Green Eats

This afternoon I attended the annual meeting of the Farmers of Orange, which run the South Estes Farmers’ Market where I shop almost weekly. I was there along with another member of the Friends of SEFM to let the vendors know what our group was doing and how we envision our role in helping the market grow and prosper.

The board has a seat reserved for a community member, and I am proud to say that I was elected to that seat today. I chose to serve a one year term as opposed to a traditional two-year term as the Friends group and the community seat on the Board are new – I’d like to take this year to see what role I can play with the Board and how I can help the market.  I am so excited to have this opportunity to make a difference for an organization about which I am fiercely passionate.

On a final note, I want to be clear that I will not use this blog to promote South Estes Farmers Market above other markets, or to denigrate other markets or organizations to SEFM’s advantage. I will make every effort to be completely transparent about my position and avoid anything that might be construed as a conflict of interest. I am hoping that my involvement with SEFM will only serve to make me a better proponent of local and sustainable agriculture across the board.

One of my favorite food blogs, Working Class Foodies, teamed up with one of my OTHER favorite food bloggers, Adam from Amateur Gourmet, to tackle dumplings. Recent readers of Green Eats are justified in thinking that I have a somewhat unhealthy obsession with biscuits, but before biscuits there were dumplings. It all started when I moved to New York City in 2007 and found Dumpling Man. Now if I see dumplings on any menu, anywhere, I have to order them. Veggie dumplings, chicken dumplings, pork dumplings, spicy dumplings, sweet dumplings; no dumpling is too crazy for me to try. That is one reason why I love this video – not only do you get a free tour of some of the best places to find dumplings in NYC, but you also get a free cooking lesson! Take a moment to watch the video, then wipe the drool off your face and get cracking on making your own delicious (and local) dumplings!

(If you live in the Triangle, making local dumplings is easy! Check out one of our many farmers markets for ingredients like pork, flour, scallions, and more!)

Located in central North Carolina (20 miles south of Burlington), Castlemaine Farm is the pride and joy of husband-wife team Brian and Joann Gallagher. They have a two acre market garden but are perhaps best known for their pasture-raised chicken operation. I visited Castlemaine today as part of my Sustainable Livestock Production class at Central Carolina Community College’s Sustainable Agriculture Program, and it was great to finally see a pastured poultry operation up close!

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For those of you who use Twitter – good news! The South Estes Farmers Market in Chapel Hill, the Carrboro Farmers Market in Carrboro, and the Eno River Farmers Market in Hillsborough have Twitter accounts! Add them to get updates on market offerings and events:

@sefarmersmarket – South Estes Farmers Market

@enoriverfm – Eno River Farmers Market

@carrboromarket – Carrboro Farmers Market

Got some free time this upcoming Sunday, February 28th? Want to help out some local farmers, have some fun, and get a free meal? Grab your shovel, work gloves, and rubber boots and head out to Edible Earthscapes in Moncure with the Crop Mob! You’ll be helping them create the terraces for their rice paddy and doing some structural work on existing buildings.

Who: ANYONE!

What: Building rice paddy terraces, intern housing rehabilitation

Where: 4803 Moncure-Pittsboro Rd., Moncure, NC 27559 (look for the yellow sign)

Why: why not

When: 12 pm – 5 pm Sunday, February 28th (dinner to follow)

For more information check out the Facebook invite, or get in touch with the Crop Mob folks or get in touch with Jason & Haruka of Edible Earthscapes.

Today, once again, I learned the value of arriving early to the farmers’ market. Instead of waking up at 7, going to the thrift shop and my local food co-op, and being at the market when it opened at 10, I decided to sleep in and didn’t make it out of the house until 11. By the time I got down there both Fickle Creek and Ever Laughter were out of eggs, there was no spinach in sight, and worst of all, The Farm Fairy had sold out of bialys!!!

Luckily I was able to console myself with some carrots from Roberson Creek Farm, chicken livers from Fickle Creek, bratwurst from Ever Laughter (its delicious!!!), and finally some eggs and breakfast sausages from Coon Rock. As treat (or more to console myself) I bought two small bundts (lemon & chocolate) from the South Estes Farmers’ Market’s newest vendor, Big Bundts.

So remember – get to your local market early!

(excerpted from Sustainable Grub)

Before moving to Moncure about two years ago, Jason and Haruka Oatis lived and farmed in Japan, where they also ate rice daily.   After moving to North Carolina, they established their Edible Earthscapes CSA farm, a dream come true. It seemed to have just about everything — fertile soil, a hoop house, a cistern and deer fence, plentiful herbs, sunflowers, vegetables and greens, good neighbors, and a growing market of consumers hungry for sustainably grown food.

But there was one thing missing: a rice paddy.  Come on, in the Piedmont?

Right.

Continue reading about Edible Earthscapes and their North Carolina rice paddy

In my previous post I mentioned how I was planning on leveraging some of the good relationships I’ve built with farmers at my local farmers’ market to buy produce in bulk this year. In fact I’ve already had commitments to provide produce ranging from onions to tomatoes. ConsciouslyFrugal asked for tips on how to cultivate better relationships with your local farmers, so I thought I would provide some insight into how I managed to become friends with the people who grow my food.

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I recently returned from a quick trip to visit my parents in Connecticut (where I grew up) and my mother surprised me with this book for my birthday. The Beginner’s Guide to Preserving Food at Home, by Janet Chadwick, is just what it says – a great resource for those just starting out on the path of preserving their food. I’m no stranger to food preservation; I have a few jams under my belt and I’ve done my fair share of freezing, but with spring right around the corner I plan on getting serious about putting up as much food as possible in an effort to cut my winter grocery budget in half.

(more after the jump)

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