Spring feels right around the corner, and plans are underway for the 2010 season of the Brighton Farmers’ Market.  Opening Day will be May 30; save the date and plan to come with your family to greet the market’s great local farmers and vendors.   Enjoy a cup of coffee and listen to toe-tapping live music while the kids have fun with special activities.

VENDORS:

The Brighton Farmers’ Market welcomes applications from farmers and vendors.  Farmers using organic and sustainable methods of agriculture are especially encouraged to apply.  Applications and rules for the 2010 season are now available at this website; click on “Becoming a Vendor.”  If you would like to apply, please carefully read the rules and submit your application as instructed in the application.  Applications are due by March 26.

Thanks to all for a great market season in 2009:  to the farmers and vendors for bringing high quality, local product to market, and to the customers for supporting the farmers, both during the regular season and during the Winter Market.  Check back here for information on the 2010 market.  If you would like to receive email information about market plans or offer comments, please send us a note at info@brightonfarmersmarket.org.

One of our farmers, Brian Beh of Raindance Harvest Farm, sent out the following note on the winter solstice.  His words perfectly describe the efforts he, as well as other farmers at the market, utilized this year to be able to offer such a bounty of vegetables so late in the season:

Happy Winter Solstice!

Today is the shortest day of the year and farmers should be resting but we aren’t. I spent the afternoon harvesting baby spinach, mizuna, mustard, tatsoi, and chard. We grow these greens using techniques described by Elliot Coleman in the Four Season Harvest. The greens were seeded in September and Early October so they would have enough time to mature before the Day length shortens too much. We only used a little heat at night during early November. Once the greens are established we allow the “High Tunnels” to freeze. Now we only heat to thaw out the greens for harvesting. This growing technique uses the least amount of energy possible.

Ida

Brighton Winter Farmers’ Market

Last market Tuesday, Dec. 22, 4-7 pm

1900 Westfall, Atonement Lutheran Church

Happy holidays and a healthy, happy, green new year from the Brighton Farmers’ Market.  This Tuesday is the final day for our Winter Market; come join us to celebrate a great year of delicious local food.   The farmers and vendors will bring great products for a holiday feast or for tasty gifts for your food-loving friends and family.  The farmers still have sweet carrots, fresh spinach, salad greens, herbs, kale, chard, garlic, shallots, winter squash, potatoes, apples, celeriac, eggs, meat, and dairy.  Also available will be the market’s popular pastas, baked goods, chocolates, jams, honey, coffee, baking mixes, and herbal products.  Keith Myers of Flour City Bakers joins the market this week with his wonderful breads that were so popular at the summer market.  Bob White will return with more musical holiday cheer.

Thanks to all who supported the Brighton Farmers’ Market in 2009.  Like most good things, farmers’ markets are built on relationships.  Thanks to the farmers, vendors, and community members who have nurtured the important relationships forged at the Brighton Farmers’ Market, thereby helping build a much healthier, more sustainable local food supply.

Lots of other holiday and gift items will be available at the market; here are some ideas:

• Hedonist Chocolates Holiday Truffle assortment, including festive flavors such as Eggnog, Orange Clove, Fig, Champagne Pomegranate, and Ginger Molasses.
• raw and creamed honey, beeswax candles & ornaments, and honey lip balm from Bloomfield Honey.
• dozens of varieties of jewel-like jams and jellies from Nordic Farms, including unique combinations such as Raspberry Pear, plus salsa, relishes, and pickles.
• Biscotti for Everybotti’s holiday spice flavors, perfectly paired with coffee from Joe Bean Coffee Roasters.
• hearty breads from Small World Bakery, plus granola, several colorful flavors of hot sauce, and their new batches of sauerkraut and kimchi.
• Spiced Apple Glaze and Apple Cider Molasses from Allens Hills Farm, plus mixes for baking holiday Gingerbread, Apple Cake, or Apple Cinnamon Pancakes.
• specialty flavors of fresh pasta from Salamone Pasta, plus ready-made pasta meals and soups.
• English Muffins & other sweet treats from Martha Jane’s.
• ravioli, sauces, dips, and stuffed breads from Pasta Classics.
• herbal soaps, lotions, and teas from Lavender Moon Herb Gardens.
• fudge in a variety of flavors, plus blueberry, raspberry, and blackberry jam from Tripleberry Farm.

We look forward to a great market season in 2010.  Check back here in the spring for information about next year’s market.

