Terresa from Terra Hills Natural Products writes:

Just wanted to share a few of the recent reviews left on my Facebook page for the Soothing Scents Vapor Rub! If you or a loved one has been battling congestion this winter, read on!

“If you are sick with cough or sinus issues, this vapor rub is great! Opened me right up!” -C.L.

“The vapor rub is a wonderful option when noses are stuffed. It is all natural and has no harsh chemicals.
I have even tried her new bathroom cleaner. It cleans well, leaves no residue and since it is all natural my daughter can help clean without any chemicals.
You can’t go wrong with these products!” -K.P.

“We also have the Vapor Rub which smells so much better than the typical commercial kind. Used it for a couple of colds and it does help open things up so we can sleep better. Highly recommend both products.” -D.L.
(She is also referencing the Magnesium Body Butter, which is currently unavailable, but will be added back soon!)

(L to R) Soothing Scents Vapor Rub; Magnesium Oil Spray with Lavender; Bathroom Cleaner.

Erdmann Farm is on the market this week and still has Connecticut Field and Long Island Cheese Pumpkins. Weaver Farms still has a good selection of pumpkins available as well.

John Erdmann says:
Pumpkins are doing nicely in my cooler if anyone is interested in eventually making pumpkin soup not just pie.
He has contributed a couple of recipes using pumpkin.

From Southern Living Cookbook:

Moist Pumpkin Bread

2/3 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 cups cooked, mashed pumpkin
2/3 cup water
3 1/3 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
2/3 cup pecans or walnuts, chopped
2/3 cup rainins

Cream shortening; gradually add sugar, beating well at medium speed of an electric mixer. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Stir in pumpkin and water.

Combine flour and next five ingredients; add to creamed mixture, mixing well. Fold in pecans and raisins. Spoon into two greased and floured 9×5×3 inch loaf pans; bake at 350 degrees for one hour or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes; remove from pans, and let cool on wire racks. Yield: 2 loaves.


Flying S Farm has added a squash and a jam:

From Cooking from the farmers’ market:

Roasted Pumpkin Soup with Sage Cream

Makes 6-8 servings

1 sugar pie pumpkin, about 2 lb
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
6 inch piece fresh ginger, grated
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups (32 fl oz) chicken broth
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Cut the pumpkin into 2 inch chunks. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add onion, carrot and celery and cook, stirring often, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the ginger and garlic and cook, stirring, about 1 minute.

Add the pumpkin and broth and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover partially, and simmer until tender, about 25 minutes.

Working in batches, puree the soup in a blender. Return to the saucepan and season to taste with salt and pepper. Reheat over medium-low heat.

Ladle into bowls, drizzle the sage cream on top, and serve right away.

Sage Cream

12 sage leaves with stems intact, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream

Combine the sage and cream in a small saucepan, Place over medium heat and cook until small bubbles appear along the edges of the pan. Remove from the heat, cover, and let stand for 20 minutes to let the flavors develop.. Strain the sage pieces out of the cream and use right away.

Connecticut Field Pumpkin and Long Island Cheese Pumpkin.


From Linda at Dogwood Valley Greenhouse:
Brrr! It’s cold outside! While you’re paging through seed catalogs and planning next year’s gardening adventures, you need a friend or two inside to keep you company. Dogwood Valley Greenhouse has several really nice full wandering Jew hanging baskets available. And if you weren’t able to find a nice Christmas cactus, we have a new crop just coming into bloom, all a pretty lighter shade of pink. Our Rex begonias are also very pretty, many in bloom during winter. So bring some color to your dining room, coffee, or bedside table with one of these nice houseplants.

(L to R, top) Pink Christmas Cacti under fluorescent lights; and one Pink Christmas Cactus, wrapped and ready for delivery.
(L to R, bottom) Wandering Jew and Rex Begonia.

Molly from Kountry Vittles writes:
I would like to wish everyone a Happy and Blessed New Year. I will be starting off the new year by adding 2 new items to the market this week. Pineapple upside down Cheesecake Cake and Pecan Pie Cheesecake. These delicious additions have been a hit with my regular Bakery customers over the last few weeks. The Pineapple Upside Down Cheesecake cake is a pineapple cake with a layer of cheesecake nicely tucked in the center. The Pecan Pie cheesecake has a cookie crust with a layer of pecan pie filling nicely hidden under a layer of cheesecake topped with a layer of pecan topping. Excellent way to start the New Year!

Lois at Casey Family Farm writes:
We had to dry off some more cows so we won’t have milk this week. Please bear with us. We hope to be back to normal soon.


