Bring the Bonfire to Your Table

It's here. Temperatures are in the 50's. Piles of dried wood are sitting around. Pyromaniac children are eager to light every and anything on fire and swing it around.  Yes, it's bonfire season. 

We keep a few fire pits around the farm to ignite when the mood strikes. Some are built for sitting around. Some are built for burning natural debris. But others, our favorites, are built for cooking over. Over the years, Jason has gotten creative at building different types of cooking pits depending on what we're making. We've had rotisserie pits, grate pits, smoke pits, roasting pits. But their goal is all the same: to preserve the natural taste of a wood fire in our food. 

Some images of our fire pits and fire-side meals. Last year, Jason built a large smoker out of cinder blocks and smoked one of our whole hogs!

When we’re not cooking over an open flame, we still crave that unmistakable, wood-fired flavor. The kind you can’t get from a stovetop alone. That’s exactly what inspired our Bonfire Brew glaze.

This simple glaze captures the taste of the fire pit with its smoky depth and subtle sweetness. It’s made with our Bonfire Brew herbal blend, giving meats, roasted veggies, or even grilled cheese that campfire-kissed flavor with no pit required.

If you’re lighting a fire this weekend, we hope you’ll have a mug of our Bonfire Brew in hand. It's made with lapsang black tea, which is a smoked black tea giving it a subtle smokey flavor, and warming spices. And If you're not able to have a fire, this tea and glaze will bring its cozy warmth to you.  

Bonfire Brew Glazed Oven-Roasted Chicken

Smoky-sweet, spiced, and caramelized, like campfire barbecue without the grill. It’s made with our Bonfire Brew herbal blend, giving meats, roasted veggies, or even grilled cheese that campfire-kissed flavor. You can make the glaze and keep it in the fridge for 7-10 days.

Ingredients

For the glaze

• 1 cup strong Bonfire Brew (2 Tbsp tea steeped in 1 cup boiling water, 15 min)
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp honey
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp apple-cider vinegar (or lemon juice)
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• ¼ tsp salt
• ⅛ tsp black pepper
• Dash of smoked paprika (optional for added smokiness and spice)

For the chicken

• 2 chicken breasts
• 2 thighs
• 2 drumsticks
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• Salt & pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven: 400 °F (205 °C).
2. Make the glaze: In a small saucepan, combine brewed tea, brown sugar, honey, soy/Worcestershire, vinegar, garlic, salt, and pepper. 
   Bring to a boil, then simmer 10–15 min until syrupy. (It will thicken more as it cools.) Set aside.
3. Prep the chicken: Pat pieces dry and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet or shallow roasting pan.
   Drizzle with olive oil, then season both sides with salt and pepper.
4. Roast (first stage): Roast uncovered for 25 minutes.
5. Glaze & roast again: Brush each piece generously with the Bonfire Brew glaze.
   Return to oven and roast another 15–20 minutes, glazing once more halfway through.
   Chicken is done when internal temp hits 165 °F (breasts) and 175 °F (thighs/drums).
6. Finish: In the final 2 minutes, switch oven to broil to caramelize the glaze slightly.
   Let rest 5 minutes before serving. Spoon a little leftover glaze from the pan on top.

Enjoy!