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family activities

Celebrating Christmas in July

July 12, 2022 By marketeditor

By Stephanie Duscher

It may be consistently reaching temperatures of eighty degrees and higher, but somehow it seems like the perfect time to celebrate Christmas (in July!). Recently, my family and I put together a small Christmas in July party with decorations, a movie marathon, and lots of yummy, festive food! If you’re interested in throwing a Christmas in July celebration, we have many ideas to get you started (including a recipe using fresh raspberries from the farmers’ market!).

Raspberries, photo by Stephanie Duscher

Decorations
Decorations are one of the most important elements of a Christmas in July celebration. To make our living room temporarily feel like Christmas, we put up an artificial tree, which we decorated with pairs of sunglasses, shells, starfish lights, and topped with a sand bucket. We also strung some garland and lights around the room.

Activities
A Christmas tree doesn’t look quite complete without gifts underneath. A gift exchange game (like the White Elephant Game) is perfect for a party. Christmas trivia is another fun activity; the addition of prizes can make the game even more fun (and add a competitive edge). However, no party is complete without Christmas movies. We set up a projector and played a few of our favorite festive films. To ensure maximum coziness, turn off all lights when playing the movie except for the lights on your Christmas tree!

Christmas in July, photo by Stephanie Duscher

Food
Food is an essential part of any party. Christmas in July is extra special because it allows you to use all the fresh ingredients that summer offers without any of the restrictions of a traditional Christmas in December.
In making our Christmas cookies, I knew I wanted to use a fresh, in-season ingredient, and what better place to find that than at the Saratoga Farmer’s Market. I found some absolutely delicious raspberries from Scotch Ridge Berry Farm, so I decided to make raspberry tassies from Kate Dean’s recipe at I Heart Eating. However, I made Sugar and Soul’s fresh raspberry filling rather than using canned raspberry pie filling. It was a delicious, festive treat that also incorporated all the goodness of summer!

Scotch Ridge Berry Farm

Other ideas for holiday foods made with local in-season ingredients are festive tossed salads with local cheese, savory tarts with beef or mushrooms, roasted chicken, and baked or mashed potatoes.

The Saratoga Farmers’ Market is open Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Wednesdays from 3 to 6 p.m. at High Rock Park in downtown Saratoga Springs. Find us online at saratogafarmersmarket.org and follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

Filed Under: Featured Article, homepage feature, News Tagged With: berry season, Christmas in July, family activities, farmtotable, Saratoga Farmers' Market, Summer

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Get ready to mushroom into a world of flavor at th Get ready to mushroom into a world of flavor at the Saratoga Farmers' Market! 🍄🌱 This week, we're thrilled to highlight the Mushroom Shop and their incredible selection of locally grown and harvested mushrooms. We spoke with owner's Jacob and Elysee to learn more.

Q: What are some of the health benefits associated with consuming mushrooms?

A: Mushrooms contain a multitude of medicinal compounds. The mushroom species Cordyceps militaris contains cordycepin, which increases your blood's ability to absorb and transport oxygen, improving exercise performance. Mukitake or Panellus serotinus possesses compounds that have shown in recent studies to improve liver function in people suffering from fatty liver disease. Reishi mushrooms improve immune health, warding off sickness and reducing inflammation. Other medicinal mushrooms include Turkey Tail, Chaga, Agarikon, Maitake, and Lions Mane.

Q: What inspired you to start selling mushrooms at the farmers' market?

A: We initially got our inspiration from a mushroom farm based in Tennessee called Mossy Creek Mushrooms. They have many videos on Youtube covering every aspect of operating a mushroom farm from building and maintaining equipment to harvesting and marketing mushrooms. Jacob has had an interest in growing mushrooms as a hobby for about eight years when he discovered a patch of oyster mushrooms growing in the wild. We got the opportunity to lease land in the beginning of 2021 and shortly after started selling at farmers’ markets.

Q: How do you recommend customers prepare and cook the mushrooms they purchase from you?

A: At our farmers markets we always provide printed recipes that utilize the mushrooms available during the current season. Like meat, mushrooms can be cooked in a variety of ways, such as sautéing, roasting, and grilling to create a flavorful dish. One of our recent favorites is a Spicy Crispy Lion's Mane Sandwich- a thick slab of Lion's Mane mushroom battered and fried on a toasted bun with spicy mayo and pickles. This is a delicious take on a chicken sandwich made entirely of whole, natural produce. 

*Find the Mushroom shop year round at our Saturday markets!*

#saratogafarmersmarket
Get ready for a mouth-watering adventure! 🍴🌍 Get ready for a mouth-watering adventure! 🍴🌍 Join us on Saturday, March 25th from 9:30 am to 1:30 pm at the Saratoga Farmers' Market's International Flavor Fest in the Wilton Mall food court! 🎉 Indulge in frgál cakes, julekaker, burek, curries, samosas, and more, representing cuisines from all around the world! 🌎 There will be live music, family-friendly activities, and food tastings that will take your taste buds on a journey around the globe! 🎶👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Plus, our friends at the World Awareness Children's Museum will be hosting a paper fortune cookie making session for the kiddos! Don't forget to pick up your passport for a chance to win a prize by filling it with stamps from market vendors! Let's celebrate our traditions, history, and community through the language of flavorful food! 😍🍴

 #InternationalFlavorFest #SaratogaFarmersMarket #FoodieAdventure #CommunityConnection
Join us tomorrow for our Saturday market! From 9:3 Join us tomorrow for our Saturday market! From 9:30-1:30 you can find all your favorite vendors in the Wilton Mall Food court. We’ll by joined by the Academy of Life Long Learning, AIM Services, and musician Lee Paquin. Hope you can make it!!!

Photos of: @squash.villa.farm , KOKINDA Farm, and @eurodelicaciesco by Graciela Colston

#saratogafarmersmarket #saratogasprings #farmersmarket #agriculture #shoplocal
The Saratoga Farmers’ Market is seeking donation The Saratoga Farmers’ Market is seeking donations to help improve our market and keep our nonprofit organization running. Your donation will be used for essential functions of the market as well as helping us reach more of our long-term goals for the community. We are looking for additional resources to expand our community offerings such as hosting family friendly events, programs and activities.

You can help us by donating via our GiveButter account (link in bio) or in person at the market via our market manager. Thank you for your ongoing support. We couldn’t do it without you! 

#saratogafarmersmarket #supportlocalfarmers #nonprofit #communitylove #givebutter

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