_____________________ TM THE GUIDE TO OUR REGION’S FOOD, FARMS & COMMUNITY TM & COMMUNITY I t ’ s Loca l ! Issue 10 • Fall 2012 FREE INSIDE: Our Historic Farms • Sheep Clear the Way in Jaffrey Farming Lessons at The Well School Growing a Weed-Free Garden • The Art of Cheesemaking • PYO Apples & Pumpkins Fall Recipes & Gardening Tips • Farmers’ Markets
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T H E G U I D E T O O U R R E G I O N ’ S F O O D , F A R M S & C O M M U N I T YTM
& C O M M U N I T Y
It’s Local!Issue 10 • Fall 2012 Free
INSIDE: Our Historic Farms • Sheep Clear the Way in JaffreyFarming Lessons at The Well School
Growing a Weed-Free Garden • The Art of Cheesemaking • PYO Apples & PumpkinsFall Recipes & Gardening Tips • Farmers’ Markets
Monadnock TableIt’s Local! • www.monadnocktable.com • Fall 20122
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Monadnock TableIt’s Local! • www.monadnocktable.com • Fall 2012 5
FeaturesBorder Brook Farm: Clearing the Way in Jaffrey 14Growing History: How two historical Monadnock area farms have survived the centuries 17The Well School: Buckets Full of Farming Lessons 20
Columns:Publishers’ Note: Our Farming Past 6readers write 6table talk: News from Around the Region 8Future Farmer: The Hall Girls 12made here: The Art of Cheesemaking 13dig iN!: Your Gardening Questions Answered 22local bookshelF: The Seed Underground 31the back Page backyard: Weed-Free Abundance 34
In-season ReCIpes:Shepherd’s Pie 24Sautéed Brussels Sprouts 24Cranberry Chocolate Chip Cookies 24
CalendaR oF events 30
dIReCtoRIes:Pyo aPPles & PumPkiNs 10Farm directory 26Farmers’ markets 28
____________________Contents
Photos (clockwise from top): barn roofs by kaisa Jarrell, www.kaisajarrell.com; the tenney family by kimberly Peck; cranberry chocolate chip cookie by katrina lewis; the hall sisters by Jodi genest; border brook Farm sheep by eric stanway; kathrine Piper, courtesy the artist; brussels sprouts, istockphoto.com. Photo of cover painting by al karevy, www.karevy.com.
On THe COver: Woven Pumpkin, by Kathrine Piper Acrylic on woven canvas, 16” x 20”Before moving to New Hampshire, Kathrine Piper worked in New York City as a costume designer for 16 years for such diverse entertainment organizations as Comedy Central and the Metropolitan Opera. Piper, who now works full-time as an artist, says she opts for vibrant colors reminiscent of the blinking lights of Times Square. She lives in Keene with her husband and daughter. Visit Kathrine’s website at: www.kathrinepiper.com.
Monadnock TableIt’s Local! • www.monadnocktable.com • Fall 20126
our Farming past here isn’t one of us alive today who remembers when the monadnock region was blanketed with a green quilt of farms — the ancient forestscape almost entirely cleared to feed its growing population.
but our historical societies, replete with aging sepia photographs, prove to us that agriculture used to rule in the monadnock region: cows idly grazing in front of then-new colonial houses, rows of vegetables in the most unlikely places (such as in front of a mill), even sheep grazing smack in the middle central square in keene. many of these agriculture remnants are long gone, the land lost to development or simply returned to its original forestland (and the sheep forever herded out of downtown keene).
but some of the original farms have — through luck or sheer determination — remained. some have even stayed in the same families for generations. writer becky karush has found two such farms (and no doubt there are more) for this issue’s feature story, “growing history.” in it we learn that while farms may change hands, their original intent — to help feed a local population — remains.
we are grateful for these old farms. we’re also grateful for new farms that have sprung up over the generations — and continue to emerge. we are pleasantly surprised by the number of new farms we add to our Farm directory each issue (and amazed by the fact that we have deleted very few in the two years we have been publishing this magazine). yes, the monadnock region has a strong farming past. but, we also know that it has a healthy farming future. — Marcia Passos Duffy
PublisheRs marcia Passos duffy
Jodi genest
ediTORiAl editor: marcia Passos duffy
coPy editor: donna moxley ProoFreader: carol urofsky
michael moore, kimberly PeckadVertisiNg ProductioN:
margo hrubec, ron wasko
AdveRTisiNG sAles Jeanne morin (603) 345-5737
disTRibuTiON COORdiNATOR Jeffry N. littleton
“Monadnock Table” is printed on Forest Stewardship Council™ (FSC®) Certified
Mixed Credit paper manufactured with renewable energy (92% from biomass). For more information, visit FSC’s
website at fscus.org. Printed by Tiger Press, an FSC-Certified printer in East Longmeadow, Mass., tigerpress.com.
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Publishers’ Note
Dear Monadnock Table, I just had a moment to delve into the newest Monadnock Table and was simply struck (again) with how superior, excellent, beautiful, useful, interesting and worthwhile your publication is. Thank you for bringing it into our world. Carol Renzelman, Alstead
Dear Monadnock Table, It’s always a pleasure to pick up Monadnock Table. I really enjoy the articles, the photographs, the illustrations, and learning of all the farm happenings around the region. The design is quite beautiful too. It’s great to see such a professional and attractive publication being produced right here in Keene. Kudos to you and your staff for making it all happen!
Robert KostickArt Department ChairKeene State College
Readers Write
monadnock table welcomes letters to our “readers write” column. Please send your comments to [email protected] or to monadnock table, P.o. box 1504, keene, Nh 03431. Please include your full name and town in your correspondence. letters may be edited for length and clarity.
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Marcia Passos Duffy Jodi Genest
coNtact us: monadnock table, llc, Po box 1504, keene, Nh 03431, [email protected], www.monadnocktable.com,(603) 357-8761,(603) 358-6954Follow us on Facebook & twitter.monadnock table advisory board: Jacqueline caserta, The Inn at Valley Farms; amanda costello, Cheshire County Conservation District; russ Fiorey, Crescendo Acres Farm; kate o’connor, Keene State College; Jen risley, Hannah Grimes Center.monadnock table is published quarterly by monadnock table, llc and distributed throughout the monadnock region of southwestern New hampshire. monadnock table, llc supports our local farmers and food producers and aims to connect them with monadnock region consumers. our goal is to inform the monadnock community about the art and science of growing, preparing, cooking and storing local foods, to highlight local farms and food events, and to promote local foods and products.
