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Vol 2 Issue 08
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Other Markets
Cascades
The Cascades Farmers Market will Reopen in May 2012!
The Cascades Farmers Market is located in the parking lot of the Senior Center on Whitfield Dr--near the library and behind Staples. We will be open every Sunday from 9am-1pm through November 20.
Ashburn
Closed for the Season--See You in May!
Located in the Ashburn Crossroads Restaurant Park at the intersection of Ashburn Village Blvd and Farmwell Dr--behind IHOP and Fuddruckers! The Ashburn Farmers Market will be open Saturday mornings from 8am until noon through October 29, 2011.
Brambleton
Closed for the Season--See You in May!
The Brambleton Farmers Market will be open on Sundays from 9am until 1pm through October 30, 2011 in the Sport & Health parking lot--42365 Soave Drive Brambleton, VA 20148, near Olympia.
Leesburg
The Leesburg Winter Market Opens Saturday, November 5--9am-noon!
The Leesburg Farmers Market runs every Saturday through October 29, 8am until Noon Rain or Shine! The Winter Leesburg Farmers Market will start November 5, 9am-noon.
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We are a "PRODUCER ONLY" market - this means the people who you purchase your items from are the people who produce, plant, grow and harvest, these items. We are very firm in enforcing this rule to assure you that you are getting locally and quality grown products by the producer selling you the products.
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Lost and Found items for each market can be dropped off or picked up with the market manager - just look for the orange "Market Manager" sign.
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The Leesburg Wednesday Farmers Market is Closed for the Season.
This is the last week to find fresh, local produce at the Leesburg Wednesday Farmers Market 3pm-6pm!
Shop all year round at the Leesburg Saturday Farmers Market. Winter hours start November 5, 9am-Noon.
The Leesburg Winter Farmers Market will host a special Holiday Craft Section in November and December. Follow this link for an application:
http://www.loudounfarmersmarkets.org/NewFiles/2011CraftAp.pdf
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This week's recipe
Cajun Pot Pie
1 Cup Rice, cooked
1/2 lb Kielbasa (or Italian Sausage), cooked & sliced
2 Tablespoons Butter
2 Tablespoons All-Purpose Flour
2 Cups Milk
3 Tablespoons Cajun Seasoning (or to taste)
1 Cup cooked, shredded Chicken
1/2 Teaspoon Liquid Smoke Flavoring
1/2 Cup finely chopped Onion
1/2 Cup chopped Green Pepper
1 Tablespoon minced Garlic
1/2 lb uncooked Shrimp - peeled, deveined, and tails removed
2 Sheets frozen Puff Pastry, thawed
1 beaten Egg
Instructions:
Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat, and whisk in flour and cook until frothy-looking, about 1 minute. Whisk in the milk; turn the heat down to medium-low, and simmer the sauce, whisking often. Add Cajun seasoning. When sauce has thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon, remove from heat.
In a bowl, toss the chicken meat with liquid smoke flavoring. Mix in the cooked rice, cooked sausage, onion, green pepper, garlic, and shrimp until thoroughly combined. Pour in about 3/4 of your white sauce to moisten the filling.
To assemble, trim the sheets of puff pastry to 10x10 inches; lay a sheet in a greased 9-in pie plate--square corners will stick out. Fill the bottom crust with the rice mixture, and pour in the remaining 1/4 of the white sauce. Top with the remaining sheet of puff pastry; pinch the edges to seal. Brush the top of the pie with beaten egg.
Bake in the preheated 400 degree oven until the crust is flaky in the center and golden brown, about 25 to 30 minutes. |
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Info from the LVHMC Farms!
Each week we give you a look at what is happening at the LVHMC member's farms and businesses.
We may not have had much snow this Winter, but Caprikorn Farm in Gapland, MD is in the middle of their annual "Baby Blizzard". This is owner Alice Orzechowski's name for the late Winter arrival of their baby Saanen Goats--because the babies are soft and fluffy and white, they arrive like a snowstorm! So far, 47 babies have been born from the first breeding period; 22 more are expected (from the second breeding of the ones who were missed the first time). Once the blizzard is over, Caprikorn Farm plans on returning to the Leesburg Market with their delicious goat cheese--keep posted for updates!
Astrid Pleitez of Pleitez Produce in Montross, VA is about to plant their tomatoes in the ground in their greenhouses. These seeds were started on December 20 and are varieties that should be producing crops starting 60-70 days from sowing (Big Beef, Primo Red and Mountain Fresh Plus). Also ready to plant are cherry tomatoes: Chocolate Cherry, Sweetheart, Sweet Treat and Golden Sunshine. The greenhouses (30ft x 72ft) for these tomatoes were part of a grant Astrid & Alex received in addition to their larger greenhouses (2 20ft x 145ft) that hold 6 rows of tomato plants. There is also a 16ft x 140ft greenhouse filled with Dominator Cucumbers and Zapata Pickling Cucumbers. Astrid also tells us that they will plant peas outside in mini hoop houses next week--looks good for fresh produce in the Market at the end of April or early May! Check out their Facebook page for pictures and updates: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Pleitez-Produce/265402633530687
Check back next week for more "Info from the LVHMC Farms"!
