EST. 2011 BY LIZ RUEVEN
From Farm to Pizza Truck & Make Your Own Ricotta

From Farm to Pizza Truck & Make Your Own Ricotta

contributed by Katy Morris; photos: Liz Rueven

Farm to table is right up Jeff Borofsky’s alley…literally.

Jeff is the proud founder of Skinny Pines, LLC, Fairfield County’s only farm to table focused mobile wood-fired brick pizza oven. He uses only local, seasonal ingredients to create simple and fresh concoctions whilst incorporating sustainability in every aspect of the business.  I sat down with Jeff recently to get the skinny on his concept and unique pizza.

 

Local greens: Sport Hill Farm and Riverbank Farm, CT.
Local greens: Sport Hill Farm and Riverbank Farm, CT.

What a great concept, Jeff! Tell me how this all originated.

We started about five years ago when we purchased our first mobile brick oven in Boulder, Colorado. The idea was to have something casual, portable, and family friendly rather than starting just another traditional restaurant. We also knew we didn’t want to be just another food truck. Our open-aired set up with the brick oven creates a really intimate and unique experience.

Amy Franquet checks the Breakfast Scramble with local greens and Jeff's eggs
Amy Franquet checks the Breakfast Scramble with local greens and Jeff’s eggs

We can just bring it wherever we need to for our customers. We now have two mobile ovens and 6 part-time employees during the busy season (summer) to make it all run smoothly.

 

Jeff Borofsky, owner, Skinny Pines Pizza
Jeff Borofsky, owner, Skinny Pines Pizza

Being mobile surely sets you apart from typical food joints, but what else makes you so different and popular?

What really sets us apart is our dedication to using only locally sourced produce from CT and NY farms (the only exception being our Grande cheese, which comes from Wisconsin), most of which are certified organic. This means our menu is never the same and depends on what we can get from our farmers. About our cheese – we are starting to incorporate Mystic cheese as well, which I am very excited about (especially the soft ripened Melville). And yes, I make my own ricotta (recipe below)!

From the very beginning, we have always sourced from Sport Hill Farm, Fort Hill, and Riverbank, and since then, we have tried out other farms around the area to add to our list. This year, Gilbertie’s in Easton, CT grew a lot of our seasonal produce for us, which was great.

Breakfast scramble

We really care about how we prepare our food and what we are serving. Our goal is to try to make it as delicious and wholesome as possible. In fact, I spent about 3 years trying to nail the dough formula to get it just right. I was able to work with other owners of mobile wood-fired ovens from across the country to get tips and tricks and I think we’ve finally mastered it. We get our 100% whole-wheat grain milled to 00 through the Wild Hive Grain Project, which is set up in a CSA model [Community Supported Agriculture]. We make our tomato sauce out of crushed tomatoes from a certified organic farm in Washington, CT called Waldingfield Farm.

 

And you are big on sustainability as well, right?

Yes…from the locally sourced ingredients in every dish and our involvement with CSA (which I think is a fantastic model for our kids and really helps build community), to the wood we burn in our oven, and even the renewable, biodegradable paper goods and plates, everything we do incorporates sustainability in some way.

Breakfast scramble (1)

That is so great! Tell me a little about your menu.

We do not have a set menu as it depends on what ingredients are available from the farms each season; however, we always have a variety of pizzas, frittatas (which are made with eggs from Ox Hollow Farm in Roxbury, CT), and gluten-free wraps, but of course the toppings change week to week. We always have lots of vegetables and greens available; examples include kale, arugula, onions, tomatoes, and much more.

We do make desserts as well. Right now, we are serving up S’mores made in the oven and assorted cups of Gelato Guiliana, which is made in New Haven, CT [dairy-free options available].

 

Breakfast Pie with CT greens and Jeff's eggs
Breakfast Pie with CT greens and Jeff’s eggs

Yum. What is the most popular item?

 Our pizzas are definitely our best sellers and our customers come out even in snowstorms to get them in the winter! My favorite vegetarian pie is one we make with shredded mozzarella, organic red onion, kalamata olives, Gilbertie’s rosemary and extra virgin olive oil. Our most popular one when we are at markets is our classic cheese, but our customers really do enjoy all of our seasonal creations…anything with fresh seasonal heirloom tomatoes from Sport Hill Farm, Fort Hill, or Riverbank is always a winner.

 

Posing as American Gothic: Amy Franquet and Vic Malindretos
Posing as American Gothic: Amy Franquet and Vic Malindretos

Where can we find you?

We are at the Westport Winter Farmer’s Market every Saturday from 10am-2pm at Gilbertie’s (you can find us right outside firing up our pizzas and other items bundled up under a tent…snow or shine!) and then we will be doing the New Canaan Farmer’s Market as well. You can check in on any other events we will be at on our website. We also do catering for parties with 30-300 people.

 

What are the next steps for Skinny Pines?

A lot of folks ask if we will open a restaurant at some point. For now, Skinny Pines will stay the way it is as a unique mobile oven, but we are thinking up ways to expand, so stay tuned.

IMG_2104

Could you provide some suggestions for making their own pizza at home?

 My tip for people who want to make their own pizza at home would be to source the best ingredients from your local farmer’s markets and use those to create artisan pizzas. I can’t recommend a specific store-bought dough since I make my own, but I’d imagine calling up your favorite local pizzeria to get the dough would be a good start as they often sell it. Our favorite crushed tomatoes for a sauce is the Jersey sourced ones of La Fede from Whole Foods.

Local greens and house made ricotta

Jeff also gave us some of his favorite veggie combinations that make great pizza toppings – all can be accompanied by shredded mozzarella and a bit of parmesan:

 

  • Olive, onion, arugula or kale – tastes great with or without sauce
  • Sweet potato or winter squash, chili powder, red onion, and sage
  • Simply fresh tomatoes with pesto
  • Roasted thinly sliced potatoes with pesto

 

Want to try your hand at making your own ricotta cheese? It tastes infinitely well, milkier, than store bought. And the creamy texture cannot be compared to anything you’ve ever tasted.

5 Comments

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SIDE DISH
Photo by Jerri Graham Photography

Hi. I’m Liz and I welcome you to Kosher Like Me.

When I’m not caressing fruits and veggies at my local farmers’ market you’ll likely find me chatting with like-minded eaters, probing the scene in NYC or seeking inspiration in my spice cabinet. Life outside of this blog is all about my family, tasty travel adventures and power walks deep in the CT woods or along the shore.

Please brew a fragrant cup of tea, grab a nosh and stay a while.