Our Local Food Journey comes to an end

All journeys must come to an end, and so it is with this one.

With a great deal of sadness, I must inform you that WPSU Local Food Journey is ceasing publication as of today. This is the blog’s final post, and it’s probably the hardest one I’ve had to write. First off, I want to thank all who have read our posts over the years. I also want to thank our writers, who have volunteered to share their expertise with all of us. And finally, I want to thank all of the farmers, prepared food producers, restauranteurs, and others who allowed me to share their stories.

Continue Reading: Our Local Food Journey comes to an end

Tags: TheEnd |

Get the taste of garden season right now by growing herbs indoors

Here we are, in the dead of winter, and garden harvests seem at least a few months away. Believe it or not, there is a way to get some fresh-grown flavor into winter dishes, and that’s by growing herbs indoors.

Growing herbs indoors can be a bit of a challenge but not as hard as you may think. Here’s some helpful tips to get you started with growing herbs indoors:

Continue Reading: Get the taste of garden season right now by growing herbs indoors

Tags: gardening | herbs |

All you need to know about PASA’s Farming for the Future conference

From our friends at the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA), all the information you’ll need about the 27th annual Farming for the Future conference, to be held February 7-10 at the Penn Stater Hotel and Conference Center. Two things you need to know right off the bat: pre-conference registration ends January 31, and this is the last year that the event will be held in the State College area. Read on for more details on the event from PASA:

Continue Reading: All you need to know about PASA’s Farming for the Future conference

Tags: PASA | FarmingfortheFuture | conference | registration |

January is National Soup Month, so celebrate with some Local Food Journey soup recipes

We have a January thaw going on today, but tonight Old Man Winter ends the party and back into the ice box we go. A traditional way to beat the chill is having a nice hot bowl of soup. January is National Soup Month, and given how cold this month can be, that makes a lot of sense.

Soup is actually rather fun to make, and fairly simple. There’s really no limit to variety when it comes to soup, there are the standards like chicken noodle, ham and bean, tomato, etc. but there are some really unique and fun soup recipes out there. In fact, over the years, here at Local Food Journey we’ve gathered quite a selection!

Continue Reading: January is National Soup Month, so celebrate with some Local Food Journey soup recipes

Tags: soup | winter | recipes |

Going to the Pennsylvania Farm Show? Here’s some tips on what to check out

The Pennsylvania Farm Show is in full swing this week, with the final day this Saturday. If you’ve never been to the Farm Show, it’s well worth the trip.

Going to the Farm Show is an educational trip for people of all ages. You get to learn a lot about what Pennsylvania farmers produce, and the challenges inherent in that production.

There’s also lots of fun things, like the sheep-to-shawl competition, baby farm animals, and of course, lots of fantastic local food.

Continue Reading: Going to the Pennsylvania Farm Show? Here’s some tips on what to check out

Tags: 2018FarmShow | tips |

10 local food resolutions for 2018

2018 is just around the corner, and it’s that time of the year again…to make resolutions! Here are 10 easy-to-make resolutions that can not only help you improve your life, but can also have an impact on the local food scene:

Continue Reading: 10 local food resolutions for 2018

Tags: NewYears | resolutions | farmersmarket |

Winter got you down already? You can still get your farmers market fix

The cold winds and snow this week has sent us all a message that’s loud and clear…winter is here in central Pennsylvania and isn’t going away any time soon.

But that doesn’t mean that farmers market time is over for the season. Far from it. Farmers market fans have several indoor options in our region to get their fix.

Continue Reading: Winter got you down already? You can still get your farmers market fix

Tags: winter | farmersmarket |

Local food part of Campus and Community Sustainability Expo on Dec. 7

Penn State students will offer the public an opportunity to learn more about sustainability and its role in our local lives at the Campus and Community Sustainability Expo, to be held tomorrow, Dec. 7, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the State College Borough Building on 243 S. Allen St. in State College.

The event will feature poster sessions by student teams and will offer an opportunity for members of the public to learn about community sustainability initiatives and perhaps get involved themselves. Among subjects covered will be workforce recruitment strategies, water quality monitoring, climate messaging strategy, waste and recycling, and human health. Of interest to Local Food Journey readers, the event will also highlight local food, sustainable food systems, and community gardens.

Continue Reading: Local food part of Campus and Community Sustainability Expo on Dec. 7

Tags: sustainability | localfood | PennState |

Local Food Notes for Dec. 1

Lots of events to give you the holiday cheer in this week’s Local Food Notes.

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Tags: localfoodnotes | holidays |

Get ready for Thanksgiving today at the Boalsburg Farmers Market

If you want to get something local (and delicious) to serve on Thanksgiving, today you can head out to the Boalsburg Farmers Market and find a holiday co-star for your table.

A few things the Boalsburg Market recommends include delicious pies from Ardry Farms, Nomad Kitchen’s soups (great starters for your meal!), and Katina Baklava. But, see below for the complete list of what you will find there today. The market is open in the winter months every Tuesday from 2 to 6 p.m. at the St. John’s United Church of Christ on 218 N. Church Street in Boalsburg.

Continue Reading: Get ready for Thanksgiving today at the Boalsburg Farmers Market

Tags: BoalsburgFarmersMarket | Thanksgiving |

Recipe: Roasted Parsnips with Thyme

Parsnips are a highly underrated vegetable. When roasted, they are sweet, a little earthy, and even a bit spicy.

They are also an underrated example of why local food can be better than supermarket food. If you grow parsnips in your garden or buy them this time of year from a local farmer at say a Farmers Market or via Friends and Farmers Coop’s online market, they have a distinct advantage over the supermarket ones. Why? It’s simple…cold weather exposure.

Continue Reading: Recipe: Roasted Parsnips with Thyme

Tags: parsnips | farmersmarket | recipe | thyme |

Chores to do in the garden before winter sets in

It has definitely become colder. This week has turned out to be pretty wintry, a sign that weekend yard work needs to come to a close for the year very soon. This includes your vegetable garden.

There are certain chores that you need to do before the ground freezes and is covered in snow. These are chores that help ensure a successful 2018 gardening season by preparing the soil and helping to prevent diseases.

Continue Reading: Chores to do in the garden before winter sets in

Tags: gardening | fall | winter |

Breaking news: Development meeting for Halfmoon Township tonight at Way Fruit Farm

From our friends at Way Fruit Farm:

There have been numerous open meetings for Halfmoon Township residents concerning the type of development envisioned for the portion of Halfmoon Township East of Sawmill Road. Way Fruit Farm has allowed the township to utilize our facility for these meetings because we truly believe that the more voices that are heard, the better our community becomes.

Continue Reading: Breaking news: Development meeting for Halfmoon Township tonight at Way Fruit Farm

Tags: HalfmoonTownship | zoning |

Local Food Notes for Nov. 3

The Olde Bedford Beer Festival, The Bishop Carroll Wine Festival, Ales for Tails (support the Clearfield SPCA while enjoying great beer!), and the PA Veterans Farm Trail highlight this week’s Local Food Notes.

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Tags: LocalFoodNotes | beer | wine | farming |

Attention all bakers: Way Fruit Farm Apple Pie Contest is this Saturday

Time to dust off that amazing apple pie recipe you have stashed away for special occasions, because Way Fruit Farm is hosting its annual Apple Pie Contest on Saturday. Judging will begin at 10:30 a.m.

Entries may be dropped off at Way Fruit Farm on Friday during normal business hours (8 a.m. to 7 p.m.) and Saturday by 10 a.m. The event is sponsored by First National Bank.

Continue Reading: Attention all bakers: Way Fruit Farm Apple Pie Contest is this Saturday

Tags: applepie | WayFruitFarm |

Sure celeriac’s ugly…but it’s also delicious

Never judge a book by its cover. And never judge a vegetable by its exterior.

A great example of this is celeriac. You may have seen it at the grocery store or farmers’ market. Its rough, brown, kind of hairy exterior causes a lot of people to scrunch up their face and move on.

But ignoring the celeriac based on looks means you are missing out on a delicious vegetable.

Continue Reading: Sure celeriac’s ugly…but it’s also delicious

Tags: celeriac | recipe |

Fall festivals abound this weekend

The leaves are changing, even if the weather has been feeling like August lately. If you are a fan of fall festivals, this weekend is your time.

The choices this weekend are plentiful, so get ready to stroll among the leaves and check out the crafts, live music, people, and of course, local food that makes a Central Pennsylvania fall festival so much fun. Here’s a list of local fall fests to help you plan your festival time, and make a day of it.

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Tags: fallfestivals |

Pumpkins: More than just pies and jack-o-lanterns

The pumpkin is a ubiquitous symbol during this time of year. Pumpkins, both the plastic and real kind, are everywhere, and yet at the same time are underrated. There seems to be just a few uses for pumpkins in our national psyche…jack-o-lanterns, pies, and maybe soup.

And no, I don’t count pumpkin spice products. Those are often just something with nutmeg and cinnamon in them to make them taste sort of like a pumpkin pie with zero actual pumpkin.

Continue Reading: Pumpkins: More than just pies and jack-o-lanterns

Tags: pumpkins | recipe |

Interview with owners of Feel Goodery Foods

Feel Goodery Foods is a prepared meal service, using local ingredients to create weekly seasonal menus.  It is owned and operated by State College locals Laura Zaino and Melanie Rosenberger. WPSU Local Food Journey recently interviewed the owners of one of the newest additions to central Pennsylvania’s local food scene.

- How long has your business been in existence?

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Six surprising uses for fall apples

Fall is apple season, and Pennsylvania apples are fantastic. You can find fresh local apples at any farmers market this time of year, and many local orchards sell them directly to the public.

Apples really are good for us. They are a good source of vitamin C and fiber, and there is evidence they may prevent certain cancers.

Plus, they are delicious. You can eat them out of hand, or bake them into pies. But what if you go a little nuts at the farmers market and have a ton of apples that you need to use up? Then keep reading, and you will find six unusual, and fantastic, uses for apples…

Continue Reading: Six surprising uses for fall apples

Tags: apples | recipe |

Ardry Farms’ pumpkin butter recipe is a must try

Ardry Farms in Howard is well-known by farmers market fans, as well they should. They have been a farmers market presence in Central Pennsylvania for more than 80 years, selling a wide variety of local produce and wonderful baked goods.

This time of year, you can find pumpkins sold by them at North Atherton Market, Bellefonte Farmers Market, and Boalsburg Farmers Market, including varieties that are good to eat. Along with pies, you can also make other tasty things with pumpkins, including pumpkin butter. Many people rave about Trader Joe’s pumpkin butter, but Andry Farms has a recipe for it that is even better than ol’ TJ’s. And, it’s very easy to make!

Continue Reading: Ardry Farms’ pumpkin butter recipe is a must try

Tags: recipe | pumpkinbutter | ArdryFarms |

Local Food Notes for Sept. 15

This week’s Local Food Notes feature an event for bacon fans, State College’s Food Truck Fiesta, the Delgrosso Italian Heritage Festival, and magic at Otto’s Pub and Brewery.

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Five Fantastic Local Food Finds

We have so many great things to eat in these parts that are made with local ingredients. Here’s five that I recommend seeking out and trying:

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Tags: Fivefinds | AltoonaFarmersMarket | VillageEatinghouse | WorldsFare | Ottos | Gigi's |

Smoking peppers for future use the easy way

Smoke flavor is a favorite of mine, something I can’t get enough of. I love barbecue, chipotle peppers, smoked salmon, you name it…if it’s smoky, I’m game.

As an avid gardener, I often become overwhelmed with a surplus of peppers, especially the hot ones since they are so prolific. At first I either gave them away until people were sick of seeing me with them, then I started to freeze the peppers. Then one day I got an idea: smoke them.

Continue Reading: Smoking peppers for future use the easy way

Tags: recipe | smoking | peppers |

Saturday farmers markets still going strong into fall

You can certainly measure the seasons by what you see at our local farmers markets. The spring onions, greens, radishes, etc. transition to things like green beans, summer squash, tomatoes, corn, and peppers. And now, we begin the shift to fall produce, like pumpkins, apples, and winter squash.

There is nothing quite like going to a farmers market on a relaxing Saturday. Everyone seems to be in a good mood, there’s always something new to find, and you just can’t beat local food.

Here’s a list of local Saturday markets…maybe there’s one on this list you’ve never been to before?:

Continue Reading: Saturday farmers markets still going strong into fall

Tags: farmersmarket | saturday |

How to help the Texas local food community recover from Harvey

Hurricane Harvey will go down in history as one of the worst natural disasters ever to hit the United States. By now you’ve seen the images of flooded homes, of people with what possessions they can save on boats looking for shelter, and of highways under 15 feet of water.

While the human cost is great, much of it has been focused on urban areas. Meanwhile, farmers in southeast Texas and Louisiana have suffered greatly and can use our help.

Continue Reading: How to help the Texas local food community recover from Harvey

Tags: Hurricane | aid | farmers |

Friends & Farmers Announces “Plow to Plate–A Harvest Dinner” Aug. 23

Enjoy local food, wine and the company of your neighbors at the 2017 Plow to Plate Harvest Dinner sponsored by Friends & Farmers Cooperative and Mount Nittany Vineyard & Winery. Proceeds will benefit the Friends & Farmers Co-op Online Market. The event will be held at Mount Nittany Vineyard in Centre Hall from 5:00 to 8:30 pm on Wednesday, Aug. 23.

Continue Reading: Friends & Farmers Announces “Plow to Plate–A Harvest Dinner” Aug. 23

Tags: plowtoplate | friends&farmers |

Five uses for all that extra garden stuff

Gardeners all across Central Pennsylvania are having a great year. Good rain in most places and warm temperatures have led to bountiful harvests of all kinds of garden vegetables.

If you are a gardener, you know how quickly you can be overwhelmed with a big harvest. Zucchini is a prime suspect, as having as few as three plants can quickly lead to too many zukes.

After awhile, your neighbors and coworkers are tired of all the cucumbers, zucchini, tomatoes, etc. you try to share and begin to run from you when they see you coming with a wheelbarrow of produce, o you’re stuck with tons of veggies. What to do? Here’s five ideas…

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Tags: gardening |

FarmFest celebrates 20 years of organic agriculture in Pennsylvania this weekend

Editor’s Note: This is a fantastic event that’s perfect for any local food enthusiast. Come learn about local organic farming, enjoy some wonderful local food, and just have some fun…

Visitors to Pennsylvania Organic FarmFest 2017​, the two-day organic agriculture and sustainable living event, will enjoy a full slate of interactive family activities, live entertainment, local, organic food and craft vendors, and speakers, educational workshops and demonstrations at the Centre County Grange Fairgrounds, Centre Hall, PA, July 28-29.

