Category Archives: Farms

Put It on Your Calendar – Larriland

Posted on May 27, 2013 by AnnieRie

Larriland opens this Friday May 31st. For pick your own strawberries.

Looks like I will be picking strawberries and having lunch at the Lisbon Town Grill. Pulled pork sounds great. Grilled out by the gas station.

This is two weeks later than last year. A longer cooler spring time this year. But, we know summer is coming when the strawberries ripen.

Oh, and it will be warm Friday. Sounds like snowballs at Alex’s for dessert.

Now, I have to go find my container. I kept it all winter.

See you Friday?

hocofood@@@

2 Comments

Posted in Farms, Food, Howard County, Local Businesses, Locavore, Restaurants, Weather, West HoCo and tagged farms, Food, Howard County, local businesses, Locavore, weather, West HoCo. Bookmark the permalink.

Switching Gears

Posted on May 24, 2013 by AnnieRie

Or, at least switching CSAs. This is the return to my original CSA, the one that got me hooked on CSAs. Sandy Spring using Lancaster Farm Fresh, a cooperative of Amish farms near Lancaster. This is the third time, too, for multiple CSA deliveries in the same week. Changing seasons or sites or CSAs will do that. In other words, I am really drowning in veggies.

The reason I like this CSA is the experience. These are usually some very unique veggies, and always a huge amount. Two years ago, it freaked us out. We hadn’t changed our style of eating, cooking, freezing/canning and innovating. We gave lots of stuff away.

Now, I embrace the challenge. Particularly in the summer. In spring and fall I volunteer for lots of things. In winter, I recuperate and do house renovations and projects. In summer, I like figuring out what to do with cardoons or African horned melon. I still get my Breezy Willow fix at Glenwood. Those lovely eggs. Hit the farm store for mozzarella, yogurt, honey and other staples.

Some people may not handle this well. I think this year I am going to hang around the pick up site and see what goes into the swap box. How many adventurous people are out there in Columbia? This year they offered half shares for the first time. The half shares are more conventional than the full shares.

But, what did we get yesterday? TWELVE items. Glad they waited a week due to a slow spring. But, TWELVE?

Microgreens
Radishes
Red tatsoi
Gai-Lan Chinese broccoli
Collards
White scallions
Green Romaine
Butter lettuce
Asparagus
White Kohlrabi

Most boxes also had: Red scallions and spinach, but not me. You will notice in the picture all those lovely rhubarb stalks. Some of the boxes had rhubarb. I hung around and swapped for two. Why?

Rhubarb-B-Q Sauce is why.

One of my local food challenge cyber friends made this. I love it. You will never buy BBQ sauce again if you learn to make your own.

As for the kohlrabi. Some people swapped. Most kept it. Now, the half share people were swapping mustard greens left and right. Our site host might be drowning in mustard greens today.

I love kohlrabi. Here is how I usually make it. Grilled with apple. Sprinkled with garam masala.

Here’s to the start of another fabulous summer, full of fresh organic foods, from the CSA and the farmer’s markets.

hocofood@@@

This is

9 Comments

Posted in CSA, Farmer's Markets, Farms, Food and tagged cooking, CSA, farmer's markets, Food, foodie, Locavore. Bookmark the permalink.

And The Winner Is …

Posted on May 23, 2013 by AnnieRie

… Salad Mix. We got it eight times this spring. Followed by spinach and grapefruit. All three big ticket items if you bought them in a store or market and were looking for untreated or organic foods.

I always do a value added post. What I paid versus what I got. We paid $462 for twelve weeks of Breezy Willow early bird CSA. By a rough calculation we got over $500 worth of veggies, fruit, eggs and bread, if you use organic sources for veggies, and farmer’s market prices for bread and eggs. Citrus a little harder but this was prime Florida citrus, not inexpensive by any standard.

I used Wegmans online for most of the veggies. David’s, Roots, MOM’s and farmers markets could even be higher.

I have always maintained that if you want to eat fresh untreated healthy food, a CSA is the way to do it.

We got salad mix eight out of twelve weeks. Something everyone can relate to, and will probably eat. We got spinach seven weeks. These two simple yet yummy veggies were a mainstay in our house. Lunches and dinners. Stir fries and salad plates. It is easy to use these up.