Monadnock Table has been awarded the APEX 2012 Award of Excellence in the “magazine and journals” category for publications with 32 pages or more. We want to extend our gratitude to our readers, advertisers and contributors who help us support our mission to promote local farms and food. We couldn’t have done it without you!
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Table TalkFOOD aND FarM NewS FrOM THe reGiON aND BeYOND
PeTerBOrOUGH — a new community garden in Peterborough is supplying vegetables to local food pantries and providing food to the town’s senior lunch program. The Community Center Garden, located on the former armory land on elm Street, is a project spear-headed by the Cornucopia Project, a local school-based gardening organiza-tion, and the Peterborough recreation Center. “it is a teaching garden as much as it is a giving garden,” says Joyce Carroll, associate director for the Hancock-based Cornucopia Project, which recently opened
a satellite office on 42 Main Street in Peter-borough. “The garden will provide fresh food to the needy … and it will also be a place to teach people to grow their own.” The 7,500-square-foot garden, only steps away from the food pantry now housed in the former armory, has 15 raised beds — some at 24 inches high, easy for seniors to
access and for those who use a wheelchair. The garden includes a greenhouse, an attached shed with a green roof and a mini-amphitheater for small events. The project was made possible through a $20,000 New Hampshire Charitable Foundation grant and $5,000 in private donations. Organizers say they are looking for additional funds to keep the project going. “People can sponsor the raised beds … and have their names on the beds for a particular growing season,” says Carroll. There is also an option of sponsoring benches in the garden. For more information about the Community Center Garden, or to sponsor a garden bed or bench, contact Joyce Carroll at the Cornucopia Project at 518-929-0781. To learn more about the Cornucopia Project visit their website at cornucopiaproject.org. — MPD
Send your Table Talk news to: Marcia Passos Duffy, [email protected]. Please put “Table Talk” in the subject line.
new Giving and teaching Garden
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Food entrepreneurs Find a Home at Neighbor MadeKeeNe — The former First Course facility on Dunbar Street is cranking out food again — this time through a private enterprise called Neighbor Made Kitchen. The shared-use commercial kitchen, owned by the Keene-based True Nut Company (which also uses the kitchen for production), has been operating quietly since September of last year. But
the kitchen already has an impressive lineup of local entrepreneurs who are hard at work making barbeque sauces, mustards, pepper sauces, granola bars, pies, jams and more. The building is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, making it perfect for the budding food
entrepreneur who may be holding down a full-time job. “This is a good way to take a hobby food business to the next level,” says Matt DeGrosky, operations manager. “we have slots available, but they are filling up quickly.” rates start at $30 an hour for occasional use of the kitchen and can go as low as $18 an hour for full-time use, which is 64 hours or more per month. But unlike other shared-use kitchen models, DeGrosky says Neighbor Made Kitchen also provides services such as business counsel, distribution and sales support to those coming on board. “That is part of the deal,” he says. For more information visit: neighbormade.com. — MPD
Pasteurization equipment earns its KeepKeeNe — Stonewall Farm’s new micro-pasteurizing system is ideal for making a wide range of milk-based products. The latest has been ice cream, which the farm debuted this summer. The $45,000 low-heat vat pasteurization equipment — which half was paid for through donations and the balance through a loan — has been earning its keep making yogurt as well. “it is a small technology that serves many purposes on a small dairy farm … it enables us to not only make these products, but to educate other farms on how to do this as well,” says
Joshua Cline, executive director. as farm workers fine-tune
the ice cream recipe, sales of the farm’s yogurt are “going well beyond our dreams,” says Cline. “we thought we’d sell a couple hundred containers … but we’re already on our eighth batch,” he says. The yogurt, available in 6-ounce cups and
32-ounce containers, is sold at the farmstand and through
Kristin’s Bistro & Bakery’s two locations in Keene.
The farm also sells its own raw milk cheese, which is made from its cows’ milk, but processed
off the farm. For more information visit: stonewallfarm.org.
— MPD
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Family owned and operated since 1997www.cheshirehorse.com
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Carmella, Haylee and Gretchen Hall schools: Keene Middle school and symonds schoolFarming interests: dairy and beef
Future Farmer
Carmella, haylee, and gretchen hall have been involved in 4-h and farming for the last six years; they raise and show
dairy and beef cattle. but these sisters don’t belong to a farm family; they don’t even live near a farm. in fact, they live in keene and lease all their animals from mike and Nancy Plante of windy acres Farm in chesterfield and from kimberly hudson of hinsdale to participate in their 4-h programs. the 4-h lease program has allowed these future farmer sisters to grow their interest in farm animals and even start to sell some animals at auction. gretchen, who is 13, currently has a beefalo steer she is raising and will show it at the eastern states exposition (the big e). “this is my first year going to the big e,” she says, adding that she plans to sell her steer in the auction there. the middle hall sister, haylee, who is 10, plans on showing beef and dairy calves at county fairs. carmella, the youngest, at 9, and in her first year of 4-h, is showing beef and dairy calves as well. the girls became involved in their 4-h activities because of their mother’s encouragement; she was a 4-h member herself. “4-h is really fun and teaches you a lot,” says gretchen, who went on to add that raising animals takes a lot of time. in addition to taking care of their daily needs, she says, “you have to teach them to walk with you when they are on a halter.” haylee, who enjoys working with beef animals, loves working with them because she is “always learning something new.” carmella says she “is really looking forward to showing my ayrshire calf named marley and my hereford steer named moe.” all three girls have identical hopes and dreams for the future: they all want to buy a farm, where they can raise their own animals and work with them every day.
— Interviewed by Andrea Chickering Sawyer, Extension Educator, 4-H Youth Development, Cheshire County Cooperative Extension.
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all three girls have identical hopes and dreams for the future: they all want to own a farm.
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Made Here
sawyer’s artisanal Cheese is a family affair. Together — Joseph, Sonia and their son ian Sawyer — they are creat-ing a living food that also supports our local food system.