FarmFest is free and runs Friday, July 28, from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. and Saturday, July 29, from 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Continue Reading: FarmFest celebrates 20 years of organic agriculture in Pennsylvania this weekend

Tags: FarmFest | organicfarming |

Get delicious blueberries this week at a great price!

Mountainhome Farm needs your help! The blueberry and lamb/goat farm has a bit of a problem…lots of delicious blueberries all ripening at the same time. The farm, located in a beautiful area between Julian and Unionville, offers u-pick blueberries at an amazing $2.75 a quart, and they do not want to waste a single berry.

That said, farm owners JoAnn and John Sengle sent a request to let people know that this week, starting at 6:00 p.m. until dusk daily, blueberry picking is available. And these are fantastic blueberries, tasty, sweet, and large.

Continue Reading: Get delicious blueberries this week at a great price!

Tags: blueberries | mountainhomefarm | u-pick |

Six chores for the July garden

It’s July in Central Pennsylvania, a great time to be a gardener. If you’re a three-season gardener like me, the spring vegetables have run their course and summer vegetables and herbs are in full swing. There’s always plenty to harvest, and many of us are already overwhelmed by zucchini and cucumbers. Tomatoes are ripening, and young winter squash and pumpkins are showing up on vines.

Of course, part of this is maintaining and managing your garden to make sure it doesn’t falter at any point. Here’s six July garden chores to help ensure a great harvest through the summer and into the fall:

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Tags: gardening | July | chores |

Local Food Notes for July 7

Local Food Notes for July 7 includes a listing of great Saturday farmers markets, the Somerset Arts and Crafts Festival, and how to ID wild edible plants.

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Local Food Notes for June 30

Local Food Notes for June 30 include Over the Moon Farms selling great local meats today at Nature’s Pantry, Frosty Mugs of Thunder Brewfest in Somerset, Tait Farm’s picnic food ideas, and Boalsburg Farmers Market’s special July 4th hours.

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Tags: LocalFoodNotes |

Farm-style deviled eggs get a flavor boost via being local

Looking for an easy dish to bring to a July 4th picnic? Deviled eggs are a standard go-to for cookouts, and while many recipes for them are basically the same, deviled eggs leave plenty of room for variations. In my hometown of York, Pa., deviled eggs are topped with Old Bay seasoning instead of paprika. Baltimore folks take that one step further, adding crab meat to the deviled egg mixture.

Our deviled egg recipe is more about land than sea, more specifically, the farm. Local eggs that you can get from farmers markets, etc. are often better than their supermarket cousins. Not just in flavor, but in color, as the deeper yellows and oranges of farm-fresh eggs make for an attractive deviled egg visual. To give an even bigger flavor boost, a few strips of local bacon, chopped fine, is added to give it a smoky kick.

Continue Reading: Farm-style deviled eggs get a flavor boost via being local

Tags: recipe | deviledeggs | cookout | July4th |

Local Food Notes for June 23

Local Food Notes for June 23 includes Bee Tree Berry Farm u-pick, “bites on boards” at Tait Farm, beer and wine tasting in Tyrone, and a gardening seminar put on by Penn State’s Student Farm and the Lemont Barn.

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Tags: LocalFoodnotes | TaitFarm | Tyrone | beer | wine | gardening | BeeTree |

Pick your favorite berries and discover new ones at Bee Tree Berry Farm

The Bee Tree Berry Farm is a berry lovers’ dream.

Not only does the farm offer “standard” berries like strawberries, red and black raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries, but other types you might not find in a grocery store, such as gooseberries, elderberries, and currants. While the farm is a berry lovers’ dream, it is also the realization of a dream of its owners, Mark and Laura MacDonald.

Continue Reading: Pick your favorite berries and discover new ones at Bee Tree Berry Farm

Tags: BeeTreeBerryFarm | berries |

Local Food Notes for June 16

This week’s Local Food Notes includes PA on the Patio, Tait Farm celebrates 30 years of tasty shrubs, a fantastic event to take Dad to for Father’s Day, and a Juneteenth celebration in Huntingdon.

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Tags: LocalFoodNotes | Father'sDay | TaitFarm | |

What to do with all those strawberries

All the local berry farms like Bee Tree Berry Farm and Way Fruit Farm are in full strawberry mode. You can find great deals at these farms via “U-pick” specials, where you go out and do all the harvesting work.

It’s a great way to get delicious local strawberries that are so much better than the ones in the supermarket in December. Of course, your eyes are bigger than your stomach when out in the field picking strawberries, so you might overdo it and have lots of leftover strawberries. So what to do if you have extras?

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Tags: strawberries | strawberry |

Local Food Notes for June 2

Local Food Notes for June 2 include the Happy Valley Music Festival, the Bellefonte Children’s Fair, Friday Night Music at Happy Valley Winery, and Elk Creek has a pop-up beer truck!

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Tags: LocalFoodNotes |

Five tips for gardening success in late spring/early summer

Gardening season is off to a little bit of a rocky start. Cool temperatures in May have put a damper on planting, as soil temperatures have hovered in the 40s to mid-50s, too low for germination and growth for many plants. A very wet month has also caused its own set of issues (State College has set a record for most days with rain in a spring).

Regardless of the weather, many of us have kicked off the summer gardening season and have plants in the ground. This early stage, when the plant is small, is vital for later gardening success. You need to protect the plant as much as possible, and keep in mind some things that will help ensure your garden is bountiful later this summer. Here’s five tips for early season gardening success.

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Tags: gardening |

Five local food items for your Memorial Day Weekend cookout table

Memorial Day is the kickoff for summer, and many of us will be hosting or attending cookouts. Our local food bounty deserves a place at your cookout table, and here’s five items you can find at our regional Friday and Saturday farmers markets. Seek them out, and support your local food community.

Continue Reading: Five local food items for your Memorial Day Weekend cookout table

Tags: MemorialDay | farmersmarkets | grilling |

WPSU brings new tasting fest to the Park

Make plans on Saturday, May 20 for an afternoon of food and fun at the first ever “A Taste of Innovation” presented by WPSU Penn State. The event will take place from noon to 4:00 p.m. on the grounds surrounding the Outreach Building.
This family-friendly, festival-style gathering will offer tastings of a wide variety of local foods, wines and craft beverages as well as live entertainment, all benefiting WPSU-FM.

Guests will enjoy food samples from some of the area’s local chefs and food vendors, including Otto’s Pub and Brewery, World’s Fare Catering and DelGrosso Foods. Wine, craft beer and hard cider tastings will also be available to anyone 21 or older with valid identification.

Continue Reading: WPSU brings new tasting fest to the Park

Tags: WPSU | events | TasteofInnovation |

Local Food Notes for May 12

Lots of things to enjoy this Mother’s Day weekend that has to do with local food. Read on…

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Tags: localfoodnotes | Mother'sDay |

Clan Stewart Farm hit hard by Monday’s storms; how you can help them recover

In just 15 minutes, one of Central Pennsylvania’s oldest working farms took the hardest blow from nature it has ever felt in its history. And they need our help to recover.

The more than 200-year-old, 8th-generation Clan Stewart Farm, located roughly between Huntingdon and State College in Huntingdon County, was one of the victims of Monday’s severe weather that spawned a confirmed tornado near Rebersburg and brought down trees and wires throughout the county. Straight-line winds were likely what hit the Clan Stewart Farm, and they did plenty of damage.

Continue Reading: Clan Stewart Farm hit hard by Monday’s storms; how you can help them recover

Tags: ClanStewartFarm | GoFundMe |

Local Food Notes for April 21

This week we have Way Fruit Farm’s Apple Blossom Festival, Elk Creek Cafe’s Earth Day 71 Mile Dinner, gardening stuff from The Garden nursery in Centre Hall, and herb tasting at Tait Farm.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for April 21

Tags: LocalFoodNotes | TaitFarm | WayFruitFarm | ElkCreek | TheGarden |

Forget what you think about ketchup and try Garden Secrets’ locally-made version

Ketchup is one of those things that some people love and some people hate. It’s also something that people think they know based on years of limited options. To many people, ketchup (or catsup, but for the record we’re going with ketchup) is either Hunt’s, Heinz, or store brand.

However, a Millheim entrepreneur has products that will change your concept of ketchup, and maybe even convert some ketchup haters. Linn Auman runs Garden Secrets, a maker of fantastic sauces that include chili sauce, mustards, pepper relish, barbecue sauce, and of course, homemade ketchup.

Continue Reading: Forget what you think about ketchup and try Garden Secrets’ locally-made version

Tags: GardenSecrets | ketchup |

What to plant, what not to plant?

This week’s Local Food Notes include CSA signups, Lemont Farmers Market is looking for new vendors, Earth Day at Elk Creek Cafe, and a great deal at Mt. Nittany Winery.

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Local Food Notes for April 7

This week’s Local Food Notes features Mike McGrath’s weekend appearances to benefit WPSU, Way Fruit Farm’s Easter hams and baked goods and how to order them, how Tait Farm can help make your Easter table shine, and a fantastic music set at Elk Creek Cafe and Aleworks Saturday night.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for April 7

Tags: LocalFoodNotes | TaitFarm | WayFruitFarm | ElkCreek | WPSU |

You Bet Your Garden’s Mike McGrath’s in town this weekend…five reasons to go see him!

If you are a gardener and a WPSU listener, chances are quite good that you’ve heard of Mike McGrath. The long-time garden writer has a fantastic show “You Bet Your Garden” that runs Sundays at 11:00 a.m. on WPSU. He’s coming to State College this weekend for a Friday evening dinner and a Saturday morning talk, both benefitting WPSU.

Mike’s show is like an hour-long clinic on organic gardening and lawn care. People call his show with questions about pest removal, sick plants, best kinds of tomatoes, etc. He will be here for two events, which include a Friday evening dinner and Saturday morning talk. Tickets are still available. This is going to be a great weekend for Central PA gardeners, and here’s five reasons why:

Continue Reading: You Bet Your Garden’s Mike McGrath’s in town this weekend…five reasons to go see him!

Tags: WPSU | fundraiser | gardening | YouBetYourGarden |

Local Food Journey seeks volunteer writers

Have a passion for local food? Love to cook with local ingredients and have some awesome recipes to share? Are a producer of local food and want to share the secrets, and stories, of your local food life?

Then become a volunteer writer for WPSU’s Local Food Journey! We are looking for people with a passion for local food to help us share the news about the tasty stuff made/grown right here in Central PA.

You can start your journey with Local Food Journey by emailing Jamie Oberdick, editor, at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

Thanks!

Continue Reading: Local Food Journey seeks volunteer writers

Tags: writers |

Invasive weed makes a great pesto!

You’ve probably seen garlic mustard during a walk at a park or pretty much anywhere in Pennsylvania. It’s an invasive, noxious weed that features broad, round-ish deep green leaves, and eventually puts up a stalk of small white flowers. It’s a hardy plant, sometimes even growing right through winter if it’s mild enough.

The plant is believed to have been brought here in the 1800s by settlers from Europe, and it has quickly spread. If left unchecked, garlic mustard can take over an ecosystem, and greatly harm native species. Deer do not care for it, so they end up eating competing plants, allowing it to spread even more efficiently.

Most biologists encourage removal of this plant when you see it on your property, and a great way to do that is harvest it to eat it, as garlic mustard is actually edible. And one way to do that is make a spring pesto with it.

Continue Reading: Invasive weed makes a great pesto!

Tags: recipe | garlicmustard | spring | pesto |

WPSU TV needs your help! Pledge your support this weekend

Editor’s Note: Today Local Food Journey ask you, the reader, to please support WPSU-TV during a time when they need our help the most. Please see below, and once you’re ready to give you can do so at this link: http://wpsu.org/donate/pledge/

Dear Neighbors,

At WPSU we believe in the example set by the words of Fred Rogers. We believe in communities working together, and we are committed to providing Central Pennsylvanians with the programs that you count on each and every day. But right now we have a need and are asking you to respond.

We are grateful for the financial gifts of support that we received during our March TV fundraising campaign. But unfortunately, we fell short of our goal and need to raise an additional $20,000. These dollars are critical for us to continue to pay for the best programming for children and adults across the arts, science, and news, as well as telling stories from our own neighborhoods.

Continue Reading: WPSU TV needs your help! Pledge your support this weekend

Tags: WPSU |

Five tips to get you ready for seed starting season

While winter is back after going on an extended vacation, it’s time to start thinking about gardening because before long, all this snow will be just a memory. If you are a serious gardener, chances are very good you grow a lot of things from seed. Many vegetable plants need their seeds started indoors so they reach maturity before our first frost of the fall.

If you are new to growing plants from seed, it may seem a little intimidating, but it’s really not that difficult. A successful seed starting operation does need a little advance planning. Here’s five tips to help you get started sowing a successful garden:

Continue Reading: Five tips to get you ready for seed starting season

Tags: gardening | seedstarting | spring |

Love ‘You Bet Your Garden?’ Here’s a chance to meet him and support WPSU

It’s always garden time, but we especially love springtime in Pennsylvania! WPSU-FM invites you to meet Mike McGrath, gardening wizard and host of the radio show “You Bet Your Garden” to learn how to get your garden buzzing with excitement this spring–and support your local NPR station, WPSU-FM. You will have two opportunities!

Continue Reading: Love ‘You Bet Your Garden?’ Here’s a chance to meet him and support WPSU

Tags: WPSU | YouBetYourGarden | MikeMcGrath |

Local Food Notes for March 3

This weekend, we have the Susquehanna Wine Trail, maple syrup, a wine/whiskey event in Johnstown, and good news for all you Rusted Root fans.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for March 3

Tags: Localfoodnotes | wine | spirits | maplesyrup |

Friends & Farmers Coop holds Souper Sunday Soup Swap

Love soup? Love making soup? Then here’s the event for you.

Friends & Farmers Cooperative will hold its Souper Sunday Soup Swap at 6:00 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 26 at the Meetinghouse on Atherton in State College. A shared meal will be provided by Tap Root Kitchen.

Continue Reading: Friends & Farmers Coop holds Souper Sunday Soup Swap

Tags: FriendsandFarmers | soup |

Still lots of work to do down on the farm in winter

As our central Pennsylvania winter slogs onward into the home stretch, have you ever wondered what vegetable/fruit farmers do during the cold months? While things slow down, farmers do not exactly sit around and watch Netflix. They have plenty of chores, and even grow and harvest things.

