Why not celebrate waking up next to the one you love on Tuesday with some wholesome granola at the market? You can find some at the Bread Alone stand, as well as the True Food of Nyack table and at Tierra Farm.  Try a sample from each and see which one you like best.
Sarah’s Caramella’s will be here with her popular treats appropriately packaged with a red ribbon. As always, Dutch Desserts will have their chocolate tarts shaped like a heart.
In my family, we like to buy each other something – anything-  red on Valentine’s Day (everything from a red colander to a red wooly hat to a book with a red jacket).
Red meat would work -  and we’ve got plenty of it at the market this week with Roaming Angus and Cowberry bringing their gorgeous cuts of beef. Cowberry has an abundance of lamb right now so come with your favorite tagine recipe.
How about some sweet heat for your sweet-heart? Guyank Brank will be here with their usual lineup of hot tangy  barbecue sauces.
We will have plenty of those beautiful handmade vintage aprons (made by Kim Sava) which always make a nice gift. Especially if you tuck something extra special in the pocket…like some Clean Ridge Soap Co. lotion or soap.
See you at the market!

Other vendors include: Fork & Glass (come get your south of the border fix), True Food of Nyack (try their new pot pies!), Pura Vida, Roaming Angus, Panzarella, Lasagna Preziosa, Meredith’s, Bread Alone, Orchards of Concklin, Bombay Emerald Chutney, Kontoulis Olive Oil, Mtn. Smokehouse, Tierra Farm Organic Nuts (and coffee!), Pie Lady of Nyack, Station Cafe, Honey Locust Farmhouse, Cowberry Crossing, Picklelicious, Guyank Brand hot sauce…

Start the new year with sharp knives! Matt the Knife is in the house…
See you at the market!

Why not put together a gift basket of products from Hummingbird Ranch (honey, syrup, lip balm, facial masks?)
Or a hodgepodge of Honey Locust jams & elixirs?  (A bottle of fine gin with an elderberry elixir makes a stunning gift for any aspiring mixologist).
What serious cook wouldn’t want a gift certificate for knife-sharpening services in their stocking?
Ready Set Sharp is selling $25.00 gift cards (good for $30 worth of knife-sharpening services). In fact, they are offering a 20% discount on all knife-sharpening services tomorrow! Don’t insult your Christmas goose with a dull knife!

I can’t imagine a cat-sitter, teacher or good neighbor who wouldn’t appreciate some Clean Ridge Soap. Co. lotion & soap. Doesn’t the UPS guy deserve a bar of cedar soap?

Fork & Glass will be serving up their delicious Nordic crepes and quesadillas filled with chorizo and potato. True Foods will have a variety of burritos served piping hot.
And several vendors will be selling prepared soups for those crazy weekday nights in December when you just don’t have it in you to start one from scratch.
Remember, Dutch Desserts tarts, Pie Lady of Nyack pies and all of Roaming Angus’ & Cowberry Crossing’s meats freeze remarkably well. So do Pika’s Quiches and potpies!
It’s going to be a long stretch until mid-January…make sure you get plenty of everything you crave!

We’ll be in the Library Lot from 9 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

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Tomorrow is our last weekly farmers’ market in Hastings.
Starting Dec. 10th, we will be operating on a monthly basis, always on the second Saturday. Please check the website (www.hastingsfarmersmarket.org

Roasted Parsnip and Apple Soup from guiltykitchen.com (a new fave of mine)

Yield: about 4-5 large servings

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cooking Time: 90 minutes

1 1/2 lb. parsnips

4 Tbsp butter

1 1/4 lbs. tart apples (granny smith, pink lady, etc.)

1 small sweet onion

1 lb. waxy potatoes (such as Yukon gold)

1/2 tsp each ground ginger, cumin and nutmeg

1 tsp coriander seeds, pulverized

2 litres vegetable stock (or chicken)

1/2 cup cream

kosher salt to taste

fresh ground pepper to taste

Shaved Parmesan for garnish

1. Peel parsnips and roughly chop into 1″ pieces.

2. Place parsnips in roasting dish and dot with 3 tbsp of butter. Bake at 400°F for 45 minutes, stirring every 10 or 15 minutes.

