Saratoga Farmers' Market

corn

Three Sisters Chili

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Recipe courtesy of Squashville Farm
Serves: 4

Ingredients
*Ingredients currently available at the farmers’ market
● 1 onion*, peeled and diced
● 1 tablespoon olive oil*
● 1 lb ground venison or beef*
● 3 cloves garlic*, minced
● 2 tsp chili powder
● 1 tsp cumin
● ½ tsp dried oregano
● 1 ear corn*
● 1 carnival squash*, seeded and cut into one-inch pieces
● 1 green pepper*, seeded and diced
● 3-4 fresh tomatoes*, cut into chunks
● 3 cups vegetable broth
● 8 oz dried red beans
● salt and pepper to taste
● Optional garnishes: fresh chopped cilantro*, toast pumpkin seeds, cheddar cheese*, plain yogurt*

Preparation

  1. Wash and soak dry beans for 30 minutes. Rinse and place in 1 cup of water until ready to use.
  2. Remove kernels from corn cob.
  3. Heat oil in a pot, and add onions and a pinch of salt. Saute until onions are translucent.
  4. Add ground meat and brown.
  5. Add garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt, and pepper.
  6. Add squash, corn, and green pepper. Stir in broth, beans with water, and tomatoes. Simmer until squash is soft and ingredients have combined to create a thick, chunky soup.

    Note: This chili tastes better if it is refrigerated overnight and reheated the next day.

A versatile trio for fall meals

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By Himanee Gupta-Carlson

The three sisters method of interplanting corn, beans, and squash is an Iroquois practice that helped sustain the soil that farmers in our region use today.

It was rooted in long-term sustenance: By planting beans as companions to corn, the nitrogen that corn plants deplete is restored and bean vines receive a climbing pole in the corn stalks. Meanwhile, low-to-the-ground squash leaves create shade which prevents the soil from drying out. At seasons end is a harvest of three foods that one can eat immediately or store for winter use.

Squashville Farm, photo courtesy of Pattie Garrett

In market farming, three sisters gardens are hard to find. Most farmers plant in rows, separating crops from one another. Yet, many of those rows produce corn, squash, and/or beans – all of which are abundant now at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market. Each makes a delicious dish by itself. The three also can be combined to create soups, salads, stir fries, and casseroles.

I first encountered the three sisters method in a gardening guide in the 1980s as a young adult trying to create a garden. On paper, planting corn with beans and squash seemed easy. You first plant corn kernels in a mound of soil. After the corn sprouts, you add beans, around each shoot of corn. Once the beans are established, you add squash. You weed while the plants are young and then leave them until it’s time to harvest.

Burger’s Marketgarden, photo courtesy of Pattie Garrett

Creating such a garden is easier said than done, as I quickly learned while trying not to step on squash or uproot corn as I snipped bean pods. Still, I use the three sisters as a template for growing food and eating it. This lets me cook with corn and a wide variety of squashes and beans.

I adapted the accompanying chili recipe from a basic ground beef and vegetable chili. I used fresh corn from the Gomez Veggie Ville but chose Squashville Farm’s carnival squash over the butternut squash that the original recipe suggested. I also used dried red beans over canned, and ground venison instead of beef. The result was a mildly spiced chili filled with the three sisters at the center.

Tomato Panzanella

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By Abra Berens, Ruffage

Ingredients
*Ingredients currently available at the farmers’ market

● 4 ears corn (2 cups) fresh kernels*
● ¼ cup olive oil*
● Salt and freshly ground pepper
● ½ loaf crusty bread*
● 2 Tablespoons butter*
● 1 quart cherry tomatoes* halved, or 3 to 4 slicing tomatoes, diced, or use both
● 1 cucumber* cut into half-moons
● 2 cups fresh herbs* (basil, parsley, mint, chives, mint, thyme, rosemary) stemmed, leaves left whole

Instructions
Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Toss the corn with 2 Tablespoons of olive oil, a sprinkle of salt and grind of pepper. Spread the corn on a baking sheet and bake until cooked through about 12 to 15 minutes.

Cut or tear the bread into pieces and toss with 2 Tablespoons of olive oil, salt and pepper. On another baking pan, spread the bread and bake until golden brown, about 10 minutes.

Toss the hot bread with the butter so it melts and coats the bread.

Toss the bread with the corn, tomatoes, cucumbers, herbs and salt and pepper. Add a splash of vinegar if needed.

Photo courtesy of Pattie Garrett

Summer Harvest Vegetable Soup

By

Recipe courtesy of My Saratoga Kitchen Table
Makes 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients
*Ingredients currently available at the farmers’ market

  • 1 Tablespoon olive oil*
  • 1 onion*, chopped
  • Salt and pepper
  • 2 cups of peeled, diced tomatoes*
  • 1 medium zucchini*, chopped 
  • 1 cup green beans*
  • 2 cloves garlic*, minced
  • 4 cups chicken broth
  • 4 ears of corn*, kernels cut off the cob
  • ½ cup fresh basil*, chopped
  • ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese*, optional

Directions

In a large pot, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the onion and a pinch on salt. Sauté for 5 minutes, until the onion is translucent.

Stir in the tomatoes, zucchini, green beans, and garlic with more salt the pepper.  Add the chicken broth. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to a simmer. Stir in the corn, basil, and cheese (optional). Cook for another 3 to 5 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Enjoy!

Preparing for Winter Now

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By Himanee Gupta-Carlson

Photos courtesy of Pattie Garrett

Farmers’ market zucchini

Chowderfest is just around the corner … well, it isn’t, but from a planner’s perspective, it might very well be.

Part of farming is planning. So, even as farmers and regulars at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market are savoring the abundance of summer produce, many also are thinking ahead to winter.

Tomatoes, zucchini, corn, beans, and eggplant are plentiful now at the farmers’ market and in backyard gardens. As the days shorten and temperatures drop, they’ll disappear.

I have to confess that while my husband likes to cook down pounds of tomatoes into sauces to can, I enjoy eating what’s fresh and in season. But every once so often I get a hankering in winter for a taste of the summer – for “fresh” green beans in the legendary Thanksgiving green-bean casserole, for sweet corn in clam chowder in early February.  

Summer Harvest Vegetable Soup

So how to get these tastes of summer in the middle of winter?

One simple answer to freeze them now while they’re at their peak flavor.

I’ve also balked at freezing too much in the past, partly because I forget what I have frozen partly because many recipes require blanching vegetables first to preserve their flavor. Blanching requires dropping vegetables into boiling water, cooking them for a few minutes, then plunging them into ice water. It prevents the enzymes in vegetables from deteriorating. But it is a chore.

However, blanching isn’t required for all vegetables, especially if you plan to use them within six months. I’ve decided to experiment this month. I’ll freeze tomatoes in freezer bags whole, probably for a month, for my husband to can. Zucchini, I’ll shred, for winter baking. Green beans are being trimmed and frozen for casseroles and stir fries. I’ll blanch a few eggplants and save them for bharta, a softly mashed Indian eggplant dish I like.

And, finally, corn. The cold of winter and the warmth of chowder are on my brain, so I’m going to try freezing some corn straight on the cob for shucking when I use it. I’ll also trying blanching some to ensure I have sweet, crunchy “fresh” corn when Chowderfest comes. 

The Saratoga Farmers’ Market is 3-6 p.m. Wednesdays and 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturdays through October 31 at High Rock Park. Find us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and check us out on the FreshFoodNY app. E-mail friends@saratogafarmers.org for volunteer opportunities.