Saratoga Farmers' Market

eggs

Easy, Almost Instant, Hollandaise Sauce

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Recipe courtesy of Mary Pratt of Elihu Farm

Total time: 10-15 minutes

 

If you’ve thought about making Hollandaise Sauce, do you shrug, because you’ve heard it’s too complicated? This “egg sauce” is ideal sauce for spring.

Ingredients

*Ingredients available at the farmers’ market

  • 1 lemon
  • 1 whole egg *
  • 4 tbsp unsalted butter*  (or 1 tbsp olive oil* and 3 tbsp butter* or 2 tbsp of each)
  • 1 tbsp heavy cream*
  • Salt to taste
  • Optional additions:

Lemon zest

Whipped heavy cream*

Parsley *

Capers

Orange zest and orange juice

Instructions

  1. Whisk 1 whole egg in a bowl which will fit atop a 1½ quart saucepan. Whisk in 1 tbsp lemon juice; add a pat of cold butter. Using a whole egg instead of egg yolks makes a more forgiving sauce that’s less likely to curdle. (Use 2 egg yolks if you prefer a richer sauce.)
  2. Heat the olive oil and butter, or just butter, in another pan, until the butter foams but doesn’t burn, (If you like a more lemony sauce, add some lemon zest.) Keep warm.
  3. Bring to a simmer about half an inch of water in a 1-1/2 or 2-quart pan. Put the bowl of egg mixture over the simmering water (no need for an official double boiler). The bowl cannot touch the water.
  4. Whisk constantly as the egg heats up and the butter begins to melt. Don’t heat too fast, or the sauce might curdle. Then, add the hot butter or butter and oil to the bowl, in a slow stream while whisking briskly. Allow the sauce to heat slowly, whisking more and more, until it changes texture and appears custardy.
  5. If the sauce begins to curdle, remove from the bowl from the heat. Add a bit of lemon juice and a smidgen of butter or oil and whisk until the sauce becomes smooth. Then put the bowl back on the pan and continue, until all the butter or butter and oil are incorporated.
  6. Remove from the heat; whisk in 1 tbsp heavy cream to make the sauce more spreadable. Keep warm until ready to serve on asparagus, broccoli, fish, or atop eggs Benedict.

 

Additions and substitutions: For orange flavor, add orange juice and half the lemon juice, and substitute the zest of half an orange. Other additions can include, whipped cream * (Sauce Mousseline), capers (don’t overdo), finely minced parsley, or some paprika.

Stories Behind the Saratoga Farmers’ Market’s Incredible Eggs

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By Himanee Gupta-Carlson

 

Goose Eggs from Moxie Ridge Farm

If you’re a first-time visitor to the Saratoga Farmers’ Market, the vast variety of eggs that farmers bring to market might surprise you:

  • Eggs with shells that range in hue from ivory white to deep maroon, from light blue to olive green.
  • Eggs in a variety of sizes.
  • Eggs from chickens, ducks, and geese.

What these eggs all share in common is the fact that they’re nutritious, relatively affordable, and delicious. “Eggs are the least expensive source of protein,” says Mary Pratt of Elihu Farm.

Pratt and her husband Bob have raised hens for decades. Their flock consists primarily of Red Stars, a breed of hen known for producing brown eggs. Their hens, like those of most other farmers, spend much of the day foraging on pasture land outdoors. This farming practice boosts not only the health of the chickens and the flavor of their eggs but also creates healthier soil.

As Jim Gupta-Carlson of Squashville Farm notes, “Everyone on our farm works together, and our chickens’ job is to fertilize and scratch at our resting garden beds and eat bugs and ticks. They free range over our resting gardens, grass, and forest. Their golden orange yolks are a sign of their healthy and diverse wild diet.”

Squashville Farm eggs come in a variety of colors from a number of different Heritage Breed hens: Araucanas lay green and blue eggs, Rhode Island Reds and Buff Orpingtons brown eggs, and Blue Andalusians and Dorkings white eggs. The color of the egg makes no difference to its flavor or its nutritional content but indicates genetic diversity within a flock.

Most farmers supplement their birds’ diet with a feed to ensure a well-rounded diet. Steve Otrembiak, of Otrembiak Farm, describes his flock’s diet as consisting of a “high protein layer mash” from a local farm that includes corn, wheat, oats, and soybeans. His chickens and his flock of ducks also nibble on bugs, worms, and green plants. “This allows the birds to live during the day as they would if they were in the wild,” he says, adding that “the birds are secured in their coop at night to protect them from predators.”

Duck eggs are usually larger than chicken eggs, with a harder shell. The eggs themselves tend to be higher in protein, omega fatty acids, and cholesterol. Duck eggs are often coveted for baking.