The family’s cheese business began when Joe Sawyer (pictured below), who worked at Boggy Meadow Farm (a cheese business just down the street from the Sawyer’s home in walpole),
became interested in artisanal cheesemaking. He took classes at UVM’s Vermont institute for artisan Cheese, studying all of the steps of cheesemaking — from culture to cave.
The multi-step process — which eventually becomes Sawyer’s artisanal Cheese — begins across the Connecticut river in Vermont, where milk from a small herd of grass-fed Jersey and
Normandy cows at Live water Farm in westminster is gathered and sent to Vermont Shepherd in Putney, Vt., where the milk is transformed into a Tomme-style cheese (a round cheese with an earthly grey-brown rind). Solar panels power the entire cheesemaking process.
From Vermont Shepherd, the round cheese is brought across the river into walpole, where it is placed in the Sawyer’s cheese cellar, a retrofitted refrigerated cellar with a controlled atmosphere. The cheese is first soaked in brine and then placed on shelves to let beneficial bacteria do their magic. The cheese is then aged four to six months. The Sawyers are currently experimenting in making a variety of cheeses, including those infused with mushrooms from wichland woods in Keene and wine from Barnett Hill Vineyards in walpole.
Sawyer’s artisanal Cheese can be found at the Hannah Grimes Marketplace (Keene), walpole Grocery Store, Blueberry Fields (Keene), the farmers’ markets in Keene, Peterborough, walpole and Brattleboro, Vt. and many stores and restaurants throughout New england.
Jen Risley is the education program coordinator at the Hannah Grimes Center in Keene.
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the art of Cheesemaking
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Monadnock TableIt’s Local! • www.monadnocktable.com • Fall 201214
For the past 10 years, chris and Julia bartlett have been running border brook Farm, a small farm venture of grass-fed, antibiotic- and steroid-free
dorset sheep on 25 acres of rolling hills, in the shadow of mt. monadnock in Jaffrey. “my husband always had animals when he was growing up, so this was sort of natural,” says Julia bartlett. “we’re from the Jaffrey area. when we saw this farm was up for sale, we jumped at it, and chris gave up his job to take up farming full-time. that was when we decided to get into animal husbandry. we started out with two sheep, and, at one point, ended up with a flock of a hundred.”
Growth means changethere are currently 70 sheep on the property, but even that smaller number requires a considerable amount of work, and has neces-sitated certain changes in how they are raised. although the sheep are raised primarily for meat, the bartletts also shear them and sell the wool. “we used to sell retail for many years,” says bartlett. “we attended various farmers’ markets, as well as selling to restaurants
and individuals.” the couple found, however, that selling retail took up a lot of their time. “since it’s just us work-ing here we decided we needed to focus on the farming aspect of the farm, and now we just sell wholesale,” she says.
Meat sold to nearby marketsNot to despair, however; you can still get a nice leg of lamb with no difficulty, she notes.
“we sell whole animals to places such as blood Farm in groton, massachusetts,” says bartlett. “blood Farm has a retail store right on the property, and they do a really nice job. it’s like the old days, when the butcher was right there, and you could tell him exactly how to cut it for you.” you can, of course, elect to purchase a whole animal, a prospect that isn’t nearly as daunting as it sounds, she notes. the slaughtering process is performed by professionals, off the premises. “a 100-pound sheep, when processed, takes up about as much space as five gallons of milk,” says bartlett. “most people can easily fit that into their freezer.”
Humanely treatedthe major advantage of buying border brook Farm meat, says bartlett, is that the customer can rest easy knowing the animals have been well cared-for: the farmers don’t use hormones and feed the sheep hay harvested from local fields. “additionally, we’re attentive to housing and how the animals are pastured, making sure they get fresh air every day and graze naturally,” says bartlett. the bartletts practice rotational grazing, moving the flock periodically around through the fields, as well as lending them out to clear their neighbors’ lands. “sheep are really good at clearing land,” she says. “you don’t have to pay people to mow the back forty, everything gets cleared out, and the sheep come back fat and happy. everybody wins.” to keep the flock in line, the bartletts keep four border collies on the premises. the matriarch of the dog pack is Fly, a lively 14-year-old, who still loves to work, despite being a little deaf. “actually, i think her hearing problems are somewhat selective,” says bartlett, as the dog disregards her commands several times and, nose down, wanders off through the pasture.
Eric Stanway is a writer, musician and artist who lives in Fitzwilliam with his significant other, an extended family and two cats. His new book, the old rindge house, is available on Amazon.com.
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Growing History
How two historical Monadnock area farms have survived the centuries
by becky Karush, Photographs by Kimberly Peck
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Monadnock TableIt’s Local! • www.monadnocktable.com • Fall 201218
ike to the top of mt. monadnock and look in all directions. what do you see? some open water, large
and small towns, roads and cars — and rolling sweeps of forest. you’ll see a landscape so blanketed by trees it seems eternal. but spin back a century or two. this time, the view from the top is vastly different: it is dominated by signs of farming activity everywhere you turn — pasture, hay fields, draft horses, sheep and dairy cows, with stone walls like capillaries stretching for miles. why did these small farms disappear? time was not kind to this type of sustenance farm: as soil fertility gave out, and as midwestern large-scale farming and manufacturing moved into favor, many of the farms dating back to the 1700s died out. year by year the forest nibbled the open spaces. it swallowed the rich history of foods grown and raised on this land. but not all of the original farms are gone. here and there are surviving houses, barns and fields that have been in continuous use for hundreds of years. their histories make it possible to look out from the mountain and see both the forested landscape and the farming past inside it, a past that today’s southwest New hampshire farmers are claiming and restoring anew. here are stories of two historical monadnock area farms.