Ida in purple hat

The farmers will be brushing snow off their hardy vegetables to bring to market this Tuesday.  Many of the late season, cold weather crops are sweetened by dropping temperatures, unlike the dispositions of some of us.  Kale, cabbage, and brussels sprouts love the chill, and the carrots now are like candy.   There will also be apples, winter squash, pumpkins, potatoes, garlic, chard, salad greens, rutabaga, turnips, celeriac, leeks, cauliflower, and much more.  Sustainably-grown Christmas trees and wreaths will be still be available, along with milk, eggs, cheese, and certified organic, pasture-raised beef and pork.

Lots of other holiday and gift items will be available at the market; here are some ideas:

• Hedonist Chocolates Holiday Truffle assortment, including festive flavors such as Eggnog, Orange Clove, Fig, Champagne Pomegranate, and Ginger Molasses.
• raw and creamed honey, beeswax candles & ornaments, and honey lip balm from Bloomfield Honey.
• dozens of varieties of jewel-like jams and jellies from Nordic Farms, including unique combinations such as Raspberry Pear, plus salsa, relishes, and pickles.
• Biscotti for Everybotti’s holiday spice flavors, perfectly paired with coffee from Joe Bean Coffee Roasters.
• hearty breads from Small World Bakery, plus granola, several colorful flavors of hot sauce, and their new batches of sauerkraut and kimchi.
• Spiced Apple Glaze and Apple Cider Molasses from Allens Hills Farm, plus mixes for baking holiday Gingerbread, Apple Cake, or Apple Cinnamon Pancakes.
• specialty flavors of fresh pasta from Salamone Pasta, plus ready-made pasta meals and soups.
• English Muffins & other sweet treats from Martha Jane’s.
• ravioli, sauces, dips, and stuffed breads from Pasta Classics.
• herbal soaps, lotions, and teas from Lavender Moon Herb Gardens.
• fudge in a variety of flavors, plus blueberry, raspberry, and blackberry jam from Tripleberry Farm.

Bob White will return to the market this week with some musical holiday cheer.  This week and next are the final weeks of the 2009 Brighton Winter Farmers’ Market; come for the last of the season’s harvest.  Thanks to all for supporting these hard-working farmers; your support is a vote for a more local, sustainable food supply, one that is healthier for our families and for the environment.

Ida in purple hat

]]> http://www.brightonfarmersmarket.org/2-more-winter-markets/feed/ 0 http://www.brightonfarmersmarket.org/winter-market-3/ http://www.brightonfarmersmarket.org/winter-market-3/#comments Mon, 07 Dec 2009 18:40:54 +0000 Sue http://www.brightonfarmersmarket.org/?p=889

BRIGHTON WINTER FARMERS’ MARKET

Tuesday, 4-7 pm

1900 Westfall Road, Rochester

In Atonement Lutheran Church

Come to the Brighton Winter Farmers’ Market on Tuesday for some holiday spirit of the tastiest, freshest kind.  The farmers seem to have a bottomless bag from which they keep pulling more goodies to brighten Brighton’s holiday tables.   This week they’ll have broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, carrots, turnips, kohlrabi, garlic, leeks, brussels sprouts, lettuce, Asian salad mix, chard, spinach, kale, celeriac, potatoes, fresh herbs, green onions, radishes, rutabaga, and apples, plus milk, yogurt, cheese, eggs, beef, pork, chicken, and duck.

Other treats, perfect for gifts, will be available, including packages of holiday baking mixes, fine chocolates, honey and honey products, herbal soaps and lotions, coffee, biscotti, jams, jellies, pickles, salsas, several varieties of hot sauce, fresh cut pastas and fresh ravioli, granola, fudge, breads, and other baked goods.  There will be a great selection of fresh-cut Christmas trees, wreaths, and boughs, grown without synthetic pesticides, herbicides, or fungicides.

Be sure to check out the great article about the market and the farmers’ efforts to extend the season in the Democrat and Chronicle, written by Karen Miltner:

http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20091207/LIVING/912070311/Winter-farmers-market-extends-season

The Brighton Winter Farmers’ Market is held on Tuesdays, 4-7 pm, in the Atonement Lutheran Church, 1900 Westfall Road.  The last market will be on December 22.  The market is sponsored by the Town of Brighton.   Visit www.brightonfarmersmarket.org for more information.

Tuesdays, 4-7 pm

1900 Westfall Road

in Atonement Lutheran Church

through December 22

This Week

Our mild, pleasant November was a gift to the farmers, their reward for soldiering on through the cool, rainy summer.  Customers at the Brighton Winter Farmers’ Market will be the lucky beneficiaries of this good fortune, as the farmers are bringing an abundance of locally-grown produce rarely seen in upstate NY at this time of year.  Expect to find apples, broccoli, potatoes, winter squash, pumpkin, spinach, lettuce and salad mix, chard, kale, onions, garlic, celeriac, cauliflower, fresh herbs, radishes, green onions, kohlrabi, turnips, rutabaga, and carrots.  Milk, yogurt, cheese, eggs, and certified organic beef and pork will also be available.