What tastes better than fresh greens, eggs, mushrooms? So many days we indulged in lunches that we would have paid big bucks to enjoy in a restaurant.

If you ever considered a CSA, you should really do a little research and try one. We move around a lot and try many of them. Breezy Willow is definitely a winner. Check them out.

hocofood@@@

6 Comments

Posted in CSA, Farms, Food, Local Businesses, Locavore and tagged CSA, farms, Food, Howard County, local businesses, Locavore, value of CSA, wegman's. Bookmark the permalink.

The End of the Road

Posted on May 22, 2013 by AnnieRie

Week 12 Breezy Willow Early Bird CSA. I will miss my Wednesday trips to the farm. This CSA is such a great value, and you get so much for your money. For us maybe, sometimes too much, but still it is one awesome CSA.

Today:

The biggest celery cabbage I have seen (and I took the smallest one there)
One humongous green romaine lettuce
Two pounds zucchini
Two sweet onions
One eggplant
One bunch asparagus
One bunch chard
One pound spinach (I picked the smallest ones to make salad)

Plus, either eggs or yogurt. I love Breezy Willow eggs and since this was the last week, I chose eggs.

And, the bread. Honey Whole Wheat. There will be egg salad made. And, deviled eggs to take to a picnic. Pure heaven is homemade egg salad with a great loaf of bread.

There is ratatouille in my future. I have some tomatoes in the freezer. We got onions, eggplant and zucchini. Sounds like the perfect fit.

Of course, for us, summer means farmers markets. And Glenwood is where I will continue to get Breezy Willow eggs and Great Harvest bread. Along with my TLV meats and Stone House baked goods.

Who needs grocery stores? Not us, well, except for staples like vinegar, sugar, beans and those other things we can’t find at markets.

hocofood@@@

10 Comments

Posted in CSA, Farmer's Markets, Farms, Food, GGSAC, Local Businesses, Locavore and tagged crock pot cooking, CSA, farmer's markets, farms, Food, foodie, Howard County, local businesses, Locavore. Bookmark the permalink.

Abbondanza – Spring Veggies Abound

Posted on May 15, 2013 by AnnieRie

CSA Week Eleven from Breezy Willow, a visit to Miller Library market and strawberries from Gorman. Who needs grocery stores in spring and summer around here?

We got:
Tuscan kale
Three beets (one is hidden)
Romaine (weighs two pounds)
Three pounds sweet potatoes
Half pound shiitake mushrooms
One pound green beans
One pound Brussels sprouts
One pound bean sprouts ( not there, I swapped)

My swap got me three more of those lovely grapefruit. Bread the Great Harvest White. This has become our favorite toast for breakfast. Reminds my husband of English muffins when toasted.

And, last but not least, those lovely eggs. This was the last delivery of eggs for early bird CSA.

I also picked up peach yogurt, Great Harvest croutons for salads and some chicken legs.

Before hitting the CSA I stopped at Miller Library market to get a few things. Like curry to use with the chicken.

Fresh veggies from Love Dove to pair with the strawberries. French breakfast radishes and arugula. I know, I know, there are holes in the leaves. I like seeing holes in the leaves. It means no bug died from chomping on pesticide infested veggies. If you want fresh veggies that haven’t been treated, look for holes or bugs (like corn with little happy worms).

Organic practices. Many of our local farms follow organic practices and give you fresher than grocery store items that aren’t treated or sprayed. For less money most of the time, too.

Got my feta for the salad from Bowling Green. Was looking for short ribs from TLV but will have to wait until Glenwood on Saturday.

Between the farm stands, markets and CSAs in Howard County, you can eat quite well using grocery stores for just a few staples.

Today while out, I did a loop. I had errands in Columbia so I hit Wegmans for coffee, lemons and limes, paper goods, and shrimp. Stopped at Gorman to check out the farm and get some berries. Headed up 29 and hit Miller library before continuing out to Breezy Willow. I have all I need for the vast majority of our meals, using locally sourced items.

Salads. Meats. Stir Fry. Side dishes. Dairy (now that Misty Meadows is at the county markets). Cheese. All readily available and really fresh.