David Hopey, farm manager for Tait Farm, has lots to do in the winter months. Thanks to high tunnels, Tait Farm can grow more cold-hardy plants and harvest them weekly. “We are a four season farm meaning we grow and harvest crops year round,” Hopey said. “Crops grown in the winter are mainly leafy greens, such as spinach, arugula, mustard greens, claytonia, kale, collards as well as scallions and leeks. All of these crops can be grown in winter in our climate without supplemental heat. These crops are able to grow through winter so long as they are grown in hoop houses or low tunnels.”

Continue Reading: Still lots of work to do down on the farm in winter

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Local Food Notes for Feb. 10

This week’s Local Food Notes has some fun things to do for Valentines weekend and more…

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Feb. 10

Tags: LocalFoodNotes | ValentinesDay |

Recipe: Casserole combines the Pennsylvania flavors of apples, sauerkraut, and kielbasa

Sauerkraut is the quintessential Pennsylvania Dutch food. In William Woy Weaver’s book As American as Shoofly Pie: The Foodlore and Fakelore of Pennsylvania Dutch Cuisine, Weaver mentions that he has uncovered literally thousands of sauerkraut recipes that are Pennsylvania-based.

While not as popular as it once was, sauerkraut is still a big part of the Pennsylvania diet, even if it’s just as part of a good luck meal at New Year’s. But sauerkraut doesn’t have to be just for special occasions, it can be part of easy-to-make winter weeknight meals.

Sauerkraut goes well with pork, of course, but especially goes well with another Pennsylvania staple, kielbasa. The Polish sausage has a nice smoky flavor that does well with sauerkraut’s sourish tastes.

Continue Reading: Recipe: Casserole combines the Pennsylvania flavors of apples, sauerkraut, and kielbasa

Tags: recipe | kilebasa | sauerkraut | apples |

Laugh it up and support Taproot Kitchen tomorrow night

We’re in the mid-winter torpor part of the local food year, so no Local Food Notes this week. However, we did want to mention this great fundraiser put on by Taproot Kitchen tomorrow night at Wisecrackers Comedy Club.

Taproot Kitchen is a community of individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities, their families, and friends who meet regularly in State College to cook and garden. They grow, pick, glean, preserve, cook, and serve healthy local food.

Continue Reading: Laugh it up and support Taproot Kitchen tomorrow night

Tags: TaprootKitchen | benefit |

Time to make your reservations for a local food Valentine’s Day dinner

Haven’t made your Valentine’s Day reservation yet? Not sure where to go? Well, better get cracking, because we’re now less than two weeks away. Here’s some help…five great local restaurants for your local food Valentine Day’s dinner.

Continue Reading: Time to make your reservations for a local food Valentine’s Day dinner

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Local Food Notes for Jan. 27

This week’s local food notes features PASA’s Farming for the Future Conference, Clearfield’s Groundhog Trail Wine Festival, Tait Farm has ideas to make you the soup and sandwich master, and the Nutrition Habit Challenge.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Jan. 27

Tags: LocalFoodNotes | wine | TaitFarm | NHC |

PASA’s new Executive Director starts this week

The following is courtesy of a PASA press release:

On January 23, 2017, Hannah Smith-Brubaker became the Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA). After an extensive national search lead by the PASA board of directors, Smith-Brubaker became the third person in the organization’s 25 year history to serve as executive director, following Brian Snyder and Tim Bowser (Lamonte Garber and Ted LeBow served as interim directors). The organization’s 5,800 members are excited to take this next step forward on the journey to meet their mission of “promoting profitable farms that produce healthy food for all people while respecting the natural environment.”

Smith-Brubaker leaves her position of Deputy Secretary of Agriculture for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, having served with a focus on agricultural markets and economic development, farmland preservation, and the charitable food system. During her tenure she served to ensure a place at the table for everyone, developing a reputation for inclusion and open dialogue that led to several significant achievements impacting family farms throughout the state.

Continue Reading: PASA’s new Executive Director starts this week

Tags: PASA | HannahSmith-Brubaker |

Local Food Notes for Jan. 20

This week, coupons for State College Farmers Market, Tait Farms Sample Saturdays return, and Elk Creek Cafe serves up local food and blues Saturday night.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Jan. 20

Tags: ElkCreek | LocalFoodNotes | TaitFarm | FarmersMarket |

Local Food Notes for Jan. 13

This week, we have registration info for the Farming for the Future Conference, where to find indoor farmers markets in the dead of winter, and how to give back to your community.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Jan. 13

Tags: LocalFoodnotes | farmersmarket | PASA |

Fight winter blues with some tropical comfort food: arroz con pollo

It’s cold and miserable outside, which is another way of saying “January in Central Pennsylvania.” Hearty food, aka “comfort food,” has always been something people turn to during the dark cold eves of winter.

While comfort food for many Pennsylvanians is a pot of stew or a roast chicken dinner, for some Pennsylvanians it’s food from their much warmer homeland. Pennsylvania has relatively large population of Puerto Ricans, and this includes my hometown of York. I had Puerto Rican friends growing up who introduced me to food from their sunny island, such as mofongo, tostones, and arroz con pollo, which means chicken with rice in English.

Arroz con pollo is a caldero dish, which means it is made in a large pot or dutch oven. A caldero, a kind of dutch oven, is a standard item in the Puerto Rican family kitchen.

Continue Reading: Fight winter blues with some tropical comfort food: arroz con pollo

Tags: ethnicfood | recipe | recipes | chicken | rice |

10 local food resolutions for 2017

During the early days of 2017, many of us set resolutions. While many resolutions are based around exercise, getting more sleep, visiting old friends, etc., we have some suggested resolutions are local-food focused.

They are resolutions to try some new things, and branch out your support of our region’s local food. Here they are, and here’s to a great 2017, and Happy New Year to you, our faithful Local Food Journey reader:

Continue Reading: 10 local food resolutions for 2017

Tags: localfood | newyears |

Baked apple sundaes an easy-to-make holiday crowd pleaser

Everyone loves apple pie a la mode, this recipe takes the basic concept of an apple pie and simplifies it for those who don’t want to deal with a crust.

The first step to baking apples is making sure you choose one that can hold up to baking, otherwise they’ll fall apart. The best firm baking apples include varieties such as Granny Smith, Jonagold, and McIntosh. Very important to choose the right variety if you don’t want to deal with a real mess. You can definitely still find apples from local sources like Way Fruit Farm.

Once you have the right apples, then you core them. You can use a paring knife if you have the skills, otherwise an apple corer can be had for cheap. The key is to get all or most of the core out, and not cutting the bottom to allow the melted butter/brown sugar mix to stream out the bottom during baking.

Continue Reading: Baked apple sundaes an easy-to-make holiday crowd pleaser

Tags: apples | icecream | recipes | recipe | Holiday |

Pennsylvania Dutch sand tarts are a fantastic holiday cookie

To many who live in Pennsylvania Dutch country, sand tarts are a big part of the holiday festivities. Topped with sprinkles or ground almonds, hese wafer-thin sugar cookies are crispy and delicious. I feel bad for the parts of Pennsylvania that do not have them, as they are quite the holiday treat.

Below is an old recipe for these tasty cookies that you can easily do at home. The ingredients are simple, but key to a great sand tart is rolling them thin. Otherwise, they’re not sand tarts!

Continue Reading: Pennsylvania Dutch sand tarts are a fantastic holiday cookie

Tags: cookies | recipe | holdiays | PennsylvaniaDutch | recipes |

Local Food Notes for Dec. 9

This very holiday-ish edition of Local Food Notes features a holiday open house at Mt. Nittany Winery, Bellefonte Victorian Christmas, gingerbread houses at Millbrook Marsh, and a great band playing at local food hotspot Elk Creek Cafe + Aleworks.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Dec. 9

Tags: holidays | LocalFoodNotes |

Five holiday gift ideas for gardeners

Gardening season is over, but for the serious gardener, thoughts of playing in the dirt are never far from one’s mind. And that includes the holiday season. Finding the right gift for a gardener can be a bit of a challenge if you are not one yourself, but here’s five sure bet gifts that will be well-received by any gardener:

Continue Reading: Five holiday gift ideas for gardeners

Tags: holidays | gardening | gifts |

Winter Craft and Local Food Fair Saturday to benefit Taproot Kitchen

Taproot Kitchen, a nonprofit organization that brings adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities together to cook local food and socialize, will be holding a Winter Craft and Local Food Fair on Saturday, Dec. 3, from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Meetinghouse on Atherton, located at 318 S. Atherton St. in State College.

The event will feature a variety of holiday gift ideas and local food. The crafts on sale will include handmade, locally sourced ceramics, wood block prints, hand-knit clothing, baby toys and mobiles, holiday ornaments and cards, specialty foods, and more.

Continue Reading: Winter Craft and Local Food Fair Saturday to benefit Taproot Kitchen

Tags: TaprootKitchen | holidays |

Three great (and easy) Thanksgiving sides recipes, part 3: Homemade cranberry sauce

Editor’s note: This week in the three days leading up to Thanksgiving, we will feature three ideas for sides that you can pull together with a minimal amount of ingredients and little stress. Today’s third recipe is cranberry sauce.

For whatever reason, in my experience it seems that many people feel that cranberry sauce is beyond their cooking abilities. This is something I really don’t understand, because cranberry sauce is extremely easy to make.

While Cranberry Sauce a la Bart (aka Bart Simpson’s name for cranberry sauce out of a can) is pretty much as simple as can be, homemade cranberry sauce (surprise surprise) is so much better. You can up your cranberry sauce game with a variety of additions, such as raisins, currants, nuts, etc. This cranberry sauce recipe gets some flavor from traditional holiday flavors, and toasted walnuts.

Continue Reading: Three great (and easy) Thanksgiving sides recipes, part 3: Homemade cranberry sauce

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Three great (and easy) Thanksgiving sides recipes, part 2: Pennsylvania Dutch baked corn

Editor’s note: This week in the three days leading up to Thanksgiving, we will feature three ideas for sides that you can pull together with a minimal amount of ingredients and little stress. Today’s second recipe is Pennsylvania Dutch baked corn.

If you grew up in York, Pa., like me, then you grew up around a lot of Pennsylvania Dutch food. A lot of this stuff is not found elsewhere in the country, or even in parts of Pennsylvania away from Amish country. When I lived in Pittsburgh, I looked forward to family holiday visits because I knew there would be at least a few PA Dutch items on the table, and one of these was baked corn.

Baked corn is actually a sort of savory hot custard, and to some it may seem a bit odd (like many PA German dishes). However, it is absolutely delicious, slightly sweet, and buttery. It is made with dried corn, a culinary treat that is not found outside of our region. John Copes is the brand we used, and the cartoon Amish man on the package makes me instantly think of family Thanksgiving dinners. Dried corn’s flavor is a bit more intense than regular corn, and is best described as nutty.

Plus, it’s very easy to make. If you can mix things together in a baking pan and put it in the oven, you can make baked corn.

Continue Reading: Three great (and easy) Thanksgiving sides recipes, part 2: Pennsylvania Dutch baked corn

Tags: recipe | Thanksgiving | corn | PADutch |

Three great (and easy) Thanksgiving sides recipe, part 1: Sautéed Swiss chard

Editor’s note: This week in the three days leading up to Thanksgiving, we will feature three ideas for sides that you can pull together with a minimal amount of ingredients and little stress. Today’s first recipe is sautéed Swiss chard.

Swiss chard is a perfect Thanksgiving side dish. A truly cold-hardy vegetable, Swiss chard can be still found as a fresh vegetable, and it’s a staple of many fall gardens.

It’s also a very tasty vegetable, and in fact, is sort of two vegetables in one. The stems of the Swiss chard leaf looks a lot like celery, and you can chop them up and cook them much in the same way. The leaves are quite delicious, sort of in a sweet spot between the delicateness of spinach and the toughness of kale. The slight bitterness of chard is an absolute plus.

Continue Reading: Three great (and easy) Thanksgiving sides recipe, part 1: Sautéed Swiss chard

Tags: recipe | chard | Thanksgiving |

Local cooking expert to teach NHS students how to make healthy snacks

LaCreta Holland, owner of Happy Valley Learn to Cook and Local Food Journey contributor, is offering her cooking skills and expertise to teach students from the State College NHS school how to cook healthy and tasty after-school/weekend snacks.

The NHS School provides educational programming for autistic students. They are partners with Penguin Packs, a weekend food backpack program started via a partnership between the State College Food Bank and the Faith United Church of Christ.

Continue Reading: Local cooking expert to teach NHS students how to make healthy snacks

Tags: BoalsburgFarmersMarket |

Local Food Notes for Nov. 11

First off, Happy Veteran’s Day, and thank you to all who serve or have served in our nation’s armed forces. Here’s Local Food Notes for this week:

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Nov. 11

Tags: localfoodnotes | autumn | TaitFarm | farmersmarket |

Be a high-information voter in the 2016 Friends and Farmers Board Elections

In lieu of our usual weekly local food notes, we figured we would give you some election news (no, not that other election). On Saturday, Friends and Farmers Coop members can vote in person at the Annual Member Meeting, held at the State College Friends School from 4:00-6:30 p.m. All voting will end on Saturday, November 5th at 5:00 p.m. Board candidates will be announced at the Annual Meeting. 

It’s always better to know who your candidates are so you can make an educated choice, and Friends and Farmers have made that easy for you.

Continue Reading: Be a high-information voter in the 2016 Friends and Farmers Board Elections

Tags: FriendsandFarmers |

Pumpkin chili…yes, pumpkin chili

First things first…if you are one of those who run screaming from anything pumpkin because you’re sick and tired of the pumpkin spice world we’ve been living in the last three months, take heart. There’s no “pumpkin spice” in this recipe, just pumpkin. Because let’s be honest, most of the “pumpkin spice” products out there have no pumpkin in them.

Second, pumpkin chili sounds strange and counter intuitive, but it’s actually quite tasty. You can’t really taste “pumpkin” in this recipe, just a subtle sweetness, and a very nice thickness added to the chili.

Continue Reading: Pumpkin chili…yes, pumpkin chili

Tags: recipe | chili | pumpkin | fall |

Friends & Farmers Cooperative to hold Membership Meeting and Elections Nov. 5

Friends & Farmers Cooperative will hold its 2016 Membership Meeting and Election on Saturday, Nov. 5 from 4:00-6:30 p.m. at the State College Friends School. The Membership Meeting is open to members and any community members interested in joining the co-op.

