My Friday night at Hawkins Family Farm showcased some iconic highlights of a summer night in Indiana. The scene was set with farmland stretching in all directions and some country music provided by my nephew in the background. The long driveway was full of tailgaters enjoying some meat-heavy pizza options made with wheat, produce, pepperoni, and bacon from right on the farm and cheese from the neighboring dairy. The tailgaters included groups of families and friends that often spanned several generations. The Hawkins family, their pizza team, and their guests were experts of Midwest Hospitality. Strangers would call out greetings, start up conversations, or compliment my Pizza Hat. I felt that my family was welcomed in by the Hawkins Family as my nieces played with the Hawkins kids and some of their toys, my parents chatted it up with some of the family, and I got an informal tour of the farm, the pizza-making area, and was introduced to the team. Overall, it was a classic Midwest summer night. Remnants of the setting sun could be seen late into evening, even as we arrived home after 10pm. The light of twilight was enough to pass the dimly lit horse and buggy on one of Indiana’s rural state roads. Even the road work, lane closures, and detours we encountered on the drive contributed to the nearly perfect display of summer in Indiana.
A couple years ago I learned about Hawkins Family Farm in North Manchester, Indiana. I have some personal connections to Indiana, so I have a pretty good sense that Indiana is covered in farmland. Surprisingly, Hawkins Family Farm is the only place in Indiana that I have heard about doing a Pizza Night. Luckily for Indiana, they are doing a great job.
With the challenges of Covid, Hawkins Family Farm started using a tailgating system with online ordering. Pizza eaters can now pull in and find their own numbered spot along the driveway or into the overflow area. The greeters at the entrance way (usually the current Hawkins Family Matriarch) not only make everyone feel welcome and comfortable, but also give details on how to order and best enjoy pizza on the farm.
The farm itself is 99 acres and produces some of the wheat used in the pizza dough, all of the meat (this week featuring pepperoni, bacon, and ham) and all of the produce for toppings. Farmer Zach pointed off into the distance toward another farm and said that the cheese came from one of the neighboring dairies. Unfortunately, I arrived a little too late to join the tour that Farmer Zach gave to a local Alumni Group, but he still took time to tell me about the farm, the oven, the evolution of their pizza night, and some of their plans for the future. I even got to peek into the pizza kitchen area and see the pizza makers at work. Hawkins Family Farm was lucky to find a new farm employee last year who also had experience cooking in a Michelin Star restaurant in Chicago. At the Pizza Farm, he gets to come up with a weekly Chef’s Special, taking the opportunity to be creative with the freshest ingredients growing that week. For my visit, we enjoyed the BLT pizza. The previous week featured a white sauce pizza with turnips and escarole. The pizza night is definitely benefiting from the the creativity and skill of their pizza chef and based on my brief visit and tour of the oven area, he seemed to be enjoying himself as well. Win-win.
As always, I am enchanted with the ways that Pizza Farms can build community. Farmer Zach told me a story about how word got out when he was building his pizza oven and several retired local brick masons started showing up to help out. He also let me know that although his mother is usually the greeter at the entrance, but since she was out of town this week, he asked some of the Pizza regulars if they would take over and they were thrilled to help out. Robbi and Ted Bannon of A to Z Produce and Bakery, once called the “parents of the pizza farm movement” by Saveur magazine, were cited as an inspiration and resource for Hawkins Family Farm Pizza Night. Farmer Zach also mentioned that he went to school with Maren and Tom, the Pizza Farming team of Luna Valley Farm in Decorah, Iowa and they regularly check in and share stories and ideas.
I had a great evening on the Hawkins Family Farm and I loved the pizza! The Chef’s Special and the pepperoni were probably the biggest hits, but all of the options were great. It was truly a pleasure to meet Zach and his family and to chat with the pizza makers and other team members and volunteers. My sister and I both agreed that it was worth the drive and we hope to meet out there again sometime before the end of summer. Next time, I want the whole tour and I will be longingly checking Facebook every week to see the Chef’s Specials!
That was such a fun night!!!