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Halloween

Family-friendly Halloween fun from the farmers’ market

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By Julia Howard

 

  My kids talk about their Halloween costumes nearly year-round, so it’s fair to say that Halloween is a big deal in our house. For us, Halloween is more about celebrating the spirit of the season; roasting pumpkin seeds, making festive snacks, selecting pumpkins and carving them, making crafts, and exploring nature as fall takes hold. Weekly visits to the farmers’ market enhance these activities and experiences, creating tangible and meaningful Halloween traditions.

Halloween-themed foods allow for creative and fun cooking, especially when preparing food with children. Apple slices sandwiched with nut butter suddenly become monster lips. Add roasted pumpkin seeds for teeth. Cut carrots into rounds and top with chèvre and halved black olives to make spooky eye snacks. You get the idea. Except for olives, all these ingredients are available at the farmers’ market.

Burgers Market Garden, photo by Pattie Garrett

Roasting pumpkins and having fresh purée on-hand offers so many possibilities. A small pumpkin (about 3 lbs) will make roughly 4 cups of purée. Start by cutting the pumpkin in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds and strings. Save the seeds for roasting. Brush the pumpkin flesh with oil, sprinkle with salt, and place the flesh side down on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Pierce the skin a few times with a fork to let steam escape. Roast at 350 degrees for approximately 50 minutes. Once cooled, purée in a food processor. You can add pumpkin to cinnamon rolls, smoothies, curries, soups, macaroni and cheese, oatmeal, and many other foods.

mother and daughter making Halloween pumpkin, outdoor shot

If you’re not feeling too creative or lacking time, you can get Halloween goods straight from the Saratoga Farmers’ Market vendors. Burger’s Market Garden will have hand-painted mini pumpkins, and Saratoga Suds ‘n’ Stuff will have spooky soaps.

Saratoga Suds ‘n’ Stuff, photo by Graciela Colston

For the sweeter side, visit NightWork Bread for their incredible chai snickerdoodles, and TogaNola will have their ‘fan favorite’ pumpkin spice granola. Muddy Trail Jerky Co. has mulling spices perfect for simmering with cider from Saratoga Apple. 

Let’s enjoy a final Saturday market at High Rock Park, as next Saturday, November 5, the Saratoga Farmers’ Market will move to its indoor home at the Wilton Mall food court. 

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 through the end of October. The market will be open on Saturdays from 9:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. in the Wilton Mall Food Court starting November 5th. Find us online at www.saratogafarmersmarket.org and follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

Eat, Drink, and be Scary: Halloween at the Farmers’ Market

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By Madison Jackson

Gomez Veggie Ville, photo by Pattie Garrett

With Halloween quickly approaching, it’s time to start planning your spooky snack spreads. Candy and desserts are the stars of this holiday, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables in a fun way too. The farmers’ market is the perfect place to get your shopping done to incorporate fresh, local produce into your Halloween celebrations this year. Whether you’re cooking for a crowd or just a small gathering, here are a couple of festive recipes that are sure to impress.


Jack-O’-Lantern Stuffed Peppers
Cut off the tops of 3 orange bell peppers and set them aside. Remove and discard the cores and seeds. Carve a Jack O’ Lantern face into each pepper using a sharp knife. Drizzle the inside of each pepper with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Set the peppers in a baking dish along with the pepper tops.

Jack-O’-Lantern Stuffed Peppers, photo by Madison Jackson

In a large skillet, stir together 1 ½ cups uncooked white rice, one diced bell pepper, one diced onion, 2 medium to large diced tomatoes, 2 ½ cups vegetable broth, and 2 tbsp of taco seasoning. Stir and bring to a simmer—cover and cook for 20 minutes on low. Once cooked, add in one can of black beans and one cup of corn.

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Fill peppers with rice mixture and top with shredded cheese. Cover the peppers in the baking dish with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove cover and bake for 10 more minutes until peppers are tender. Place the tops on the peppers and enjoy your Jack-O’-Lantern stuffed peppers! Adapted from the recipe by Ayla Rianne.

Chocolate Covered Mummy & Ghost Apples

Chocolate Covered Mummy & Ghost Apples, photo by Madison Jackson

Wash your apples of choice and pat dry. Slice thinly into ¼” slices and remove any seeds/stem. Insert popsicle sticks.

Add chopped milk or dark chocolate and 1 tbsp of coconut oil to a microwave-safe bowl and heat in 30-second intervals, stirring between each time. In another bowl melt white chocolate.

To make ghost apples, dip your apple slices into the white chocolate and place on a parchment paper-lined tray. Then use the dark chocolate to make your ghost’s face. To make a mummy, dip your apple slices into the dark chocolate, then use a spoon to drizzle the white chocolate and add eyes.

You can also add a variety of other toppings as desired like melted peanut butter, nuts, chopped candy, caramel and more! Adapted from recipe by Pastry & Beyond.

However you choose to spend this Halloween, we hope you can enjoy some sweet treats such as these. You can stop by the market this Saturday, October 30, from 9 am-1 pm at High Rock Park to pick up some supplies. This week marks the end of our outdoor summer season so we will be celebrating with some extra fall fun on Saturday. These markets will include children’s activities, a “guess the weight” pumpkin contest, giveaways, live music, trick-or-treating, and more!