Erdmann Farm is on the market this week and still has Connecticut Field and Long Island Cheese Pumpkins.

Terra Hills products have returned to the market after Christmas vacation.

(L to R) Soothing Scents Vapor Rub; Magnesium Oil Spray with Lavender; Bathroom Cleaner.


From Linda at Dogwood Valley Greenhouse:
Brrr! It’s cold outside! While you’re paging through seed catalogs and planning next year’s gardening adventures, you need a friend or two inside to keep you company. Dogwood Valley Greenhouse has several really nice full wandering Jew hanging baskets available. And if you weren’t able to find a nice Christmas cactus, we have a new crop just coming into bloom, all a pretty lighter shade of pink. Our Rex begonias are also very pretty, many in bloom during winter. So bring some color to your dining room, coffee, or bedside table with one of these nice houseplants.

(L to R) Pink Christmas Cacti, Wandering Jew, and Rex Begonia.

Catherine from Flying S Farms writes:
The cold temperatures have taken their toll on our produce. Watch for more greens in the spring. We still have winter squash available. Warm up with our dried Thai peppers and frozen pepper purée, perfect when you want a touch of heat to any dish. We have restocked several of our jams, great for gifting with our breads. Our seasonal Christmas Jam is a treat, made with fresh strawberries and cranberries. Watch for more pepper jams/jelly overbite next week, they are wonderful over cream cheese or in a cheese ball.

(L to R) Top: Frozen Habanero Pepper Puree, Butternut Squash, Dried Thai Pepper Pods.
Middle: Banana Friendship Bread, Wild Blackberry Jelly, Christmas Jam.
Bottom: Red Velvet Cheesecake Brownies, White Chocolate Blueberry Friendship Bread, Green Flame Pepper Jelly.



Triple B Farms has a large stock of all their delicious coffee, great for Christmas gift giving, for treating visiting guests, and for daily use. Stock up now! Coffee for a cause, 10% of all profits from our coffee sales goes to A Soldiers Child foundation, which is a Tennessee charity to benefit the families of our fallen warriors. Not only are you getting the best coffee around, but you are giving to a cause right here at home.

(L to R): Ground, K-Cups, or Whole Bean Coffee in your choice of three blends.


Terra Hills products are off the market this week, as Terresa is on vacation. They will return after Christmas.


Don’t miss the great selection of seasonal offerings (desserts and other goodies) available from several of our farmers, including the following:

(L to R) Top: Pumpkin Spice Soy Candle from Full Circle Candles; Pumpkin Spice Granola from Solace Farm; Healthful Pumpkin Muffins from Hope for Health.
Middle: Pumpkin Pie from Kountry Vittles; Several Types of Pumpkins from Weaver Farms; Pumpkin Pie and several types of pumpkins from Erdmann Farm.
(Bottom) Pumpkin Roll from Kountry Vittles; Rag Quilt from Triple B Farms.

For this Christmas season, Manchester Locally Grown managers are offering Gift Certificates in $5 increments. Introduce your loved ones to our fantastic, fresh, local market with these great gifts! We also have some combination gift baskets, each containing items from several farmers.

From Sow’s Ear Piggery:
This week, we are adding a couple of new items: Pork Roast Steaks and Jowls. Brown then braise the steaks in the oven or on the stovetop until tender for a warm meal on a chilly winter’s day. Jowls can be treated like pork sides/belly. Our jowls are fresh, uncured, so could be cured and smoked for bacon or used fresh in a braised dish. Or for the very ambitious, jowls are the exact cut called for in the charcuterie specialty Gunaciale. All excellent uses of this coveted cut. And of course, we have our usual items such as ground pork, breakfast sausage, and stew meat. All of our meat is USDA inspected from non-GMO, non-soy/corn, non-antibiotic free-range pigs.

(Clockwise from upper left) Hog Jowl, Pork Roast Steak, Ground Pork, Cubed Stew Meat.


From Linda at Dogwood Valley Greenhouse:
Dogwood Valley Greenhouse still has several Christmas cacti which would make beautiful hostess gifts, or would go a long way to brighten up your own home. The red ones are out of bloom, and we have sold out of the white and light pink ones, but we have several bright pink ones, covered with blooms and buds.

We also have enough greens to make a couple more kissing balls and wreaths, if you missed ordering the last couple of weeks. Also, look for other types of houseplants coming onto the market after Christmas.

(L to R) Bright Pink Christmas Cactus, Christmas Wreath, Christmas Kissing Ball.

