September 18, 2008 by Sara Zoe.

UNH has been having its Local Harvest Feast for a number of years now - this year it is on Wednesday September 24 and it is a great opportunity to see local food on a large scale.Not everything, by far, is local, but it’s pretty amazing just how much they can do.

And now here’s news of a local feast at Plymouth State University!

Plymouth State University will host an outdoor local foods buffet on Wednesday, September 17, 2008.  The buffet will feature foods purchased from local vendors and will be available at the Mountain View Snack Bar in the Hartman Union Building from 11:00AM until 1:00PM and outside the Prospect Hall Dining Room from 4:30PM until 7:30PM.  Dinner can purchased with cash or a PSU meal plan.

The menu will include Clam Chowder; Carrot & Ginger Salad; Marinate Beet & Onion Salad; Cole Slaw; Mixed Greens & Vegetable Salad; Apple, Pear, & Walnut Salad with Maple Dressing; Fresh Rolls & Braided Bread with Whipped Butter; Baked Haddock; Venison Stew, Roasted Chicken; Herb Potatoes; Spaghetti Squash, Egg Salad Sandwiches; Strawberry Yogurt Soup; Apple Pie; Blueberry Buckle; Watermelon; Pumpkin Bread; Milk, Water, & Apple Cider.

Items for the buffet were purchased from Black River Produce of North Springfield, VT; Owens Truck Farm of Plymouth, NH; Bonnie Brae Farms of Plymouth, NH; Saunders Produce of Somersworth, NH; Dole & Bailey Chicken of the Northeast; Meadow Ledge Farms of Loudon, NH; Stoneyfield Farms of Londonderry, NH, as well as items produced in the PSU bakery.

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September 17, 2008 by Sara Zoe.

Sustainable Apple School: All About Growing and Marketing Apples

Mondays October 20 (part 1) and October 27  (part 2)

8:30am - 3pm at the Rockingham County Complex in Brentwood

Are you thinking of starting an apple orchard? Or are you looking at replacing an old apple block with new varieties? And what does it take to grow and market a good apple crop? The answer is planning before planting. Day one of this two-day school will cover growing and marketing of apples (Part I). The second day (Part II), held a week later, will cover insects, diseases, vertebrates and other pests. The second afternoon we will also travel about 5 miles to an apple orchard, in our own cars or carpooling. We will look closely at and discuss the orchard layout, its fencing, location, and how it’s been pruned, etc. Feel free to attend either or both sessions. Nada Haddad, UNH Cooperative Extension Agriculture Educator in Rockingham County, will be the moderator. Each day has been granted 5 pesticide recertification credits (private/commercial) from the NH Division of Pesticide Control, NH Department of Agriculture, Markets & Food. No person shall be denied the opportunity to participate in this program because of inability to pay.

Questions about the program? Or if you have special needs: Nada Haddad (603) 679-5616 or nada.haddad@unh.edu

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September 16, 2008 by Sara Zoe.

The Eat the View campaign (to get the next president growing some of his own food!) has a fun new video of the history of food growing at the White House ….

Eattheview.org >

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September 14, 2008 by Sara Zoe.

Thistle Ridge’s Family Fun Day

October 11, 2008 - Noon - 5pm

379 Toldend Rd., Dover, NH - map >

* Pick and paint your own pumpkins
* Pony rides and petting zoo
* Home-made baked goodies, cider, candied apples and lunch from the grill
* Produce fresh from the garden
* Pictures with Matilda the Tractor
* Face painting, sun catchers
…. and much, much more!

for more information, call (603) 740-9332

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September 13, 2008 by Sara Zoe.

Pick-your-own farms and farm stands at apple orchards throughout the seacoast:

Apple Annie

Apple Annie is a small orchard with about 200 apple trees. We offer pick-your-own and ready picked apples and our own unpasteurized cider in (more)

Applecrest Farm Orchards

Weekends in September and October, Applecrest offers their famous Fall Festivals which include apple and pumpkin picking, live bluegrass (more)

Butternut Farm

Family oriented, pick-your-own fruit farm. Calling first is always best, as phone message is updated daily during the season with news on (more)

DeMeritt Hill Farm

A seasonal orchard specializing in P-Y-O Peaches, Blueberries, Apples & Pumpkins. Open Labor Day – Christmas Eve, call for hours. (more)

Doles Orchard

Hazelton Orchards

Libby & Son U-picks

Mack’s Apples

Farm market opens in August with early apples, peaches, and locally grown vegetables. We also carry NH maple syrup, jams, jellies, honey, (more)

McDougal Orchards

Historic, seventh generation family farm located just a mile from downtown Sanford/Springvale. 26 varieties of apples available for PYO or (more)

McKenzie’s Farm

McKenzie’s Farm is a hilltop family farm specializing in June tomatoes! On a clear day, we can see Mt. Washington. We have pick-your-own (more)

Nottingham Orchard

Oliver Merrill & Sons

Pick your own and ready picked, farm stand. Open year round, daily from 8-5. Offers a variety of fruits and vegetables including apples, (more)

Snell Family Farm

Snell Family Farm is a diversified farm committed to growing great food and beautiful plants for the people of Southern Maine. Our season (more)

Spiller Farm

We have been selling fruits and vegetables for more than 40 years through our farm store, 3 farm markets, and pick-your-own. Come and enjoy (more)

Sunnycrest Farm

Pick your own and ready picked. Farm stand offering a variety of fruits and vegetables. Open June-December. Strawberries, raspberries, (more)

Vickery Orchard

Woodmont Orchards

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September 12, 2008 by Sara Zoe.

