A Year-Round Guide to Franklin and Nantahala

[caption id="attachment_191417" align="alignright" width="300"] Nicole and Aaron Bradley.[/caption] Surrounded by flat farmland and the rolling hills beyond, 4-year-old Henson Bradley has donned his cowboy hat and bundled up in his

Rosemary and Goat Cheese Strata

[caption id="attachment_191417" align="alignright" width="300"] Nicole and Aaron Bradley.[/caption] Surrounded by flat farmland and the rolling hills beyond, 4-year-old Henson Bradley has donned his cowboy hat and bundled up in his

Nicole and Aaron Bradley.

Nicole and Aaron Bradley. Photography courtesy of Colfax Creek Farm

Surrounded by flat farmland and the rolling hills beyond, 4-year-old Henson Bradley has donned his cowboy hat and bundled up in his great-grandma’s patchwork quilt to ride with his dad, Aaron, in an orange Kubota. Together, they check on livestock and lay bales of hay across their 74-acre property in Rutherford County. The whole family pitches in toward the end of the year, a busy time as many look to the Bradleys’ farm, Colfax Creek, for their Christmas centerpiece. “During the holidays, we offer cuts to our customers that we normally don’t, such as our standing rib roast,” says Nicole, Aaron’s wife.

When Aaron and Nicole bought the farm in 2018, it had been sitting idle for a decade. Aaron grew up in Saluda, where his family had an apple orchard and raised cattle. Nicole’s family, also farmers, moved to western North Carolina from Texas when she was 9. Aaron worked at big cattle operations in the area before the couple bought their farm in Bostic.

Every Saturday, the Bradley family, including their 1-year-old daughter, Kennedy, travels to the Charlotte Regional Farmers Market, where they greet holiday hosts. “People enjoy having a story behind their food for the holidays,” Nicole says. Home chefs browse their offerings — French loin rack, whole beef tenderloin, hickory-smoked ham, and the seasonal roast — and decide which will complement their family’s favorite dishes when they gather to celebrate.

Colfax Creek Farm
274 Harvey Logan Road
Bostic, NC 28018
(828) 817-5233
colfaxcreekfarm.com

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This story was published on Nov 25, 2024

Vanessa Infanzon

Infanzon is a freelance writer whose work has appeared in The Charlotte Observer and Business North Carolina. She lives in Charlotte.