Tag Archives: Farmer’s Market

Farmer’s Market discoveries

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Welcome to the August 2012 Carnival of Natural Parenting: Farmer’s Markets

This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama. This month our participants have written about something new they’ve learned about their local farmers.

When Matt and I first got married, I discovered the joy of farmer’s markets.  I don’t know why I’d never really been to one before, but once I got started, it was hard to imagine ever purchasing my food anywhere else.  Over the years, I’ve met many vendors, tried new vegetables and learned so much.

Through farmer’s markets, I met the man who supplied us with lamb for the past 5 years, half a sheep at a time.  Because of him, I know how to grill lamb chops and can make a killer shepherd’s pie.  I bought my first chicken that had been butchered mere hours before and roasted it up for the most flavorful meal I’d experienced up to that time.

Before the market downtown, I’d never had a purple carrot or an orange, heirloom tomato.  I didn’t know you could raise shrimp right here in Ohio.  I had no idea that one could subsist solely on food grown/raised within 50 miles of your home.  I didn’t realize how diverse the agriculture in Ohio could be! I wasn’t aware that an average housewife could make her own cheese from a gallon of milk.  And don’t even get me started on the baked goods I didn’t know even existed!

Throughout the years, I’ve met new people, tried new foods, learned how to store and prepare vegetables, fruits and meats.  Now, I’m learning how to make these foods appealing to a preschooler who only likes bananas and watermelon.  I’m learning the best markets to go to that I’ll be able to corral my little ones and still shop.  My children?  Well, they are learning the names of the vegetables, even if they won’t eat them.  They are learning patience as they wait and wait and wait as I circle the stalls and taste and sample and talk.

Every year as the Downtown Farmer’s Market starts announcing it’s coming in the paper, I find myself waiting anxiously for the vendors to set up and my stroller basket to fill with fresh produce.  And while the market is here, I’m happy to try all kinds of new recipes and stock my shelves with home canned goodies to open in the dead of winter and give me hope for next year’s Farmer’s Market!

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Carnival of Natural Parenting -- Hobo Mama and Code Name: MamaVisit Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama to find out how you can participate in the next Carnival of Natural Parenting!

Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:

(This list will be live and updated by afternoon August 14 with all the carnival links.)

 

Retreeeeaaatttt!!!!

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That was me yelling up there in the title.  Yep.  I went away this weekend for the first time since November 2009.  This year, I’m the new Publicity/Media person for my church’s MOPs charter.  I joined MOPs while I was still pregnant with Liam and I think that at times, it’s fair to say my sanity is a direct result of getting connected.  I don’t have much family in the area and it’s been great to make new friends every year.

Anyway, I was wreck about leaving my kids overnight and had a hard time relaxing and enjoying the other moms and our “work” of planning out the 2012-2013 year.  Once I settled in and we started talking I managed to sit back and appreciate this time away from my home to recharge.  Although, use of the word recharge is only applicable in the mental sense as I stayed way past my bedtime and am still feeling the effects of treating my aging body as though I were still in college.  :D

For me, one of the best parts of the weekend was coming in from a short morning run and having breakfast already made!  Eggs, pancakes, fruit, yogurt, granola… oh my.  Breakfast is tough in this house because it’s time consuming and the kids almost always steal my plate.  Thankfully, last night, I managed to finally figure out a quick hash brown recipe that will keep overnight in the fridge.  Initially, this was a side dish for our supper last night, but since we had leftovers, I tried them 2 different ways this morning and now cannot wait to get back to the farmer’s market and pick up more new potatoes!

Yes. That's a homemade iced mocha in a Ball jar. Recipe to come!

Farmer’s Market Hashbrowns

  • 2 pounds small red/new potatoes
  • 1 small green pepper
  • 1 small red pepper
  • 1 medium candy onion
  • 2 Tbsp. butter
  • seasonings of your choice (I used garlic salt, paprika and mustard powder)
Wash the potatoes and cut them however you like best.  I chose to quarter mine since they were so small.  Place them in a steamer basket and then into a medium sauce pan with about 2 inches of water in the bottom.  Steam the potatoes until they are just fork tender.  The fork should be able to pierce the potato, but not smash it.  Bottom line: the potatoes still need to be a bit firm.  In the meantime, chop or slice the peppers and onions in a size that is comparable to the potatoes.  Heat a skillet over a medium burner and add the butter.  Saute the peppers and onions until tender.  When the potatoes are done cooking, add them to the skillet with the peppers and onions and saute for about 5 more minutes.  Add more butter if necessary and then season to taste.  If you are making these ahead, store them in the fridge for up to 3 days.  They can be reheated in the microwave or (like I did) just tossed into the pan after you’ve cooked your eggs.
What do you like to eat for breakfast?

