Peanuts

What if we never “had” to eat food anymore, and just had to swallow a pill in order to get all of our nutrients? I once had a four-hour conversation with a stranger on a plane about this. He worked for a pharmaceutical company, and I, well….didn’t (and still don’t). “What about the emotional value of food? The comfort? The joy? The delight in it?” He smiled, as if my comment was “cute” and “naïve.”

He was also in his late thirties, charmingly Irish, and fun to converse with – but totally detached and unhappy with life. “Um. Hellooo, because you can’t even appreciate the sentimental value of something so precious as food,” I thought. We argued, sitting side-by-side, all the way to Chicago. We just agreed to disagree, smiled and moved on to our next connection.

A Taste of Fall

As we fly through October, the weather gets colder and grey days seem to outnumber our sunny ones! Though many get the blues when the sun hides its face, cold and rain are things I’ve learned to look forward to. Where I’m from, it rarely gets cool enough to enjoy a good bowl of hot soup (which is a real shame because my mom is the queen of soup!).

To help those of you avoid those cold, rainy day blues, I have an incredible recipe for wonderful butternut squash soup to which my friend introduced me the other day. Not only is it simple enough to make in a college dormitory kitchen, the recipe (which I’ve posted below) makes a generous portion! When we made our batch, the butternut squash, garlic, and onions were all from Market Shares, making this soup even more delicious. The natural sweetness of the squash blends perfectly with the garlic and onions; if it’s too sweet for you or if you just want to add another flavor to the mix, sprinkle some gorgonzola cheese on top.

For those of you in college dorms, this soup really is ideal. While the squash, onions, and garlic bake in the oven, you can study, clean your room, or even attend a choir rehearsal (as I did!). All of the utensils required are standard, except perhaps the blender… Ask around. I’m sure someone has one you could use (and maybe you could promise a cup of yummy soup in return).

This soup is simple, flavorful, and makes for a perfect pick-me-up on those cold, wet days. Enjoy!

Katie Hay

BMSP Volunteer Fall 2014

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Back home, my family had a garden. Nothing fancy, just a couple rows of squash, zucchini, cucumbers, tomatoes, and some potted green peppers and cherry tomatoes. I can’t begin to tell you how happy I was to finally have a garden of my own. Our neighbors had one a couple years ago, and we often helped them maintain and harvest, but never had we had a real garden that was ours. This past year, we finally dug deep and built ourselves a slice of paradise.

We built our garden out in the old chicken coop so that our neighbors’ horses and goats and the local deer population would stay out of it. As I said, it was a small garden and the enclosure was literally falling apart; many times, we had to prop up some of the beams using old two-by-fours. But it was the perfect garden for me.

Building a Community from the Ground Up

This summer, the coordinating team had the opportunity to help friend and fellow Brown student Tom Sullivan '15 with his photo essay on BMSP for the Swearer Sparks blog. We were thrilled when Tom contacted us in June saying he was interested in covering the program. Tom came to a few Market Days over the summer, showing up early to talk to farmers and snap pics while they unloaded, and later in the day to talk to shareholders (and pick up his own share!).

Farmer Chuck Currie of Freedom Food Farm delivering beets at Market Day.

Photo by Tom Sullivan.

When life gives you beets... make a cake!

This cake, adapted from Farmer John’s Cookbook: The Real Dirt on Vegetables, is chocolate heaven. When my uncle (a self-proclaimed beet-hater) tasted it, he kept asking my mother how she got it to be so moist and delicious. She tried to dodge the question, but he kept at it until she admitted the secret ingredient: beets! He was certainly surprised, but that didn’t stop him from going back for seconds. I always ask for it on my birthday because it’s just that good.

Cary Chapman

BMSP Volunteer Fall 2014

Community Post

Clara's Kitchen

Check out these two amazing recipes that shareholder Annalisse Daly made with her daughter Clara (the toddler many of you have admired at Market Day the past few seasons). Annalisse also shared two of her own great cooking tricks!

We hope you'll all be inspired by the beauty, deliciousness, adorableness, and handy tips that follow, and continue to send us your favorite recipes and photos of the dishes you make with your share at info@brownmarketshares.com.

Thank you so much Annalisse! Read what she has to say about each of the recipes below.

Herbed Summer Squash and Potato Torte

"I really truly did try to get a picture of just the food, but my chef-in-training decided she couldn't wait to taste test the results. All the other pictures have a suspicious-looking dimpled hand slyly pulling the pie plate off the table.

This recipe uses the last of the market share potatoes and green onions from a couple weeks ago and the yellow summer squash from last week."