Gift-giving this year can be local and delicious.  Our vendors are offering treats that would make great items for gift-baskets or thank-you gifts for a host.

Fine chocolates, a variety of hot sauces, baked goods, salsas, apple cider molasses, and fudge are tasty gift choices.  A bag of coffee and a couple packages of biscotti would be an obvious pairing, or a breakfast basket with pancake mix, a jar or two of jam, and some granola.  Another possibility would be a honey basket with a jar of regular honey plus  creamed honey,  handmade beeswax candles, and  honey lip balm.  Pasta lovers will find fresh ravioli, fresh cut pasta, and ready-made dishes.  Some vendors will have gift baskets already prepared, or you may prefer to select your own combinations.

Christmas Trees

There will be a great selection of Christmas trees, wreaths, swags, and boughs at the market this week.  Steve Aman of Aman’s Nursery in Newark grows his trees with no pesticides, fungicides, or herbicides, unlike many conventional growers.  Come to the market for the greenest tree ever!

Tuesdays, 4-7 pm

through December 22

1900 Westfall Road, Rochester

(in Atonement Lutheran Church)

This year, thanks to our farmers, we can do like the pilgrims did and eat local for Thanksgiving.  This Tuesday at the Brighton Winter Farmers’ Market you will find a wide variety of fresh, local treats, just in time for your Thanksgiving feast.  The farmers will bring apples, potatoes, winter squash, pumpkin for pie, spinach, lettuce and salad mix, chard, kale, onions, garlic, cauliflower, fresh herbs, radishes, green onions, kohlrabi, turnips, rutabaga, and carrots.  The farmers used organic methods for many of these crops (just like the pilgrims did).

Other treats to round out the feast will also be available, including Small World Bakery breads (great for stuffing), pies, jams and jellies, fine chocolates and fudge, pasta, other baked goods, coffee, and baking mixes from Allens Hill Farm (their apple cider molasses would make a tasty turkey glaze).   These treats plus many more from the market will make great additions to holiday gift baskets.

This week the market welcomes Steve Aman from Aman’s Nursery in Newark.  Steve will be bringing Christmas trees, wreaths, swags, boughs, and tree stands.  Steve grows his trees using no synthetic pesticides, fungicides, or herbicides, unlike the majority of conventional tree growers.

Don’t forget the brussels sprouts!  Every Thanksgiving table needs some.   Thwart any complaints this way:  saute a diced onion in some olive oil and/or butter.  Add trimmed and halved brussels sprouts, cook for a couple minutes, then add a cup or so of cider; cook until very tender and add salt and pepper.

Congratulations Big Sister

Tuesdays, 4-7 pm

1900 Westfall Road, Rochester 14618

Atonement Lutheran Church

The farmers put on a dazzling show at the Brighton Winter Farmers’ Market’s grand opening on Tuesday.  The tables were piled high with an amazing assortment of late-season crops, an especially impressive feat given the challenges of this year’s growing season.  The colorful and fragrant display included intriguing varieties such as watermelon radishes; crinkly dinosaur kale; freshly-dug red, yellow, and white carrots; German butterball potatoes; young leeks; and Long Island Cheese pumpkins, the very best for pie.   Farmers also brought chicken, duck, turkey, certified organic pork and beef, eggs, and dairy.  Treats to get us in a holiday mood were also plentiful, including breads, pies, ravioli, flavored fresh pasta, honey, baking mixes, coffee and biscotti for dipping, jams and jellies, chocolates, and herbal products and wreaths.

Visit the market this Tuesday between 4 and 7 pm, 1900 Westfall Road.  Come enjoy the best of the late fall  bounty from our creative local farmers.

Ida texting

]]> http://www.brightonfarmersmarket.org/winter-market-opens/feed/ 0 http://www.brightonfarmersmarket.org/winter-market-opening-soon/ http://www.brightonfarmersmarket.org/winter-market-opening-soon/#comments Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:28:06 +0000 Sue http://www.brightonfarmersmarket.org/?p=809 BRIGHTON WINTER FARMERS’ MARKET

Tuesdays, 4 to 7 pm

Nov. 10 through Dec. 22

Atonement Lutheran Church

1900 Westfall Road, Rochester

between S. Winton and Edgewood

This year, autumn’s arrival does not mean the end of fresh, locally-grown food from the farmers’ market; the Brighton Winter Farmers’ Market opens November 10.  This indoor winter market will bring together many of the market’s popular farmers and vendors to continue to offer the wonderful locally-produced foods that so many area residents have come to value.  Check the list of vendors on the right side of this page for those participating in the winter market.