Now, what am I going to make with these lovely shiitakes?

hocofood@@@

5 Comments

Posted in CSA, Farmer's Markets, Farms, Food, GGSAC, Local Businesses, Locavore, Real Food and tagged CSA, farmer's markets, farms, Food, Howard County, Locavore, real food, wegman's. Bookmark the permalink.

Strawberries at Gorman Farm Today

Posted on May 15, 2013 by AnnieRie

I stopped by Gorman Farm today to say hi to Dave and check out the strawberries. I will have a long farm report in a few weeks once the farm stand opens but pick your own strawberries just began yesterday.

Check their facebook page to see what days they will have strawberries. Dave told me they might not be open some days to allow for more ripening for the weekend. There was a steady stream of visitors at 2 pm when I was there.

I didn’t pick today as I didn’t have the time to stay, and I would rather enlist my helper aka my better half to make picking go quicker. I did manage to pick up a pre-picked pint to use in a few salads since we got lots of greens in the CSA. Eight of them didn’t make it home though. This is what’s left when I got there.

So much better tasting than those institutional strawberries at the supermarket. As for other HoCo farms with berries, not ready yet. TLV Tree Farm told me maybe two weeks. Larriland also isn’t open. Their web site says something about late May. Cold weather will do that to you.

hocofood@@@

Early Bird CSA Week Ten …

Posted on May 8, 2013 by AnnieRie

… the drowning in greens week is here. In a good way, though.

Lots of greens in this week’s selection at Breezy Willow. We got:

half pound salad mix
one bunch rainbow chard
one pound spinach
radishes with greens attached
Zucchini (which I swapped for more radishes)
Asparagus
Spring onions
Three pounds red potatoes

Plus, I picked Great Harvest White Bread this week, and got my dozen eggs.

If that wasn’t enough, I stopped by Miller Library today for Thai foods and cheese, and was swayed into buying this peppery lovely arugula from Love Dove.

You can tell it isn’t sprayed or treated. Those little chomps by insects. I would rather have greens with holes than greens full of pesticides.

With all the greens that came today, I had to use up the kale from last week, as well as the chard from Burtonsville. So, I made a frittata.

A kitchen sink frittata. Throw everything in the cast iron skillet. First, onions, garlic and chard stems. Followed by kale and chard. Add eggs with parmesan, chicken stock, salt and pepper. Let it cook a few minutes then finish in the oven. Served with a mixed green salad and CSA supplied grapefruit.

It does look like we will be eating lots of stir fries and salads this week.

Lovely greens.

hocofood@@@

3 Comments

Posted in CSA, Farmer's Markets, Farms, Food, Howard County, Local Businesses, Locavore and tagged cooking, CSA, farmer's markets, Food, foodie, hoco loco, Howard County, local businesses, Locavore. Bookmark the permalink.

Burtonsville Farmer’s Market

Posted on May 5, 2013 by AnnieRie

Today we drove down to see what farmers are participating in the Burtonsville market. It is new this year, and started just two weeks ago. There were four farms today selling veggies, one selling meat and eggs, one selling sub sandwiches, one selling olive oil and Atwater’s selling bread. There were also local artisans selling candles, jewelry and other items. I was focused on the farms and didn’t check out the artisans.

Not tremendously crowded but there was a line for bread, and one for the fresh strawberries from one of the farms in Virginia. I had to get some.

The strawberries and asparagus were from Crazy Farm, in Warsaw VA. The chard and greens from Over the Mountain in Boonsboro, MD.

I also splurged on half of a Dark and Stormy Cake from Atwater’s. To serve for dessert tonight. An old neighbor is coming to enjoy the first of the lamb we got two weeks ago from England Acres.

Sausage from Orchard Breeze, too. We did talk to them about turkeys. They are considering doing parts as well as whole turkeys in the future.

If you live in the southern end of Howard County, this market is really quite close to you. Maybe five miles from Maple Lawn and Fulton. Using the back roads, it is 12 miles from us.

Remember, this week the Howard County Markets open. Look for lots of greens to be there. I can’t believe how beautiful the spring onions are, at the markets. I love throwing these on the grill and basting them with olive oil.

Here’s to six months of farm fresh goodness!

hocofood@@@

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Posted in Farmer's Markets, Farms, Food, Local Businesses, Locavore and tagged farmer's markets, farms, Food, local businesses, Locavore. Bookmark the permalink.

