Come Hungry to the Valle Country Fair on Saturday, October 18
VALLE CRUCIS, NC – “Come hungry,” said Food Chairperson Trish Lanier. “Nibble your way through Fair flavors like apple cider, roasted corn and fried pies before you stock up on barbecue, Brunswick Stew or chili to take home for your evening meal. Everything you eat helps raise money for the charitable works of the Fair, so there is no such thing as eating too much!”
The Valle Country Fair (VCF) is a fundraising mission of Holy Cross Episcopal Church in Valle Crucis, NC. The festival raises money that goes back into the community through grants to local non-profit organizations and through assistance to families with emergency needs. Revenues come from over 120 craft exhibitors who donate 10% of their proceeds back to the Fair charities, as well as from church-operated food concessions that return 100% of their proceeds to the cause.
The Valle Fair relies on more than 200 volunteers from both the church and the larger community. The lunch crew will be ready to dish up Brunswick Stew, chili with corn muffins, pork BBQ, Kielbasa and Bratwurst Sausage, grilled Portabella mushrooms, hamburgers and cheeseburgers, hot dogs, and French fries.
No church bazaar would be complete without a bake sale, and the Episcopal Church Women of Holy Cross Church do not disappoint. Armloads and armloads of baked goodies are carried down to the field before daylight on Fair Day. About half of the items include cookies, brownies, breads and candies that are portioned to be enjoyed while touring the craft booths and listening to mountain music. The other half include beautiful home-baked cakes, pies and breads that can be taken home for that night’s dessert — or frozen for Thanksgiving and other special occasions.
Chili chef Jeff Williams says the chili is as homemade as you can get. “We cook it up right here on the field starting Thursday. We offer two varieties: beef with bean chili and a white bean chicken chili. It is sold as individual servings or by the quart for folks who want to take some home for later.”
“The menu at the grill tent is simple,” says Paul Kroening. “Hamburgers, cheeseburgers, hot dogs and fries. The burgers, dogs and fries are all cooked fresh at the Fair. The only items prepared ahead are the tomato and onion slices for the burgers and the relish and chili for the dogs.”
“Everything on the menu is being made fresh on site,” says Bridgett Murphree of Moe’s Original BBQ in Asheville, who brings a small crew of employees to Valle Crucis ahead of the Fair to make Brunswick Stew from scratch.
“We bring our mobile smoker, and the meat comes fresh off the pit. The aroma of cooking pork mixes with white oak and cherry wood smoke. Plus, watching butts come off the smoker and pork getting pulled and chopped is great entertainment.”
The Sausage Factory has the same crew they’ve had for years, says Sausage Boss Brenda Lowman. “We just put on our sausage hats and do what we’ve always done.”
In addition to the lunch menu, Fairgoers look forward to the countryfied canned goods that visitors expect mountain folk to put up for winter. The Valle Fair is famous for jams and jellies, pickles and relishes made in the kitchens of Holy Cross church members. Along with Crabapple Jelly, Peach Preserves and Strawberry Jams, favorite recipes that keep shoppers returning year after year include Christmas Jam and Pittsburg Relish.
The signature canned good of the Valle Country Fair, however, is Apple Butter. More than a dozen members of the Apple Butter Gang will cook down 67 bushels of apples and stir the resulting applesauce with sugar and cinnamon over an open fire to make 1,200 pints of thick, sweet Valle Country Fair Apple Butter. Veteran Valle Fairgoers know to hit the apple butter tent first… because it ALWAYS sells out!
Since its beginning in 1979, the Valle Country Fair has distributed $1.3 million between 127 non-profit organizations in addition to offering assistance to thousands of High Country families with emergency needs.
The single-day harvest festival spreads out from the signature red barn located a large field located alongside NC Highway 194 between Valle Crucis and Banner Elk. Admission to the Valle Country Fair is FREE and parking is available in the adjoining field for $10 per car. NO PETS are allowed.
The VCF is supported by the Watauga Arts Council and the North Carolina Arts Council, a division of the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. Media sponsors are Curtis Media Group and Mountain Times Publications.
The event is produced by Holy Cross Episcopal Church in cooperation with the Valle Crucis Conference Center. Proceeds are used to provide grants to local non-profit organizations, and relief to local families with emergency needs. For more information, contact Holy Cross Church at 828-963-4609 ext. 23 or visit the Fair on the Web at www.vallecountryfair.org.
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