Co-op members will vote on their democratically elected board. For a full list of candidates, head to http://www.friendsandfarmers.coop/2016_board_elections.

Continue Reading: Friends & Farmers Cooperative to hold Membership Meeting and Elections Nov. 5

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Local Food Notes for Oct. 21

This week’s Local Food Notes features two festivals, and a reminder that farmers markets are still going!

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Oct. 21

Tags: LocalFoodNotes | festivals |

The work involved getting that great local restaurant food on your fork

Editors Note: This article was originally written for inclusion in Passages, a journal of the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture.

So, you’re at your favorite farm-to-table/local food hotspot, awaiting your meal. Let’s say you ordered grilled rainbow trout, raised at a fish farm 15 miles down the road. On the side, you got garlic smashed potatoes made with ingredients that first sprouted at a farm 11 miles away, and a mixed sauteed vegetable dish that features veggies from a farmette just five miles down the road.

Sounds good and now you’re hungry, right?

Continue Reading: The work involved getting that great local restaurant food on your fork

Tags: Localfood | farmtotable | Millworks |

Fall festivals aplenty this weekend in central Pennsylvania

One of the best things about autumn is the fall festival. This weekend, there’s plenty of them to choose from. So many, one could do spend an entire day doing a “festival crawl” of sorts.

To help you figure out which one (or which two, three, or four) to check out, we put together a handy list of them:

Continue Reading: Fall festivals aplenty this weekend in central Pennsylvania

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Fall garden edition of WPSU’s Conversations Live offers up some helpful tips

For some of us, the frost this morning ended the garden season. For others who covered or grow cold hardy vegetables, things are still going but drawing to a close.

WPSU’s Conversations Live recently had an episode where host Patty Satalia was joined by Tom Butzler, a Penn State extension horticulture educator; Rob Crassweller, a horticulture professor at Penn State; and Carla Hass, a member of Penn State’s Master Gardener program and senior lecturer in Penn State’s Eberly College of Science. The four of them discussed how to get your garden ready for fall.

Continue Reading: Fall garden edition of WPSU’s Conversations Live offers up some helpful tips

Tags: WPSU | fall | gardening | ConversationsLive |

Local Food Notes for Sept. 30

Aaronsburg Dutch Fall Fest, chicken barbeque, The Farmers Wife Fall Fest, and Apple Cider Demonstration Day are all part of this week’s Local Food Notes.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Sept. 30

Tags: LocalFoodNotes | autumn |

The joy of fall gardening

If you are like me, you are a gardener who doesn’t think of gardening as a spring-summer thing. Autumn may be to many people a time to rake leaves and watch football, but for gardeners, it’s still time to grow.

There are some advantages to gardening in the autumn. For one, it’s not near as hot, and you’re not limited to mornings and evenings. But there are other reasons to keep on playing in the dirt.

Continue Reading: The joy of fall gardening

Tags: gardening | autumn |

Local Food Notes for Sept. 23

The first Local Food Notes of autumn 2016 features the Millheim Oktoberfest, wine glass painting, fall cocktails, and the Milesburg Museum Apple Harvest Festival and Car Show.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Sept. 23

Tags: LocalFoodNotes | autumn |

Coca-Cola and ice: exploring what it means to be ‘local food’

Recently, the Lexington Herald-Leader did an investigative reporting piece on the University of Kentucky’s dedication to local food that included something that raised a lot of eyebrows.

As part of a $245 million contract, the university’s food vendor, Aramark, is required to spend 20 percent of the food and drink budget for the university from Kentucky farmers and local food producers. Curiously enough, more than $1 million of that was spent on two things that don’t really jump out when one thinks of local food—Coca-Cola and ice.

Okay, so it’s pretty obvious ice and Coca-Cola really do not fit the definition of local food (the argument was Coca-Cola had a distributor nearby). But the question here is what, exactly, is the criteria for local food?

Continue Reading: Coca-Cola and ice: exploring what it means to be ‘local food’

Tags: localfood | definition |

Local Food Notes for Sept. 16

Local Food Notes for Sept. 16 features Mt. Nittany Vineyard and Winery’s September photo contest, apple cider’s back, and fast bluegrass at Elk Creek Cafe.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Sept. 16

Tags: LocalFoodNotes | applecider | fall | wine | music |

Oven eggplant fries offer big flavor, low calories

This recipe combines two great things about September. First, one of my favorite vegetables, eggplant, are widely available at farmers markets right now. This is due to the fact that they tend to need longer growing seasons, so August-September are peak times for them.

Second, with the cooler weather starting up, it’s easier to use the oven without running up a higher air conditioning bill or heating up the house.

Eggplants can be fried, stir-fried, sauteed, baked, or grilled, but this recipe turns them into a nutritious and tasty version of fries. Breaded but baked, these are lower in fat than fried eggplant.

Continue Reading: Oven eggplant fries offer big flavor, low calories

Tags: recipe | eggplant | healthy |

Six things that are great about local food and fall

It’s going to feel more like July 8 as opposed to September 8 today, but the cooler weather of autumn really is just about the corner. Soon we will break out the fleece and start taking in the beauty of changing leaves in our pretty part of the world. And local food goes through a transition as well.

You can still find the stars of summer at the farmers markets and roadside stands, like tomatoes, peaches, and peppers, but produce like apples and pumpkins are slowing taking over. It’s truly a great time to be a locavore, and here’s six things that are great about local food and fall in Central Pennsylvania:

Continue Reading: Six things that are great about local food and fall

Tags: fall | autumn |

Local Food Notes for Sept 2

Happy Labor Day weekend! This edition of Local Food Notes is wine event heavy, but we also highlight Bee Tree Berry Farm and the annual Crickfest. Keep reading to learn more.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Sept 2

Tags: LocalFoodnotes | wine | berries |

Penn State Student Farm Fall Festival coming Sept. 7

The Penn State Student Farm is quite an endeavor; we wrote about them on Local Food Journey and WPSU did a radio piece on them. Tucked away just off I-99, you’ve probably have driven right past the farm and never knew it.

Well, here’s your chance to visit the farm on Wednesday, Sept. 7 for the Penn State Student Farm Harvest Festival. The event will be held at the farm from 5:30-7:30 p.m.

Continue Reading: Penn State Student Farm Fall Festival coming Sept. 7

Tags: farming | PennState | StudentFarm | sustainability | event |

Restaurant review: Reedville’s Revival Kitchen lives up to the hype

Earlier this month at the Boalsburg Farmers Market’s Golden Basket Awards, an upstart restaurant and its chef took the event by storm, wowing the judges with a chicken dish and a coffee-roasted beet dish that landed the Golden Basket. That restaurant was Revival Kitchen, the chef was Quintin Wicks, and I was one of the judges.

Inspired by this experience, I pitched Revival Kitchen to my wife as a place for us to go for our August 19 16th anniversary dinner. After hearing me rave about Chef Wicks’ food, she agreed, and last Friday we took the trip down to Reedsville to celebrate at the Kitchen. And just like at the Golden Basket Awards, they did not disappoint. Yes, if you heard people hyping Revival Kitchen and ever wondered if it was worth the trip, they really do live up to it.

Continue Reading: Restaurant review: Reedville’s Revival Kitchen lives up to the hype

Tags: review | RevivalKitchen |

Evening hours at Ag Progress days tonight; here’s ideas on what to do

Penn State is a land grant university, and for three days in August, the University really hearkens back to its roots as the Farmers High School with Ag Progress Days. This year’s Ag Progress Days is Tuesday-Thursday of this week. In the past the event was held during the day and closed during the evening, leading to some complaints from those of us with day jobs about there being no evening hours. Well, recently that changed, so one Ag Progress Day has evening hours, and that’s tonight.

Ag Progress Days will run this evening until 8:00 p.m., giving area residents the opportunity to spend a few hours checking out various agriculture displays, seminars, and great local food. While it is an agricultural event, it has something for just about everyone. Here’s some things to do tonight at Ag Progress Days:

Continue Reading: Evening hours at Ag Progress days tonight; here’s ideas on what to do

Tags: AgProgressDays |

So you grow the best tomatoes ever, eh? Here’s your chance to prove it

Nothing beats homegrown tomatoes, and of course, everyone thinks they grow the best ones. Really, the argument is sort of moot because any garden tomato is pretty great, but here’s your chance to prove to central PA who has the best. This Saturday from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. Tait Farm Foods will hold their annual Tomato Festival, featuring a variety of tomato contests, including a home-grown tomato taste-off.

Continue Reading: So you grow the best tomatoes ever, eh? Here’s your chance to prove it

Tags: tomato | cooking | TaitFarm |

Tips to help your garden get through drought

As a glance at most lawns will tell you, we’re currently in a drought. The data backs that up. State College is currently experiencing its third-driest summer, second-driest year, and is in a moderate drought area as per the United States Drought Monitor.

A drought is about the biggest challenge a gardener can face, with few exceptions. Drought-stressed plants are not healthy plants, so along with the real danger of them dying, they also have reduced yields and are susceptible to disease. Water is vital, and if your garden isn’t getting it naturally, you need to take steps to make sure it gets what it needs. Here’s some tips to help your garden quench its thirst on dry days…

Continue Reading: Tips to help your garden get through drought

Tags: gardening | drought |

Local Food Notes for August 5

Local Food Notes today include the Centre County Farm Tour, the State College Brew Expo, and how your herb garden has a secret—it’s also a spa!

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Tags: LocalFoodNotes |

Revival Kitchen lives up to the hype and takes the Golden Basket Award

Over the past year or so, I’ve noticed a steady building of buzz about a restaurant down in the Amish country of Reedsville. Revival Kitchen, a farm-to-table spot over the ridge down 322 from State College, has steadily built a reputation as a go-to location for excellent, creative food made from local ingredients.

And all that growing chit-chat about a small restaurant that is a must-try was backed up at yesterday’s Golden Basket Awards, as first-timer Quintin Wicks of Revival Kitchen took the top prize at the event held at the Boalsburg Farmers Market. As a four-time judge of this six-year-old showcase of both local food and local chefs, I can attest that his win was during one of the toughest years for judging this contest, as all of the dishes were first-rate.

Continue Reading: Revival Kitchen lives up to the hype and takes the Golden Basket Award

Tags: GoldenBasketAwards | BoalsburgFarmersMarket |

Five things to do for Local Foods Week

Local Foods Week, Centre County’s annual celebration of bounty of delicious food produced right here in Centre County, runs from July 30 to August 6. What we have here really is reason to celebrate; the local food scene has exploded over the last decade or so. So, how can you celebrate? Here’s five things to do during Local Foods Week:

Win a pie contest: Once again, Friends & Farmers Coop is holding a pie contest at the Pennsylvania Certified Organic 5th Annual FarmFest. The deadline for entry is 5:00 July 29 (that’s TODAY), and you can learn more about the pie contest and how to enter here. Don’t want to bake a pie? Then be a judge! That means showing up at the Organic FarmFest. Speaking of…

Continue Reading: Five things to do for Local Foods Week

Tags: LocalFoodsWeek2016 |

6th Annual Golden Basket Chef Competition at Boalsburg Farmers’ Market

Local chefs from Central Pennsylvania’s finest dining establishments will compete for the Boalsburg Farmers Market Sixth Annual Golden Basket Award on Tuesday, Aug. 2 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. This event is held by the Boalsburg Farmers’ Market and is part of PASA’s (Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture) “Local Foods Week.” The event features chefs preparing several dishes from ingredients produced by Boalsburg Farmers’ Market vendors. 

The chefs gather their ingredients at the market, then prepare their plates for submission to the judges in front of market guests. The chefs have only 45 minutes to assemble the dishes. After the judges have tasted and scored all of the chef’s offerings, an awards ceremony is held to announce the new Golden Basket winner. While the chefs are preparing, market-goers can watch them work and enjoy free samples.

Continue Reading: 6th Annual Golden Basket Chef Competition at Boalsburg Farmers’ Market

Tags: GoldenBasketAwards | BoalsburgFarmersMarket |

Penn State Student Farm grows awareness of sustainability, local food

Editor’s Note: Local Food Journey was experiencing tech issues, but we are back after our unscheduled break. Thanks for your patience.

One of Penn State’s best kept secrets is the fact that the University has a student-run farm. Located near where Fox Hollow Road runs under US 322, this summer is the first growing season for the Student Farm Club.

This season marks the return of the student run farm after a few decades, as the previous student farm was transferred to a faculty-led program in 1989. The farm features tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, basil, kale, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, and broccoli.

Continue Reading: Penn State Student Farm grows awareness of sustainability, local food

Tags: farming | PennState | StudentFarm | sustainability |

Five mid-season gardening tips

Early July is sort of a gardening doldrums period for many. We’re right on the edge of harvesting a lot of vegetables, such as corn, tomatoes, peppers, etc. But we’re not quite there yet, so we wait.

While things may seem slow, this is an extremely important time for gardening, a key period where if you are too lax, issues can arise in your garden that cut down on production. Here are five tips to help your garden roar through the doldrums to a big finish for the season:

Continue Reading: Five mid-season gardening tips

Tags: gardening | tips |

Friends & Farmers Cooperative finds out how the cheese is made

You might love cheese, but do you know how it’s made? Ever wonder how the process goes that changes milk into delicious cheese, and how that process is done safely?

Our local food pals over at Friends & Farmers Cooperative recently visited Clover Creek Cheese Cellar LLC down in Morrison’s Cove region of Blair County, and posted a photo essay that gives you a behind-the-scenes peek of the cheese making process from cow to counter.

Continue Reading: Friends & Farmers Cooperative finds out how the cheese is made

Tags: Friends&FarmersCoop | cheese | CloverCreek |

Local Food Notes for June 24

Pick-your-own raspberries and strawberries, Tait Farm Foods cocktail session, Caitlin’s Smiles benefit at Big Springs Spirits, and Elk Creek’s Sunday music series, all in this week’s Local Food Notes

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for June 24

Tags: LocalFoodNotes | strawberries | raspberries | TaitFarm | ElkCreek | BigSpring |

Strawberry shortcake, PA Dutch style

It’s still strawberry season, but it’s on the wane. You can still find fresh, local strawberries at places like your local farmers market or favorite roadside stand.