Community Post

Pat's Kitchen

We received an awesome idea from shareholder Patricia Falcon for a quick, easy Carrot Mushroom Soup with Rice recipe she invented. You can make it in an office kitchen, and it uses the mixed carrots we've been receiving from Four Town Farm the past few weeks. Thank you so much for sending this to us, Patricia - it looks great! We hope that you and anyone else reading this will continue to share your BMSP-inspired culinary adventures with us.

Here is the description Pat sent us, along with a photo of her creation!

Community Post

Pavitra's Kitchen

We received some FABULOUS photos from shareholder Pavitra Govindan of dishes she made using items from the share this past semester that we want to share with all of you as inspiration for your own culinary adventures. Summer is approaching, and with it lazy summer afternoons - the perfect time to take on adventurous cooking projects! We hope that our summer shareholders will be up to the challenge, and hope that we'll continue receiving photos like these from all of you.

In addition to using some recipes from this blog, Pavitra made a delicious-looking Kohlrabi Salad with Roasted Potatoes with a recipe of her own invention, and adapted this recipe for Roasted Potatoes, Shallots and Kale with Caramelized Garlic Dressing to use onions and a garlic lime dressing instead! Mmmmmm.

Kohlrabi Salad with Roasted Potatoes

Roasted Potatoes, Onions, and Kale with Garlic-Lime Dressing

Community Post

This is a memory exercise piece by Molly Hawes, a student of one of our shareholders:

I am young—around six or seven years old—and squishing my bare feet into soil. The sun is setting, the air is cooling, and the mosquitoes are starting to bite at my ankles. My dad pushes a wheelbarrow up the hill and my brother and I follow in his footsteps, paying no mind to the mud that splashes up our shins. Mom doesn’t like us running through the backyard barefoot because there are wasps and garden snakes hidden in the tall grass, but Dad doesn’t care. Dad probably doesn’t even realize that we should be wearing shoes. Dad doesn’t know about a lot of Mom’s rules. My brother and I arrive at the small garden at the top of the hill and pounce on the raspberry bushes. Dad yells. We’re not supposed to eat the berries right off the plants—Mom needs to wash them first. This is an annoying inconvenience; I want raspberries. I put most of them in the paper carton but pop some into my mouth when Dad’s back is turned. He tends to the other plants, the ones deep in the soil—maybe they’re carrots or radishes or potatoes, I don’t know. I’m busy eating. On the way back down the hill to our little house, I pick some mint leaves from the ground for Mom to make tea with. I search for some long-stemmed dandelions so I can make a bouquet and preserve it in a Welch’s jelly glass. I cartwheel in the mud and show up at the front door with raspberry-stained lips and with dirt on my hands, feet, shins, and shoulders. I smell like the earth, I’m covered in mosquito bites, and I have indents on my knees and the heels of my hands from kneeling on clumps of dead grass. Mom doesn’t care as long as I wipe my feet off at the door.

Pasture to Plate: Meal at Matunuck

Taste the local flavors of the Ocean State at Matunuck Farm, where you can feast your eyes and appetite during a sunset, multi-course farm dinner overlooking Matunuck farm. The meal will feature a raw oyster bar fresh from Matunuck Pond and drinks followed by an elegant meal crafter with Matunuck’s freshly harvested aquaculture and produce. Explore Matunuck Farm and Pond through land and boat tours which will precede and follow the meal.

Sunday, July 21st. Dinner from 6-7:30, Farm Tour from 5-6 or 7:30-8:30. Reservations required. $35 dinner and tour, $5 drinks. RSVP to Pasturetoplatekitchen@gmail.com.

Find out more at www.pasturetoplatekitchen.com

VOLUNTEER WITH MARKET SHARES

The spring season begins next Thursday, February 7th, and continues every Thursday (except over Spring Break) until April 18th. We ask that volunteers work the same 1-hour shift each week, unloading, sorting, and counting produce deliveries, running bread, dairy, and meat check-in, assisting shareholders, cleaning up, etc. depending on the time of your shift.

In return, you get one FREE DELICIOUS PRODUCE ITEM!!! And the chance to be a part of a vibrant community that affects tangible change on this campus and beyond. Plus, who doesn't just feel damn good around fresh veggies.

Sign Up for a Spring Share!

The spring share will run for 10 weeks, from February 7th to April 18th (and will skip Spring Break - March 28th). Distribution will take place from 12pm to 6pm every Thursday at the Brown/RISD Hillel (80 Brown Street). All participants must purchase at least one produce share. The spring share is hearty and nourishing; you will receive lots of delicious root vegetables, winter greens, and more. You will also receive a few specialty items - which may include granola, tomato sauce, or honey - prepared by our farmers.