Tenney Farm: Family and Flood“okay, i’m going to go way back.” crista salamy leans on the farmstand counter at tenney Farm in antrim. the wall behind her is covered in framed photographs. “this was originally the baldwin Farm,” she says. according to an 1880 antrim town history, isaac baldwin was a “stirring, earnest, useful man, greatly respected by all.” he founded
the farm and built a stately brick house on the property in 1793. the contoocook river bisected the farm and often flooded the fields. the town history recounts the story of two of isaac’s daugh-ters, harriet and estimate, who “once went over the river for the cows, when, being gone some time, the water suddenly rising,
flooded the road three feet deep. but undismayed, each got on a cow’s back and rode through it home!” salamy pulls out a photograph of the farm during the epic 1938 flood and a more recent one of farm workers harvesting corn in ankle-deep water. the baldwins eventually sold the farm to the colby family, and in the 1950s, the colbys sold it to a boston
millionaire. he needed a farm manager, so he poached one from hobnob Farm in nearby Francestown. “that (farm manager) was my grandfather, stanley tenney,” salamy says. “after two years, he and my grand-mother decided just to buy the farm.” tenney ran the dairy with the help of his sons, eric and mark, but it became very hard to make a living. at 175 acres, the farm was just too small to support a large dairy herd. salamy points to a picture of her grandfather standing by a trailer filled with squash. “so he started dabbling in vegetables. after my dad, eric, came back from cornell (university) and the Navy, he and my uncle started doing fruits and vegetables full time.” salamy was six months old when her family moved into the brick house. her entire childhood was wrapped up in the farm, from running tractors at 10 years old to forsaking family vacations to get all the work done. at 18, salamy left for college. by her mid-20s, she and her husband chris were living happily in california with no intention of returning to antrim. salamy can’t keep a bemused smile from her face. “and then, well, my husband realized he wanted to have kids. and i said, ‘then we’re going back to the farm, because the only way i can imagine raising kids is with my family nearby.’” she then becomes serious: “it was a really difficult decision. the work is incredibly hard, but coming back has been the best thing. here, we can try to give our boys, hunter and Jaxson, the foundation of being self-sufficient. we can teach
them that you can get what you want if you work very hard.” since their return, the salamys have made “lovin’ it local” the farm’s official motto. along with their own vegetables, fruits and bedding plants, they offer a wide range of locally made foods and goods. and salamy lives once again in the big brick house
H
Above: (l to r) Crista Salamy, her father Eric Tenney, and her sons Jaxson and Hunter Salamy. Top: (l to r) Crista Salamy and her son Jaxson; historical photo of Tenney Farm. Page 17: Nancy Hayden, joined by grandchildren (l to r): Joshua, Sabrina and Gabrielle Hayden, holds a photo of Too Bad Farm.
Here and there are surviving houses, barns and fields that have been in continuous use for hundreds of years.
Monadnock TableIt’s Local! • www.monadnocktable.com • Fall 2012 19
isaac baldwin built two centuries ago, keeping those old spirits company as she and her family keep tenney Farm alive.
Too Bad Farm: A Perfectly Good Lifehayden family visitors who would glimpse mt. monadnock rising to the south on their way to their marlborough home would always remark: “too bad you don’t have a good view!” Nancy hayden allows a wry smile at the memory. “that was part of how we came up with the name ‘too bad Farm.’ when i moved here in the 1970s, it was still being called the mason place, the people my grandfather bought it from in the 1930s.” though the masons had farmed the 200 acres for a long time, even they weren’t the first inhabitants. there has been some kind of shelter in the exact spot of the current farmhouse since 1785, says hayden. but by the 1930s, New hampshire farms were in such decline that the government was running a promotion to convince out-of-staters to buy property and help preserve the state’s agricultural heritage. at the same time, hayden’s grandparents happened to be looking to move out of New york city. “my grandfather said that working at the New york stock exchange was a waste of a perfectly good life,” says hayden. she sips her tea, the old house quiet around her. “so he quit in July 1929, on his 40th birthday, well in advance of black tuesday. it was totally lucky that he retained some of his money.” her grandmother planted the idea to buy a farm, in part because of the state’s advertising campaign and in part because she feared for her sons’ moral lives. “they’d been going up to dublin (Nh) for several summers, and my grandmother worried about her teenage boys encountering dublin’s fast women and cards and liquor. so she suggested buying a place more out in the country,” she says, with a smile. as a child, hayden visited her grandparents every summer. she remembers her grandmother’s enormous delphiniums and the small treasures her grandfather would hide for her in a chest of 40 drawers. she especially remembers siggy: “she was a wonderful
woman who lived in harrisville, officially the cook for my grand-parents, but really the commander-in-chief of the whole operation. she hired and fired the guys who cut the hay or cared for the cows,” hayden says. siggy made the farm feel bountiful, recalls hayden. breakfasts were replete with three kinds of cereal, three kinds of freshly picked berries in special berry bowls, and a pitcher of Jersey cow cream so thick it had to be spooned. “we were all very attached to siggy,” hayden recalls. “it was such an unusual career path for a woman then. she stayed for a long time and was quite old when she fell from the hayloft and broke her arm. she died not long after.” hayden’s grandfather died around the same time. For some time it looked as though the farm would be sold out of the family, but eventually, it ended up with hayden and her young family.riding the wave of energy and idealism that was invigorating parts of New england in the early 1970s, hayden threw herself into farming. “this was the main reason we settled on the name ‘too bad Farm’ — all the times we would make some incredibly stupid mistake and say, ‘too bad we didn’t know!’ we were always saying ‘too bad.’”
they raised milk goats and pigs, layer hens and irish dexter cattle, vegetables and berries. Farm operations tapered off as hayden saw how financially unworkable the farm was. about five years ago, she put the majority of the acreage under a conservation easement. these days, her son Nelson and his family live just up the hill. in the spring he raises lambs for meat near the old, slightly slump-ing farmhouse. hayden still gardens for herself in the company of the pink rose bushes and siberian irises her grandmother planted more than half a century ago, in this place that has been the home for more than one perfectly good life.
Becky Karush is a freelance writer who lives in Swanzey with her husband, Bob, her new son, Gus, and 17 chickens.
Nancy Hayden (above) holds an old photo of Too Bad Farm. Left, her grandchildren Sabrina and Joshua, help care for the sheep.
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Here and there are surviving houses, barns and fields that have been in continuous use for hundreds of years.