What about pick-your-own? There are a few opportunities for pick-your-own strawberries, including the following (make sure to call ahead to confirm there are still strawberries):

Continue Reading: Strawberry shortcake, PA Dutch style

Tags: recipe | strawberries |

Tips to gardening on the cheap

About 10 years ago, one of the most ridiculous books ever published on gardening, The $64 Tomato, hit the bookstores. Basically, it was a tale that was less about gardening and more about how bad of a gardener its author, William Alexander, was at that time (no idea if he got any better).

While much of the book was written in jest, soon afterwards I’d hear people refer to it as a cautionary tale that gardening is a super-expensive endeavor. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth; gardening doesn’t have to be expensive (no, Mr. Alexander, spending $700 and $1900 for steel edging is not a necessity for growing tomatoes). With a little bit of know-how, the desire to recycle, and modest effort, you can grow a garden without breaking your bank. Here’s some tips:

Continue Reading: Tips to gardening on the cheap

Tags: gardening | cheap |

Six must-have local food items for your Memorial Day table

What a time to be a locavore. The farmers market season is now in full swing and we have the unofficial official start of summer, Memorial Day, coming up. There’s so many things that are grown and produced locally that this list could go on and on, but here’s six items that definitely deserve a place on your Memorial Day table. All of these can be found at farmers markets such as Bellefonte Farmers Market, Friday Downtown State College Farmers Market, North Atherton Farmers Market, and the Millheim Farmers Market.

Continue Reading: Six must-have local food items for your Memorial Day table

Tags: farmersmarket | picnic | MemorialDay |

Friends & Farmers Cooperative Online Market to host Bike Delivery Day on May 24

Friends & Farmers Cooperative is getting into the spirit of Centre Region’s May Bike Month by offering bike delivery services for some of its Online Market orders on Tuesday, May 24. (See attached flyer)

The Online Market is open noon Fridays to noon Mondays. This week, downtown customers and businesses can opt for bike delivery by adding “Deliver by Bike Please” in the comment section of their order.

Continue Reading: Friends & Farmers Cooperative Online Market to host Bike Delivery Day on May 24

Tags: Friends&FarmersCoop | bicycling | BikeMonth |

Festa-Nic—A Central Pa Food & Beverage Party

Village Eatinghouse, a local producer of Artisan Kitchen Sauces, hosts the 1st Annual Festa-Nic, showcasing the wide variety of local food and beverage producers,  supportive businesses and organizations in Central Pa. Proceeds will benefit Friends & Farmers Cooperative, an organization promoting the production and consumption of locally grown and produced food.

Your $10 admission fee (kids 10 and under are $5)  gets you a locally sourced picnic, tastings from participating local producers (no charge for beer, wine and spirits sampling), seminars from community organizations and businesses, backyard games, live music from local musicians, raffle and door prizes, and opportunities to connect with people and organizations supporting local. Many of these producers will also offer their products for sale at the event.

Continue Reading: Festa-Nic—A Central Pa Food & Beverage Party

Tags: Festa-Nic | event |

Farmer survey: Untreated/raw manure use on produce farms

Editor’s Note: Recently, PASA sent out a letter requesting farmers to take a survey on how they are using untreated or raw manure on their farm. Given the environmental importance to the local food community (and beyond), we are sharing this letter here. If you are a farmer, please take time to read the following and then participate in the survey. Thanks!

PASA and the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) are looking for information to better understand how farmers are using untreated or raw manure on their farms. We’re asking for this now because the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is currently asking for information regarding on-farm use of manure, as well as existing scientific research on the subject.

Continue Reading: Farmer survey: Untreated/raw manure use on produce farms

Tags: PASA | survey | farms |

Altoona’s Night Market tonight will celebrate local food with three farmers markets in one

Tonight, Altoona will throw quite a celebration of local food.

From 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., the Altoona Downtown Night Market will be held on 11th Avenue between 12th and 15th Street. The Night Market will feature three farmers markets, food and other vendors, and live entertainment including a “Kids Zone.”

Continue Reading: Altoona’s Night Market tonight will celebrate local food with three farmers markets in one

Tags: Altoona | farmersmarket | event |

Farmers Market Preview: Tuesday State College and Boalsburg Farmers Market

While there are several farmers markets in this area that run year-round, the first day of outdoor farmers market season is always a reason for celebration. While the first few market sessions may be on the chilly side, it’s the promise of warmer days ahead and the great produce it brings that is a big reason for optimism. Two markets kick off their outdoor season today, the Tuesday Downtown State College one, and the Boalsburg version.

Continue Reading: Farmers Market Preview: Tuesday State College and Boalsburg Farmers Market

Tags: farmersmarket | boalsburg | statecollege |

Celebrate National Garlic Day with a classic dish

Attention garlic lovers: This is your day. Today is National Garlic Day, a celebration that salutes that key ingredient for so many fantastic cuisines. The pungent cloves are crushed, roasted, minced, sliced, and liquefied in a wide variety of dishes, from Thai to Chinese to Italian to Mexican, and everywhere in between. To celebrate here on Local Food Journey, we’ll share some fun facts about garlic and a classic garlic dish, the famous 40-clove garlic chicken. 

Continue Reading: Celebrate National Garlic Day with a classic dish

Tags: garlic | recipe | chicken | NationalGarlicDay |

Central PA Tasting Trail broadens concept of tastings beyond wine

Tastings are no longer just for wine anymore.

Over the past 10 years or so, a variety of craft breweries, distilleries, and cideries have sprung up in Centre County and become a big part of the local food and beverage scene. To show off this local beverage bounty, the Central PA Tasting Trail was developed out of an initiative by the area’s craft beverage community to unite and promote these businesses to locals and visitors alike, with the goal of gaining exposure for the craft beverage industry within Centre County.

Continue Reading: Central PA Tasting Trail broadens concept of tastings beyond wine

Tags: beer | cider | spirits | wine | TastingTrail |

PASA webinar offers information on 0% interest loan for local food entrepreneurs

Have a local food business such as a farm, production facility, etc. or are thinking of starting one? Learn about Kiva Zip, a 0% interest loan program. Kiva uses crowdfunding to help entrepreneurs who may not qualify for conventional loans gain access to capital. This has caught on with farms across the country, as Kiva loans can help farmers with costs of production in the spring, or another important purchase to grow their farm business. Emily Keebler, who leads Kiva’s Pittsburgh initiative, will host a webinar by the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA) on Monday April 19 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. to explain Kiva Zip’s loan parameters and requirements, the application and crowdfunding process, and tips on how to quickly and successfully crowdfund a Kiva Zip loan.

Continue Reading: PASA webinar offers information on 0% interest loan for local food entrepreneurs

Tags: PASA | farmloans | |

Local Food Notes for April 8

This Local Food Notes features the Central Pennsylvania Tasting Trail, World’s Fare Catering food truck, Philly Farm & Food Fest, and the last several weeks of the indoor State College Farmers Market.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for April 8

Tags: LocalFoodNotes |

How to help your garden make it through spring chill

While the calendar says it’s April, the weather seems to think it’s February. With low temperatures in the teens and 20s this morning, it may have looked like spring with all the daffodils and green grass, but it felt like winter. It’s times like this that test the patience of a Central Pennsylvania gardener.

The lesson learned here was simple; even if it’s warm in March, that doesn’t mean it can’t get really cold in April. And it’s this reality that really needs to be taken into account when starting a food garden in our area.

In my years of experience gardening in these parts, I’ve picked up a few ideas and tips on how to get through the gardening purgatory that is a mid-state spring. Here’s some things to keep in mind to guide your garden through this challenging time: 

Continue Reading: How to help your garden make it through spring chill

Tags: gardening | spring |

Celebrate spring and think of summer with a rhubarb mojito

A friend of mine is something of an amateur mixologist, or cocktail creator. A year ago during a visit, I introduced him to shrubs, the delightful fruit/sugar/vinegar concoction that has made something of a comeback. Originally a way to preserve harvests in Colonial times, shrubs are definitely back in Central Pennsylvania thanks to Tait Farm Foods. Tait Farm offers a variety of shrub flavors, such as lemon, ginger, raspberry, apple, and rhubarb. The main purpose of shrubs is as part of a beverage.

Now, you don’t have to drink alcohol to enjoy shrubs; in fact, they are quite nice with just tonic water or ginger ale. However, they make a great mixer for alcoholic drinks, and when my friend was visiting, we brainstormed a drink for rhubarb. It was a warm April day when he was up, so we came up with a sort of rhubarb mojito.

Continue Reading: Celebrate spring and think of summer with a rhubarb mojito

Tags: recipe | rhubarb | rum | cocktail | mint | TaitFarm |

Five great local food restaurant items

Since this blog has been in existence, the local food restaurant scene in Central Pennsylvania has expanded. Not only have there been some new local food restaurants popping up, there are also some established restaurants that have began serving food sourced with local ingredients.

While there have been an increase in local food options, that has created a bit of an issue…what to choose! The options are many, so it can be hard to pick. To help you decide what to try, here are recommendations for five different items you can find on Central Pennsylvania menus that feature local ingredients.

Continue Reading: Five great local food restaurant items

Tags: burgers | CafeLemont | beets | MeyerDairy | Spats |

Seed libraries in Pennsylvania allowed to engage in free seed exchange

Thanks to a statewide coalition of concerned advocates, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture has clarified that seed libraries and other non-commercial seed exchanges are not subject to the cost-prohibitive licensing, labeling and testing requirements required of commercial seed distributors in the Seed Act of 2004 (Seed Act). In providing this clarification, Pennsylvania sets a precedent to protect and encourage seed libraries throughout the commonwealth.

The statewide coalition, led by the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA), Grow Pittsburgh (GP), the Public Interest Law Center, and members of the Pittsburgh Food Policy Council (PFPC), as well as individual growers and organizations, worked with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA) to clarify protocol about the Seed Act.  The Act was originally applied to a seed library at the Joseph T. Simpson Library in Mechanicsburg, PA, which severely limited its operations as a result.

Seed libraries are nonprofit, community-based organizations. Through seed libraries, growers maintain and increase biodiversity, as they save seeds from season to season, and share seeds with one another.  The number of seed libraries has surged in recent years; there are an estimated 26 seed libraries across the Commonwealth, with more than 350 nationwide. Concern about the compliance with the Seed Act has been a deterrent to seed library operations in Pennsylvania.

Continue Reading: Seed libraries in Pennsylvania allowed to engage in free seed exchange

Tags: seeds | gardening | PASA | |

Be authentic Irish for this St. Patrick’s Day dinner: Potato and leek soup

If you are looking to have something that’s a traditional Irish food for your St. Patrick’s Day dinner, you probably do not want to serve corned beef. Corned beef is not something many folks in Ireland eat, and at St. Patrick’s Day tables in Ireland, you will find lamb and/or bacon, but not corned beef. Instead, corned beef is more a nod towards the immigrant history of Irish-Americans.

So, you can serve corned beef as a nod to your ancestors if you have Irish blood in you, but what if you want to serve something that Irish people eat? And what if you’re vegetarian?

Well, here’s a recipe that’s based on something Irish people actually enjoy. Potato and leek soup is a traditional Irish comfort food, enjoyed with brown soda bread. Plus, it’s colored green!

Continue Reading: Be authentic Irish for this St. Patrick’s Day dinner: Potato and leek soup

Tags: recipe | potato | leek |

Slow your roll, gardeners! Don’t let these warm temperatures trick you

The weather this week has caused many of us to catch a seasonal illness: spring fever. With temperatures more like May than March, the itch to start the garden may be really tough for some of us to resist. Is it too early to plant? Well, for the most part, yes. However, there are exceptions, but it will mean some extra work.

Continue Reading: Slow your roll, gardeners! Don’t let these warm temperatures trick you

Tags: gardening | seeds | spring |

Brian Snyder joins leadership team of OSU’s Initiative for Food and AgriCultural Transformation

In lieu of our usual Local Food Notes for today, we are going to run this breaking news from the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA):

The Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA) announced today that longtime Executive Director Brian Snyder has accepted a position by the same title, leading the Initiative for Food and AgriCultural Transformation (InFACT) at The Ohio State University (OSU) in Columbus. The new position will begin in June. The ultimate goal of InFACT is to create sustainable and resilient food systems for Ohio and beyond.  President Michael Drake of OSU has committed a minimum of $100 million over the next ten years to achieve this goal.

Continue Reading: Brian Snyder joins leadership team of OSU’s Initiative for Food and AgriCultural Transformation

Tags: PASA |

What does Penn State Ag Extension do?

As you likely have heard by now, Penn State President Eric Barron told university trustees at the regular meeting last Friday in Hershey that 1,100 agricultural extension employees face potential layoffs if the current Pennsylvania budget fight isn’t resolved. Along with being a tremendous source of stress for those employees, these layoffs would be a blow to Pennsylvania’s agricultural industry.

While you are of course a fan of local food, you may not be aware of exactly what a university extension office does, and why they are important. They offer a variety of services for not just farmers, but for the entire state since a lot of the food you eat is grown, raised, and/or produced in Pennsylvania. These services range from food safety to business support for small farmers to sharing research on health, gardening, and improving our food system with the public.

So, the Penn State Extension is an important part in not just farmers’ lives, but all of our lives. Here are some examples:

Continue Reading: What does Penn State Ag Extension do?

Tags: extension | farmers | PennState |

Local Food Notes for Feb. 27

Tait Farm has garden seeds (spring!) and a workshop on making tricked-out mac and cheese, the Susquehanna Heartland Wine Trail month to kick off, and learn how to make beer, all in this week’s Local Food Notes.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Feb. 27

Tags: LocalFoodNotes |

Five great varieties to add to your 2016 garden

Back in early January 2015, I wrote about early online seed shopping, and listed some of my favorite vendors. Getting an early start on buying seeds online has its advantages, for example you’re ensured to get them on time for planting since you’re beating the rush, and there are very few seeds that are sold out.

But, that doesn’t mean you can’t order seeds now. The earliest seeds that need started inside, such as onions, pansies, and leeks, can be planted as late as St. Patrick’s Day, while nightshade family members like tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, and ground cherries need to be started by the last week of March. So, if you order soon, you’ll likely get your seed order on time.

One of the advantages of ordering seeds online is greater selection. There are just so many unusual, delicious, and easy-to-grow varieties that you can only find via an online seed catalog.