Our region’s farmers have responded to the growing demand for local, sustainably grown foods by significantly expanding their offerings of late season crops.   Among the foods they’ll be bringing to market are lettuce, kale, spinach, potatoes, garlic, green and regular onions, winter squash, carrots, cabbage, chard, leeks, kohlrabi, pumpkins, turnips, beets, fresh herbs, apples, and pears. In keeping with the Brighton Farmers’ Market mission of promoting sustainable agriculture, several of the farmers operate certified organic farms or farms that, while not certified, grow their crops using organic methods. In addition, the market will offer chicken, duck, turkey, certified organic beef and pork, eggs, dairy, plus honey, baked goods including biscotti and bread, coffee, jams, chocolates and fudge, fresh pasta and ravioli, herbal products and wreaths.

Come to the market for fresh, delicious, local food; for a fun, lively, family event; and to help support the local farmers who are re-establishing a strong, healthy local food supply that will sustain us into the future.

Ida in Good Grub Club apron

Last Market Day of the Season!

The 2009 Brighton Farmers’ Market season wraps up a great season on Sunday, November 1.   It’s been a terrific year at the market, as customers have come to value the outstanding variety and quality of foods grown on our local farms.  The farmers have worked hard to meet the growing demand for local, sustainably grown foods, and have met the challenge, despite the weather, with a bountiful offering week after week.  Many thanks to the farmers, the loyal customers, the Town of Brighton, and all others who have supported the market this year.  We look forward to a great year in 2010, and to the Brighton Winter Farmers’ Market, opening soon!

Brighton Winter Farmers’ Market

This year, autumn’s arrival does not mean the end of fresh, locally-grown food from the farmers’ market; the Brighton Winter Farmers’ Market opens November 10.  This indoor winter market will bring together many of the market’s popular farmers and vendors to continue to offer the wonderful locally-produced foods that so many area residents have come to value. Our region’s farmers have responded to the growing demand for local, sustainably grown foods by significantly expanding their offerings of late season crops; among the foods they’ll be bringing to market are lettuce, kale, spinach, potatoes, garlic, green and regular onions, winter squash, carrots, cabbage, chard, leeks, kohlrabi, pumpkins, turnips, beets, fresh herbs, apples, and pears. In keeping with the Brighton Farmers’ Market mission of promoting sustainable agriculture, several of the farmers operate certified organic farms or farms that, while not certified, grow their crops using organic methods. In addition, the market will offer chicken, duck, turkey, certified organic beef and pork, eggs, dairy, plus honey, baked goods including biscotti and bread, coffee, jams, chocolates and fudge, fresh pasta and ravioli, herbal products and wreaths, and healthy dog treats.

The market will be held every Tuesday from November 10 through December 22, from 4 to 7 pm.  The market thanks the Atonement Lutheran Church for hosting the market; the location is 1900 Westfall Road, between S. Winton and Edgewood.

Thanks!

Thanks to all those who have supported the market this year; a special thank you is owed to several people whose contributions to the market have been invaluable:

• Elizabeth McInerney, a member of the market’s Advisory Board, who is instrumental in managing the market’s layout and assisting with general market management;
• the remaining members of the Advisory Board:  Todd Lighthouse, Fred Forsburg, Robert Hadad, Caroline Ravines, and Julie Miller;
  
• Deborah Edwards, who has  managed the music and scheduled the outstanding musicians at the market for the past two years;
• Lili Schwartz and Ben Agronick of liliandben.com.  Lili has designed all of the market’s terrific promotional materials, and Ben set up the website and provides support on an ongoing basis;
• Anne Semel, the market’s intern, who has provided general assistance of all types and has written the vendor profiles on the website;
• the teens who helped at the Good Grub Club:  Simone, Robin, Sam, Jenny, Valerie, Brynn, Andrew, Cara, Phoebe, and Wes.  Thanks to Betsy Liano, and to the Greater Rochester Health Foundation for funding the children’s program;
• Tom Ferraro and Foodlink, for operating the EBT program at the market;
  
• Ida, the market’s elfin good luck charm.

Ida in Pumpkin Hat

Featured Vendors

Anne, the market’s intern, offers a report of her latest interviews with market vendors:

K & S Bischoping

No matter the season, K & S Bischoping is always in fashion with its seasonal color combinations. In the summer, K & S Bischoping brought us raspberries, peaches, currants, and blackberries in rich saturated hues. And now in these final weeks of the market, I walk up to the red tent in the South corner of the market and not only see Karen in her red hat and apron with a big smile on her face, but also see the beautiful fashionable yellows and greens and reds of about a dozen different kinds of apple.

