Saratoga Farmers' Market

spring

Rhubarb offers a tart, yet juicy taste of early summer

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By Himanee Gupta-Carlson, photos by Pattie Garrett

 

Rhubarb plant at Otrembiak Farm’s stand, photo courtesy of Pattie Garrett

As a child, Pattie Garrett did what so many youngsters do to this day. She marked the spots in her neighborhood where rhubarb grew. She’d zoom in, break off a stalk and eat it raw. Neighbors didn’t mind because when rhubarb was in season it grew quite fast. In the child’s mouth, the reddish outer stem blended with the green interior to create a sweet-tart treat, reminiscent of an apple, celery, strawberry, or something in between.

These days, Garrett finds her rhubarb on Wednesdays and Saturday at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market, where it is in full season now. It’s also available for purchase as a starter plant from the Otrembiak Farm.

Rhubarb is a perennial, which means it requires a year for its roots to get established, and three years for the plant to flourish. Farmers harvest from May through July.

One joy of a perennial patch is the story of its growth. As Paul Arnold of Pleasant Valley Farm recounts, “We had rhubarb from 1989 to 2016. We originally planted our plants in a large dose of composted sheep manure. Nutrients were good and they did well.”

The plants grow wider over time, and the stems get thinner. As a result, farmers generally dig up the roots every three or four years and split them, into eight-inch squares.

“We would split them into four equal pieces, leaving one in the ground and either expanding the patch or selling off the extra three pieces,” Arnold says. “We split them with a spade while they were dormant in the early spring. The root is one big mass so there is no guesswork.”

By 2016, Pleasant Valley’s patch held 72 plants. But the plants were becoming less productive and were in the way of a washing station expansion. So, Arnold notes, “we eliminated it, and this spring we purchased new plants.”

My own love for rhubarb, unlike Garrett’s, developed later in life when my husband and I inherited a patch that had been started in the 1990s in our backyard. It continues to produce and as we started farming, we began the second patch.

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.

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.

Sweet Potato Salad with Apples, Raisins and Shallots

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Adapted from the recipe by Miss Annie on www.geniuskitchen.com

Serves 6-8

Cook and prep time: 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS

*Ingredients currently available at the farmers’ market

  • 4 cups sweet potatoes*, peeled and cut into ½” cubes
  • 2 tart apples*, peeled, cored and chopped
  • ½ cup raisins
  • ½ cup pecan pieces, toasted (optional)
  • Juice of 1 orange
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • 2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
  • 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 1 shallot*, finely chopped
  • salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • 1⁄3 cup olive oil

DIRECTIONS

  1. To cook the sweet potatoes: In a large skillet, warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the chopped sweet potatoes and toss to coat. Once the pan is sizzling, add a scant ¼ cup water, then cover the pan and reduce heat to low to avoid burning the contents. Cook, stirring occasionally until the sweet potato is tender and cooked through, about 10 minutes. Allow to cool slightly.
  2. Mix the sweet potatoes, apples, raisins, pecans, and shallots in a large bowl.
  3. Combine the juices, vinegar, mustard, garlic, salt and pepper in a small bowl.
  4. Whisk together, then add the oil in a thin stream, whisking constantly.
  5. Pour over the salad, toss well to combine well, then refrigerate overnight before serving.

Spring Festival Highlights Local Food Systems

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By Himanee Gupta-Carlson

 

The Saratoga Farmers’ Market hosts its third annual Spring Festival tomorrow. Between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., the festival will feature hourly workshops and family-friendly activities aimed at helping both market regulars and newcomers gain a stronger understanding of how the local food system operates.

All of the workshops are free, open to all ages, and will offer attendees gifts. The schedule includes:

  • A 9 a.m. presentation on beekeeping by Rick Green of Ballston Lake Apiaries. Green, a recently retired market vendor, will discuss the life cycle of bees and give an introduction to beekeeping. Hives will be available for purchase, and free beverages will be offered to all attendees.
  • A 10 a.m. session on making the most of your CSA with Justine Denison of Denison Farm. This workshop will offer tips on storing and using produce and will outline the benefits of signing up for a CSA share. Anouk Booneman, co-founder of Spring Into Health will offer a live cooking demonstration during this session, using seasonal produce. Attendees will receive a free Saratoga Farmers’ Market tote bag.
  • A 11 a.m. workshop on seed bombs by Cornell Cooperation Extension Master Gardener Lori Bishop. Bishop will demonstrate how to make seed bombs and will send attendees home with seed packets to create these life giving bombs themselves.
  • A 12 p.m. demonstration on succulents by Suzanne Balet of Balet Flowers and Design. Balet will offer information about planting and caring for succulents and offer all attendees to plant their own succulent to take home.

In addition, the Friends of the Market will host a take-home planting activity for children of all ages and abilities, and the Children’s Museum of Saratoga will offer a spring-themed activity.

