Vote for Your Favorite Farmers' Market

The American Farmland Trust is running a contest to raise national awareness for local farmers' markets. You can visit America's Favorite Farmers' Markets website to learn more about the contest, as well as the "No Farms, No Food" message that the Farmland Trust is spreading.

You can also vote for your favorite farmers' market(s). You don't have to pick just one, if you visit more than one, vote for both!

July 17, 2010

For Saturday July 27, 2010:

More things are starting to come into season! This week at our market:

McDougal Orchards: New this week- tomatoes, apples and cucumbers!

Stone Field Farm: beets, green beans, lettuce, rhubarb, whoopie pies, scones, raspberry brownies.

Flying Goat Farm: all varieties of chevre (pesto, chive, roasted garlic, plain), feta, bread, granola. Flying Goat Farm will be running a goat kid naming contest this week!

Other vendors still have perennial plants, cut flowers, eggs, goats' milk soap, and organic produce! Come see us tomorrow morning!

What do I do with THAT?

With the arrival of summer, I am going to try to post a weekly feature on our Market blog detailing some ideas on how to use seasonal produce. Often at Market, farmers are asked, "What do I do with it?" in regards to particular produce, and I'm going to try to help answer that question.

This week's feature: Bok Choy.

Bok Choy (also referred to as pak choi), is a variety of Chinese cabbage. It is most often found as seen above in a mature plant form with white, succulent stems, and dark green leaves, or as baby bok choy, in which the stems are still green, and the entire plant is smaller "baby" size. Both types have a fresh, crisp, sweet, flavor, sometimes compared to celery, but without the stringiness. I, personally, think bok choy is much sweeter than celery, and have never found it to have the almost bitter tang of some celery stalks.

So, what do you do with it?

Bok choy is delicious in any kind of stir fry. The entire plant can be chopped and cleaned and added to the stir fry towards the end of the cooking, in order to maintain the delicious crunch of the stalks. It is also a great addition to filling for spring rolls or egg rolls, and can be used in place of the cabbage component.

Recently, we have discovered a delicious Thai side dish made from bok choy. This would be excellent served along side a teriyaki style meat, or is an excellent light lunch served over rice.

Bok Choy with Lime Dressing

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp oil (vegetable, sesame, or peanut oil work well)
• 3 fresh red chillies (if you don't like spicy food, you may substitute red bell pepper)
• 4 garlic cloves
• 6 spring onions (scallions) sliced
• 2 bok choy, chopped
• 1 Tbsp (or more!) chopped peanuts dressing:
• 2 Tbsp lime juice (approximately 1.5 limes)
• 1-2 Tbsp fish sauce (mushroom sauce may be substituted for vegetarian option)
• 1 cup coconut milk

Make the dressing:

Mix lime juice and fish sauce in a bowl. Be sure to add fish sauce slowly- it has strong flavor, and if you haven't used it before, you may want to try a little at a time. Going light on the fish sauce will not detract from the deliciousness of this dish! Gradually whisk in the coconut milk.

Heat oil in a wok. Stir fry the chillies for 2-3 minutes until crisp. Remove chillies from the oil and transfer to a plate with a slotted spoon. Add garlic to wok and stir fry for 30-60 seconds until golden brown. Remove garlic from wok with a slotted spoon and transfer to the plate with the chillies. You have now flavored the cooking oil.

Stir fry the white parts of the green onions for 2-3 minutes, then add the green parts and stir fry for 1 more minute. Transfer to the plate.

Bring a large pan of lightly salted water to a boil. When the water is boiling, add the bok choy, stir it twice, then drain immediately.

Put the bok choy in a serving bowl, and add dressing. Sprinkle with fried chili mixture and crushed peanuts. This dish may be served warm or cold.

June 26, 2010

For Saturday, June 26:

Stone Field Farm: perennial flowers, fresh cut rhubarb, lettuces, baked goods, children's aprons, jams and jellies, bird houses.

Flying Goat Farm: fresh bread, feta, chevre (dill & chive, chive, roasted garlic), strawberries, hand painted yarns (sock yarn new this week!)

Russell Springs Farm: Romaine and Buttercrunch lettuces, Arugula, turnip greens, baby bok choy.

Two Toad Farm: garlic scapes, head lettuce, swiss chard, kale, turnips, broccoli, summer squash

Farnham Ridge: cut flowers, mini sunflowers, eggs, fresh grape leaves, peas, iceburg lettuce

McDougal Orchards: cucumbers, sweet cherries

This week...

... at the Sanford Farmers' Market:

Forecast for Saturday is calling for a chance of rain, but not till the afternoon, so plan to stop by and check out what your local farmers have been growing.

Evergreen Nursery and Flowers by the Roadside still have vegetable starts including tomatoes, herbs, peppers, and lots of beautiful perennial flowers. Two Toad Farm and Russel Springs Farm can be visited for beautiful greens including bok choi, salad mix, hydroponic lettuce heads and tasty, fancy micro-greens. McDougal Orchards will be bringing Captain Jack's donuts. Flying Goat Farm has fresh chevre goat cheese, fresh bread and bagels, and will be bringing some granola and strawberries to market this week. Farnham Ridge has had some beautiful potted sunflowers and other plants, as well as their soaps and grape leaves along with a recipe for stuffed grape leaves.

This Saturday, Cara from Flying Goat Farm, and the art teacher at Lyman Elementary School is hosting a Knit In Public (KIP) event for World-Wide Knit In Public Day. Some students from the Lyman Elementary after school knitting group will be coming by during the morning, and other knitters and fiber artists are welcome to attend.

First Market Day of 2010!

Sanford Farmers' Market will be opening Saturday morning at 8:00AM. We are looking forward to a great season and hope to see some familiar faces this weekend, as well as plenty of new ones!

Some items you can expect to find at this weekend's market:

jams, jellies, baked goods, donuts, herbs, goats' milk soap, rhubarb, potted lilac trees, strawberry baskets, mixed greens, bok choi, goat cheeses.

It looks like beautiful weather for Saturday, so come out and see us!

8 Days and Counting.

Sanford Farmers' Market is opening for the 2010 season on May 22, Saturday at the corner of Main St. (Rt 109) and Gowen Park Drive. The Sanford Farmers' Market will be open every Saturday from 8:00am - 12:00 noon rain (except torrential downpours) or shine through Columbus Day weekend.

The opening day promotion, we are giving away a dozen eggs to anyone with an empty egg carton starting at 8:00am until we run out. One dozen per family and you must have an empty egg carton.

We will also be displaying the winning entries of our Poster-Logo Contest that was held among the Sanford Schools from K-12 grade.

This year we have a community tent for non-profits to use to advertise their group or hold a fundraiser. Non-profits must schedule in advance and two groups may be assigned the tent on a Saturday. Please contact the Market Master, Jack McAdam 490-3660 for more information.

For additional information on vendors and products available please visit our website at www.sanfordfarmersmarket.org and join us on Facebook.