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Recipes

Rhubarb-Strawberry Jam

Rhubarb is really hard to come by down here, but my local grocer had some grown in North Carolina on the shelf today, so my Yankee cravings for homemade strawberry-rhubarb jam (using strawberries from Athens Locally GRown, of course) was satisfied today. From http://www.rhubarbinfo.com.

1 qt Fresh strawberries
6 1/2 c Sugar
1 lb Rhubarb
1 Pouch liquid pectin
1/4 c Water

1. Remove caps from strawberries. Crush berries, one layer at a time. Trim (do not peel) rhubarb. Thinly slice or chop stalks. Add water. Cover and simmer 2 minutes or until soft. Add to the prepared strawberries.
2. Measure 3 1/2 cup of prepared fruit. If it measures slightly less, add water. Place measured fruit in a 6 or 8- quart saucepan.
3. Measure sugar exactly and set aside. Open liquid pectin and set the pouch upright in a cup.
4. Stir sugar into prepared fruit. The saucepan must be no more than one-third full to allow for a full rolling boil.
5. Bring to a full rolling boil over high heat. Boil hard 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.
6. Stir in pectin at once. Quickly skim off foam with a large metal spoon. Immediately ladle into hot jars, leaving 1/4- inch space at top. With a damp cloth, wipe jar rims and threads clean.
7. Immediately cover jars with hot canning lids. Screw bands on firmly.
8. Place jars in a boiling water bath, carefully setting jars on rack in canner of boiling water. Cover canner and return water to a boil; boil 5 minutes.
9. Remove jars from canner and let cool. Check seals and store in a cool, dry place.

Market News

As you probably noticed when you picked up your order last Thursday, we’re revamping our process organizing the produce and fulfilling orders. I emptied the bank account and got many, many shelving units that set up quickly and dear down and stack neatly. When arranged in aisles, the four levels give us about double the capacity we had with the stacked cot system we had been using. We can write right on the edge of the shelves with wet erase markers, so that should make it easier to more quickly find what we’re looking for when we’re gathering your ordered items. We did a limited experiment with the system two weeks ago, and dove right in last week. We right away found a few improvements (my apologies to those who arrived right at 4:30 and had to wait a bit longer than usual), and this coming week things out to run smoothly. We already packed a heck of a lot of food into that little room, and now we can fit in about twice as much.

There will be some more changes to come in the next few weeks. The first parts of the awning arrived this week, and the rest should get here in a few days. We’ll be putting it up on Saturday (assuming everything does indeed arrive). It should be a pretty easy task, but more hands is always nice. If you’d like to help, let me know and I’ll be contacting you with the details. Once that is up, we plan on having everything for you outside under the awning when the weather’s nice. It’s 18 feet by 40 feet, so there will be plenty of room, and you should be more comfortable than cramming into the little space we currently have. The tables to pick up your order and the pay station will all be moved outside.

We’ll also be opening up a second pay station, and that will clear that bottleneck. When there are eight of us filling orders, the payment line can get a bit backed up. I’ve gotten my hands on two iPads, and have been building a system so that the two people taking payments can use them to look up your order, mark it as paid, and even adjust your order right in the system for things that didn’t arrive. We’ll also be able to then start accepting payment via credit or debit cards, something many of you have been asking for. Many great improvements, I think, are coming very soon!

We had our first “Farmer for a Day” event on Saturday, hosted by Darby Farm. We helped them clear scrub and brush from overgrown pasture that will soon be forage area for turkeys and chickens. After a nice lunch, we then got to hear and see Daniel Dover’s approach to providing clean, humane poultry to us with very little operating capital and overhead. A conventional poultry person will tell you you need a quarter million dollar loan just to build a single chicken house, and then you’re beholden to a poultry company like Pilgrim’s Pride to provide you with feed, birds, and everything else on their terms. Darby Farms started with none of that, and disproves the notion that it’s just too expensive to get into farming. Our next Farmer for a Day event is Sunday June 13th at Sundance Farm. Spots are still open, so make your reservations soon!

We’ll be having some other neat demonstrations at the Locally GRown pickup point this Thursday. Evan McGown, founder and director of the Institute for Wild Intelligence here in Athens will be on hand to demonstrate some primitive skills, such as fire by friction, that children especially will enjoy. Evan also runs several nature-based summer camps, and will have information on hand about those. You can learn more about Evan and Wild Intelligence at his website: http://www.wildintelligence.org/.

Thanks so much for your support of Athens Locally Grown and everything we’ve tried to accomplish. With you’re help, we’ve been able to build something truly great and inspirational to people all across the country, more than you could know. Thank you also for your support of all of our growers, local food, and our rights to eat it. You all are part of what makes Athens such a great area in which to live. We’ll see you on Thursday at Ben’s Bikes at the corner of Pope and Broad Streets from 4:30 to 8pm!

Coming Events

Farmer for a Day: JUNE 13, Sunday, at Sundance Farm (Madison County)

Certified Naturally Grown. We are a family farm growing a diverse variety of vegetables, herbs, flowers, fruits and berries. We also raise chickens, heritage turkeys and goats. Our three children are the heart of our farm. They enjoy the healthy food they help harvest and realize what it takes to get from a seed to the table. We are Certified Naturally Grown and have sold produce in the Athens area since 1998. Currently we sell at Athens Locally Grown, Athens Farmers Market, local restaurants and from the farm. We are also planning a C.S.A. in the near future. We appreciate all the Locally Grown customers that have supported us through the years, allowing us to do what we love, Growing good food. This farm is approximately 13 miles from Athens, and it’ll take 20 minutes to get there. Space is limited, so please make reservations by adding them to your order. You’ll find it under the “Events Reservations” category on the website.

The Athens Farmers Market is held every Saturday morning at Bishop Park from 8am to noon and every Tuesday evening at Little Kings downtown. It’s a totally separate entity from Athens Locally Grown, but you’ll find many of the same growers at both. And of course, you can learn more about that market on their website.

Please support your local farmers and food producers, where ever you’re able to do so!