Saratoga Farmers' Market

healthy

Love Found at the Farmers’ Market

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By Emily Meagher

Photo courtesy of Something’s Brewing

This time of year, the farmers’ market is inspired by the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce’s Health and Wellness Week. Meanwhile, our vendors are also preparing for Valentine’s Day. The result is a special market focused on gifts from the heart as well as food that is good for the heart and overall health.

Tomorrow, prepare for Valentine’s Day by finding gifts that are meaningful and tasty. The Chocolate Spoon will have memorable homemade strawberry marshmallows that are perfect for anyone with a sweet tooth. Pucker’s Pickles will have a limited supply of their very special fermented cherries. And, of course, there will also be chocolate in various forms – like velvety chocolate cheesecake at Grandma Apple’s and a Valentine’s Day trio special (including passion, violet, and cacao nib bars) at Saratoga Chocolate Co. Or, say ‘I love you’ with a gift bag of chocolate coffee and toffee from Something’s Brewing.

Mangiamo, photo by Pattie Garrett

Is a romantic dinner more your style? The farmers’ market has the region’s freshest ingredients. Mangiamo will have pasta rolled and cut to order. The Vermont Spätzle Company will have gluten-free spätzle. You will find the finest cuts of meat from local farms along with the best cooking instructions. Take your pick of beef, chicken, pork, lamb, goat or even fish and seafood. Local farms will have leafy greens like bok choy, swiss chard, microgreens, and kale. And, tables will also be stocked with apples, beets, carrots, potatoes, mushrooms, winter squash, and much more. After dinner, share some local cheese or maybe sip some locally distilled spirits.

While shopping for the person on your heart, consider heart health too. Eating fresh, seasonal fruits and vegetables is crucial for a healthy lifestyle.

Pleasant Valley Farm, photo by Pattie Garrett

We invite you to share the love and to experience the love at tomorrow’s farmers’ market. Eat Smart NY will have healthy snack samples and recipe ideas. There will also be free Valentine cards to write and take and toe-tapping music by Craic Agus Ceol.

Our close-knit community of vendors and customers, weekly musicians and guests make for a joyous place full of friends. So bring your date, family, or friends with you to enjoy a shared outing at the farmers’ market.

 

This week’s recipe: Pasta with Spinach and Ricotta

Hummus Toast

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Recipe courtesy of My Saratoga Kitchen Table

Serves: 1

INGREDIENTS

All ingredients are currently available at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market

  • 1 slice of thick whole grain bread
  • 1 garlic clove
  • hummus
  • 2 thin slices of fresh tomato
  • 3 thin slices of red onion
  • balsamic dressing
  • baby greens
  • micro greens and arugula

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Before toasting the bread, lightly rub a peeled garlic clove over the toast. Toast until browned.
  2. Spread a layer of hummus on the toasted bread.
  3. Place tomato slices and red onion slices on top of the hummus. Drizzle a little balsamic dressing.
  4. Top with baby greens and micro greens and enjoy!

Celebrate National Peanut Butter Lovers Day at the Farmers’ Market

By

By Kristin Cleveland

Popular Peanut Butters. Photo by Pattie Garrett.

“I wonder how many peanut butter and jelly sandwiches I’ve eaten in my life?” my spouse often asks as he smears a thick layer of nutty goodness onto a slice of bread. Considering he has eaten one for nearly every lunch since he had a full set of teeth, and he’s now in his early 50s, I calculate approximately 17,167, though I do know that some of those sandwiches were PB & honey. I think that still counts.

Joe is one of the many people for whom March 1 was designated National Peanut Butter Lovers Day; according to the National Peanut Board, about 94% of American homes contain at least one jar of peanut butter. And it makes sense — whether eaten on toast for breakfast, in a sandwich for lunch, as a savory sauce for dinner, or with celery or apple slices for a snack, peanut butter is not only delicious, it’s also packed with protein, healthy monounsaturated fats, vitamin E, folate, and a variety of minerals, which combine to make it a particularly heart-healthy high energy food. 

Saratoga Peanut Butter owner Jessica Arceri.

And here in Saratoga Springs, we have even more reason to celebrate: our very own Saratoga Peanut Butter Company! As a young adult Jessica Arceri, a physical education and nutrition expert and health-conscious parent, began crafting nut butters for her family and friends. In 2005 she started selling her creations at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market and in local groceries. Now Saratoga Peanut Butter is in stores throughout New York State and can be ordered online. But with over a dozen flavors, including some seasonal specials, it’s particularly fun to go to the Saratoga Peanut Butter table at the Farmers’ Market and enjoy a sample.

Combining easily with many flavors, peanut butter is a versatile food. On Arceri’s website, yopeanut.com, you’ll find recipes for entrées such as Pad Thai and spicy sauté sauce, sweet treats including three varieties of peanut butter cookie, and a range of breakfast foods like low sugar, high energy granola bars, smoothies, pancakes and oatmeals. Because of Arceri’s focus on fitness, all of her nut butter ingredients are sourced in the USA, she never uses palm oil, refined sugars, or other additives or preservatives, and she uses no or low amounts of sodium.

