It’s All About Assets

When it comes to quality of life, it’s all about the assets and the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia has assets in spades! From the lush backdrop of the Blue Ridge and Allegheny Mountain ranges to the thriving towns across our Valley, we are fortunate to live in a place others want to visit.

And travel doesn’t just benefit the tourist — our residents benefit too. From access to high quality amenities and events to work opportunities and a decrease in state and local taxes, tourism is a win-win for the Shenandoah Valley.

In this episode of SVP’s Virtual Cooking Show, we are hosted by Explore More Discovery Museum and feature some of the region’s Quality of Life assets that are so important to retaining and attracting talent. Guests include Executive Director and founder of Explore More Discovery Museum Lisa Shull, Shenandoah Valley Airport Marketing and Communications director Heather Ream and Virginia Tourism Corporation Destination Development Manager Kelli Weaver.

Learn more about these assets and watch as we prepare a Mexican Street Corn Salad that is easy and versatile.

Interested in making the Mexican Street Corn Salad featured on the show? Click on the recipe card below:

Back to the Farm

In this edition of our Virtual Cooking Show, we feature the Valley’s agricultural roots and talk with our guests about how that forms the foundation for our region’s strong food & beverage and agritourism sectors today.

Hosted by Cave Hill Farms Brewery, our guests include Walt (Gator) Hopkins of Cave Hill Corporation, Scot Lilly of Farm Credit of the Virginias and John King of Virginia Poultry Growers Corporation.

Watch along as we prepare beer brined turkey legs and a cilantro lime crema featuring Cave Hill Farms brewery beer and locally produced spice blends.

(50 minute watch)

Interested in making the Beer Brined Turkey Legs and Crema featured on the show?
Click on the recipe card below:

Showcasing the Valley’s Education Assets

The Shenandoah Valley Region is fortunate to have a wealth of educational institutions, diverse education pathways and assets.  In this episode of our virtual cooking show, we’ll be highlighting two of the specialized educational institutions available in our region Fishburne Military School and Valley Career & Technical Center.

Hosted by Fishburne Military School, our guests include cadets of the school as well as Fishburne’s Todd S. Livick Sr., Linda Hershey and Tyler Dolin, and Director of the Shenandoah Valley Center for Advanced Learning Lee Whitesell.

Watch along as we make Honey Bun Pull-Apart Bread featuring locally produced Little Debbie Honey Buns and local honey.

(55 minute watch)

Interested in making the Honey Bun Pull-Apart Bread featured in this episode?
Click on the recipe card below:

Healthcare, Innovative Nutrition and the Community

In this edition of our virtual cooking show, we are hosted by Augusta Health and the Allegheny Mountain Institute Farm at the Augusta Health campus. Augusta Health is making a tremendous impact on its patients and the community through innovative initiatives and programs dedicated to making fresh and nutritious foods easily accessible.

Our guests and hosts for this cooking class are healthcare leaders, including Mary Mannix, the CEO of August Health, who are helping shape our region’s future and showcase how food is medicine. The AMI Farm at Augusta Health is one of many examples of how Augusta Health strives to be national leader for community-based healthcare and a major asset for our business community.

(34 minute watch)

Interested in making the Southern Shrimp and Grits recipe featured on the show?
Click the recipe card below:

Cooking up Infrastructure in the Shenandoah Valley

In this episode of our virtual cooking show, we stream live from Shenandoah Valley Electric Cooperative as we talk with our guests about infrastructure in the Valley. We’re joined by SVEC’s Economic Development manager, Lucas Cade and Rockingham County director of Public Works Philip Rhodes. As we chat, SVP executive director Jay Langston makes a preserve filled mini cake — because as with infrastructure, we can’t always “see” all the parts on first glance.

(55 min. watch)

Interested in making the Raspberry Filled Cakes with Chocolate Hazelnut Spread? Click the recipe image below:

Showcasing Unique Workforce Partnerships with BRCC

Our first virtual cooking show of the the year features Chocolate Cherry Cookies – a nod to Presidents Day and Virginia born and bred President George Washington’s cherry tree legend. In this episode, SVP Executive Director Jay A. Langston is joined by Blue Ridge Community College Workforce and Continuing Education Dean Kevin Ratliff and JobStarter Coordinator Andrea Livick as they talk about the college’s unique workforce partnerships.