Monadnock TableIt’s Local! • www.monadnocktable.com • Fall 20122020
Buckets Full of Farming lessons by Becky Karush
Phot
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wo buckets sit on the floor at the end of the well school’s community kitchen buffet line. each has a sign above it, one
marked “piggy bucket,” the other, “garden bucket.” the students, teachers, parents, volunteers and administrators of this private pre-k through 8th-grade school in Peterborough sit family-style — ages and classes all mixed — on wooden benches set before long tables. their plates are filled with hot, handmade pizza and fresh, crunchy vegetables. when everyone is finished eating, they scrape their leftovers into one of the two buckets (one rule: no vegetable scraps in the piggy bucket) and place their dirty plates and cups in gray plastic bins. the students talk and laugh and run, everyone bustling with the energy of this school day.
school farm part of a larger missionthe buckets — which will eventually be brought up the hill to the school’s 15-acre farm — are just one example of the well school’s wide-ranging commitment to sustainability. the school provides its 160 students with sustainable, organic and local food — which the school staff and children grow, cook and eat. and
nothing goes to waste: Food scraps are either composted or fed to the school’s five piglets. “we raise (the pigs) for meat,” says the well school farm man-ager, catherine condella. “they’ve got a few months to go, and then that meat will go right back to the community kitchen.” “our mission is to help every kid here eat well,” adds rachel
austin, head chef of the community kitchen. “we make use of local and organic and ethically raised food to encourage kids to eat as healthfully as possible.” the farm is a large part of this mission. condella oversees it all: nearly 2 acres in vegetable production; a barn that houses 45 meat goats, several sheep and nearly 50 layer hens; and a young apple, pear and cherry tree orchard. the farm produce goes to the community kitchen, a 21-member csa and some area markets.
students work and learn on the farmstudents regularly participate in chores. the youngest kids might visit the pigs, while a crew of sixth graders will help seed a crop of winter squash for a late spring project. teachers use the farm as a basis for everything from science to spanish lessons. Just outside the kitchen, the school also runs a small farmers’ market that stocks local bread, milk, meat, eggs, snacks and cheeses, among many other goods, as well as items such as student-made t-shirts appliquéd with wool from the well school’s sheep. while the school’s adult community is supportive of the farm and the kitchen, the real success of the mission to encourage healthful, local, sustainable eating lies with the students. “one mom said to me that this was the only place where her child ate healthfully,” austin says. “i really believe this kitchen could be a model for how we feed our kids in school.” T
The Well School • 360 Middle Hancock Rd. • Peterborough, N.H. 603-924-6908 • www.wellschool.org
teachers use the the Well school farm as a basis for everything from science to spanish lessons.
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Becky Karush is a freelance writer who lives in Swanzey with her husband, Bob, her new son, Gus, and 17 chickens.
the Well school provides its 160 students with sustainable, organic and local food.
pictured above, students line up for lunch.
Monadnock TableIt’s Local! • www.monadnocktable.com • Fall 2012 21
Comfort, care and support from your LOCAL visiting nurses & hospice.
Has the shocking idea that the goals of a lifetime deserve more than a 10-minute chat.
It’s your future. Shouldn’t your financial advisor give it the time it deserves? Edward Jones thinks so. With locations in neighborhoods, not skyscrapers, and typically with one financial advisor per office, we’re built to be able to meet face to face. And give you the quality time you expect. Join the nearly 7 million investors who know. Face time and think time make sense. www.edwardjones.com
Allen MendelsonFinancial Advisor.
151 West StreetKeene, NH 03431603-357-7023
Ceil GoffFinancial Advisor.
57 Main StreetWalpole, NH 03608603-756-2513
It’s your future. Shouldn’t your financial advisor give it the time it deserves? Edward Jones thinks so. With locations in neighborhoods, not skyscrapers, and typically with one financial advisor per office, we’re built to be able to meet face to face. And give you the quality time you expect. Join the nearly 7 million investors who know. Face time and think time make sense. www.edwardjones.com
Has the shocking idea that the goals of a lifetime deserve more than a 10-minute chat.
It’s your future. Shouldn’t your financial advisor give it the time it deserves? Edward Jones thinks so. With locations in neighborhoods, not skyscrapers, and typically with one financial advisor per office, we’re built to be able to meet face to face. And give you the quality time you expect. Join the nearly 7 million investors who know. Face time and think time make sense. www.edwardjones.com
Allen MendelsonFinancial Advisor.
151 West StreetKeene, NH 03431603-357-7023
Ceil GoffFinancial Advisor.
57 Main StreetWalpole, NH 03608603-756-2513
Allen MendelsonFinancial Advisor151 West StreetKeene, NH 03431603-357-7023
• Full schedule of free community health classes available at events.cheshire-med.com
Monadnock TableIt’s Local! • www.monadnocktable.com • Fall 201222
Dear Amanda: I planted gourds this year but want to know the steps for harvesting and drying. And how long will dried gourds last?gourds (and other winter squashes) are ready to be picked when the vines of the plant have died back. simply snip the fruit off leaving 2 inches of stem attached and store in a cool, dry place with lots of air circulation (a fan works great) and out of direct sunlight for several weeks — or even a month or two. Preserving the stem is very important as it is very porous and serves as the exit point for moisture. when dried completely, gourds feel very light and the seeds rattle inside. if you grow “birdhouse” gourds you can then drill a large hole in one side and two smaller ones through the top and hang it outside for a bird house. No need to clean out the seeds and insides — the birds will eat them!
Dear Amanda: Could you give some tips for harvesting and storing my own seeds? the topic of storing seeds is immense and there are entire books and organizations dedicated to educating folks on how to save seed. briefly here are some basic points to get you started. genetic information is passed along generations two different ways: cross- pollination and self-pollination. the easiest way to enter into seed saving is to pick one species and one variety of vegetable or herb that is self-pollinated (for example, do not start by growing 12 varieties of cucumbers as they are cross-pollinated and the next generation will never be what you planned it to be!). i would choose dill, cilantro, lettuce or beans to start. of the seeds you sow, let a couple plants go to seed — meaning let them grow big and tall, flower and set seed (let the bean pods mature on the vine). once they flower keep an eye on them. when you notice the green seed or pod has turned brown and dried out, and rubbing the pod drops seeds into your hand, harvest the seed bundles. remove seeds from the plant material on a dry flat surface (they should shake off easily) and store in a plastic or glass jar. Find more information on seedsave.org or locally connect with the monadnock seed savers exchange via the sustainability Project.
Editor’s note: This is Amanda Maurmann’s last column for Monadnock Table. We thank Amanda for her hard work these past two years provid-ing insights and helpful advice to Monadnock Regional gardeners. We will miss her! Starting with the winter issue this column will be renamed “Ask a Farmer” and will include advice from several area farmers about gardening and backyard animals. Have a question for our farmers? Send it to [email protected].