What’s your apple of choice? Are you sweet or tart? A Crispin maybe? Or how about a Red Delicious? Are you a Cortland? A Fuji? An Empire? I am a Honey Crisp and proud of it. But if you don’t know what you are or are willing to change, Karen or somebody else at the tent will gladly tell you about the different apples. I did hear Karen warn one customer, however, that sometimes apples can taste differently to different people. What you might think is tart, I may perceive as sweet. Those apples are tricky. I’d suggest seeing if you can get a mixed basket, which are not on display, but are sometimes available if you ask.

When I asked Karen how she got started with K & S Bischoping, she admitted that she grew up in the city and that the idea of having a farm was her husband’s idea. They started with potatoes and cabbage and then branched out to fruit orchards (no pun intended?). They brought what they grew to farmers’ markets, and we are lucky that they have found their way to our market.

Karen told me that she loves our market because it has such a great environment. She enjoys meeting all of you and interacting with you every Sunday. She is happy to bring products that she enjoys and hopes you will too.

As with so many of the other vendors I’ve spoken to, the conversation with Karen led to her children’s participation on the farm. She said that by helping to plant and harvest, her children saw things from start to finish, were never bored, and gained a strong work ethic. And although they may not have appreciated some of the tasks at the time, she believes they appreciate the things the farm taught them now that they’re adults. By working at farmers’ markets, the children learned how to communicate with people and think on their feet. In fact, K & S Bischoping was such a strong influence on Karen’s oldest son, that he and his wife have started their own farm, R & S Bischoping Farms, which currently focuses on flowers and tomatoes.

K & S Bischoping follows Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and Integrated Fruit Production (IFP) methods in an effort to be environmentally friendly. They restrict the use of spray materials on their crops. When you bite into one of their apples, you can truly feel like you’re making a healthy choice.

Pasta Classics

I could eat pasta every single day. For most of my teenage years, in fact, I ate some sort of pasta almost every day, and I only usually substituted it for fast food or cold leftovers. (Note A: My mom cooked and if I had been home at 6 PM any night, she would have served me a balanced meal. My fault, not hers. Note B: I eat almost any kind of vegetable or fruit; I just rarely cook them and am never inspired by them like most of the markets’ vendors.) I would have told you just a few months ago that I could eat spaghetti for breakfast, linguine for dinner, and those tri-colored pastas for dessert. Every day. Willingly.

But that was crazy because I would not be getting any fruits or vegetables in my diet and now I know I was settling with that packaged store stuff. After trying numerous samples and buying numerous other flavors of raviolis from Pasta Classics, I can say that I could eat feta and spinach ravioli for breakfast, artichoke and provolone ravioli for lunch, chicken and pepperjack ravioli for dinner, and pumpkin ravioli for dessert every single day. All of them, with the exception of the pumpkin ravioli, would have to be smothered in Pasta Classics’ vodka sauce. The pumpkin ravioli is good in a butter sauce. I am new to sweet raviolis, so if you know of some better sauce for them, find me.

And if I wasn’t allowed to have ravioli for every meal, I guess I could deal with a substitution of half a loaf of their spinach feta bread baked in the oven for a meal or two. I would be having nicely balanced meals. Pasta, cheeses, a little protein, some vegetables and a fruit.

So clearly I have an addiction. And the people who are feeding this addiction are Vince and Nancy Tripi of Pasta Classics. It really doesn’t help that they have about 30 different varieties of ravioli, all hand-made, along with about 8 flavors of stuffed breads and the sauces to put on top. When I went to interview them, after I sat on their cooler and ate my weekly Sunday morning sample, I asked about their favorite flavors. Vince told me that his favorite flavor of bread is the Roast Beef, Garlic and Cheddar loaf and his favorite ravioli is the Crab and Shrimp. He said that Nancy’s favorite in both the bread and the ravioli is the Spinach and Feta. After helping a customer, Nancy confirmed that.

Vince and Nancy have a certified kitchen adjacent to their home in Canandaigua, NY. They started making their ravioli a couple of years ago when they coupled with the Original Pasta Man from the Public Market to make their delicious pasta. And if it wasn’t for this union, and for Salamone Fresh Pasta (which will be featured very soon), I would probably still be eating pasta from a box found in some aisle in the grocery store.

If you’re still eating grocery store pasta, I strongly suggest you make your way to Pasta Classics, whose tent is located closest to the tennis courts, in order to try their sample ravioli this next week. Pasta Classics will be joining the Brighton Winter Farmers’ Market.