My library of canning inspiration

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Since you’ll probably be reading more than a few posts on canning this summer, I thought I’d go ahead and let you know my favorite resources so you can check them out of the library or add them to your own collection!

Ball Blue Book of Preserving: This is the first book I owned with any sort of canning instruction.  I’m attached.  I love the clear directions and photos.

All About Canning: I have both this book and the original Joy of Cooking cookbook.  Both have simple, easy to follow recipes and instructions.  It should be noted though, that the Joy of Cooking does not have images that are remotely helpful in the text.

Put ‘Em Up!  I was given this book for Christmas and I already have it dogeared and noted.  I’m very anxious to try some new recipes from it!  I’m hoping to find some good rhubarb at the farmer’s market this weekend so I can make the sparkling rhubarb jelly.  I especially love the variety of recipes and the icons on each page providing a quick referral of the potential storage methods (freeze, can, dry).

Canning for a New Generation: Also a Christmas gift, this one is also showing my plans for the summer.  It is packed with recipes and ideas and as a bonus for those of us who can extra specifically so we can give our goodies away, there are gift tags in the back!

Simply in Season: a stand-by of mine for the last few years, I find myself flipping through this book every time I need a new recipe for seasonal produce.

These are my favorites and I do hope that by the time my children are my age, they’ll find them stained, worn and noted.  I know some people don’t write in their cook books, but I can’t control myself.  I need to know what I had thought while I was cooking.  I like to mark how much we enjoyed it (or didn’t!) and any changes I made.  I’m always making little changes, so that last part is awfully helpful.  Now that you know my favorites, do you have any you’d like to add to the list?

Checking off my jam list

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Last week, the newest issue of Kaia came out and I was more than a little excited to see my article on canning in it.  I grew up making freezer jam and terrrified of the idea of a boiling water canner.  I learned to can because as a wedding gift I was given a Ball start up kit from Lehmans and since I had everything, I needed to bite the bullet and get over my fear of getting burnt.  Some people get hooked on shopping or running races, I discovered that I love making jam.  I really, really do.  I love testing for the jelling point, wiping the threads of each jar and then listening to the jars sound their triumphant “ping” as they seal.

Every year, I mean to make strawberry rhubarb jam and every year, and yet every year passes and somehow, I have not managed to make any!  This year was the year though and I am thrilled with how it turned out.  The berries were really sweet, so there is a much lower amount of sugar in this jam than in other recipes I found.  I think that there is just enough sweetness to overcome the tartness of the rhubarb without overshadowing the flavor.

Strawberry Rhubarb Jam

  • 4 cups Rhubarb
  • 6 cups Strawberries
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1/4 cup + 1 tsp. lemon juice
  • 1 tsp. Vanilla extract
Place all the ingredients in a large, heavy bottomed pan.  Heat through and then mash well.  (I used an immersion blender to do this, even though I knew it is incredibly unsafe.  I still have strawberry bits on my wall.  If I were you, I’d use a potato masher.)  If you allow the fruit to heat through, it will mash better which is extremely beneficial for the rhubarb as it can be a bit stringy.  Continue to heat the jam, skimming foam from the top of the pan as necessary.  The jam will reduce in volume by about a quarter in 15-20 minutes.  Put a metal spoon in the freezer while the jam is reducing.  When the jam seems thick enough, put a drop of the jam on the spoon to check and see if you leave a clean streak through it if you run your finger through.  If the spoon is clear, then the jam has thickened up enough and will set nicely.   Pour the jam into the jars, wipe the threads of the jars with a damp cloth and screw on the caps and rings tightly.  Process the jars for 10 minutes in a boiling water canner.  Set the finished jars on a towel in a dry place where they cannot be disturbed for at least 12 hours.  Enjoy on fresh toast!