“All of our entrees are made from scratch”(603) 525-4432 • www.fiddleheadscatering.net
Mon-Fri 6:30am-8pmSat 8am-8pmSun 8am-3pm
“All of our entrees are made from scratch”
(603) 525-4432 • www.fiddleheadscatering.net
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b Native & Traditional Landscapingb Rain Gardensb Ecological Land Use Designb Habitat Restorationb Design, Installation & Maintenanceb Residential & Commercial
Our Own Fruit and VegetablesJams, Syrups, Fruit Ciders, and Honey
Pumpkins, Cornstalks, MumsFruit Bushes and Trees
256 North Main St., Troy, NH 03465 • (603) 242- 6417 OPEN 11am till 6pm, Wed. – Sun. • CLOSED for the season Oct. 31
www.monadnockberries.com
FarmStand
GardenCenter
Monadnock TableIt’s Local! • www.monadnocktable.com • Fall 201224
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By Katrina Hall
Fall Recipes
Katrina Hall, who founded the Hancock Farmers’ Market in 1990, formerly worked as a chef, herbalist and baker.
In 2008, she started a food blog, “She’s in the Kitchen,” where her passion for cooking, photography and food has finally found a home.
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Shepherd’s PieFor a vegetarian pie, sauté or simmer sliced sweet cabbage with carrots, celery and a few mushrooms; drain and mix into the basic onion and herb mixture.
4 servings
The top:6 medium boiling potatoes (red or white)5 tablespoons butter 3/4 cup cream, milk or hot stockSalt and pepper, to taste
The bottom:2 tablespoons unsalted butter1 tablespoon olive oil1 clove garlic, peeled and minced1 large onion, peeled and diced1 1/2 pounds ground or finely minced beef or lamb (or vegetables)2 teaspoons fresh rosemary (about 6 sprigs)2 teaspoons fresh thymeSalt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Local ingredients available in the fall: potatoes, butter, milk (or cream), beef (or lamb), onion, garlic, thyme, rosemary
Cover the unpeeled whole potatoes with water and bring to a slow boil. Cook until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork. Drain and place in mixer bowl while hot. add butter and liquid of choice. Using a flat paddle on mixer or potato masher by hand, mash until smooth consistency with a few lumps. add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside. Preheat oven to 375°F. in a large skillet, melt the butter and oil on medium heat. add the garlic and onion and sauté until golden, stirring often. Pinch off chunks of the meat and add to skillet with the onion mixture (if making a vegetarian pie, add cooked and drained vegetables). add the rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper. Sauté until meat is cooked. Mix well, taste and adjust seasonings. Spread meat
mixture in the bottom of a ceramic baking dish or individual dishes. Top with potato mixture. add a sprig of rosemary and, if desired, a pat of butter to the top, a few grinds of pepper and a sprinkle of salt. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes.
Sautéed Brussels SproutsThis recipe is a great addition to a Thanksgiving Day feast.
4 servings
1/3 cup olive oil1/2 cup water2 cups Brussels sprouts, trimmed and thinly sliced3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juiceSalt and pepper to tastePat of butter
Local ingredients available in the fall: Brussels sprouts, butter
warm the olive oil over high heat in a 10- or 12-inch skillet. add water, followed by the Brussels sprouts. reduce heat to medium and continue sautéing until sprouts are tender — about 10 minutes. add lemon juice, salt and pepper. remove from heat. Place a lid on top of the pan and allow to sit for 10 minutes. add a pat of butter on top of the Brussels sprouts before serving.
Cranberry Chocolate Chip Cookies One of the best things about fall and winter? Fresh cranberries! This chewy chocolate chip cookie is made with both dried and fresh cranberries.
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature 1 cup white sugar 3/4 cup dark brown sugar 2 large eggs 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking soda Pinch of kosher salt 3/4 cup dried cranberries 1 cup fresh (or frozen) cranberries 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Local ingredients available in the fall: eggs, fresh cranberries
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two cookie sheets with foil or parchment. in mixer bowl cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. add eggs and vanilla and mix until incorporated. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt. add cranber-ries and chocolate chips, stirring gently as dough will be stiff. roll dough into balls the size of a small plum and place on cookie sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart. Bake about 18 minutes or until cookies are medium golden brown. remove from oven and allow to cool 10 minutes. Transfer each cookie onto a rack to cool completely.
Monadnock TableIt’s Local! • www.monadnocktable.com • Fall 2012 25
Genevieve Groesbeck
Functional & SculpturalPottery
Member of the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen
www.genevievegroesbeck.com • 603-924-3686
Holiday Sale Nov. 30, Dec. 1 & 2
FEATURING AWARD WINNINGWALPOLE CREAMERYSUPER PREMIUM ICE CREAMAND OTHER FINE FROZEN DESSERTS
“Made the Old Fashioned Way”Enjoy Over 25 Flavors
Indoor Seating • Open 12-9 Daily
9 Edwards Lane • Walpole, NH603-756-4112
Experience farm life and taste real food at its source!innatvalleyfarms.com • Walpole, NH • 603-756-2855
Inn at Valley FarmsB&B, Cottages and Vacation Farmhousez z
Offers home cooked meals including: • our own scrumptious soups• fresh baked baguettes for subs• pizza using only the finest ingredients
OTHER OFFERINGS• local milk, cage free eggs, maple syrup and honey• nitrate free bacon • fresh from the farm ice cream• fresh brewed coffee with our fresh baked pastries
MONTHLY BISTRO DINNERS Join us by reservation only for our monthly bistro dinners offering authentic Mediterranean cooking with local products, meats, fruits and vegetables.
Catering AvailableM-F: 6 am - 5:30pm Sat: 8-5 Closed: Sunday
Monadnock Table’s farm directory listings are free. Promote your seasonal offerings with a highlighted listing for $49. To purchase, send us an email at [email protected].
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Farmers’ MarketsYou’ll find a farmers’ market in the monadnock Region every day of the week!
MONDaY Peterborough: may-oct., 11-4 p.m., monadnock community hospital, northeast parking lot, Facebook: Fresh chicks local outdoor market.