Just Us Chickens …

Posted on May 3, 2013 by AnnieRie

… and other random thoughts on a Friday evening.

It is the beginning of chicken season out at England Acres. The first 100 were processed this week and by now may all be gone. If you want to try some really tasty chicken, try free range birds from the local farms. England Acres offers them every four weeks all summer.

The chickens range in size from four to six pounds. If you want to use them frozen, directly into the crock pot like I do, you need to take out that plastic bag with the giblets and heart, and take out the neck. Those pieces I use to make chicken stock. If you are going to grill or roast the chicken, just pop them right into the freezer and worry about that bag later.

Besides England Acres, other local farms also do chickens. TLV will have them at the markets. Breezy Willow gets them. Clark’s also has chickens in season. Of course, also, Maple Lawn has frozen turkey all year round, and fresh ones for Thanksgiving and Christmas. You can certainly eat naturally raised, farm fresh goodness from all over this area.

If you get the chance to head out to England Acres, say hi to the five little kids in the yard. They are happy for visitors and practically climb over each other to see you.

Other ramblings this weekend. The Sheep and Wool Festival is Saturday and Sunday. I hope to get there but we have guests coming both days. I know Breezy Willow will be there. They will be in the main exhibition hall.

The weather should be lovely all weekend. Markets are opening everywhere. I saw that Love Dove will be in Silver Spring Saturday. I will probably check out Burtonsville Sunday morning to see who goes there. Not that I really need anything, but I would love to find some ramps or fiddlehead ferns. I have never cooked with either of them. Asparagus should be here, and soon strawberries.

hocofood@@@

To Market, To Market We Go

Posted on April 27, 2013 by AnnieRie

The markets are starting up all over the area. For those who love the farmer’s markets and the farm stands, the season is beginning. Howard County opens their markets on the 8th of May, at Miller Library. They should have their vendor lists up soon. Most of last year’s vendors will be back.

Besides these Howard County markets, if you live on the far edges of the county, there are new and existing markets just over those county lines. Like a new one in Burtonsville, just a few miles west of Rte. 29 on Rte. 198.

I haven’t checked this one out yet but I will be there soon. If you live in Fulton or Scaggsville in Howard County, this market is just across Rocky Gorge and a few miles up the road. Atwater’s will be there, and so will Orchard Breeze, where I get quite a bit of my pork products.

Of course, for those on the west edge of the county, there are markets in Mt. Airy and Olney, as well as our Glenwood Market. For those in Ellicott City or Elkridge, you also have Catonsville markets near you.

I can’t wait for the markets to open, because when they do, I almost completely subsist on market goods and products from local artisans. Avoiding those grocery stores all summer long.

Add to the markets the farm stands. I will be checking out the opening of the farm stands. Gorman, Baughers, soon should be getting early spring items.

As for my farm series, I still intend to review Gorman, Love Dove, Copper Penny, Bowling Green and Baughers. Maybe a few more. I am waiting to get their information once they open for the season.

Come on and join me. Take a pledge. Seven items bought weekly at any market(s). Essentially one item for each day of the week. Support your local farms and artisans by buying their products and incorporating them into your diet.

It’s easy. Items like honey, meats, eggs, greens, bread, jams, herbs, fruit.

We are lucky here. We have Great Harvest, Atwater’s, The Breadery, Bonaparte, Canela and Stone House, all making baked goods for us. We have many farms selling chicken, pork, lamb, beef, eggs and cheese.

If we all just buy a little every week from our farmers, we keep them solvent. Not everyone needs to join a CSA, but for the six months of markets, you can do much better than that tired old stuff in a grocery store.

hocofood@@@

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Posted in Farmer's Markets, Farms, Food, Howard County, Local Businesses, Real Food and tagged cooking, farmer's markets, Food, Howard County, local businesses, Locavore, real food. Bookmark the permalink.

AnnieRie Unplugged

Category Archives: Farms

Put It on Your Calendar – Larriland

Switching Gears

And The Winner Is …

The End of the Road

Abbondanza – Spring Veggies Abound

Strawberries at Gorman Farm Today

Early Bird CSA Week Ten …

Burtonsville Farmer’s Market

Just Us Chickens …

To Market, To Market We Go

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