Over the past two years, the festival has drawn hundreds of visitors, and in 2016 it prompted I Love NY to declare the Saratoga Farmers’ Market the No. 1 Must Visit Farmers’ Market in the state.

The goal, says market director Julia Howard, is to raise awareness of the value of local food and farming in a fun way. “Getting people involved in their local food scene is a great way to get them to participate in it. The farmers’ market embraces its role in this respect as an educator and resource on local food.”

The Saratoga Farmers’ Market is 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturdays at the Lincoln Baths Building in the Saratoga Spa State Park through April. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram; and contact friends@saratogafarmersmarket.org for volunteer opportunities.

When Sap Starts to Run, Spring is About to Come

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By Himanee Gupta-Carlson

 

Slate Valley Farms, photo courtesy of Pattie Garrett

Pat Imbimbo starts plotting out spring in the cold darkness of January. For him and for his family, this means trekking across the 101 acres that make up their Slate Valley Farm, inspecting the health of their 2,600 or so maple trees, and preparing to install taps, buckets and other equipment needed to capture the sweet flow of sap when it starts running.

By tradition, Imbimbo likes to start putting the taps into the trees on the first full moon of the year, or shortly thereafter. Then, his daughter, Gina Willis, waits for him to tell her to start opening them.

Willis sells Slate Valley’s maple and honey products at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market. She smiles in delight as she recalls how customers start asking her in late January if the sap’s running.

“It’s the anticipation, the excitement,” says Willis. “A sign of spring coming.  It’s like that little animal … the groundhog. We wait for it to come out of the ground every year.”

In general, maple tree sap starts to flow when daytime temperatures rise above freezing (32 degrees Fahrenheit) and nighttime temperatures go below freezing. That fluctuation creates a pressure in the trees that encourage the sap to flow.

“We get excited as the time gets closer and closer,” says Willis. “We have one tree kind of near the house that sort of acts as a gauge for us. As the temperatures start getting warmer, we’re checking it all the time.”

Maple sap is the first official agricultural harvest of the year in New York State. But like the uncertainty as to whether or not the groundhog sees its shadow the actual beginning and duration of the season can vary. In addition, Willis notes, the sap flow is a bit temperamental. If it gets too cold or too warm, it might stop and then restart again.

Behind the excitement are long hours. Forty gallons of sap are required to produce a single gallon of syrup. The boiling begins as soon as the sap starts accumulating, often taking place at night when the day work is done and lasting for Willis sometimes until 3 a.m.

Visit the Saratoga Farmers’ Market 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturdays at the Lincoln Baths Building in Saratoga Spa State Park; follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram; and contact friends@saratogafarmersmarket.org for volunteer opportunities.

Planning Spring Plantings

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By Himanee Gupta-Carlson

 

Ten days ago, as temperatures hit the 60s, I looked at the fresh-cut tree I had gotten at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market in December. It still smelled fresh but was drying out. Time to take it down and to think about filling its space with seed trays for the spring.

Farmers who bring the earliest spring herbs and vegetables to market often start seeds under grow lights, on heating mats, and in greenhouses. They rely on such innovations as high tunnels to prolong the garden season. Backyard gardens usually remain a mass of frozen soil until April.

Still, now is a good time to plan a spring garden, order seeds, and gather supplies.

Local gardening expert Sadie Ross recommends starting seedlings in starter pots or seedling trays and covering them with some kind of clear plastic to simulate a greenhouse. She often uses clear plastic deli tray covers. She recommends filling the starter pots with potting soil, dropping seeds on top and covering them with about 1/8 of an inch of soil. These pots should be watered lightly once a day with a spray bottle until the seeds germinate and sprout two true leaves.

How does one know when to plant certain seeds?

Many experts recommend creating a growing calendar with the last frost date as a pivot point. Charts listing when to start seeds indoors and when to transplant seedlings or direct sow outdoors are widely available on seed company and gardening websites. Nearly all are based on that frost date.

After taking down my tree, I created a growing calendar, based on our area’s last frost date of May 20. Working with charts on the Hudson Valley Seed Company’s website, I found out that while I can start celery and celeriac this weekend, and parsley, onions, and chives next weekend, I should hold off on starting my favorite greens and root vegetables until mid-April, as they’re best transplanted in mid-May.

“There isn’t much that one can start indoors this early,” says Ross. “Wait a few more weeks.”

Patience can pay off. As I’ve learned from years past, poor conditions will kill your plants. But when the time is right, they’ll thrive.

Visit the Saratoga Farmers’ Market 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturdays at the Lincoln Baths Building in Saratoga Spa State Park; follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram; and contact friends@saratogafarmersmarket.org for volunteer opportunities.

Saratoga Farmers' Market