Sydney Robyck shares some SPB favorites.     Photo by Pattie Garrett.

Stop by the Farmers’ Market on Saturday to celebrate National Peanut Butter Lovers Day. In addition to samples of freshly made local peanut butter, you can pick up regular or gluten-free peanut butter cookies from The Chocolate Spoon, Grandma Apple’s peanut butter cheesecakes and cheesecake pops dipped in Saratoga Chocolate Company’s Velvet chocolate, and recipes and ingredients for more delicious meals and treats!

Strawberry Rhubarb Salad

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Adapted from the recipe from Southern Living and shared by My Saratoga Table

Serves: 6

 

INGREDIENTS

*Ingredients available at the farmers’ market

  • 1 cup water
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • 2 cups, 1-inch diagonally sliced rhubarb* (3 large stalks)
  • 1 Tablespoon fresh orange juice (from one small orange)
  • 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice (from one small lemon)
  • 20 ounces fresh strawberries*, quartered lengthwise (about 3 cups)
  • ½ cup toasted slivered almonds
  • ¼ cup small mint leaves*

 

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Stir together water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and cook stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves. Add rhubarb to the pan, cook for 1 minute. Remove pan from heat. Cover and let stand until rhubarb is tender-crisp, about 15 minutes. Remove rhubarb with a slotted spoon, reserve rhubarb syrup.
  2. Stir together orange juice, lemon juice, and 2 Tablespoons rhubarb syrup in a large bowl. Add rhubarb, strawberries, almonds, and mint. Stir gently to combine. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

 

NOTES: There’ll be remaining rhubarb syrup that can be used for another purpose (ice cream, cake, salad dressing, etc.)

Chilled Asparagus Soup

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Chilled Asparagus Soup

Recipe shared by Diane Whitten at Cornell Cooperative Extension

Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition per serving: 60 calories, 2.5 g fat, 0g sat fat, 8g carbs, 3g protein, 80 mg sodium.

Ingredients

*Ingredients currently available at the farmers’ market

  • 1 pound fresh asparagus*
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 cup sliced scallions*
  • 3 tablespoons flour
  • 3 cups vegetable stock
  • 1/4 cup plain yogurt*
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon
  • 1/4 teaspoon white pepper

Instructions

Cut the tops off the asparagus spears and blanch the tips in boiling water for 5 minutes. Drain, cool and cut tips into 1/2 inch pieces, set aside. Snap the lower ends of the asparagus off, if they are brown or woody. Chop the stalks into 1/2 inch pieces. Heat the olive oil in a saucepan on low, add scallions and cook for 2 minutes. Add the asparagus stalks (not the tips), cover and cook 5 minutes longer until the stalks are tender. Sprinkle the flour over the asparagus and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the vegetable stock, bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Lower the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes. Puree the soup in a food processor. Combine the yogurt and lemon juice, stir 1/4 cup soup into the mixture until smooth, then add to soup. Stir in the asparagus tips, tarragon, and white pepper. Chill well.

 

Ingredients marked with an asterisk (*) are available at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market. The Saratoga Farmers’ Market on High Rock Avenue is open on Wednesdays from 3-6 pm and Saturdays from 9-1 pm. For information about food and nutrition contact Diane Whitten at Cornell Cooperative Extension at 885-8995 or email dwhitten@cornell.edu.

Mashed Celeriac and Potatoes

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Celeriac (sliced)

Adapted from recipe by Mary-Frances Heck, shared by My Saratoga Kitchen Table

Makes 12 servings

 

 

 

 

Ingredients

*Ingredients available at the farmers’ market

  • 2 pounds celeriac (celery root)*, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 3 pounds potatoes*, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 cup whole-milk plain Greek yogurt*
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter*
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 1¼ teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground pepper
  • ¼ cup chopped fresh green onions*, plus more for garnish
  • 1½ cups thinly sliced shallots*
  • 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Preparation

  1. Place celeriac in a large pot and add 3 inches of water. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Add potatoes, cover and return to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the vegetables are very tender about 25 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400°F. Coat a 3-quart shallow baking dish with cooking spray.
  3. Drain the vegetables and return to the pot. Mash with a potato masher to a coarse consistency. Add yogurt, butter, mustard, salt, and pepper; mash until mostly smooth. Add green onions and stir to combine. Spoon the mixture into the prepared baking dish. Smooth the top. Tightly cover the pan with foil.
  4. Bake for 45 minutes. Uncover and continue baking until the top is browned, about 30 minutes more.
  5. Meanwhile, prepare fried shallots: Separate shallot slices into rings. Heat oil in a small skillet or saucepan over medium-high heat until shimmering. (To test if it’s hot enough, add a shallot ring: if it starts sizzling on contact, the oil is ready.) Add half the shallots and cook, stirring frequently, until browned, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove pan from heat and use a slotted spoon to transfer the shallots to a paper-towel-lined plate. Cook the remaining shallots and transfer to the plate. They will get crispier as they cool. (Discard remaining oil.)
  6. Let the casserole cool for 10 minutes. Serve topped with the fried shallots and more chives, if desired.