

Big Brew NY: Throw on some duds and down some suds. Try the Nitro Milk Stout and the Hot Jala Heim (Chili Beer). You can even try some Purple Haze that you can tell the kids about. Big Brew NY will be pouring 200 craft beers from 130 breweries and serving up a beer infused menu from top local chefs. The show ill be featuring a broad array of pumpkin brews to celebrate the fall season. Hey, Captain Lawrence, how ‘bout a Historic Hudson Valley Headless Horseman Pumpkin Ale – the official fall brew of Halloween in Sleepy Hollow Country? Sat, 9/19: 4-8pm. (Westchester County Center, 198 Central Ave., White Plains; http://bigbrewny.com)

Muscoot Farm Harvest Dinner: Family style dinner in front of the main house with Chef Richard Parente of Clock Tower Grill in Brewster. The Acme Trio provides the music and a wine tasting with more than 25 wines will be held before dinner. Sun, 9/20: 4-9pm. (Muscoot Farm, (Rt. 100, Somers; www.muscootfarm.org)

Local! Feed Me Fresh: An Edible Evening for the Mount Kisco Child Care Center: MKCCC’s 10th Feed Me Fresh fundraiser at Ivanna Farms in Bedford Corners offers tastings from top area eateries including Café of Love, Crabtree’s Kittle House, Village Social and La Tulipe. This year’s event will honor MKCCC Board Members Beverley and Sabin Streeter and Fran and Maarten Steenman of La Tulipe Desserts. Entertainment from Wilson Montuori of The Shaves and Doug Correllus Quintet Jazz Ensemble. Feed Me Fresh is named for their garden-to-table nutrition program. MKCCC cares for 160 children ages 3 mos. to 12 years. Sat, 9/26: 6-10pm. (241 Wood Rd., Mt. Kisco; www.mkccc.org)

BHNA Community Harvest Dinner: All are welcome for this casual buffet under the stars from the Bedford Hills Neighborhood Association. The event features live music and interactive art … plus great local food. Sat, 9/26: 5:30pm. (Old Depot Plaza Parking Lot, Bedford Hills; BHNAonFacebook)

White Plains Jazz & Food Fest: Orange Julius and the Big Beat with 16 year-old White Plains drum prodigy; Doug Munro and Big Boss Bossa Nova with Charlie Lagond features lots of guitars and a Brazilian beat; Rocky Middleton Quintet; Sherry Winston – electric flute/smooth jazz; John Patitucci Quartet with Rim Armost (sax) and Jay Azzolina (guitar) and Grammy Award winning bassist John Patitucci. Sun, 9/27: 12-5pm. (Mamaroneck Ave. Stage, between Martine and Main, WP) www.artswestchester.org

Oktoberfest on the Village Green returns: This one, under the big tent on Bedford Green, was a big hit last year and it’s back. The festivities include craft beers, including a custom made “Bedford Brew”, wine tastings, seasonal food live and the impeccable charm and grace that is Bedford Village. Last year’s band was Lo Tide, the Bedford School of Rock house band. The Bedford Historical Society that maintains nine historical buildings including Historical Hall, the one room school house, the Lounsbery Building and the Court House and Bedford Museum sponsors this event. Sat, 10/3: 6:30-10pm. (Bedford Green, Bedford Village; www.bedfordhistoricalsociety.org.)

A Taste of Westchester – Campagna at The Bedford Post Inn: Chef di Cuisine Devin Bozkaya will host a lunch demonstration and offer up lessons (and tastings) of their famous handmade creste nero: extruded pasta with shrimp, squid, scallop, Calabria chile, and tarragon in a light sauce. You will learn to make pollo alla Cacciatore: chicken, pomodoro, cremini mushrooms, polenta, olives, and ricotta salata served with potatoes. The dessert demo will be a spectacular combination of pine nut semifreddo, fig, green apple, and Concord grape granite for a finish with a flare. This class will fill up fast!!! Sat., 10/3: 12-2pm. Register here for this Westchester Community College cooking class. (954 Old Post Road, Bedford, 
914-234-6386, www.campagna-bedford.com)