Market at High Rock Park, photo by Pattie Garrett

Easy Pumpkin Puree

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Prep time: 10mins
Cook time: 45-60mins
Makes 5 to 6 cups pumpkin puree

Make your own pumpkin puree at home. It’s easy and works perfectly in your favorite pumpkin recipes. Try making puree from leftover pumpkins from Halloween. If buying directly from farmers at the farmers’ market, ask them which pumpkin works best for your needs. This method works with most winter squashes — like butternut, acorn, honeynut, and other varieties.

Pumpkin puree, AdobeStock

Ingredients
*Ingredients currently available at the farmers’ market
● 1-2 small pumpkins*
● Fine sea salt, optional

Instructions
Heat the oven to 400 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Rinse and pat dry the pumpkin. Before cutting the pumpkin in half, if it doesn’t sit steady to cut safely, slice asmall bit away from the bottom so that it does. Cut the pumpkin in half. With a spoon or a scoop, scrape out the seeds and pulp from the center. You don’t have to be too thorough with this.

Lightly season the inside of the pumpkin halves with salt then place cut-side-down onto the baking sheet. Bake until the pumpkin(s) can easily be pierced with a knife in several places and the flesh is pulling away from the skin, 45 to 60 minutes. Cool until you can safely handle the halves then scoop out the soft flesh into a food processor — depending on how large the pumpkin is, you may need to do this in two batches. Process until very smooth, 3 to 5 minutes.

Tips
● Place all the seeds into a bowl so that you can roast them later for a healthy snack.
● If you don’t have a food processor, a blender will work if you add a little water. Or you can simply mash with a potato masher, or move through a potato ricer, or process through a food mill.
● If the puree is overly watery, you should strain it on a cheesecloth or over a fine mesh strainer to get rid of some of the liquid. This will be especially helpful for baking purposes.
● Make-ahead: Store homemade pumpkin puree in food-safe containers in the fridge for up to 1 week. To freezer, spoon about 1 cupful of pumpkin into plastic storage bags. Seal the bag with a small opening remaining, then use your hands to flatten out the puree inside the bag and push out the air. Store in the freezer until you need them or up to 3 months.

Halloween, Farmers’ Market Style

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By Pattie Garrett

Burger’s Market Garden, photo by Pattie Garrett

Visit the Saratoga Farmers’ Market for perfect pumpkins to paint, carve, and cook, and to get a sack full of other Halloween treats too! Between now and October 31, come to the market at the Wilton Mall any Saturday 9 am – 1 pm or Wednesday 3 – 6 pm to pick out products for constructing your own festive Halloween food, drink, and decor.

Halloween’s mascot is the pumpkin, and at the market, we celebrate this special squash in fresh baked goods, hot and cold beverages, decorations, dinners, and desserts; we even have unique, locally made, pumpkin-spiced marshmallows!

The tradition of carving pumpkins dates to Irish immigrants who came to America to escape famine. Legend says that Stingy Jack was a thief and trickster who even fooled the devil into making a promise not to take his soul when he died. The devil kept this promise, but God wouldn’t let an unsavory person like Jack into heaven. With just burning coal in a turnip to use for a light, Jack’s been roaming the earth ever since. Because of this, children in Ireland put a glowing coal into a carved potato, turnip, or beet to frighten away Stingy Jack.

Krazy Kabob Pumpkins, photo by Pattie Garrett

Once in America, pumpkins made the perfect lanterns. That is where we get Jack-O’-Lanterns. Big pumpkins make the perfect carved jack-o-lantern, while small sugar pumpkins are delicious for roasting to make puree for pies, dips, and pumpkin bread. Save the seeds of either to sprinkle with your favorite spice and roast as a quick crunchy snack.

If Halloween festivities are on your schedule, try these tricks for some healthy and unusual treats: Use a small pumpkin or another gourd as a bowl. Fill it with a sweet pumpkin dip accompanied by sliced apples on the side, or try a savory dip or hummus with vegetable sticks.

Another fun idea is to make kebabs of fruit, veggies, or cured meat and cheese. Stick them in a painted or carved pumpkin. It’ll make a wonderful centerpiece for your table.

And on Halloween itself, visit the Saratoga Farmers’ Market! We will have prizes for festive costumes, a guess-the-weight-of-the-pumpkin contest, and trick-or-treating at some of our vendors’ booths. Before heading home, grab some veggies, a deliciously prepared dish, and a jug of sweet cider for a quick dinner on this spookiest evening of the year.

This week’s recipe: Pumpkin Dip

Pumpkin Dip

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Photo by Pattie Garrett

Recipe by Nicole Cunningham, shared by My Saratoga Kitchen Table
Makes: 5½ cups

Ingredients
*Ingredients currently available at the farmers’ market
● 2 cups confectioner’s sugar
● 1 teaspoon nutmeg
● 1 teaspoon cinnamon*
● 16 ounces cream cheese, softened
● 2 cups pumpkin puree (see puree instructions below)
● Apple slices*, graham crackers, ginger snaps, or tea cookies* for serving

Instructions
Mix together the sugar and spices. Whip together with the cream cheese and pumpkin puree. Refrigerate until firm. Serve with apple slices, graham crackers, or ginger snaps.

Notes: Sift the confectioners’ sugar to avoid lumps.

To make your own pumpkin puree: Heat oven to 375 degrees. Cut a medium-sized pumpkin in half from top to bottom, remove the seeds and pulp. Place the halves cut-side down on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Roast until easily pierced, 45 to 60 minutes. Turn over the pumpkin and continue to cook for another 30 minutes. Allow to cool enough to handle. Scoop out the flesh and puree in a food processor. Drain puree in a fine-mesh strainer over a bowl for 1 hour or more. It will keep in the refrigerator for up to four days.