PLEASE NOTE

Catherine from Flying S Farm has been very busy perserving her fall bounty. Recently she has added several new items to the market, including the following:

(L to R) Top: Frozen Habanero Pepper Puree, Butternut Squash.
Middle: Dried Thai Pepper Pods, Banana Friendship Bread.
Bottom: Wild Blackberry Jelly, Pomegranate Jelly.



Our market has so many delectable, grassfed meats available! Last week we featured some newly restocked beef and lamb cuts. We also have chicken cuts from two local farmers, Tonic Farms
and Wayne Diller.

(L to R): (Top) Whole Broiler and Chicken Feet from Wayne Diller. And from Tonic Farms: Boneless Skinless Breasts, Leg Quarters, and Wings.

For this Christmas season, Manchester Locally Grown managers will offer combination gift baskets, each containing items from several farmers. We currently have listed some smaller baskets, with a couple larger ones planned to contain perishable items. Please check back to see our other offerings, and let us know if you have specific needs for gift baskets.

Erdmann Farm has returned this week, listing two types of pumpkins for your pre-Christmas baking.

(L to R) Connecticut Field Pumpkin, Long Island Cheese Pumpkin.


Speaking of pumpkin, the favorite fall flavor is well-represented on our market:

Bar Cookies, Bread, and Cookies from Flying S Farm
Candles from Full Circle Candles
Granola from Solace Farm
Muffins from Hope for Health
Pie and Pumpkin Roll from Kountry Vittles
Enjoy them while they’re here. Most of them will disappear from the market within a short time.


Dogwood Valley Greenhouse still has all colors of blooming Christmas Cactus plants. We will foil wrap the pots so they are ready for gift-giving.

Short Mountain Cultures has added quite a few new items to the category “Fermented Foods/Beverages”.

(L to R) Top: Chili Garlic Sauce, Water Kefir, Kimchi.
Bottom: Kraut in several flavors, Ginger Beet Kvass, Tempeh in several flavors.



This message is from Amy Rae of Solace Farm:

Solace Farm is excited to report we have finally gotten our fall crop of grassfed beef and lamb back from the processor! Thanks so much to our loyal customers for your patience as we slowly grow our herds (at this point, the only cows in our herd of 24 not born at Solace Farm are our bull and 3 mamas!), and as always thank you for supporting small family farms like ours!

(L to R): (Top, Beef) Ribeye Steak, Filet Mignon, Chuck Roast.
(Bottom, Lamb) Ribs, Shoulder Roast, Kidney.



Lois Casey of Casey Farms writes:
Our cows are getting ready to come back around. We have 2 gallons and 2 half gallons to list. That is all we will have available for now, but we hope to have more soon.

For this Christmas season, Manchester Locally Grown managers will offer combination gift baskets, each containing items from several farmers. We currently have listed some smaller baskets, with a couple larger ones planned to contain perishable items. Please check back to see our other offerings, and let us know if you have specific needs for gift baskets.

Don’t forget your Christmas decorations or blooming Christmas Cactus plant from Dogwood Valley Greenhouse. Everything is in limited supply, so get your orders in soon.

(L to R) Two Kissing Balls, Centerpiece, and Wreath, Large Wrapped Christmas Cactus.

Erdmann Farm is on vacation mode this week, but hopes to return to the market either next week or the week after.

This message is from Molly Cornelison from Kountry Vittles:

Sorry Folks, I had to put my goodies on vacation during Thanksgiving. I got slammed all at once and was afraid I wouldn’t be able to meet everyone’s needs. I believe I have everything back open and available again. I Look forward to helping you with your bakery needs. Have a blessed day.

Clockwise from upper left: Pumpkin Roll, Customizable Cupcakes, Buckeyes, Pecan Pie Cheesecake Fudge.

Erdmann Farm is on vacation mode this week, but hopes to return to the market either next week or the week after.


Triple B Farms is taking a break for family this week.


Casey Family Farm cows are still on vacation.

For this Christmas season, Manchester Locally Grown managers will offer combination gift baskets, each containing items from several farmers. In time for this newsletter, we have listed the first of these baskets, with several more planned to add in a few days. Please check back to see our other offerings, and let us know if you have specific needs for gift baskets.

Don’t forget your Christmas decorations or blooming Christmas Cactus plant from Dogwood Valley Greenhouse. Everything is in limited supply, so get your orders in soon.

(L to R) Two Kissing Balls, Centerpiece, and Wreath, Large Wrapped Christmas Cactus.