TuesDaY
Keene: may-oct., 9 a.m.-2 p.m., behind the colonial theatre, main st., Facebook: keene Farmers market. (winter market begins in November.)
rindge: June-oct., 3-6 p.m., west rindge common Park at the corner of route 202 and bradford st.
FrIDaY
Harrisville/nelson: June-oct., 5-7 p.m., harrisville store or Nelson Village green. market begins June 8 in harrisville and alternates with Nelson every other week.
Walpole: may-oct., 4-7 p.m., town common, walpolefarmersmarket.com. (holiday market in december; winter market begins in January.)
saTurDaY
Gilsum: may-oct., 8 a.m.-noon, gilsum Village market, main st.
Hancock: may-oct., 9 a.m.-noon, horse sheds behind First congregational church, main st. (holiday market begins in November.)
Hillsborough: July-sept., 9 a.m.-noon, butler Park, corner of central and main sts., hillsboroughpride.org.
Jaffrey: June-sept., 9 a.m.-noon, coll’s market and deli parking lot, old sharon rd.
Keene: may-oct., 9 a.m.-2 p.m., behind the colonial theatre, main st., Facebook: keene Farmers market. (winter market begins in November.)
Milford: June-oct., 10 a.m.-1 p.m., granite town Plaza, elm st., milfordfarmersmarket.com. (winter market begins in November.)
Washington: may-oct., 10 a.m.-1 p.m., washington town common.
suNDaY
Temple: may-dec., 11 a.m.-2 p.m., temple town common, route 45. (holiday market begins in late october.)
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Monadnock TableIt’s Local! • www.monadnocktable.com • Fall 2012 29
SUMMER MARKET: behind The Colonial Theatre, Tuesday & Saturday, 9–2, through Oct. 27. Rain or shine.
WINTER MARKET: starts in early November. Watch ourFacebook page, The Farmers’ Market of Keene, for info.
The Market now accepts VISA, Master Card and SNAP
summer market open through oct. 13 at tractor supply Winter market starts oct. 20 at milford toWn hall, 10am-1:00pm
2013 Season Shares Available
Pick up at the farm, or in Keene, Greenfield or Brattleboro.
Lovely Pick-Your-Own Garden
Summer Season Shares 12 weeks, June through mid September
Full Season Shares25 weeks, June through Thanksgiving
Whether you own or lease, whether it’s a berry, dairy, horse, or vegetable farm… you can choose from several
basic policies or build a custom policy to suit your own specific insurance needs!
Call us today for a no obligation quote!
10 Main Street, Peterborough, NH
603-‐924-‐7155 www.bellowsnichols.com
PROTECT YOUR FARM, MINI-FARM, or
ORCHARD
New farm programs available through…
Whether you own or lease, whether it’s a berry, dairy, horse, or vegetable farm… you can choose from several
basic policies or build a custom policy to suit your own specific insurance needs!
Call us today for a no obligation quote!
10 Main Street, Peterborough, NH
603-‐924-‐7155 www.bellowsnichols.com
PROTECT YOUR FARM, MINI-FARM, or
ORCHARD
New farm programs available through…
Whether you own or lease, whether it’s a berry, dairy, horse, or vegetable farm… you can choose from several
basic policies or build a custom policy to suit your own specific insurance needs!
Call us today for a no obligation quote!
10 Main Street, Peterborough, NH
603-‐924-‐7155 www.bellowsnichols.com
Flying Cloud Dairy in Alstead, NH
(603)835-2519
Raw milk from cows fed only grass. No grain.
William R. Jahos - Proprietor
Monadnock TableIt’s Local! • www.monadnocktable.com • Fall 201230
sePTeMber1-2 sat., sun. art in the Park, ashuelot river Park, Keene. Monadnockareaartists.org.
13-16 thurs.-sun. (time TBa) responding to the Call of the Land: Building a Community Supported Food System in the Monadnock region, venues in Peterborough and Keene. [email protected].
23 Fri. (all day) Plaid Friday, throughout the Monadnock region. Monadnocklocal.org/plaidfriday.
ONgOINg Fall eveNTsFirst sunday of the Month, (Year-round 2-4 p.m.) “what is Co-Housing?” Nubanusit Neighborhood & Farm, Peterborough. Peterboroughcohousing.org.
First saturday of the Month, (June-October, 10 a.m.) Farm Tours at walpole Valley Farms, walpole. walpolevalleyfarms.com.
Fall Calendar
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Don’t miss the Monadnock Matchmaker event. Wednesday, Oct. 10, 9am - noon, Stonewall Farm, Keene, NH.rsvp: [email protected]
Farmers: do you want to sell wholesale?
Buyers: do you want to purchase from local farms?
Cultivate a wholesale relationship!
www.cheshireconservation.org or 603.756.2988, ext. 116
Hand Dyed YarnsIncluding Local Alpaca Yarn
Shop online at Nightingalefibers.com 603-547-6645
Vermont Sheep & Wool Festival 9/29-9/30 Wool Arts Tour 10/6-10/7 New England Fiber Festival 11/3-11/4
Visit us this Fall
Monadnock TableIt’s Local! • www.monadnocktable.com • Fall 2012 31
A gripping novel about a small Vermont town caught in the crossfire of multi-national agribusiness and genetically
contaminated crops.