Roasted

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See that beautiful baby in the photo?  She’s sweet and precious and someone I fight to protect every moment of my day.  I started doing the October Unprocessed because I was already on a weight loss challenge and I figured it would be good for me.  As the weeks have passed, I’m realizing it was the jump start we needed to get ourselves back on track to healthy eating.  And the motivation I needed to start trying a little harder to make sure those whole foods come back and stay back.
I love that when I open my refrigerator, it’s full of glass jars with things I made myself.  Ghee, salad dressing, jams and now roasted red peppers!  I’ve been meaning to do this for a while, but just never got around to it.  However when I was stocking up on pie pumpkins, I found a good deal on local red peppers.  I bought a few with the intention of roasting them and then making my own hummus again.  It took me a few weeks (I know, you’d think I was busy or something…), but once I did it, I was thrilled with the results!  

I don’t have a gas stove so my options are either to roast them on the grill or in the oven.  The weather has been less than pleasant so I opted to do them in my oven.  It took a while since I was timid with the heat, but the result was wonderful!  I set the temperature at 425 and then cut up the peppers.  The peppers that blistered the most were the ones that were the flattest, so I know for next time that you have to cut them with purpose so that they will set on the baking sheet skin up without wobbling.  I lined the baking sheet with tin foil and filled it with peppers.  Into the oven they went and I turned on the light so I could watch them while I worked in the kitchen.  In about 25 minutes, I could see the skins blistering up and forming a bubble.  I took them out of the oven at half an hour and then quickly wrapped them up in the foil so they could steam.  Once the peppers were cool enough to handle, but still warm, I peeled the skin off with my fingers.  I used a few to make hummus and the rest, I put in a jar with some minced garlic and equal parts olive oil and water.  I’m very excited to use my peppers in future recipes and I’m so excited that I made them myself for a fraction of the usual cost!

The end of the tomatoes!!!

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I had fully intended to do a lot more blogging this summer.  I have a whole list of topics and several posts started.  I do, however, have a wonderful excuse: canning!  In between having a toddler and a newborn, I started working in May and haven’t stopped.  As I type this, the last 6 jars of salsa are processing in the water bath.  I can’t say that I’m sad.  4 bushels of tomatoes as a solo effort is rather overwhelming, but I know how much effort it will be in the years to come.  I only have apples and squash to do yet this year.  I have plans to do at least 4 dozen quarts of applesauce since I’ll have another mouth scarffing it down here pretty soon.  I want to make some apple cider jelly and lots of pumpkin butter.  Then, I’ll be freezing pumpkin and butternut purees.  I’m thinking that I’ll try to make one of Farmer’s Daughter’s pies for Thanksgiving this year!
 
Just in case you’re interested, here’s the Canning Tally so far this year:
  • 30 pts. medium salsa
  • 6 pts hot salsa
  • 5 1/2 pts spicy ketchup
  • 6 qts tomato puree
  • 18 qts tomato sauce
  • 20 pts diced tomatoes
  • 20 qts diced tomatoes
  • 1 qt freezer jar of roasted tomatoes (recipe below)
  • 16 pts dill pickles
  • 8 qts dill pickles
  • 12 pts strawberry jam
  • 22 1/2 pts blackberry jam
  • 18 pts pickled peppers
  • 20 pts corn kernels
  • 15 pts. sliced peaches
Yesterday as I was elbow deep in tomatoes and floundering for motivation to finish, I decided I couldn’t stand to dice or puree one. more. tomato.  I had flagged recipe for oven roasted tomatoes in my Pinterest account and decided that I was for sure going to do it.  Even if it only saved me from doing 2 dozen or so tomatoes.  I woke up this morning to the amazing smell of garlic and tomatoes and was smug that I’d been productive, even in my sleep.  
Oven Roasted Tomatoes:
  • Roma tomatoes
  • garlic
  • herbs
  • olive oil
  • salt
  • pepper

Wash the tomatoes, cut out the stem and slice lengthwise.  In a large bowl, mix together olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper and the herbs of your choice (I used herbes de Provence).  Toss the tomatoes in the mixture and then place them, skin side down on a baking sheet covered in foil.  Then, place the tomatoes in a 200 degree oven at night before you go to bed.  The next morning, take them out of the oven and allow them to cool before putting them in a freezer safe container.  Tomatoes done this way can take the place of sun-dried tomatoes in most dishes.  I did 2 full baking sheets of tomatoes and will admit that I’m wondering if I should do more.  All I can think of are the possibilities!