Hudson Valley Bacon Bash: Billed as the ultimate day for bacon lovers this one day family friendly event set on a 40 acre estate overlooking a lake minutes from Rt. 84 and 87 in Walden, NY features bacon themed food and craft vendors, a bacon competition where you can be the judge, live bands and bacon themed games. Sounds like a total pig-out to us. And we mean that in a good way. Sat, 10/3: 2-6pm. (Camp Redwood, 576 Rock Cut Rd., Walden; www.baconbashny.com)

A Taste of Westchester – Café of Love – 
Kitchen Visit: Getting to the root of the best fall dishes! Embrace the harvest in this class when proprietor Leslie Lampert offer up a step-by-step and taste-by-taste education on the use of apples, pears and root vegetables in soups, crisp salads, and scrumptious sides. Your evening’s tastes will be packed to go if you would prefer to enjoy them at home or sit after class to continue the conversation and savor the flavors over a glass of wine specially chosen to complement the fall bounty. Mon., 10/5: 5:30-7:30pm. Register here for this Westchester Community College cooking class. (38 East Main Street, Mt. Kisco
, 914-242-1002, www.cafeofloveny.com)

Rose Garden Dinner – NYBG: Join the New York Botanical Garden in honoring rose enthusiast Julie Andrews and our own Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden Curator, Stephen Scanniello, at the 25th anniversary of the Rose Garden Dinner. The evening offers the opportunity to enjoy cocktails and exclusive tours among the acclaimed blooms of the Rockefeller Rose Garden followed by an elegant dinner in the Garden Terrace Room. Thurs, 10/8: 5:45-10pm. (New York Botanical Garden, 2900 Southern Blvd. Bronx; www.nybg.org)

A Taste of Westchester – DeCicco & Sons – Video Demo Kitchen: Step into DeCicco’s video-enhanced (you’ll think you are on the set of Chopped!) where Chef Angelo Ruiz will demonstrate the techniques used to make chicken and mango lettuce wraps; salmon en croûte stuffed with Boursin cheese and toasted cashews, served with hot pepper jelly; and garlic, spinach potato galette. As a special treat, there will be a beer tasting selected by Chris DeCicco who has won awards for his brews. Brendon O’Brien, their in-house Cicerone, will discuss his approach to pairing beer with food. Tues, 10/13: 5:30-7:30p. Register here for this Westchester Community College cooking class. (17 Maple Avenue, Armonk, 914-499-1100, www.deciccoandsons.com)

A Taste of Westchester – The Clock Tower – Bacon Class: Talented Chef Rich Parente and wife Cassie serve up a lesson on how to cure pork belly using local Crown Maple syrup and will prepare an appetizer of thick cut bacon and deviled eggs. The lesson will continue with a house favorite of Long Island duck cured in Warwick brandy and then apple-wood smoked, and served with creamy cheddar grits and a wild lingonberry demi glaze. Not to be missed is Chef Parent’s preparation of his (now famous) roasted butternut squash doughnuts with a bourbon caramel glaze. This creative chef’s class will sell out quickly. Thurs, 10/15: 6:00-8:00pm. Register here for this Westchester Community College cooking class. (512 Clock Tower Drive, Brewster 845-582-0574, www.clocktowergrill.com)

A Taste of Westchester – Amore Pizzeria & Italian Kitchen – Flexitarian Italian Menu: Mark and Joe Mazzotta demonstrate the spirit of seasonal simplicity and bold flavors in Italian cooking, with their modernized take on some Italian classics starting with an antipasto of spicy Brussels sprouts – charred and dressed with hot chili oil, golden raisins, crispy parcels of pancetta, and Hudson
Valley honey atop whipped butternut squash; house-made ribbons of tagliatelle tossed in a velvety Tuscan kale pesto, complemented with slow roasted heirloom tri- color tomato and finished with Hudson Valley goat cheese; and a citrus olive oil cake with fresh rosemary, lemon, and the makings of a Sicilian blood orange marmalatta for dessert.. Mangia! Mon, 10/19: 5:30-7:30pm. Register here  for this Westchester Community College cooking class. (1 Kent Place, Armonk, 
914-273-3535, www.amorearmonk.com)

