Shop Local, Eat Fresh at the Saratoga Farmers' Market | Food, Crafts, Music in Saratoga Springs

Shop Local, Eat Fresh

root vegetables

Whatever Soup

By

Photo by Pattie Garrett

Recipe by Samin Nosrat for New York Times Cooking, shared by My Saratoga Kitchen Table
Serves: 6 to 8

Ingredients
*Ingredients currently available at the farmers’ market
● 4 Tablespoons of olive oil
● 2 medium onions*, sliced
● 3 garlic cloves*, sliced
● 6 to 8 cups diced vegetables*
● 1½ pounds raw boneless chicken*
● 6 to 8 cups of chicken stock
● Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions
1. Set a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium-high heat and add 4 tablespoons oil. When the oil shimmers, add onions and garlic.
2. Reduce the heat to a medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are tender, about 8-10 minutes.
3. Place the chicken and vegetables in the pot. Add enough chicken stock to cover. Season with salt and pepper. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.
4. Cook until the flavors have come together and the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes more. Remove chicken from the soup once it’s cooked through, allow to cool enough to handle. Shred and return it to the soup.
5. Add more hot liquid if needed.
6. Serve hot.

*Note: Currently in season at the farmers’ market: cabbage, carrots, celeriac, collard greens, kale, kohlrabi, leeks, mushrooms, potatoes, rutabaga, sweet potatoes, turnips, winter squash, and more.

Healthy comfort foods to make your New Year’s resolutions last all year

By

By Emily Meagher

Michaela at Gomez Veggie Ville, photo by Madison Jackson

Many of us start a new year with a fresh set of resolutions, new habits to live by for a healthier, happier self. But a few weeks in, the cold, dark winter can make it hard to keep up our motivation. If you can’t get your healthy food resolutions to stick, change the way you approach them. Instead of cutting out foods you love and feeling guilty when you inevitably “cheat,” upgrade your favorite comfort meals with real, fresh ingredients to treat both your body and soul. Here are a few tips on what to look for at the farmers’ market.

Back to the roots
In the winter months, farmers bring loads of root vegetables to the market. Himanee Gupta-Carlson from Squashville Farm takes this opportunity to get the comfort of a chicken pot pie in a healthier jacket. Make a roux with a good quality bone broth. Potatoes and turnips help thicken the sauce to reduce additional ingredients needed, and carrots add flavor and color.

Beef shank with polenta and vegetables, photo by Emily Meagher

Slow-cooked for the soul
Good quality, fresh meats don’t need many additives to taste great. Lay off on the salt and extra fats and enjoy a cut from the market in its full glory. Longlesson Farm’s Christophe Robert suggests trying beef shanks. It is a leaner (and cheaper) meat, cooked low and slow in a crockpot (bonus: your kitchen will smell amazing!). Simmer with non-starchy vegetables like carrots or turnips. Serve with a quick polenta made from Squashville Farm’s dried heirloom Abenaki corn. Then use the shank’s marrow bone to create a nutrient-filled bone broth, and blend it up with the stewed veggies for a hearty soup. Add in a statement ingredient towards the end of cooking, like beet or tomato, to add color.

Plant-based or gluten-free?
If you are trying a no- or low-meat lifestyle, mushrooms can provide a fantastic, bold alternative. Jeff Killenberger from 518 Farms suggests using brain-boosting lions’ mane to make “crab” cakes. Or go for sweet by combining lions’ mane, cinnamon, and sugar for a vegan and gluten-free “apple crisp.” Butternut squash can also lift a dish by adding nutrients, color, and creaminess. Try a vegan mac & “cheese” by replacing the dairy with butternut squash. Up the health factor by using whole-wheat pasta, or go gluten-free by swapping spätzle from The Vermont Spätzle Company.

 

This week’s recipe: Butternut Squash Macaroni & Cheese

Stems add beauty and flavor to summer roots

By

By Himanee Gupta-Carlson

Carrots, turnips, and beets. These are the everyday root vegetables at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market that we eat year-round. However, at this time of year, as summer harvests hit their peak, they shine. They come to market fresh from our area’s farm fields, often with their stems attached. These stems are not only pretty to look at but are edible, too.

Farmers harvest root vegetables by pulling them from the stem. These stems add nutrition and flavor to summer meals, not to mention value to your market purchases. The leafy greens of beets, turnips, and carrots are all sources of vitamin A, vitamin C, and fiber. Here are a few tips for getting started:

Otrembiak Farm, photo courtesy of Pattie Garrett

● Carrot tops. Clip off the green feathery tops. Wash them well and rinse them a couple of times to remove excess dirt. Select the greenest and most tender tips of the bunch and add them to soups, stocks, or to vegetables you might be roasting or braising for the night’s meal. They taste somewhat like parsley but add a distinct carrot-y flavor.