Why yes, yes I can!

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I started canning the summer after I got married.  I had been on a mission to learn how to really cook food and somehow, canning my garden’s bounty seemed to fit into this.  That first year really all I canned was salsa, tomato sauce and tomatoes.  The tomato sauce was a disaster; thin as water and over seasoned.  The tomatoes were so insanely time consuming and I hardly got any jars for all the work I put in.  The salsa was edible, though.  That salsa was what told me the next year to go back to the farm stand and get more tomatoes and try again.  2008′s harvest left me with a freezer that was stocked, shelves filled with my home canned goodies and confidence.
I didn’t can a darn thing in 2009 under the misconception that I wouldn’t be able to do anything with a newborn.  He was colicky for sure, but I just didn’t know yet how to manage my time.  Last year, I did everything I could, and was really proud of myself.  I didn’t meet my goals for the year, but I still enjoyed opening my cabinets and seeing the product of my work.  This year, I made my canning goal list out before Sylvia was born and with my guide to the Ohio produce availability, marked out my plan on my calendar and made my plan.  I’ve managed to pass my goals in everything and I even learned how to operate a pressure canner without terror.  The only left for me to do is figure out how much Sylvia likes applesauce and work accordingly.
I can for several reasons, not the least of which being that I know exactly what is going in my family’s bodies.  I know where all my food came from since I either picked it myself or know the growers.  The food is fresh when it goes in those sparkling clean jars made from glass… no chance of BPA there!  Every year, I reuse what I had from prior years and add to the stash as needed.  I recycle my jar lids (and the rings as needed).  It would be a lie to say that I don’t get sad as I watch my stash slowly dwindle through the winter and early spring.  I love that my grocery bills are low through the winter because when I need diced tomatoes, just head to the basement and draw on what I’ve already done.
Prices around here have gone up dramatically.  Even store brand canned corn is over a dollar a can and it’s rarely on sale.  Last week, canned tomatoes were on sale for 69 cents.  Regularly, that brand of tomatoes sells for $1.19.  I bought a bushel of tomatoes for 10 dollars and 36 pints of tomatoes.  This breaks down to 28 cents a pint.  And I didn’t clip one coupon.  My pickled peppers? 19 cents a pint.  By taking the time and the effort over the summer to save money, I can then take that money I would have spent on canned goods and put it into buying more organic and natural products for my family. 

I can because I save money.  I can because I like to use a skill I possess.  I can because it’s healthy for my family.  But most of all, I can because I feel like I get to do a little something extra for my family with each jar that I put on the shelves in the basement.  I love to make peanut butter sandwiches with my own jelly.  I love to know that when I feed people I actually did it all by myself, standing in the heat of my kitchen, scrounging up those precious nap times so I could be productive.  Last week was hard, but I know that come January when I still have shelves full of the summer’s produce, I won’t begrudge one bit the tomato stained finger nails and late nights.  Instead, I will open each jar and savor the moment as I remember this summer and all I learned about myself.

A Peck of Pickled Peppers

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 As I mentioned in my last post, I had some hopes to get peppers and tomatoes done in the next few weeks. That was Monday morning’s ideal. By yesterday afternoon, I was just hoping to get through the next hour in one piece. Since Monday afternoon, 3 bushels of tomatoes and 2 pecks of peppers have made their way through my kitchen to either be canned or froze.  Both of my kids decided to make this the week they didn’t want to have any independent play time, so I did what I could during the day and wound up working until 11 or 12 every night.  Eh.  I only lost about a peck worth of tomatoes because I didn’t get them peeled and diced soon enough.  I am only 1 person, so I let it go.
As crazy as the week was, I have to say that I am finally getting to see how much fun Liam and I will be able to have next year with our garden.  He was very interested in all the vegetables that came into our kitchen, going so far as to choose some of the peppers we picked up for freezing.  He wanted very badly to help me, so when I did the canned peppers, I told him to get a chair and dig in.  He was thrilled and actually wound up being a great help for a dozen pints.  Pickled peppers turned out to be the easiest thing I’ve canned next to peaches.  The longest part for me was the slicing of all the peppers, once that was over with, Liam and I packed the jars and I sent him off to play while I poured in the hot liquid and processed them.  18 pints of pickled peppers from 1 peck of sweet banana peppers; bring Peter Piper!
Pickled Pepper Rings
  • Peppers of your choice (I used sweet bananas in most of my jars, but I did throw a few hot ones in for Matt’s sake.)
  • Minced garlic
  • Salt
  • Water
  • White vinegar