A Taste of Westchester – Peter Pratt’s Inn – Cookbook Recipes Shared: Executive ChefDavid Leveen and restaurateur Jonathan Pratt, welcome you to the dark side with recipes from their e-cookbook Legs and Thighs – Come to the Dark Meat. You will learn how to turn the most flavorful part of the chicken into delicious restaurant dishes you can make in your home kitchen. Including, a classic Hawaiian dish, shoyu chicken served with fresh corn from local Meadow Farms, with jasmine rice; chicken larb (pronounced “lawb” meaning salad) wrapped in lettuce cups; and a mainstay of Cuban-American cuisine, Miguel’s chicken ropa vieja served with homemade arepas (flatbread). Owner and wine connoisseur Jon Pratt treats you to a wine pairing specially selected for the evening. Always a popular class, so reserve your spot early! Wed, 10/21: 6-8pm, Register here for this Westchester Community College cooking class. (673 Croton Heights Road, Yorktown Heights, 914-962-4090, www.prattsinn.com)

An Evening in Good Taste To End Childhood Hunger for the Food Bank for Westchester: Eat, drink and make a difference at the 25th annual An Evening in Good Taste Event to benefit the Food Bank for Westchester. You will sample gourmet delights and specialty cocktails from Westchester’s finest chefs. Last year the Food Bank raised over $200,000 to help fight hunger in Westchester. This event will benefit their Kids Café and Backpack programs. Thurs, 10/22: 6:30-9:30pm. (1133 Westchester Ave., White Plains; www.foodbankforwestchester.org)

A Taste of Westchester – one.TWENTY.one – Interactive: Executive Chef and instructor Beck Bolender will have volunteers help prep while he demonstrates several techniques with an emphasis on regional, organic, and natural products. Learn how to make a delicate butternut squash soup with a maple crema and apple crackling. Next, celebrate the season with delicious roasted chicken with fall vegetables, sweet potato puree, and pan gravy. A classic preparation with a twist, Chef Beck will share the technique he uses to make pumpkin tres leches with in-house crafted ice cream. Mon, 10/26: 5:30-7:30 pm. Register here for this Westchester Community College cooking class. (2 Dingle Ridge Road, North Salem, 914-669-0121, www.121restaurant.com)

A Taste of Westchester – The Horse & Hound Inn  – Ghosts? During the twenty years the Vales’ have owned the Inn, there have been several sightings of spirits. The husband and wife team of Silvano and Sue Vales will try to keep the spirits away with cooking demonstrations of their own other-worldly fare, starting with a classic vol-au-vent case (puff pastry) adorned with succulent seafood and a beautifully wrapped brie in phyllo dough served with a cranberry compote and an apple sage crostini. For the entrée presentation they will prepare lamb chops with a mint port sauce paired with a maple cayenne hot toddy. For dessert there are pumpkin tart-lets with fresh whipped cream. Don’t be afraid to sign up! They need you to help keep the spirits at bay. Wed, 10/28: 6-8pm. Register here for this Westchester Community College cooking class. (94 Spring Street, South Salem
, 914-763-3108, www.thehorseandhoundinn.com)

Hudson Valley Restaurant Week: Foodies of the world unite! During HVRW you can lunch for just $20.95 or dinner for $29.95 at many local restaurants in & around Armonk, Bedford & Chappaqua and beyond. This year HVRW will run from Monday, November 2 to Sunday, November 15. Okay, that’s two weeks but who’s counting. Check back for updates when the participating restaurants are announced. We’ll give you all the locals and some carefully selected eateries that are worth the trip. www.hudsonvalleyrestaurantweek.com

A Taste of Westchester – DeCicco & Sons – Beer Education Demo Kitchen: Chef Angelo Ruiz will teach techniques used to make a healthy winter soup, Tuscan kale and winter squash minestrone. The lesson will continue with a holiday favorite of chicken wellington and the instructions for making Dutch potatoes. Included at this location is an upstairs bar serving local beer and wine. Brendon O’Brien, their in-house Cicerone, will discuss how to pair beer with food. Tues, 12/8: 5:30-7:30 pm. Register here. for this Westchester Community College cooking class. (Maple Avenue, Armonk
, 914-499-1100, www.deciccoandsons.com)

More What To Eat  Check out our What To Eat: Restaurant Guide

Sign up for our weekly newsletter: for townies, culture vultures, foodies and locavores.   Happy autumn. Like us on Facebook Amigos