Continue Reading: Five great varieties to add to your 2016 garden

Tags: gardening | seeds |

Local Food Notes for Feb. 19

Learn how to use all those weird veggies in your winter CSA box, Tait Farm sampling series, Millheim Indoor Farmers Market, and a great night out on a winter’s evening (starting with dinner at Harrison’s Wine Grill)...all in this week’s Local Food Notes.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Feb. 19

Tags: LocalFoodNotes |

Boalsburg Farmers Market now accepts SNAP benefits

The Boalsburg Farmers’ Market is proud to announce that SNAP EBT (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) are now accepted at this local year-round market.

This program allows SNAP customers to get fresh local fruits and vegetables along with baked goods, eggs, plants that produce edible foods, honey, meat and more.  It is an all around win for the market, consumers, and farmers.

“We will be the first farmer’s market in Centre County to accept SNAP benefits, but we don’t want to be the last. We are hoping that our program will serve as a successful pilot for other area markets. The goal is that everyone in our community will have equal access to healthy, local foods”, says Sarah Potter, who works with the market to do programming and outreach.

Continue Reading: Boalsburg Farmers Market now accepts SNAP benefits

Tags: Boalsburgfarmersmarket | SNAP |

Local Food Notes for Valentine’s Weekend

Somebody close the fridge door! Winter has definitely sunk its chilling teeth into us and will definitely flex its bitter muscles this weekend. To warm your heart, there are several local-food related Valentines’ events to check out Saturday and Sunday.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Valentine’s Weekend

Tags: LocalFoodNotes | Valentines |

A summery soup for a winter evening

Growing up in York, I was exposed to a lot of Amish cuisine. My mother cooked a variety of Pennsylvania Dutch dishes, such as pot pie, pork and sauerkraut, and perhaps my favorite, chicken corn soup.

Believe it or not, chicken corn soup is considered a “summer soup.” Made to take advantage of the bounty of fresh corn in southcentral and southeast Pennsylvania, this corn was a July-August staple in my house as a kid. My mother would make it year ‘round, however, and I always looked forward to it. It’s a simple soup, with subtle flavors.

Continue Reading: A summery soup for a winter evening

Tags: recipe | chicken | corn | eggs |

PASA 25th annual Farming for the Future kicks off today, continues through Saturday

The 25th Annual Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA) Farming for the Future Conference is underway starting today and will run through Saturday at the Penn Stater Hotel and Conference Center. The event’s theme is “Farming in a Changing Climate”, and will feature climate expert Richard Alley and agricultural sustainability expert and author Laura Lengnick.

If you missed pre-event registration, no worries, as walk-in registration for one, two, or three days of the conference is available starting tomorrow. You can find rates for the event here.

Continue Reading: PASA 25th annual Farming for the Future kicks off today, continues through Saturday

Tags: PASA | FarmingfortheFutureconference | climatechange |

We’re looking for volunteer writers!

Local Food Journey is putting out the call for volunteer writers. Passionate about putting food on the table grown by people you know from farmers markets, etc.? Make a living as a local food grower or producer and want to share the inside story about how local food is made? Just love to eat local food and write?

Then we’re looking for you. If interested, send a note to editor Jamie Oberdick at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), and we’ll get you started. We want as many voices on Local Food Journey as possible, and would love you to be one of them.

Thanks, and looking forward to hearing from you soon!

Continue Reading: We’re looking for volunteer writers!

Tags: writers | localfoodjourney |

Harvest from your garden in January…in central Pennsylvania?

After this week’s storm dumped anywhere from an inch in northern parts of central Pennsylvania to two feet in southern portions, gardening may be the last thing on many minds this week. However, on Sunday, I managed to harvest some delicious brussels sprouts. How?

Well, believe it or not, brussels sprouts can take a lot of cold. In fact, when you harvest them now, they are outright delicious. The same is true for a lot of cold-hardy vegetables, the cold ups the sweet factor and they are just plain good. In fact, you can harvest a variety of tasty things to add to your winter table.

How can one manage this in the land of icy winds and snow? With some careful planning in the spring and summer, you can turn gardening into a four-season activity.

Continue Reading: Harvest from your garden in January…in central Pennsylvania?

Tags: gardening | winter |

PASA Announces Sustainable Agriculture Leadership Awards to be Presented at Conference

Jeff Moyer, Executive Director of Rodale Institute (Kutztown, PA), and Poultry Man, LLC (Mifflinburg, PA) are being honored as leaders in sustainability by the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA). The awards will be presented during PASA’s 25th Annual Farming for the Future Conference, February 3 to 6 at the Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel in State College, Pennsylvania.

“It is an honor to be receiving this award. I look forward to being included with the past recipients, a prestigious group,” says Moyer, recipient of the Sustainable Ag Leadership Award. Moyer is renowned for his expertise in organic crop production systems and has worked with the Rodale Institute for four decades. “The most rewarding part of my work as past farm director and now executive director,” says Moyer, “is working with farmers to transition their farm to organic and being a part of their success.” His dream for the future of agriculture is one where “everyone sees the connection between the soil we farm and the health of our population. Healthy soil is the cornerstone to a healthy, well-fed human population worldwide.”

Continue Reading: PASA Announces Sustainable Agriculture Leadership Awards to be Presented at Conference

Tags: PASAconference | award |

Let root vegetables win you over by roasting them

Well, winter just reminded us this week who’s boss, as we had our first snow (record latest first snow) and bitter chill to go with it. Believe it or not, even in the depths of winter, you can still find local produce, especially root vegetables.

Root vegetables get sort of a bad rap, because many people have a memory of boiled canned beets being forced on them by a well-meaning mother. However, roasted root vegetables are on a different level.

Where to find local root vegetables? Indoor markets like Boalsburg, Millheim, and State College have vendors who sell root vegetables this time of year (they tend to be easy to store). Another good source is the Friends & Farmers online market, which carries a variety of root vegetables by local farmers such as Tait Farm and Jade Family Farm.

Once you acquire them, roasting them is fairly simple. Here’s a recipe that is easy to put together and really brings out the best quality of roasted root vegetables: The sweetness!

Continue Reading: Let root vegetables win you over by roasting them

Tags: wintervegetables | recipe | FriendsandFarmers | farmersmarket |

Local Food Notes for Jan. 8

Happy New Year! This week Local Food Notes highlights the Farm Show, indoor farmers markets, how to get Healthy Harvest Farm shares by working the Earth, and PASA’s Farming for the Future Conference.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Jan. 8

Tags: LocalFoodNotes | FarmShow | farmersmarket | HealthyHarvestFarm | PASA |

A Farm Show guide for newbies

Pennsylvania has a long agricultural history. The Nittany Valley was originally settled due to the rich farm land in the area, and Penn State was founded as the Farmers’ High School of Pennsylvania in 1855. In fact, one of the images one thinks of when they think of Pennsylvania is the Amish farmer in Lancaster County, an image exploited by the tourist industry. So, it’s no wonder that one of the main events of the year in our state is the Pennsylvania Farm Show, held Jan. 8-16 in at the Farm Show Complex and Expo Center in Harrisburg. This year is special, as The Farm Show celebrates its 100th year.

If you’ve never been to the Farm Show, it’s definitely worth the trip. You likely have at least a little bit of interest in farming given you’re reading this blog, and the Farm Show basically is all of Pennsylvania’s agriculture world in one place for an entire week. The event is also very family friendly and kids love it; I can remember how much I liked going as a kid, and grew up in an urban environment in York.

It can be a little overwhelming; this is not a small event by any means and the Farm Show Complex is rather sprawling. So, how to tackle a day at the Farm Show? Here’s some tips to help you get the most out of your Farm Show experience:

Continue Reading: A Farm Show guide for newbies

Tags: FarmShow | guide |

Five fantastic last-minute local food gift ideas

Uh-oh…up against it for Christmas shopping this year? Don’t panic. Everybody loves good food and drink, right? And we have plenty of options produced right here Central Pennsylvania. Here’s five great gift local food ideas for the last minute shopper.

Continue Reading: Five fantastic last-minute local food gift ideas

Tags: holidays | gifts |

Local Food Notes for Dec. 11

This week we have a lot of holiday-themed stuff to do, including a holiday open house at Mt. Nittany Winery, Bellefonte Victorian Christmas, Holiday Fest at McCann School of Art, and yet another great Tait Farm tasting.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Dec. 11

Tags: holidays | wine | TaitFarm | Bellefonte | LocalFoodNotes |

Two Thanksgiving recipes from Tony Sapia of Gemelli Bakers

Tony Sapia, the highly skilled baker who brings us Gemelli Bakers, shares with us two things…two styles of holiday baking he’s excited about and two fantastic Thanksgiving side dish recipes, including one you can make ahead of time:

We started our stollen baking.  I learned from a good friend of mine whom is a third-generation German master baker in Cincinnati. This and panettone baking is what I look forward to every year. The two most ethnic diverse breads coming together for one community. It’s what makes me get up in the mornings. The aromas are fragrant with nostalgia and memories of living abroad learning the craft. Bringing it back to my home town of State College, PA, where I was born and now bread…..

Continue Reading: Two Thanksgiving recipes from Tony Sapia of Gemelli Bakers

Tags: recipe | turnip | Thanksgiving | Gemelli |

Local Food Notes for Nov. 20

This week, get local food ingredients to cook your Thanksgiving dinner via Friends & Farmers Cooperative, Tait Farm chocolate and caramel tasting, dinner and music at Websters Bookstore Cafe, and Winemaker’s Harvest Dinner at Mt. Nittany Vineyard & Winery.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Nov. 20

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Is it too late to get a local turkey for Thanksgiving?

Thanksgiving is just over a week away, and many of you who read this blog have already pre-ordered your local-raised Thanksgiving turkey. Most of the local vendors in these parts require you to pre-order a few months in advance to ensure you have a Thanksgiving turkey that’s locally grown. But what if you didn’t pre-order and would like a local turkey?

Well, unfortunately, your options are limited, and after checking around for you, here’s what I found…

Continue Reading: Is it too late to get a local turkey for Thanksgiving?

Tags: Thanksgiving | turkey |

Can local food still be considered a trend?

Recently during an interview with Michele Marchetti, the excellent local food writer and Friends & Farmers Cooperative board member, she said something that made me really think. I asked her about whether there was still momentum within the local food movement, and she said “Local food isn’t a trend, it’s something that’s here to stay.”

It sort of hit me…wow, Mchele’s 100 percent correct. Local food really isn’t a thing for “hipsters” or trendy foodies anymore; it’s become more and more established.

Continue Reading: Can local food still be considered a trend?

Tags: localfood | opinion | trend |

Outdoor farmers markets winding down, indoor markets starting

Farmers Markets are winding down to a degree over the next few weeks. While outdoor markets will soon go away until next spring, there are several indoor options to get your local food market fix over the winter. Here’s a rundown of our local markets, when the outdoor ones are closing, and which are having indoor winter markets:

Continue Reading: Outdoor farmers markets winding down, indoor markets starting

Tags: Fall | farmersmarket | indoormarket |

Five must-do end-of-season garden chores to ensure garden success next year

So, even with this week’s mild weather, the reality is we are staring another Central Pennsylvania winter in its face. With cold, snow, and ice looming on the horizon, many of us are not thinking about gardening, but right now is a vital time for the success of next year’s garden.

There are steps that you can take now to help your perennial herbs survive the winter, ensure your fruit trees produce, prevent pests from coming on strong next spring, and feed your future veggie plants. Here’s five must-do chores to close out the year:

Continue Reading: Five must-do end-of-season garden chores to ensure garden success next year

Tags: gardening | fall |

Local Food Notes for Oct. 30

This week we offer a way to eat well and help Friends & Farmers, celebrate 13 years of zany Austrian food experiences at Herwig’s, and how you gardeners can save big at Tait Farm.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Oct. 30

Tags: TaitFarm | LocalFOodNotes | Friends&Farmers | gardening |

Future is bright for Friends & Farmers Cooperative

On Oct. 16, Friends & Farmers Cooperative had a strong turnout for their second annual membership meeting. While this was great news for Friends & Farmers’ board, the bigger picture is even brighter for the local cooperative, which is still working towards a goal of local food grocery store in the State College area.

For starters, Friends & Farmers received a $93,000 grant for its online market from the United States Department of Agriculture. “The grant will help increase the market share and visibility of local food,” Michele Marchetti, Friends & Farmers board member, said. “Basically, it’s going to support three activities.”

Continue Reading: Future is bright for Friends & Farmers Cooperative

Tags: Friends&Farmers |

Local Food Notes for Oct. 23

This week’s Local Food Notes includes National Cooperative Month, running with wine (no really), Boalsburg Farmers Market holds another Teaching Kitchen, and Way Fruit Farm apple pie contest.

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Oct. 23

Tags: LocalFoodNotes |

Recipe: Hog maw…don’t knock it ‘till you’ve tried it

Last year, on an episode of the Cooking Channel’s “My Grandmother’s Ravioli”, host, humorist, and NPR fixture Mo Rocca went to eastern Pennsylvania to discover Pennsylvania Dutch cuisine. They visited local households and got real recipes, like fastnachts, stewed dried corn, and a peculiar-to-outsiders dish known as stuffed pig stomach, or hog maw.

First things first…I know the idea of stuffed pig’s stomach instantly makes some of you recoil, but trust me, it’s delicious. If you’re having a tough time with the idea of a stuffed stomach, here’s a way to look at it; think of it as a giant sausage made with a casing that’s farther away from the, um, end of the pig than regular sausage casings. One thing that’s quite funny…people who enjoy this think of it as simple, down-home fare, and are often shocked to discover people finding it exotic/weird/gross. I grew up with it, so to me, it’s a common thing.

The name of this dish varies depending on region. In my home area, York County, it’s known as hog maw. In Lancaster County, it’s known as stuffed pig stomach. It also has a few nicknames, such as “Susquehanna turkey” or “Dutch goose”, which is due to this being served during holidays. In my family, it was the centerpiece of our harvest dinner, a local southcentral PA tradition of having a family dinner in mid-late October that kicks off the family holiday dinner season.

Continue Reading: Recipe: Hog maw…don’t knock it ‘till you’ve tried it

Tags: recipe | hogmaw |

Local Food Notes for Oct 16

This week, check out Friends & Farmers Membership Meeting (open to all), learn more about how our area is celebrating National Cooperative Month, head to the Way Fruit Farm Apple Festival, sip wine among the fall finery at Mt. Nittany Winery, and go pumpkin crazy at the Hollidaysburg Pumpkin Festival…

Continue Reading: Local Food Notes for Oct 16

Tags: LocalFoodNotes | pumpkins | apples | festivals |

Friends & Farmers Cooperative to hold 2015 Membership Meeting on Oct. 16

Are you a local foodie who would love it if there was a grocery store in Central Pennsylvania for local products? Then here’s some good news from the Friends & Farmers Cooperative about the perfect event for you, happening this week.:

All are welcome at Friends & Farmers Cooperative’s 2015 Membership Meeting on Friday, Oct. 16, 6:30-8:30 p.m., at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Centre County. Enjoy local food samplings, kids activities from The Makery, silent auction and raffle give-aways, and an exciting update on Friends & Farmers’ progress toward opening a member-owned grocery store with a focus on local products. RSVP for the meeting here.