Boil equal parts water and white vinegar.  Slice up the peppers into rings and pack them tightly into sterilized pint jars.  Add 1 tsp. of minced garlic and a scant 1/2 tsp. salt to each jar.  Pour the boiling liquid over the peppers, leaving 1/2 inch head space.  Wipe the rims and screw the caps and rings on tightly.  Process for 10 minutes.  Allow jars to rest until cool and store in a cool, dark place until ready to use.  Pepper rings should be refrigerated after they are opened, if you have any left in the jar, that is!  We use our rings on pizzas, in pasta salads and sandwiches and just for snacking.  Enjoy!

Blackberry Vanilla Jam

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In college, in my Organic Chemistry lab, I neglected to waft during an experiment and sniffed instead.  It was a long time before I was able to smell again.  These days, my nose is very appreciative of the scents that surround me: clean diapers dried in the sun, freshly cut cantaloupe, and the smell of my babies after a bath.  This summer, I had determined to make 12 jars of jam.  I passed that goal easily with the strawberries a few months ago, but when I got my hands on a flat of blackberries, I had to make more.  I didn’t freeze as many as I had planned to, but I’d have to say that the 22 jars of jam in my canning cellar will just open up the door for me to learn how to make scones and sweet cream biscuits.  I promised Matt a batch of this jam from Crunchy Chicken’s Kitchen.  For some reason while I was waiting for that jam to jell, I suddenly remembered the smell of a blackberry lotion I had bought while on our honeymoon.  I played around with the flavor until I found what I was looking for.  Today, I used up the last drops of our store-bought jam from this past winter and I can’t tell you how excited I am to crack into my neat stash the next time I make Liam and I pb&j sandwiches for lunch!
Blackberry Vanilla Jam
  • 6 2/3 cups blackberries puree (after running them through a food mill on fine)
  • 8 1/3 cups sugar
  • 2 Tbsp. Vanilla extract
  • 7 1/2 Tbsp. Ball Classic Pectin

Once the berries have been run through the food mill, put them in a medium sized non-reactive and heat through.  Gradually add in the pectin and bring to a rolling boil that cannot be stirred down.  Then pour in the sugar and vanilla.  Return the jam to a boil and cook for 1 minute.  Then, remove from the heat and  pour jam into hot half pint/pint jars and process in a hot water bath for 10 minutes. 

Pickles and Plans

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I’ve started to do my grocery shopping on Saturday mornings while Sylvia naps and Matt and Liam hang out.  It’s early enough that I can get in and out of the 3 store I frequent in about an hour and I’m not frazzled for the rest of the day.  This Saturday, I found pickling cucumbers on sale.  They were perfect, local and since I already had the seasoning mixes, ripe for the picking (pardon the pun).  20 pounds and 4 hours later I had an impressive line of 22 pints and 6 quarts of fresh, homemade pickles!  I am a huge pickle fan, especially when on a peanut butter sandwich, and am super excited to pull those jars off the shelves in the middle of winter!  As a bonus, this weekend was perfect to be spent in the kitchen.  Breezy and in the mid-70s, I couldn’t have ordered better days.  
Another recent plan is to start researching batch cooking methods.  I came home from the library with a stack of books with a number of recipes that I’ll be trying out in the next few weeks.  I have a few standbys for frozen meals, but I’m looking forward to expanding my choices.  
This week, I’m recycling meals that I didn’t make from my last few menu plans.  Matt has a few appointments after work so he won’t be around when Liam and I eat.  I’m prepping meats to be grilled and used on salads for our lunches and since the weather is supposed to be mild in the middle of the week, I’m hoping to squeeze in a little extra baking.  Thankfully, I don’t have many things to do myself, so I’m looking forward to days spent outside in the sun, playing with the kids!

Meatloaf
Murgh Makhani (a special request from Matt and I’m making a double recipe of the sauce to keep in the freezer)
Salmon Cakes with Sweet Potato Fries
Asian BBQ Chicken and Rice (a new freezer recipe… I’ll let you know how it turns out!)
Honey Mustard Pork Chops