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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

Panzanella

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iStock

Recipe shared by NightWork Bread, adapted from the recipe by Barefoot Contessa

Ingredients
*Ingredients currently available at the farmers’ market
● 1/2 loaf Night Work Country Sourdough*, cut into 1-inch cubes
● 3 tbsp olive oil*
● 3 large tomatoes*, diced
● 1 large cucumber*, diced
● Two large handfuls fresh basil leaves*, coarsely chopped
● 1 tsp sea salt

Dressing:
● 3 cloves garlic*, minced
● 1 tsp Dijon mustard
● 2 tbsp rice vinegar
● 1/3 cup olive oil*
● 1/2 tsp sea salt
● Freshly ground pepper

Instructions
Heat olive oil in large saucepan on medium. Add bread cubes and season with salt. Stir occasionally, 8-10 mins until toasted and browned.

Whisk together dressing ingredients. Add to chopped veggies, mix in bread cubes and top with basil. Season salad with salt and pepper. Best served at room temperature.

Pro tip: You can add all kinds of great veggies from the farmers’ market to this salad, depending on your taste. Try some red or yellow bell peppers, red onion, lightly roasted summer squash, roasted beets, or microgreens. Enjoy!

Spring Vegetable Pasta

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Photo by Pattie Garrett

Recipe by Simply Fresh Dinners, shared by My Saratoga Kitchen Table
Serves: 4

Ingredients
*Ingredients currently available at the farmers’ market
● 14 ounces pasta* (use tagliatelle, fettuccini, or your favorite pasta)
● 2 cups fiddleheads* (in cold water, rinse and remove the brown papery husk on the fiddleheads, do this several times)
● 1 ½ Tablespoons olive oil*
● 1 garlic clove, minced
● ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
● 1 cup asparagus*, rinse, cut off woody ends, cut into 1 ½ inch pieces
● Juice from one lemon, zest from half the lemon
● ½ cup cherry tomatoes*, halved
● 2 scallions*, sliced
● ¼ cup fresh basil*, chopped
● Garnish with pea shoots*

Instructions
1. Cook pasta according to directions on box until al dente. Save 4 Tablespoons of cooking water. Drain and rinse.
2. Cook cleaned fiddleheads in boiling water (a rolling boil) for 5 to 10 minutes, until tender. Drain and place in ice-cold water. This will shock the fiddleheads and stop the cooking process, leaving them bright green.
3. Heat olive oil in skillet on medium-high heat. Add garlic and red pepper. Cook for one minute. Add asparagus, juice, zest and pasta water. Cook on medium heat for 3 minutes. Add fiddleheads and cook an additional 2 minutes.
4. Add cooked pasta. Toss well until coated. Top with tomatoes, scallions, basil, and pea shoots.

Growing memories and traditions through the love of food

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Madison Jackson with her Grandma Jo, circa 2006

By Madison Jackson, market intern

Each year I find myself looking forward to the late summer when everything seems to slow down a bit as we soak up the last long, hot days that mark the bittersweet end of another summer. Before we trade our swimsuits for back to school and office outfits and switch our summer salads for pumpkin recipes, we enjoy one last late summer harvest.

Growing up, the late summer always brought with it one of my favorite treats: my Grandmother’s fresh chocolate chip zucchini bread. My Grandma Jo’s beloved garden sat in the field behind her and my grandfather’s home in Upstate New York, surrounded by a small fence to keep out the deer and rabbits that frequented the property. She tended to her garden often, loading her many tools onto a four-wheeler and setting out to work in the hot sun to ensure her fruits, vegetables, and herbs were properly taken care of.

In early August, her small garden overflowed with an abundance of zucchini, raspberries, cucumbers, and tomatoes. The meals of the following weeks were filled with produce from the garden in every way imaginable. Zucchini bread and muffins for breakfast, cucumber and tomato salads for lunch, and cakes with sweet raspberry sauce for dessert.

Madison Jackson at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market

This flood of fresh fruits and vegetables brought some of my favorite meals of the summer, as well as some of the most cherished memories of my childhood. Long afternoons surrounded by my siblings and cousins, following directions to make delicious raspberry jam we liked to call “Grandchildren Jam” and enjoying her homemade desserts out on the deck surrounded by family as we watched the sunset. But what I looked forward to most was the late summer surplus of zucchini that meant homemade zucchini bread, with a special batch she would set aside for me made with chocolate chips.

As we enter the last few weeks of summer, as always, I look forward to sharing this recipe with my family and taking in the dog days of August.

Cooking provides such a special way to connect with family and friends and emphasizes the importance of nourishing ourselves with fresh, healthy foods. Come browse the market this month to stock up on seasonal summer produce grown by your favorite local farmers. It is food that you can feel good about eating and sharing.

 

This week’s recipe: Grandma Jo’s Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread

Slow-Roasted Tomatoes

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AdobeStock

Recipe provided by Echo Creek Farm

Ingredients
*Ingredients currently available at the farmers’ market
● 6-8 tomatoes*, halved
● Olive oil

Instructions
Spread the halved tomatoes out on a sheet pan and drizzle with olive oil, just enough to make the tomatoes glisten. Bake the tomatoes for 4 to 6 hours at 250° degrees. The longer you bake them, the more concentrated their flavor will be. Cool the tomatoes before transferring them to a platter. They can be served right away or will keep in the refrigerator for a few weeks. Serve these simple but flavorful tomatoes as a garnish for a brunch or as a side with roast chicken or grilled steak.

Instant Pot Bolognese

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Recipe by Healthy Gourmet Kitchen
Makes: 8 servings
Total time: 30 min

Ingredients
*Ingredients currently available at the farmers’ market
● 1 lb. ground meat of choice (beef*, lamb*, pork*, turkey, or plant-based)
● 1 package Healthy Gourmet Kitchen Bolognese meal starter kit*
● 1 onion diced*
● 2 lb. tomatoes* OR 1, 28 oz. can whole or diced plum tomatoes
● 1 cup white wine
● 1 cup milk*
● 4 tablespoons grass-fed butter*
● 12 ounces penne pasta

Directions
1. Turn Instant Pot to saute medium. Add butter and allow it to melt slightly. Add chopped onion and saute for 3-5 minutes. Add ground meat and break it up so that it crumbles. Continue to saute until the meat is brown.
2. After meat is browned, add white wine and the Healthy Gourmet Kitchen Bolognese meal starter pack on top of the meat.
3. Add milk and tomatoes. If you are using fresh, whole tomatoes, squish them or chop them up. Add pasta and push so that it is submerged under the liquid.
4. Secure the lid on the Instant pot and close the vent. Press manual for 4 minutes.
5. When the cooking time is complete, allow 5 minutes to pass for natural release, then move the vent to remove the rest of the steam. Remove the lid, top with grated cheese, and enjoy!