Continue Reading: Friends & Farmers Cooperative to hold 2015 Membership Meeting on Oct. 16

Tags: friends&farmers | membershipmeeting |

Recipe: Baked steel cut oats with almonds and blueberries

Steel cut oats have been a trendy food item for a while now, and with good reason. They have a lower glycemic index, which is good news for diabetics. They are also pretty tasty, more flavor than rolled oats and a chewy texture that many people find appealing.

They are pretty easy to make, as well. Not quite instant, but you can have a hot bowl of steel cut oats in just over a half-hour. While a bowl of steel cut oats with a little salt and brown sugar is very nice, you can do more with them. This is a pretty easy recipe that you can do much of the prep work for the night before, then pop it in the oven for an hour for a nice, hot, and delicious breakfast.

Continue Reading: Recipe: Baked steel cut oats with almonds and blueberries

Tags: recipe | steelcutoats | blueberries |

Friends & Farmers Cooperative Online Market recieves major USDA grant

The United States Department of Agriculture announced that the Friends & Farmers Cooperative Online Market received a $92,000 USDA grant to increase local food consumption and production in Centre County.

Friends & Farmers Cooperative plays a vital and growing role in the burgeoning local food movement. In one year, its retail Online Market has sold more than $70,000 worth of locally grown and produced food. The Online Market is a stepping stone to the co-op’s planned brick and mortar store. Owned and financed by the community, this store will source as much as possible from farmers within 50 miles of State College.

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Tags: friends&farmers | USDA | onlinebuying | grant |

Five great fall farmers market items

We are in the home stretch of the outdoor farmers market season. Soon, the cold winds and snow will make Central Pennsylvania more a place for skiers and snowmobilers than outdoor farmers market browsers. But, for many area markets, we still have about a month or so to go, and you can still find some great local food among the falling leaves and autumn chill. Here’s five examples:

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Brazilian Munchies is the result of an international love story

Anna Lombardo contributed to this story

Back on Christmas Day 2012, Flavia Barger came to America from Brazil to join her American husband. While it’s quite a good love story, Flavia becoming a resident of the U.S. was also a great thing for local foodies.

Flavia runs Brazilian Munchies, a local food business that specializes in, of course, Brazilian food. You likely have seen them at farmers markets such as the Boalsburg Farmers Market, Lemont Farmers Market, Susquehanna Valley Growers’ Market in Lewisburg, and the Millheim Farmers Market, or at any of a number of local events. If you haven’t tried their food, then you’re definitely missing out on some good eats, especially their main specialty, a cheese bread called Pao de Queijo. “It’s naturally gluten-free, made with manioc starch. Manioc is a root we grow in Brazil,” Flavia said. “I didn’t find manioc starch around here. We can find similar products, tapioca flour, cassava flour, but not the real manioc starch. So I buy online from a company in Florida that imports from Brazil and re-sells to me.”

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Apple salad with feta a great way to celebrate fall’s flavors

I’m from York, PA, which is most definitely part of Pennsylvania apple country. I remember as a kid getting pretty excited about this time of year, because I loved and still love apples. September was the beginning of apple season at the many orchards that dot York, Adams, and Lancaster Counties. I remember the apple cider flowing freely, both the “soft” and “hard” variety (including a variety of moonshine called “apple jack” that I discovered as a grown-up).

There were even apple-focused festivals. My family would drive to the South Mountain Fairgrounds in neighboring Adams County for the Apple Harvest Festival, which attracted thousands of people each October. For an apple lover, this was high paradise time.

Another aspect of my childhood in York was being introduced to Greek culture, via new neighbors from Greece that began showing up when I was in middle school. My Greek friends introduced me to Greek food, including a strange, crumbly cheese I had never seen before…feta.

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Tags: recipe | apples | salad |

Five fall festivals featuring fantastic food

Fall festivals are as much a part of autumn in central Pennsylvania as falling leaves and football. Here’s five festivals for you to mark on your calendar:

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Tags: Fall | festivals | apples | hartslog |

State College startup Green Towers LLC pushes the innovation envelope for local food

Note: To support honeybees and Green Towers LLC’s efforts to help pollinator populations that is mentioned later in this article, please go to their KickStarter campaign.

A State College startup company is working on some innovative ideas that are aimed at taking local food into the future.

Green Towers, LLC, is a local food business that was created based on an entry to the Penn State College of Agricultural Science’s Springboard Competition for young entrepreneurs, according to Dustin Betz, founder and president of Green Towers. They won the 2012 competition, and from there created a company with some very innovative ideas on growing food.

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Tags: GreenTowers | startup | microgreens | bees |

Local Food Notes for Sept. 4

Free doughnuts (gluten-free), jazz at Mt. Nittany Vineyards, the return of fall cocktails, and where to local-food up your Labor Day cookout highlight this week’s Local Food Notes….

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Local Food Notes for Aug. 28

Introduction of Elk Creek Cafe + Aleworks’ new chef, how to participate in PASA’s Good Gifts Guide, and some tailgate recipe ideas…

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10 things to know before going to Grange Fair

It’s Grange Fair time again, as the annual event kicks off today and runs through next Saturday. Here’s 10 things I’ve learned about The Grange Fair from attending it multiple times since my wife and I moved here in late 2002:

1) Wear comfortable shoes, but not shoes that are your “good” ones. Leave the wing tips and heels at home. Since this is a fair, there’s a chance you might encounter mud, even if it hasn’t rained for a while (especially around the livestock barns where they hose off the critters). Plus, you likely will have to walk through some uneven ground to get to and from your parking spot, which will most likely be in a field.

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Tags: GrangeFair | 2015 |

Plow to Plate Dinner to be held Aug. 26

The Boalsburg Farmers’ Market and Mt. Nittany Winery present the fourth annual “Plow to Plate”. This local foods dinner is an evening to celebrate food, farmers, and community. There will be a variety of dishes prepared by our area’s best chefs from fresh ingredients obtained at the Boalsburg Farmers Market. Zola’s, Gigi’s and Webster’s chefs will all be there. Wednesday, August 26th from 5:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Mt. Nittany Winery, 300 Houser Rd, Centre Hall, PA 16828. The cost for the dinner is $25 per ticket, with kids under 12 are free. Tickets are available at the Boalsburg Farmers Market and Webster’s Bookstore and Cafe.
For questions or further information, contact Sarah Potter at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

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Local Food Notes for Aug. 14

Bellefonte Arts and Craft Fair, State College Brew Expo, Tait Farm’s Annual Tomato Festival, and an award-winning meal at Harrison’s Wine Grill and Catering highlight this week’s Local Food Notes.

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Tags: LocalFoodNotes | TaitFarm | Bellefonte | Harrison's | BrewExpo |

Golden Basket Awards showcases our amazing local food scene

Last week at this time, I was one of several judges at the Boalsburg Farmers Market’s annual Golden Basket Awards. Among the chefs competing included Jeremiah McClanahan of Fasta & Ravioli Co.; Mike Benjamin of Benjamin’s Catering; last year’s champ, Kirsch McMaster of the Nittany Lion Inn; Andrew Hufnagel of Zola Kitchen & Wine Bar; a new-to-the-area chef, Erin Snyder, Elk Creek Cafe + Aleworks; and an established innovator in cuisine made with local ingredients, Harrison Schailey from Harrison’s Wine Grill & Catering.

I know, tough job, trying all this amazing food made by talented chefs, using the freshest of local ingredients. We chose Chef Harrison as the overall winner, he made us a remarkable grilled filet of beef, with au gratin potatoes from Clan Stewart farm and a fantastic arugula and fresh corn salad. He also made his famous gazpacho; if you’ve never had it, I recommend getting it at your next visit to his restaurant.

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PA Organic FarmFest and Centre County Farm Tour close out Local Foods Week

Local Foods Week winds down today and tomorrow with two big events…Pennsylvania Organic FarmFest (today, Aug. 7, and tomorrow, Aug. 8) and the Centre County Farm Tour (tomorrow, Aug. 8).

First off, the FarmFest, which will run today from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. and 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Grange Fairgrounds in Centre Hall. The event will feature a variety of delicious local food (including the chance Saturday to sample and judge Friends & Farmers Pie Contest, live music, 5K run and 1K fun run, a variety of outdoor activities, and plenty of opportunities to learn more about organic agriculture.

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Calling all pie masters: Friends & Farmers Second Annual People’s Choice Pie Contest Aug. 8

If you are always told you should become a professional baker because your pies are so good, or if you actually are a professional baker, then you should sign up to compete in the Friends & Farmers Second Annual People’s Choice Pie Contest, to be held Aug. 8 from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The event will be part of Pennsylvania Organic FarmFest, held Aug. 7-8 at the Grange Fairgrounds. PLEASE NOTE: You must get your entry form in by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, August 7.

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Local chefs + local food = amazing flavors at this year’s Golden Basket Awards

The fifth annual Golden Basket Awards will be held today, August 4, at the Boalsburg Farmers Market. The cooking will start at around 2:15 p.m. and the awards will be given out at around 4:30 p.m.

As always, the chefs will use ingredients found in the market. The event is designed to show off our local culinary creativity, and to inspire the local community to use local ingredients to create their own kitchen masterpieces. To help with the inspiration, there will be a limited supply of samples for market attendees to try.

The chefs competing the event include, in order of when they will start cooking:

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Local Chefs Compete for Boalsburg Farmers Market’s 5th Annual Golden Basket Awards

Six local chefs from Central Pennsylvania’s finest dining establishments will compete for the Boalsburg Farmers Market Fifth Annual Golden Basket Award on Tuesday, Aug. 4.  This event is held by the Boalsburg Farmers Market and is part of PASA’s (Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture) “Local Foods Week”. The event features chefs preparing a main dish and two sides from ingredients produced by Boalsburg Farmers Market vendors. 

The chefs gather their ingredients at the market, then prepare their plates for submission to the judges in front of market guests. The chefs have only 45 minutes to assemble the dishes. After the judges have tasted and scored all of the chef’s offerings, an awards ceremony is held to announce the new Golden Basket winner.

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Local Food Notes for July 24

Local Foods Week, Mid-Summer Case Sale at Mt. Nittany Winery, and The Seven Mountains Music Fest at Seven Mountains Wine Cellars

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Local Food Notes for July 10

Local food at our two arts festivals this weekend, Penn State Berkey Creamery’s 150th anniversary, your favorite produce is now at area farmers markets, where to get fall garden vegetables, and Harrison’s Wine Grill’s herb garden bounty inspires delicious summer cocktails.

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Cool/wet weather raises risks for garden fungal diseases

Rain is mostly a gardener’s best friend. While you can water during dry spells to keep plants alive, nothing seems to give them what they need to grow and produce like a good soaking rain. However, too much rain can be harmful to your garden. Along with causing weeds to grow like crazy and keep you away from chores, wet weather is what garden fungal diseases like blights and powder mildew thrive on. Combine that with cooler weather, such as this weekend’s fall feel, and you have the potential for large-scale garden losses.

Without a doubt, it’s a good idea to take steps to prevent fungal diseases before they get established. While some like early blight and powder mildew can be controlled, late blight is a death sentence to your tomatoes and potatoes. I’ve had late blight wipe out my tomato plants in a few days. So what can you do? Here’s a few tips:

- Give them some air: Good air circulation enables plants to dry out properly between rains, sometimes preventing fungal spores to take hold. You can do give them the circulation you need with tomato plants by removing lower leaves and ensuring they get good support. Be sure you do this sort of thing when plants are dry, as you can actually spread disease by fussing around in a wet garden.

- Water properly: If we indeed return to typical summer weather and have a dry spell (which would be a big help in fighting garden diseases), then at some point we’ll have to water. It’s much better to water plants via drip irrigation hoses or by putting a hose at the base of a plant than it is to water from above. Why? Because by wetting the leaves, you’re raising their chances for getting a fungal disease by giving the spores some much needed moisture.

- Keep them fed: Giving plants fertilizers, organic or non-organic, helps keep them healthy and better able to fend off diseases. Also, it’s a good idea to keep weeds under control. Along with hosting diseases, they compete with the good plants for soil nutrients.

- Spray: While many garden diseases are terminal, if you catch them early enough, they can be treated. There are a variety of sprays out there that work, including homemade organic ones that use common household products such as baking soda or even milk. The goal here is to make the environment hostile to fungus without harming plants. One I use is neem oil, which you can purchase at many big-box stores, garden centers, or online. Neem has an added bonus, it also works as an insecticide. Speaking of that, many garden pests such as cucumber beetles transmit garden disease, so be sure to keep them under control as well.

- Mulch ‘Em: Black plastic mulch raises soil temperatures to the point where fungal spores are killed. Mulch such as grass clippings spread around the base of the plant helps prevent soil-born pathogens from being splashed on the plant during heavy rains. And, there’s even reflective mulch out there; the reflected light confuses insects and keeps them away from the plant during early stages of growth.

Be Vigilent:  It’s a good idea to take a walk around the garden and check plants for any changes in leaf appearance or stunted growth. There are several disease databases out there for gardeners that are available via a simple web search. Even if you don’t do anything else in it that day, give your garden a once over.

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Tags: Gardening | diseases |

Local Food Notes for June 26

Find out where to go to learn how to make amazing cocktails, discover the art of ice cream making, buy some of summer’s ever-growing bounty, and find out how to register for PASA’s summer conference:

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South Hills Food Festival keystone of Happy Valley Culinary Week

By Jeffry P Stachowski, community outreach director, South Hills School of Business and Technology

The Second Annual South Hills School Culinary Week Food Festival will be held on Wednesday, June 24 from noon to 6:00 p.m. on the north lawn of South Hills School, 480 Waupelani Drive in State College. This joint production with the Central Pennsylvania Convention and Visitors Bureau was such a hit last year that we have an even bigger festival planned for this year.

