232 MAIN STREET
BEACON, NY 12508
(845) 831-5096
CHEF/OWNER: JESSICA REISMAN
Like many of the chefs that ultimately settle in the Hudson Valley, Homespun’s chef/owner, Jessica Reisman, was a New York City transplant. “I moved to Beacon but I was still commuting into the city for work, and I certainly didn’t want to continue doing that. Basically I moved up here knowing that Dia: Beacon had opened up.” The stunning riverside museum, which opened in 2003, houses the Dia Art Foundation’s collection of modern and contemporary art. Looking around town, Reisman sensed an opportunity. “There just seemed to be an overabundance of Italian restaurants. There was nothing that you would want to eat on a daily basis. There was not the kind of food that I ate, anyway, or any of the food that I was interested in eating.” Reisman concludes, “Beacon was underserved by fresh, basic, healthy food.”
At the time, Reisman was working in Whole Foods, but she was coming off a long career in the industry. In the 1980s and 1990s, Reisman owned McGraw Street Bakery in Seattle; she also owned a commercial bakery there called Homespun. During her long commutes to Manhattan, Reisman had time to think. “Beacon is full of artists, and I thought, ‘This is where I could fit in.’ And so, I decided to do it one more time.”
Homespun is part breakfast/lunch cafe and part bakery with a long vintage counter and exposed brick walls. Some of its eclectic mix of chairs and tables are wobbly, but if you’re lucky, you’ll sit down to the previous diner’s newspaper. Says Reisman about the spot, “It was a fairly empty space when we opened. There was half an exposed brick wall and there was wainscoting going up it. The person before me had considered opening up a restaurant; they’d built a big box and put the triple sink in. So I outfitted the kitchen, and everything else is just my taste.”
Reisman, who recently took over the cafe at Dia: Beacon, is happy with her decision to go north. “There’s a sense of community in Beacon that I haven’t felt since the 1970s. Now we have all these Brooklynites—people starting families but who can’t afford the room they need at city prices. For a small town we have a lot going on.”
(SERVES 6–8)
For the pomegranate dressing:
¼ of one shallot, peeled and minced
3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses
6 tablespoon sherry vinegar
1½ teaspoons Dijon mustard
¾ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 cup olive oil
For the salad:
2 medium Hudson Valley red beets
½ small butternut squash
1–2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
⅓–½ cup pepitas
1 firm, tart apple (preferably local)
1 head romaine lettuce, washed and chopped
6 cups mesclun
⅓ cup dried cranberries
½ cup Coach Farm goat cheese
To make the pomegranate dressing: In a bowl whisk all the ingredients except the olive oil. Add the oil, still whisking, until the vinaigrette is emulsified. Reserve.
To make the salad: Preheat oven to 425°F. Rinse the beets and wrap them in foil. Bake for 45 minutes, or until a knife can pass easily through them. Allow to cool, then peel and chop into ½-inch cubes. Set aside. Peel the butternut squash. Chop into ½-inch cubes and toss with 1–2 tablespoons olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Bake until the squash cubes are golden brown on the edges. Remove squash from the oven, cool, and set aside. On a sheet pan toast the pepitas for 4–5 minutes, or until they look swollen and are slightly brown on edges. In a large bowl slice the apple and toss with the roasted butternut, beets, pepitas, and lettuces. Toss all ingredients with pomegranate dressing. Garnish with cranberries and goat cheese. Serve.