Farm Market Foodie
Mardi Gras Means Fat Tuesday
If you need an excuse to enjoy Cajun or Creole cooking, Mardi Gras is Tuesday, February 21.
Cajun cuisine is a robust mix of French and Southern food. The recipes use simple ingredients and often include a dark roux thickener of flour and pork fat. Cajun dishes include dirty rice, catfish, gumbo and jambalaya. Most recipes rely on sautéing the "holy trinity"--onions, celery, and green bell peppers and adding a lot of spices.
Creole Cuisine is a mixture of spices and ideas originating from
Caribbean, African, French, and Spanish immigrants. Creole recipes frequently include butter, cream, and tomatoes as well as the "holy trinity". Famous Creole recipes include oysters Rockefeller, bananas Foster and shrimp rémoulade.
Instead of buying packaged Cajun or Creole spice blends, it is easy to make your own. Just mix the following ingredients together and store in an airtight container for whenever the craving hits! 2 tablespoons each onion powder, garlic powder, black pepper, dried oregano and dried basil; 1 tablespoon each dried thyme and cayenne pepper; 5 tablespoons paprika and 3 tablespoons salt.
Use this spice mix when making this week's recipe for Cajun Pot Pie!
---Judy Stroske, LVHMC Market Coordinator
Earth Day Every Day!
How Green Are Our Presidents?
With President's Day on the horizon, just who could be considered the "greenest" US Presidents?
Perhaps the greenest in recent years, President Jimmy Carter ranks third as a "green" President. Carter (in office 1977-1981) created the Department of Energy in 1977, with a key goal being the establishment of a national energy policy that promoted clean and alternative fuels. Carter famously installed solar panels on the White House roof and set the mansion's thermostats at 68 degrees to save energy.
Carter's 1977 speech calling on the country to drastically ramp up energy efficiency and conservation is truly inspiring and ahead of its time. Carter implemented "corporate average fuel economy" (CAFE) standards that mandated fuel-efficient cars. He also oversaw passage of other important laws, including the Soil and Water Conservation Act, the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act, the Antarctic Conservation Act, the Endangered American Wilderness Act and the Superfund Act. Tighter amendments were passed on the Clean Air Act, and the Alaskan National Interest Lands Conservation Act conserved more than 100 million acres and 26 rivers in America's Last Frontier.
Since leaving office, Carter has won world renown for his humanitarian work, particularly through Habitat for Humanity, which has recently been going green and promoting green building.
Ranking second, brilliant Renaissance man Thomas Jefferson (in office 1801-1809) was an avid botanist, scientist, architect, inventor, planner and philosopher. Jefferson believed in respecting and working with nature, and envisioned a society of small farmers living in harmony with the environment.
Jefferson sent Lewis and Clark on a groundbreaking voyage of exploration and research across America, after having secured the Louisiana Purchase. So little was known about the continent by whites that the explorers were asked to look for evidence of still-living wooly mammoths. Lewis and Clark then became the first to document many of America's indigenous species, as well as peoples.
Thomas Jefferson also founded a pioneering institution of higher learning, the University of Virginia, and advocated for good public education, including science. He also thought corporate power should be kept in check.
But the honor of being the number 1 "green" President goes to Teddy Roosevelt. Theodore Roosevelt (in office 1901-1909) consistently lobbied Congress for wilderness protection, used the Forest Reserve Act of 1891 to set aside 150 million acres of timberland as public domains, and oversaw creation of the U.S. Forest Service. Roosevelt also created 50 wildlife refuges and five national parks.
TR is also remembered as popularizing the ideas of good resource stewardship and respect for nature. Not that everything was idyllic in those years of heavy logging, mining, urbanization and rapid human expansion, but Roosevelt helped sow the seeds of environmental consciousness.
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Products in season for the month of February
Arugula 
Beef
Breads
Celery Root
Cheese
Chicken
Cider *
Eggs
Flowers
Goat
Jams & Jellies
Kale
Lamb
Lettuce
Pastries
Pies
Plants
Pork
Salsa
Soaps
Soups
Spinach
Turkey
Wine
Winter Squash *
Wool & Products
Yogurt
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News from the Market Vendors
Buchanan Farms ~ Local Lamb, Beef & Pork raised in Loudoun County! Try our Beef Sausage--great on the grill and delicious in spaghetti sauce!! Our customers are raving about our ground beef! Pick up some and see for yourself. Questions? We'll be happy to answer any you have! Tel: 540-882-4633 E-mail:
F & V Farm ~ Shiitake mushrooms--Log raised here in Lovettsville. Ask for our delicious recipes. Tel: E-mail: fandvfarm@yahoo.com
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