Seed Keepers of Crescentville
by Local Author Jeanne Prevett Sable
“ This book is far from fanciful. It portrays real technologies and the real resistance of teed-off people around the world.” –Bill McKibben
At your local bookstore, library, or online: booklocker.com/books/2001.html
Bauhan Publishingllcpo box 117, peterborough new hampshire 03458
www.bauhanpublishing.com603-567-4430
Publishing books to nourish
the mind the soul
and the body
Look for
these books
at The
Toad-stool
or your local book-store
Book
cov
er c
ourt
esy
Che
lsea
Gre
en P
ublis
hing
localbookshelf
The Seed Underground: A Growing Revolution to Save Food by Janisse ray (Chelsea Green Publishing, Vermont)
By Willard WilliamsCo-owner, The Toadstool Bookshops
while the wordplay of the title “The Seed Underground: a Growing
revolution to Save Food” is a tad too clever, the book itself is a fascinating look at the movement to preserve thousands of heirloom plant varieties for our future. But before delving into her interviews of more than a dozen revolutionary seed savers, Janisse ray gives us compelling reasons to be grateful for their efforts. She points out it is giant corporations and big agriculture (“Big ag”) that are the cause for concern. Human agriculture is the result of farmers selecting and crossbreeding for thousands of years, improving varieties and passing down the seeds down through the ages. But that all changed in the 1930s when Big ag introduced hybrids. The result: By 1939 nearly 90 percent of iowa’s corn was planted with the hybrid Golden Cross Bantam; by 1946 all of iowa’s corn was hybrid. The problem with hybrid seeds is that they do not grow “true,” that is, you don’t get the same variety if you use the seeds from a hybrid plant. So, a vicious cycle ensues: Seed for next year’s crop has to be bought from the company that manufactures the hybrid. For economic reasons farmers stuck with the hybrid and tossed the old home grown seed corn varieties, and “in giving up seed saving, became prisoners to Big ag,” ray writes. The 1990s brought GMOs (genetically modified organisms) and farmers embraced “GM corn” as they had hybrid corn. But, ray wonders, did Monsanto develop roundup ready plants to feed the world and protect the environment? Or to sell more roundup from its chemical division? The rest of the book, however, celebrates the seed savers. There’s will Bonsall in Maine who keeps alive 1,300 varieties and Sylvia Davatz with 150 in her Vermont garden of a few hundred square feet — she believes locally grown seeds are the logical next step for the local food movement. in Georgia, the author’s home state, we meet several gardeners maintain-ing heirloom varieties of vegetables such as okra, sweet potatoes and cowpeas. it is the sharing of seed lore, seed saving methods, and the seeds themselves in the “seed underground” that so entrances ray. She’s hooked and she says her book “is for everyone, but it is especially for young people” that they may build lives that “make sense” and “are lived as far outside and beyond corporate control as possible.” Her belief: “… the most powerful thing in the world. it is the seed.” Careful, this wonderful book could leave you hooked too.
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And online at toadbooks.comwhere you can see what’s in stock at our stores, what’s available to order,
and you can download e-books for many types of e-readers
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The back Page backyard
Weed-Free AbundanceBy Jeanne Prevett Sable
on Witzke’s 4,000 square feet of garden space yields more than enough food for himself, his partner, Michael Bell, and many of their friends and neighbors. What it doesn’t seem to grow at all is weeds. We toured the raised bed boxes around their lovely 1906 home in Dublin and talked with Witzke and Bell, to find out their secret to a weed-free garden.
Ron, what are the boards lying on the ground at the edge of the boxes for?The old boards become edging after we’ve replaced them. it keeps the weeds down around the boxes where it would be hard to mow.
Looks like you mow a lot of grass. i don’t mow grass; i harvest it. it’s against my religion to weed. i use grass clippings to smother the weeds.
What else keeps the weeds down?Mulch, mulch, mulch — woodchips, compost, manure and pine needles (for around the blueberry bushes). Soon i’ll be moving these bags of leaves to the shed for winter. i use black plastic for the most persistent weeds.
What vegetables do you grow?everything but corn — it’s a raccoon magnet. Soon we’ll be harvesting chard, broccoli, Brussels sprouts and a fall crop of lettuce and peas. in august we froze pesto from the parsley and basil. we give away tons of food and sometimes trade veggies for organic chickens and geese. we grow pots full of
hot peppers and other heat-loving herbs out on the patio. Cilantro goes into practically everything. we make our own salsa with a special chopping machine. a regular processor just emulsifies it. we grow dill (for pickles), leeks (for homegrown potato leek soup) and walking onions.
I see you grow lots of gladiolus, dahlias, peonies, Mexican sunflowers and wildflowers.Yes, we have quite a following of ladies who depend on us for free gladiolus. Food without flowers is life without spirit.
You seem committed to sustaining both.we’ve lost the sanctity of food. it’s become a commodity. Here, we don’t eat from boxes or cans. Michael does all the cooking and i do the baking.
Any tips on keeping food for winter?i leave the butternut squash in the sun to cure for about a week. when the leaves die off, we store them in the cellar where it stays about 40 degrees. we put them against the wall along with pumpkins, beets, carrots, etc. They’ll keep until January or February. we put the apples down there and juice them for cider or make applesauce which we freeze. The apple tree was overgrown. i spray it with horticultural oil and prune it no more than 25 percent a year.
Michael, what dish do you most like to prepare?everything’s a favorite dish. i make a lot of stir-fries. i’ll use a hot and spicy oregano on coconut Thai trout with cilantro and
onions. Or i’ll peel, cube and stir-fry butternut squash with green onions, garlic, parsley and peppers for a sweeter dish. Sometimes i’ll take eggplant fingers, cut them thick, brush with olive oil, and bake with a topping of garlic, Parmesan cheese and white panko crumbs. Fresh tomatoes are always good with fresh mozzarella. i like to do grilled stir-fries too: summer squash, zucchini, onions, garlic, mushrooms — you cut them in advance and marinate in a bowl for four hours with olive oil, fresh minced parsley, peppers of all colors, oregano and cook on the grill. You can also grill corn, asparagus or pork tenderloin in foil. we drink teas from our mint — chocolate, spearmint and other flavors. For dessert: ricotta pudding with peaches and berries.
Jeanne Prevett Sable is a writer, musician and author of seed keepers of crescentville. She lives in Fitzwilliam.
The Back Page Backyard is a peek at what our neighbors are growing and raising in the Monadnock Region. Have an idea for this page? Email us: [email protected].
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Established in 1789, our country inn offers fine New England cuisineTuesday - Saturday 5:3o - 8:oo pm or our Innkeepers’ Supper on Sunday
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Call 603-525-3318 for dinner or room reservations.
• The Hancock Inn • 33 Main St 8 • Hancock, NH •
Visit New Hampshire’s Oldest Inn
Established in 1789, our country inn offers fine New England cuisineTuesday ~ Saturday 5:30 ~ 8:00 pm or our Innkeepers’ Supper on Sunday
from 5:30 ~ 7:00 pm served in our colonial dining room or cozy tavern. And with13 comfortable guest rooms, The Hancock Inn is a perfect get-away close to home.
Call 603-525-3318 for dinner or room reservations.
• The Hancock Inn • 33 Main St. • Hancock, NH •
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