(50 minute watch)

Interested in making the Chocolate Cherry Cookies? Click the recipe below:

A Dash of Thanks and a Sprinkle of Giving from the Shenandoah Valley

In our last cooking show of 2022 (our 8th in the series) we focus on Thanksgiving and the heritage of the Shenandoah Valley. SVP Executive Director Jay Langston bakes a traditional  dressing recipe that’s been passed through the generations in his family while talking to guests from the Brethren and Mennonite Heritage Center, City of Harrisonburg Economic Development and Valley Pike Farm Market. Filmed in a 1700s era log home, viewers will learn about the history of the Valley and hear from locals who are doing their part to preserve the history of our region while cultivating business and growth opportunities.

(54 minute watch)

Interested in making the Cornbread Dressing featured in this episode?
Click the recipe below:

Harvest a Taste of the Shenandoah Valley in Shenandoah County

In this 7th edition of our virtual cooking show, we feature Shenandoah County and some of the delicious locally made products as we bake an Apple Beer Bread. Host Woodstock Brewhouse made for the perfect backdrop to this edition’s recipe that featured their Tipsy Squirrel brown ale. Site consultants learned about the history of the brewhouse and heard from representatives from Bowman Andros, Shentel and the county’s economic development office.

(56 minute watch)

Living a Better Life Through Flowers: Harmony Harvest and Floral Genius

During this “cooking” class, we showcased a side of agriculture in the Shenandoah Valley that is not as well known; flowers! Our consultants learned about Harmony Harvest and Floral Genius, a small company that is becoming a force in the flower business. Follow along as we make floral arrangements and learn about the services that are helping the owners of these two businesses, sisters Jessica hall and Stephanie Auville grow 1600% during the COVID pandemic. They will discuss, the founding of their company 10 years ago, the major business transition taken in 2020, their passion for horticulture, and we’ll brag about their success. Click here to read more.

(51 min. watch)

Aviation Innovation in the Shenandoah Valley: The NextGen Aviators Program

During this “cooking” class, our consultants discovered that the Shenandoah Valley is not just food and beverage. Follow along as we fabricate an airplane at Dynamic Aviation. We’ll have guests talking about Dynamic Aviation’s unique NextGen Aviators program and how they are transforming what young people see as potential career paths. You’ll learn what it takes to be an engineer, fabricator, pilot or aviation mechanic in no time! Click here to read more.

(60 min. watch)

The Shenandoah Valley Life. Choose Your Own Cozy.

Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley life is 365 days of “cozy.” Our cozy character is formed by a mosaic of majestic mountains, downtown hubs, and accessible outdoor recreation. In November, site selectors followed along as we baked Wade’s Mill Cornbread and shared how our agricultural heritage is instrumental in the success of our food and beverage industry and adds to our quality of life. Click here to read more.

(44 min. watch)

Oh, the Places We’ll Go: Back to School Edition

It’s back to school for the Shenandoah Valley’s 10 colleges and universities, 8 career and technical centers, and public and private K-12 schools. In August, site selectors prepared granola bars and heard from higher-education guests who shared how the Shenandoah Valley applies high academic standards, new technologies, and the application of classroom learning to real-world situations to create a recipe for workforce success. Click here to read more.

(48 min. watch)

Fresh Food, Fresh Air, Fresh Perspective.

In May, we streamed live from Massanutten Resort, one of our four-season recreational attractions and top employers in the region. Site selectors grilled chicken tacos alongside Farmer Focus’ very own Jefferson Heatwole and met special guests who shared how the Shenandoah Valley offers a fresh perspective that creates a recipe for business success. Click here to read more.

(32 min. watch)

Life is Sweeter in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley

In February, we streamed live from The Yellow Barn at Shenandoah Caverns, one of our premier tourism venues. Site selectors followed along sous-chef Jay Langston as he prepared his Cappuccino Peanut Butter Blossoms. Throughout the segment, special guests shared how our economic development assets, including the Hershey Boot Camp, develop the infrastructure and workforce for some of the sweetest jobs in the Shenandoah Valley. Click here to read more.

(47 min. watch)