Live chef demonstrations, an all-local-foods farmers market, live music, workshops and tours will provide an afternoon of learning, fun, and fabulous food for the entire family. And here’s some food for thought…workshops on starting a small restaurant business, hot careers in Central Pennsylvania, exploring financial aid resources, and much more will also run throughout the day.

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Help local food, take the Million Pollinator Garden Challenge

The buzzing of bees on a warm summer day is more than just a pleasant sound, it’s a signal that things are pretty good for us as humans. Given that, according to the National Pollinator Garden Network (NPGN), one out of every three bites of food we take every day is due to the work of pollinators, we need to keep them buzzing.

How can you help? By joining the NPGN’s Million Pollinator Garden Challenge. The project is designed to accelerate pollinator garden efforts across America in an attempt to reverse the decline of pollinating insects such as honey bees, native bees, and monarch butterflies. While there are nearly a million active gardeners and 15,000 pollinator gardens at schools, the goal of this effort is to have a million additional registered pollinator gardens by the end of 2016.

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Lemont Farmers Market offers local food variety in picturesque, friendly setting

One of the more scenic and interesting communities in Central Pennsylvania is the quaint town of Lemont. Artsy, friendly, historic, and filled with beautiful old houses, it stands to reason that they would have a farmers market. It just makes sense.

The Lemont Farmers Market is a relatively new market in our area, and it’s also one of the most picturesque ones. The market was founded in 2012 by the Lemont Village Association and is located at the John I. Thompson Grain Elevator and Coal Sheds, known to most in the area simply as The Granary. Built in 1885, The Granary was originally constructed for storing grain and for a place for trains to deposit coal. Today, the coal shed part of The Granary makes for a unique and beautiful location for a farmers market. “We have such a perfect site for a farmers market,” said Susan Smith, chair of Lemont Village Association board.

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Six must-do chores for the June garden

The idea of no-maintenance gardens is a foreign concept to me. There’s always something to do in the garden. You put in a lot of work leading up to now, with prepping the soil, sowing seeds, transplanting plants, etc.

In June, the frost-sensitive plants in your garden are well on their way to becoming established. However, this is a critical time for them, and for best production, it’s no time to slack off on your hobby. There are key chores in June to carry out that will ensure your garden season is a successful one:

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Tags: gardening | chores | June |

Local Food Notes for June 5

We are entering prime time for local food; the farmers market vendors are displaying an ever-increasing variety of produce and that will only get better as we head deeper into summer. Here are some highlights for this weekend and beyond:

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Recipe: Strawberry mint yogurt smoothie

There are two tasty items that are in season at the farmers markets: strawberries and mint. Finding a use for strawberries is easy: they are fantastic for fresh eating, and there are countless strawberry recipes out there. In my experience, mint is one that stumps people as to how to use it. Sure, it can used in teas and as a garnish, but what about other uses of fresh mint?

One way to use it is in beverages. This recipe for a strawberry mint yogurt smoothie is a great example of how mint can play off other flavors. In this case, it helps to enhance the strawberry flavor with something extra, and the yogurt gives it a nice creamy texture for a refreshing smoothie for those warm June days.

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Lemony-garlic flavored recipe for all those CSA greens you just got

Many CSA’s across the area are ramping up production, with plenty of boxes filled with the best spring produce our area can offer. This includes spring onions, radishes, and of course, spring greens.

Greens are a fantastic dish to add to any spring meal, whether it’s a family cookout or a weeknight dinner. They are good for you, and there are lots of ways to cook them, including ways that will even make the most finicky greens-hating member of your family love eating well.

This recipe is makes a nice side dish for an evening dinner on the patio. It’s quite simple to make and combines two things that makes the flavor of greens really pop: garlic and lemon.

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Tags: recipe | greens | CSA |

Here’s your chance to be a food blogger! Write for PSU’s Local Food Journey

WPSU’s Local Food Journey is looking for volunteer food writers who have a passion for local food, and would love to share that passion in the form of recipes, views on local food issues, stories about local food businesses, personal local food experiences, restaurant reviews, and more. Here are some examples of what you could write:

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Frost a possiblity for Saturday morning: here’s how to protect your garden

We live in Central Pennsylvania, where the weather can go from July to October in less than a day. This morning, under slate gray skies, a chilly wind blows and it feels more like we are getting close to Halloween than Memorial Day.

As can be the case with these late spring cold snaps, frost is a possibility. Right now, looks like Saturday morning is the best chance for it. This might be bad news for your garden. However, you can take steps to avoid a frost catastrophe that could cause you to replant.

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DIY hipster-style artisan grilled cheese

The comic Eddie Pepitone has a bit where he is complaining about how the hipsters have taken over his beloved Brooklyn, and laments that there’s places like artisan peanut butter and jelly and artisan toasted cheese restaurants. After ranting about ridiculous the concept of artisan kid’s food is, the punchline is that they’re just so delicious.

While State College doesn’t have an artisan toasted cheese cafe (yet), you can get your hipster on at home with a local food version of grilled cheese that is definitely not kids stuff. Think of it as grilled cheese, grown up. All the ingredients can be found at local farmers markets.

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One great local food weekend on the way

With the weather looking downright summery and generally sunny, this weekend looks to be a great time to get out and about to sample some of the best local food in our area. Here are some ideas:

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Tags: weekend | farmersmarket |

Five fantastic farmers market finds

As more and more farmers markets are opening outdoors for the season, many of us head out to sample the best each farmers market has to offer from the variety of vendors. Each of us have our favorites, and here are five of mine:

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Mobile app to help local diners find healthy options

This morning WPSU ran a story by Megan Caldwell about an interesting new app, Undressed Foods, being developed by a Penn State alum that helps people who want to watch what they eat navigate the tricky nutritional seas of restaurant menus.

Jennifer Swistock has worked on developing the app over the last several years, pulling together a wealth of nutritional information on the various places to eat in the State College area. While the app is focused on student diets (along with restaurants it features items found at the Penn State dining halls), since it has a fairly exhaustive rundown of dishes at State College restaurants, it can be useful for everyone in Happy Valley. From the story:

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Location, location, location: Picking the right spot is a vital first step for new garden

If you are starting a garden this year in your yard, the first step is definitely the mot important—choosing a proper location. While having the garden close to the house makes harvesting more convenient, the absolute most important thing to consider is sunlight.

Most fruits and vegetable are sun-loving plants, and need full-sun. Full-sun means at least six hours of sun a day. For full-sun plants, sun is the most important factor for successful growth, and no amount of fertilizer can help full-sun plants if they are not getting enough sun.

Next, you want to make sure that the spot you choose has good drainage. Pooling of water is not good for plants, and can lead to problems such as disease and rot.

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Local food notes for April 24

Farmers markets are opening (despite the chill), Mt. Nittany Winery’s 25th Anniversary Dinner, Wine trail, learn how to grow herbs at Tait Farms, and Friends & Farmers looking for delivery drivers. Read on to learn more:

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Tags: LocalFoodNotes | farmersmarket | herbs | gardening | friends&farmers |

Patience pays off later with garden plantings

Every year around this time, I hear something that as a fairly experienced gardener, it makes me shake my head…“it was so nice this weekend I planted my entire garden!” Yes, when it was as warm as it was last Saturday, you can certainly be tempted to plant cold-sensitive plants and seeds outside. But, it’s just not a good idea. Here’s why:

- You live in Central Pennsylvania, not central Carolina: Weather here is highly changeable this time of year, and we do not follow a linear increase in daily temperatures in spring. So, while it was near 80 Saturday, guess what? The temperature Thursday and Friday probably will stay in the 40s, and drop around freezing at night. Not good for any tomatoes caught out in that environment.

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A visit to the farmers of Groundwork Farms CSA

On April 2, a day that promised spring with mild breezes after a late-season snow, I visited two eastern Centre County farms at the invite of Nell Hanssen, the coordinator of Groundwork Farms CSA. The farms were Spring Bank Acres and Shady Locust Produce, both located in the beautiful countryside around Mlllheim, Aaronsburg, and Rebersburg.

First, a bit about Groundwork Farms CSA. The CSA offers food from the Penns Creek Watershed region to individuals, restaurants, and grocery stores in Centre and Union Counties. Originally limited to produce, the CSA now offers vegetables, berries, herbs, bread, flowers, dairy products, eggs, and meats. Even in the winter, CSA buyers can receive dairy products, bread, eggs, winter soups, and in-season produce. There are also opportunities to buy local fruit, flour, mushrooms, canned goods, and honey. Really, they offer a complete package of local food.

Among the local food producers in the CSA are Shady Locust Produce, King Family Farm, Halflinger Farm, Crystal Hollow Farm, and Spring Bank Acres. The two farms I visited, Spring Bank Acres and Shady Locust Produce, are Amish-run.

Continue Reading: A visit to the farmers of Groundwork Farms CSA

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Opening of outdoor farmers market season nears

While you can find indoor versions of the State College, Millheim, and Boalsburg Farmers Market still going strong, the mild-ish weather recently has many people pining for the warm season and one big part of the friendly-weather months are farmers markets. Believe it or not, we are mere weeks away from the openings of our selection of farmers markets.

For those of you who want to mark your calendar, here’s a handy list of the markets that have announced their openings:

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Tags: farmersmarket | opening | summer | spring |

Exploring local food at the 2015 South By Southwest: the food itself

This is the second part of a two-part series on local food at South By Southwest, to learn more about the event and read about some programming related to local food at the event, please go here.

I’ve been to Austin twice. The South By Southwest vibe of Austin is quite different than the normal Austin vibe. The normal Austin vibe is laid-back artsy in a folksy Texas style, while the SXSW version of Austin is more frantic and teeming, understandable given the influx of people, including lots of celebrities. But one thing that never changes about Austin, and that’s the fact it is quite a culinary destination. In keeping with the rest of the country, local food is popular in Austin and I found several great examples of regional food in Austin.

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Exploring local food at the 2015 South By Southwest

South By Southwest is quite an event. Held each year in Austin, Texas, SXSW is known for technology, music, film, and as a big party. But there’s another facet to SXSW, and that’s local food.

I had the opportunity to attend SXSW last month, and spent part of the time exploring the local food side of both Austin and SXSW. Part of SXSW was SouthBites, a platform of sessions, panel discussions, podcasts, and a food truck food court that enables connections between food artisans, farmers, entrepreneurs, and just plain regular people who love food. There was certainly a local food component to SouthBites, in keeping with the national trend of increased interest in local food. Sessions included discussion about local food from angles such as food production, entrepreneurship, and even new technology to help locavores find all the best local food sources.

Along with the programming, there’s also the food itself. Austin is an incredible town for dining, especially for Mexican, Tex-Mex, and barbeque, and this includes both standing restaurants . The SXSW “Trailer Park” food court featured local food trucks, serving up delicious products which are made with local ingredients in some cases.

Today, I will focus on the sessions, and Wednesday, the local food scene at SXSW and Austin itself.

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Tags: SXSW | Austin | localfood |

Apple tree trimming demonstration March 28 at Way Fruit Farm

Those interested in learning how to trim/prune fruit trees can attend Way Fruit Farm’s Apple Tree Trimming Demonstration Saturday, March 28, starting at 10:30 a.m. at the farm located on Route 550 near Stormstown. The workshop is free of charge. 

Attendees will meet in the farm store for a brief presentation and a Q & A session and will then proceed to the orchard across the road from the store for trimming practice. It’s a good idea to prepare for cold and mud as Saturday is forecasted to be pretty chilly. The event is open to both newcomers and previous attendees who find they may have new questions. 

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Tags: apples | treetrimming | WayFruitFarm |

Spring farmers market frittata

Spring is here! (Sort of) While the weather has been chilly and even occasionally snowy, consistent mild weather will be here soon enough. While we are still over a month away from outdoor farmers market season, the indoor farmers markets in State College, Millheim, and Boalsburg are still operating. In fact, some signs of spring such as early season greens are starting to show up, including perhaps the ultimate spring green, spinach.

This recipe pairs spinach with other items you might find at a farmers market this time of year. Frittatas are an easy meal to make and are delicious for any meal, especially a weekend brunch. This frittata combines ham, smoked gouda, and spinach to make for a tasty and quick meal.

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Tags: recipe | farmersmarket | eggs | cheese | spinach |

Friends & Farmers Cooperative now offering local food delivery via online market

Friends & Farmers Cooperative, which is working to open a member-owned cooperative store that will specialize in local, sustainably-produced products, began home-delivery service for its Online Market on March 17. Customers in zip codes 16801 and 16803 (State College), 16851 (Lemont), 16827 (Boalsburg) and 16868 (Pine Grove Mills) can pay $5 to have fresh, locally grown and produced food delivered to their doorsteps.

Friends & Farmers opened the Online Market in November, offering consumers an easy way to purchase items from some of the same local producers participating in central Pennsylvania farmers markets. Launched as a stepping stone to opening a brick and mortar store, the Online Market offers tangible progress toward the Friends & Farmers mission: to support and grow the local food economy, while offering consumers convenient, nutritious and delicious locally grown and produced food.

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Five tips to avoid seed starting disasters

It’s finally time to start seeds indoors! While it’s not very warm out at the moment, certain flowers and vegetables need an early start to ensure they will produce in the summer.

Starting seeds is generally easy but there can be occasional misfires. Here’s five tips to help ensure success as we kick off the gardening season:

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Tags: gardening | seeds | spring |

Local Food Notes for March 13

Here are some local food notes for March 13:

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Local Food Notes for February 20

Even with some of the coldest weather ever recorded in Centre County, there are still things happening in the local food world in central PA. While temperatures are subzero, there are some items below that might warm you with spring thoughts, so keep reading…

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Tags: LocalFoodNotes | CSA | FarmersMarket | PhillyFarmandFoodFest |

Happy Fastnacht Day! Hey, wait…what’s a fastnacht?

Today is Fat Tuesday, aka Mardi Gras. For many people who have grown up in a Pennsylvania Dutch area like myself (York), today is also known as Fastnacht Day.

Why Fastnacht Day? A fastnacht is a type of donut, made with potatoes, flour, sugar, yeast, and eggs. They are fried like a donut and while many are made today with a hole like a regular donut, a “traditional” fastnacht is hole-less and square.

The word fastnacht is German for “fast night” and the tradition of making them began as a way to get rid of lard, sugar, fat, and other stuff that are forbidden during lent. That way there were less temptations left in the pantry to lead hungry stomachs astray.

Continue Reading: Happy Fastnacht Day! Hey, wait…what’s a fastnacht?

Tags: fastnacht | PennsylvaniaDutch | recipe |