3. In large heavy bottomed pot, heat remaining tbsp of butter over medium. Add onions and cook until translucent.

4. Add in potatoes, apples and spices and sauté for five minutes.

5. Add in roasted parsnips and stock and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer and allow to cook for 20 minutes or until all vegetables and fruit is softened.

6. Using an immersion blender, stand blender or food processor, blend the soup into a smooth purée (in batches if using a blender or food processor).

7. Pour back into pot and reheat, stirring in cream and seasoning to taste.

8. Ladle into bowls and top with a sprinkle of Parmesan for garnish

Tomorrow is your last chance to get your knives sharpened before Thanksgiving!!!!
Though Guyank  Brand was scheduled to come this Saturday, something has come up and they will try to be here next Saturday instead.

Only two more markets before we fold up our tents for the season…
STOCK UP!
our first MONTHLY winter market will be Dec. 10th. It will be held in the Library lot….

Make sure you pick up a winter schedule at the market tent…or check out website regularly for updates (hastingsfarmersmarket.org).

MARK YOUR CALENDARS: We will have a pre-Thanksgiving Farmers Market in Irvington (101 Main St.) on Wed. Nov. 23rd from 1 to 5 p.m.
We will have a spice and exotic salt vendor to jazz up your bird and we will be selling cornmeal and whole wheat flour straight  from the grist mill at Philipsburg Manor.  Plus, Flourish Bakery from Scarsdale will have gorgeous pies and crostatas…

Wait – there’s more apple news!  if you pop into Village Hall you can preview “The Four Seasons: A Year in the Life of an Orchard,” a dramatic series of 12 panoramic prints by award-winning, architectural photographer and Hastings resident, Frederick Charles. The images first appeared in LIFE magazine and won an Alfred Eisenstaedt Award for Magazine Photography. The show is sponsored by the Hastings Village Arts Commission, Fred will be there tomorrow to talk about this project at both 9:30 a.m. and 12:30. p.m.
The official artist’s reception is Friday, November 18 6-8 p.m.
Tomorrow: Kontoulis Olive Oil is at market and both Crepes and Fork and Glass are back! (Next week is your last chance to get your carving knife sharpened before Turkey Day).

Thank you all for coming out to shop last week. Your loyalty and hardiness never cease to amaze me (and the farmers!).

If you send me some of your personal faves, I’ll pass them on in a future blog!

1.  Tierra Farms. Yes, their nuts are crazy addictive – but did you know they sell fantastic locally roasted coffee as well as granola, too?
2.  Kontoulis Olive Oil (at the market tomorrow – yippeee!) sells tapenade and jars of plump kalamatas in addition to the oil we all know and love. Put a bowl of those olives out for guests and watch them vanish!
3. True Foods – many of you make a beeline for the burritos but have you tried the chickpea kale salad? Yum.
3. Everyone melts before the chocolate tart at Dutch Desserts. The pumpkin deserves some respect.
4. Panzarella: crab cakes and mozzarella are their bread and butter – but have you tried their delicate bella cakes? (a slice with a cup of tea is the perfect pick-me-up on a gray afternoon)
5.  Amazing Real Live Food Co. For a long time this summer I was hooked on their Chaource log – a cow’s milk cheese parading as goat, but now their queso blancos have gotten under my skin. Also: many of you may not know that they also sell Ronnybrook milk! If you place an order for other Ronnybrook products (I’m thinking creme fraiche) they’ll bring it the following week.
6. Bread Alone…most of you have your tried and true loaves. But have you tried their Tuscan dark or miche? They are so big you can buy one with a couple of friends and divide it up. It also freezes remarkably well.
7. Red Jacket sells juices and fruit…but did you know they also sell jams and apple sauce and now fruit bars????
8.  Lasagna Preziosa makes luscious lasagna. But there’s a reason his foccaccia usually sells out by 10 a.m. He’s back from vacation, btw.
9.  Hummingbird Ranch – (they’re also here tomorrow) Yes, their raw honey rocks and so does their maple syrup. But guess what? They make honey facial masks, too! Sticky upon application but your cheeks feel delicious afterward.
10. Clean Ridge Soap. Co. I’ve raved ad nauseum about their lavender lotion. But their air diffusers will make your house smell like joy.