Willow Pond Farm’s lemon cucumbers. Lemon cucumbers don’t taste like lemons, they just resemble them. They taste like really nice, mild and sweet cucumbers. At the Portsmouth Farmers’ Market

Wake Robin Farm carrots, seen at the Durham Farmers’ Market

I *heart* lacinato kale, also called dinosaur kale. It is dark green and more narrow than the other kinds of kale, and just has a flavor and texture that can’t be beat. This is Meadow’s Mirth kale, seen at the Exeter Farmers’ Market.

I love September, when you get everything awesome from summer along with fall food - watermelons are at their peak right now. These are Barker’s Farm watermelons, from the Portsmouth Farmers’ Market.

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September 11, 2008 by Sara Zoe.

Wake Robin Farm poblanos at the Durham Farmers’ Market

If you’ve run into me of late, I’ve probably been talking about poblanos. In fact, I can’t shut up about them, and since everyone I know in real life is getting pretty sick of the subject, I’ve turned to inflicting my poblano mania on blog readers.

Oh poblanos - how do I love thee? Let me count the ways: you are meaty, and warm, with just the right spice, not too much - I eat you not as a condiment but as a major ingredient. Your roasty flavor is perfect for a tacos, or nachos, or with rice and beans and cheese, or for Santa Fe style chile cheeseburgers (though true Santa Fe style chile cheeseburgers require New Mexican chiles, but, beloved poblanos, you are perfect for me. Sante Fe style chile cheeseburgers are simply burgers topped with chiles, yellow mustard, and american cheese, and they are way more than the sum of their parts).

The rainy summer was horrible for tomatoes. It was horrible for trying to plant fall crops. It was horrible for a lot of things, but the peppers loved it. And every farmers’ market I go to, I am buying loads and loads and loads of poblanos.

I am eating them - but I am also saving them for winter.

If you just want dinner, and aren’t grilling anyway, put a dry cast iron skillet on your stove and blacken them to death there. But if you are freezing them for winter, the grill is the fastest, easiest, and most fun way to do them in batches. And then your grill is ready for your burgers when your poblanos are done.

Roast your poblanos until they are pretty black. A few brown spots are fine. Put them all in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Walk away and make the rest of your dinner. By now they will be cool and their skins will easily peel off in your hands. The chiles themselves will be soft and cooked through. For chile rellenos, you’ll have to carefully slit them to remove the seeds and stuff them with cheese. For all other uses, simply slice them open, discard the seeds, and eat. When I’m freezing them, I pack them really really really tightly into little deli containers and freeze. You can also roast one day, and let them sit in the plastic wrapped bowl in the fridge and finish peeling/processing for the freezer another day - the skins come off even easier once they are really cool.

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September 10, 2008 by Sara Zoe.

Whenever I see cauliflower at the farmers’ markets, I snatch it up, usually buying two heads. While my seasonings may change - sometimes just a little hot pepper, sometimes Indian seasonings and sauce, sometimes Spanish/Moroccan - I always start cooking it in the same way, because I simply can’t improve on the texture and flavor of roasted cauliflower.

Roasted Cauliflower

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F

2. Cut heads of cauliflower into florets

3. In a small bowl, toss the cauliflower with a few tablespoons of olive oil or butter (the amount will depend on the amount of cauliflower - you want to generally coat it, but it doesn’t need to be soaked) and salt, pepper, and any other seasonings you might like. Try: a dash of hot pepper flakes, minced garlic, and some smoked paprika. Or leave it just at salt, it will be amazing.

4. Spread in a single layer on a sheet pan, and bake for about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven to toss the peices around, then bake for another 10 minutes or so, or until nice and brown.

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September 9, 2008 by Sara Zoe.

Just some pretty pictures to share, taken a couple weeks ago at the Hampton Farmers’ Market

New Roots Farm tomatoes

New Roots Farm hot peppers

New Roots Farm eggplant

Wake Robin Farm flowers

Abby Wiggin of Wake Robin Farm

Applecrest Farm peaches

the Hampton market, along with other weekday markets, continues to run through the second week in October. The Hampton Farmers’ Market takes place on Tuesday afternoons from 3:00pm to 6pm in the parking lot of Sacred Heart, near the movie theater.

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September 7, 2008 by Sara Zoe.

Kellie Brook Farm has fresh chickens at their farm stand in Greenland this weekend, Saturday September 6 - Tuesday morning, September 9th, and at the Kingston Farmers’ Market on the afternoon of Tuesday September 9th.

These fresh chickens are available once a month for a limited time, in the few days after the mobile processing unit has come.

Directions to Kellie Brook Farm (.pdf)

Spread the word!

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