September 1 Farm Stand

"We need real farmers who grow real food, and the will to reform a broken food system. And for that, we need not only to celebrate farmers, but also to advocate for them."

The above quote is part of an awesome op-ed written by The New York Times food columnist, Mark Bittman. You should read it. And then read some more about the horrendous state of our food system. And then take a stand against it by supporting and advocating for your local farmers.

:Stepping off soap box:

Can you believe tomorrow is September? I don't even know where August went, it barely stopped to say hello. We've got loads of ground cherries so pick up a couple baskets this week and dip them in chocolate, or can up some preserves, or make this awesome-looking cupcake pie thing (tell us how it turns out)!

Here's the full list we'll have this Saturday, 9 a.m.- 1 p.m. in Blawnox. We accept cash and Farmer's Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) checks.

Lettuce (New!)
Fingerling Potatoes
Heirloom Tomatoes - Eva Purple Ball, Gold Medal, Pink, Red Cherry, Roma
Ground Cherries
Green peppers
Radishes
Red Onions

Garlic
Tarragon Vinegar (homemade by Kristie)
Local (Fox Chapel) raw honey from Hannah's Honey

Read more...

Cherry Tomato Salad with Tarragon Vinaigrette

This past weekend, our farmer friends, Joe and Sara, of Five Elements Farm, invited us over for a little harvest celebration. They have a wonderful piece of property and a beautiful home they built themselves. It's their dream and a little slice of heaven and spending time out there does amazing things for the spirit.

When trying to decide what dish to bring, I knew I needed something that was quick and easy since I was going to whip it up after the farm stand. This very simple cherry tomato salad lets in-season tomatoes sing and is a great vehicle for our tarragon vinegar (but balsamic and red wine vinegar also works too). We like to add raw garlic to our dressings for all of the wonderful health benefits, but feel free to omit it if you're not keen on garlic breath.

Cherry Tomato Salad with Tarragon Vinaigrette

 

Vinaigrette
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 tablespoons of SVF's tarragon vinegar or balsamic/red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon of dijon mustard
2 cloves of minced garlic (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste

Salad
4 cups (about one quart) of local cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 medium red onion, sliced thin
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup basil, sliced thin

In a measuring cup or small bowl whisk together all of the ingredients for the vinaigrette. In a separate bowl toss the tomatoes, red onion, basil, and vinaigrette.

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August 25 Farm Stand

This week's fingerling potatoes

This past weekend we headed up to Buffalo for my (Kristie) 15-year high school reunion. Since Brett was in Iraq for the 10-year reunion, I really wanted him to join me this time so we cancelled the farm stand and made it a little getaway. It ended up being a blast; I happen to have graduated with some very awesome and fun people. But what really surprised me is how many people follow our farm through Facebook or the blog. Countless people asked me about it, told me that they think it's great what we are doing and how our posts inspire them to eat more fresh food. Seriously-I had no idea. Sometimes you put this information out there and you're not really sure who sees it or reads it. And then all of a sudden you hear about the impact that you're having on people and, man, it brings the warm and fuzzies.

So if you're reading this, we want to continue to be a source of inspiration. As you can imagine we're a bit short on time these days, but we're going to strive to provide regular fresh, helpful, and interesting content.

But back to the day to day. We'll have lots of eggs so we shouldn't sell out so quickly this week. Brett dug up some beautiful fingerling potatoes that are so tender and flavorful. There will be plenty of tomatoes, especially the red cherry, and we are also bringing back the lovely dragon's tongue wax bean from Clarion River Organics.

Here's the full list we'll have this Saturday, 9 a.m.- 1 p.m. in Blawnox. We accept cash and Farmer's Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) checks.

Fingerling Potatoes (New!)
Heirloom Tomatoes - Eva Purple Ball, Gold Medal, Pink, Red Cherry, Yellow Pear
Ground Cherries
Radishes
Swiss Chard
Kale
Red Onions

Garlic
Dragon's Tongue Beans (from Clarion River Organics)
Tarragon Vinegar (homemade by Kristie)
Local (Fox Chapel) raw honey from Hannah's Honey

Read more...

August 11 Farm Stand

Mayhaps you've heard of them, mayhaps you haven't. They don't care, for they are secure in their deliciousness and absurdly long shelf life (6+ months) and know they'll be okay with or without you. That's right, they are Ground Cherries and they're nature's arrogant little bastards. But they have cause to be.  So come on out and buy them all up, they are making all the other veg feel very self-conscious and unworthy (have you ever seen an heirloom tomato cry?)

Here's the full list we'll have this Saturday, 9 a.m.- 1 p.m. in Blawnox. We accept cash and Farmer's Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) checks.

Heirloom Tomatoes - Eva Purple Ball, Gold Medal, Pink, Red Cherry
Ground Cherries
Swiss Chard

Yukon Gold New Potatoes
Hungarian Hot Yellow Wax Peppers
Cucumbers
Garlic
Local (Fox Chapel) raw honey from Hannah's Honey

Read more...

August 4 Farm Stand

The summer produce is in! Gorgeous heirloom tomatoes, spicy hot peppers, and sweet ground cherries.

Here's the full list we'll have this Saturday, 9 a.m.- 1 p.m. in Blawnox. We accept cash and Farmer's Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) checks.

Heirloom Tomatoes (New this week!) - Eva Purple Ball, Gold Medal, Pink, Red Cherry
Anaheim Peppers (New!)

Jalapenos (New!)
Yukon Gold New Potatoes (New!)
Ground Cherries (New!)
Hungarian Hot Yellow Wax Peppers
Cucumbers
Garlic
Green Cabbage (from Clarion River Organics)
Local (Fox Chapel) raw honey from Hannah's Honey

Read more...