See you at the market!

How did I review restaurants  in NYC and not weigh 400 pounds?

Well, for starters, I only “tasted” the dishes I ordered and let my guests finish them.
I tried to limit myself to one piece of bread per restaurant.
And every month, I’d make a vat of “restaurant critic soup” which I’d eat for three days straight.
I got the advice from a fellow restaurant critic in San Francisco who credited this soup for helping her keep her girlish figure despite eating out 8-10 times a week.
I no longer review restaurants (and never had a girlish figure), but every year, around this time, I get a hankering for that soup. Now that I make it almost entirely with ingredients from the farmers market, it tastes much more like a reward than a bowl of culinary penance.
This week, with the heater coming on in the morning and a busy week of deadlines and working from home, I decided to make a giant batch which I’ve been enjoying for lunch and dinner every single day. It’s as delicious as it is righteous.
I’m not going to give you a recipe because there really isn’t one.  It’s basically a free for all with only a few rules that you MUST follow.
Start by sauteeing some leeks (or shallots or onions) in a little of olive oil in your favorite and roomiest soup pot. Then fill it 3/4 of the way with water (that’s RULE #1). Of course, if you want something richer use homemade or store-bought stock.  Dump in whichever root vegetables you’ve got handy. Just make sure you’ve cut them up in pieces that are roughly the same size so they cook evenly.
I put in some of those gorgeous tiny white turnips and carrots from Cowberry Crossing, some sweet potatoes, parsnips and “white” carrots from Madura Farms.
If you’re a restaurant critic, you don’t want to put any POTATOES in there(RULE #2). But if you’re not, go right ahead and throw in small handful of Yukon golds. The truth is, this soup is so hearty you’re not going to miss them. About 15 minutes after the soup’s been simmering, add some rough chopped tomatoes. In the winter, add a large can of San Marzano diced tomatoes. Oh and a couple bay leaves, some peppercorns and/or a bouquet garni if you’re feeling inspired. Or none of the above.
Let the soup simmer for about an hour or more…There’ s really no rush and your house will smell so good you’ll want to leave it on as long as possible.
Once the soup has been cooking for a while…add greens: CABBAGE if you eat out for a living. Lots and lots of shredded cabbage(that’s RULE #3). Toss in a fair amount – it will cook up quickly in the simmering soup.
This week instead of cabbage, I put in all the leafy greens I got at the market last Saturday: Taliaferro chard and Cowberry Kale (two  bunches!) all cut up in ribbons.
You must be wondering how I could eat this soup twice a day for a week and not get bored.
Every day I add something new to it to make it more interesting. I portion some out into a smaller pot and add either cannellini, garbanzo beans or green beans, one day. Sometimes I’ll add Asian spices with some tofu. Thursday, I added a bunch of gourmet mushrooms I’d gotten at the Wednesday market in Irvington. Today, I added some market mint chutney (Sriracha sauce works well, too! so does grated Parmesan cheese).  For the girls I sometimes add some cooked rice or noodles or some shredded chicken. (for the record, they DO NOT eat it all week).

It’s a great way to make room in your refrigerator, and to ready yourself for those winter stews and sauces to come…

Did you know that Roaming Angus now has pork belly?

No knife sharpener tomorrow – back next week.

Our musician this week is Putnam Smith who is often mistaken for an old-world troubadour fresh from the 19th Century.  After all, he lives in a log cabin,  plays his Grandfather’s banjo, and prints up the jackets to his CDs on an antique letterpress.  Yet this rootsy multi-instrumentalist songwriter (he also writes and performs on guitar, mandolin, fretless banjo, and piano), steeped as he is in old-time Appalachian traditions, is very much a storyteller for the modern age.  His new CD, “We Could Be Beekeepers” went to #2 on the national Folk & Bluegrass DJ Charts the month it was released, this last June.  Learn more at: www.putnamsmith.com.

See you at the market!