Photo courtesy of Pattie Garrett

● Turnip greens. The leafy greens that top Hakurei and other white summer turnips can make a pleasantly spiced appetizer when cooked by themselves. After removing the greens, wash them well and discard any yellowed or wilted leaves. To cook, chop the greens finely, and heat up a skillet. Add a pinch of salt, pepper, freshly chopped garlic, fennel seed, coriander, cumin and/or fenugreek. Toast the spices for a minute or so, then add the turnip greens. Toss them quickly in the hot pan with tongs or two wooden spoons so that they are mixed into the spices. Once the greens have wilted, serve them with a squeeze of lemon and your favorite beverage.

Owl Wood Farm, photo courtesy of Pattie Garrett

● Beet greens. These leaves along with their ruby-red stems have a rich flavor that is sometimes even more intense than the beets. After a good wash to remove grit, the younger leaves are delicious steamed or chopped finely for salads. Save the older leaves for stir-fries or saute them with olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper.

Other stems also can yield delicious dishes. Try, for instance, adding the stems of basil, parsley, or cilantro to soups or to stocks. Or save them and use in pesto.

Turnips and Potatoes with Bacon

By

courtesy of Bon Appetit magazine

*denotes Ingredients currently available at the farmers’ market

Serves 6

Ingredients:

¼ cup water

1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar

1 Tablespoon sugar

8 ounces bacon* slices, cut into 1 inch pieces

1 medium onion*, thinly sliced

4 large garlic* cloves, peeled, crushed

1 pound turnips*, peeled, cut into 1 inch chunks

1 pound potatoes*, peeled, cut into 1 inch chunks

1 teaspoon kosher salt 

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 Tablespoon chopped fresh parsley*

Instructions:

Mix ¼ cup water, vinegar, and sugar in a small bowl. Sauté bacon in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat until fat is rendered, 5 minutes. Drain most of the bacon fat. Add onion and garlic and sauté until the onion is golden about 5 minutes. Add turnips and potatoes. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of salt. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and cook until vegetables are starting to become tender, stirring and turning the vegetables occasionally for about 15 minutes. ( you may need to add some olive oil or butter if starting to stick) Push the vegetables to 1 side of skillet. Pour vinegar mixture into cleared space. Toss vegetables with vinegar mixture. Spread vegetables in even layer in skillet. Cook until golden and slightly crisp on bottom, about 5 minutes. Continue to turn and spread and cook vegetables until tender, golden and crisp around edges, 7 to 8 minutes longer. Season with pepper. Transfer to serving bowl and sprinkle on parsley. 

Root Vegetables with Herb Biscuits

By

Adapted from recipe by Local Milk, shared by My Saratoga Kitchen Table

Serves: 8

INGREDIENTS

*Ingredients available at the farmers’ market

  • 2 cups fennel*, ½ inch pieces
  • 2 cups parsnips*, ½ inch pieces
  • 2 cups celery root* (celeriac) ½ inch pieces
  • 2 cups carrots*, ½ inch pieces
  • 1 Tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 cup shallot*, minced
  • 2 cloves garlic*, minced
  • 1½ cup celery, diced

Sauce:

  • 8 Tablespoons unsalted butter*
  • 1 cup flour
  • 4 cups vegetable stock
  • 1 cup grated Gruyere cheese*
  • 1½ teaspoons sugar
  • juice of half a lemon
  • ½ teaspoon nutmeg
  • ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

Biscuit:

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 Tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 Tablespoon minced fresh rosemary*
  • 1 Tablespoon fresh thyme*
  • 4 Tablespoon cold unsalted butter*, diced
  • 1 cup buttermilk*

 

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Steam fennel, parsnips, celery root, carrots until just tender.
  2. Heat olive oil in skillet until shimmering. Saute the shallots, garlic until fragrant and translucent. Add celery and cook until tender. In a large bowl, toss with the steamed vegetables.
  3. Sauce:
  4. Melt butter in a dutch oven. Whisk in a cup of flour. Cook to thicken (roux). Slowly whisk in vegetable stock. Add cheese, sugar, lemon juice, nutmeg, cayenne pepper. Whisk to melt the cheese completely. Simmer while whisking until very thick. Remove from heat.
  5. Stir vegetables into the sauce. Stir occasionally.
  6. Biscuit:
  7. In a bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, salt, rosemary, thyme, and cheese. Cut in butter with pastry cutter until pieces are smaller than peas. Using a folk, stir in buttermilk to just combine.
  8. Drop the biscuit batter on top of the vegetable sauce to cover. Bake at 425 degrees for about 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown, bubbling, and topping is cooked through.