And then there’s the goose. Leah Hennessy, of Moxie Ridge Farm & Creamery, brings these eggs to market from her Pilgrim geese flock. Sold in pairs, the eggs about the size of an average adult’s hand. “Aside from the size, geese are exclusively herbivores so the flavor of their eggs has a ‘cleaner’ taste,” says Hennessy. “The whites have almost a mineral quality to them.”

Ask a farmer how to cook an egg and the answer is almost always as simple as possible: “Fried, over easy,” says Laurie Kokinda of Kokinda Farms.

To find eggs at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market, visit the following vendors:

  • Moxie Ridge, Otrembiak, and Squashville farms on Wednesdays.
  • Elihu, Kokinda, Longlesson, M&A, Moxie Ridge, and Otrembiak farms on Saturdays.  

The Saratoga Farmers’ Market is 3-6 p.m. Wednesdays and 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturdays 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.

CSA Shares Simplify Cooking for Busy Parents

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By Himanee Gupta-Carlson

 

Tomorrow, as you visit the Saratoga Farmers’ Market, we invite you to consider a different kind of Mother’s’ Day gift: A seasonal CSA share from one of our local farms.

CSA is shorthand for community supported agriculture. A share is like the purchase of stock: It reflects an investment in a farmer’s livelihood in exchange for receipt of a box filled with fresh foods from that farmer each week.

“It’s a mutually beneficial arrangement for everyone,” says Justine Denison, of Denison Farm. “It reconnects people with the land that sustains them while helping to build awareness of our interdependence on each other.”

Denison began offering CSAs in 2005 after the family began farming on land leased from another farmer who Denison recalls growing “the most beautiful produce around.” Inspired by the example, the Denisons have made the distribution of beautiful food via CSAs much of their farming mission on their own land in Schaghticoke.

CSA shareholders pick up their boxes at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market or other distribution sites and then have time to browse and enjoy the market, supplementing their boxes with meats, cheeses, and other foods from other vendors.

“It’s a beautiful arrangement,” Denison says. “People look at the box and start asking questions about how to prepare what’s in there. We respond with recipes and cooking strategies. It creates a connection that becomes long-lasting.”

The connection is sustained as farmland changes hands. The Gomez family now farms the land that the Denison family leased. They too offer CSAs, with an option for either a boxed share containing a predetermined selection of produce or a market share, which gives the purchaser the option of choosing a set amount of items.

Produce farmers generally begin offering CSA shares for purchase through May, and begin distributions in June.

For market administrator Julia Howard, CSAs s take the guesswork out of cooking.

“It’s an awesome option for working families who enjoy cooking and eating healthy and local,” says Howard. “You know that every week you will have a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables, with the added bonus of supporting a local farmer.”

Farms offering CSA shares at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market are Owl Wood Farm (vegetables), Gomez VeggieVille (vegetables), Elihu Farm (eggs), Clyde O’Scope Farm (fruit and vegetables), and Denison Farm (vegetables).

The Saratoga Farmers’ Market is 3-6 p.m. Wednesdays and 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturdays 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.

Crustless Spinach Quiche

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Adapted from the recipe by Edible Capital District, shared by My Saratoga Kitchen Table

Serves: 4

 

INGREDIENTS

*Items currently available at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market

  • 2 teaspoon vegetable oil
  • 1 medium onion*, finely chopped
  • 1 pound fresh spinach*, chopped
  • 1½ cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese*
  • 6 large egg whites*
  • 1 large egg*
  • ⅓ cup fat-free, no added salt, cottage cheese
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg

 

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Coat a 9-inch pie plate with cooking spray. Set aside.
  2. Heat oil in a medium nonstick skillet set over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add fresh spinach, a handful at a time, and toss until wilted and set aside. Repeat until all spinach is wilted.
  3. Sprinkle cheddar cheese evenly in prepared pie plate. Top with spinach mixture.
  4. Whisk together egg whites, egg, cottage cheese, and nutmeg in a medium bowl. Pour egg mixture evenly over spinach.
  5. Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until set. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting into wedges and serving.

Farmers’ Market Breakfast Hash

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Adapted from recipe in Eating Well and shared by My Saratoga Kitchen Table

Serves: 2

INGREDIENTS

*Ingredients currently available at the farmers’ market

  • ¼ pound bulk breakfast sausage*
  • 1 Tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 small russet potato*, baked, chopped into ½ inch cubes
  • 1 cup fresh baby spinach*
  • 2 large eggs*
  • ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese*
  • freshly ground pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Cook sausage over medium-high heat in an 8 inch cast iron skillet until browned. Add oil in needed. Add potatoes and cook until browned. Add spinach, toss until wilted.
  2. Make 2 wells in the center of the hash. Crack one egg into each well. Reduce heat to medium and cook until eggs are set. Sprinkle with cheese, cover and cook until cheese is melted and egg whites are completely set. Garnish with pepper.

NOTES

Options: add onions, crispy bacon.

Saratoga Farmers' Market