Hello  my Foodie Friends!

We believe cooking as a family is important. When it comes to food, we each have family traditions that may have either been passed down from generation to generation, or have been recently developed as your own family tradition. Preparing old family recipes is a great way to pass along stories, smells, and flavors of the past to your next generation of family chefs. Traditions may include having a family member prepare a meal once a week or try out an old signature dish that was part of your own growing up. Give each family member a sense of involvement while discovering a new favorite dish to add to your family cookbook. 

Depending on how old your children are (young or adult), you can teach cooking skills, talk about the mathematics of measuring (yes, even fractions!), discuss where different foods come from and what makes some foods more nutritious than others, and share family

stories and traditions that center around the foods you’re making. The more chances that your family has to experience foods in different ways, the more familiar and inviting those foods will seem. And, when family members help make the food … by choosing the recipe, going along to the grocery store, or lending a hand with the cooking … they feel more personally invested, and they’re more likely to sample the food (and like it!). Making food can provide plenty of reasons to gather your family together with you in the kitchen, and get them cooking!

One of our favorite items to use when it comes to any recipe and is important in food prep is a wooden cutting board. This item is not only useful in your own home, but is a beautiful gift to give.

At Compliments to the Chef, we love wood cutting boards! Good hard woods have been used for centuries to cut food or butcher meat on. Early man just cut down any old tree to butcher and cut meat on but quickly realized that soft woods got people sick. A good cutting board properly maintained can last a lifetime, and they are safer than plastic which if it isn’t sanitized or left wet can actually harbor bacteria. Some of the reasons for this are:

1. Wood is water-absorbent, so it dries faster, which means shorter bacterial survival.

2. Wood contains natural antibiotic agents that retard bacterial growth.

We carry beautiful, handcrafted wooden cutting boards made by Catskill Craftsmen, and Saratoga Springs Artisan Adam Cielinski. Choosing an Adam Cielinski wood cutting board can make a great “Saratoga” gift to bring to family or friends or it can be one for your own home. Bring one as a house warming or thank you gift, or choose from one that may reflect a special love or hobby of a person you are buying for. They are simply beautiful and functional. 

Adam’s boards are part of Saratoga Springs Art History. They are each different and no two exactly the same. He also makes large cutting blocks that are great for larger items. The good news is they are reasonably priced too! Wood cutting boards have been in my family for generations and we hand them down. I learned as a child to chop and prep on a wood cutting board. Stop in and pick up a piece of Saratoga History and have something that you can hand down in your family. A little advice on their care:

1. Dry the board immediately after (hand) washing, and 

2. Once a month, rub the board with oil, to keep it water-repellent and warp-free. Apply a coat of warm food-safe mineral oil, let soak in, and then wipe off the excess. Scratches can be sanded out then re-oiled.

Stop by Compliments to the Chef, your Neighborhood Kitchen and Cutlery store located at 33 Railroad Place in Saratoga Springs. Keep your family together in the kitchen and involved with the prep and creation of your meals. Family recipes are a way of keeping our ancestry alive, as well as a part of ourselves. Traditions help bond us to those we love. Cooking together creates closer bonds and helps build lifelong memories. You can also use the time to listen, share and talk as a family. Remember my Foodie Friends, “Life Happens in the Kitchen.”

Take Care, John & Paula

Three years ago, Haley Gerarde would visit The Smoothie Shoppe each Saturday at the Spa City and Saratoga Farmers’ Markets. She had loved the vibe that surrounded the stand and  the flexibility it provided the family that owned it. She had also dreamed of following in the footsteps of her parents and becoming an entrepreneur. But she was raising two children and working part-time jobs on and of while doing so. There wasn’t much time (or energy!) left to do more than dream.

Dreams, however, have a funny way of coming true. Last year, Gerarde heard that The Smoothie Shoppe owners were looking for a buyer. With the encouragement of her husband, She jumped at the chance. Now, she makes smoothies at the farmers’ markets as the owner of Jenny Jo’s Smoothie Bar, LLC.

“It honestly fell into my lap,” Gerarde says. “And I’m so glad I took the leap.”

Her stall sits near the same spot at the Spa City and Saratoga farmers’ markets as The Smoothie Shoppe had in years prior. Although she has rebranded, the recipes remain the same, she notes, “it’s hard to want to fix something that’s not broken.”

But there are some special touches. One is the business name Jenny Jo’s. It’s in honor of Gerarde’s daughters, Genevieve and Josephine. They’re the main reason why she wanted to take the business. “I want to show them an example of hard work paying off, and give them a job opportunity in their future if they decide to take over” explains Gerarde. 

Jenny Jo’s Smoothie Bar offers a variety of flavorful smoothies made with wholesome ingredients. The all-fruit smoothies have no added sugar and are dairy and gluten-free. Each smoothie includes a superfood (goji berries, chia seeds, or fresh ginger) to boost health benefits, and Jenny Jo’s also uses local ingredients when possible.

Customers can select from a menu including smoothie options like Righteous Red, Purple Power, Mean Green Machine, and Rhymes with Orange. Jenny Jo’s also offers blended shakes made with an almond milk base, like Mochaspresso and Muscle Monkey with peanut butter. New this summer, Jenny Jo’s is freezing smoothies and bringing popsicles!

Gerarde admits there’s much to learn about running a business. Still, she enjoys the early morning vibe of setting up for the market and the ability to trade smoothies for produce and other food items sold by other vendors. “Each market has amazing options for a good lunch when we have the time”, she adds.  

In addition to the Saratoga Farmers’ Market, Gerarde offers her smoothies at popup Zumba events, employee appreciation days, food truck events in Glens Falls, and area farmers’ markets.

The Saratoga Farmers’ Market is open Saturdays from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. and Wednesdays from 3-6 p.m. at High Rock Park. Find us online at saratogafarmersmarket.org and follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

Hello my Foodie Friends!   

I know it’s a cliché’ but time does go by so quickly. Today is our daughter Aubrey’s 30th birthday. It just seems like yesterday we were sitting at the Saratoga Race Track with her sitting on her foldable Barbie chair with a Saratoga umbrella watching the spectacular racing horses walking by.  We are blessed to have our daughter serving our community as a doctor of Physical Therapy. To this day, she insists that my wife make her an ice cream cake as part of her birthday celebration. My wife has developed various creations over the years. I have to admit, I do not mind having ice cream cake as our special birthday dessert. I love ice cream as much as I did when I was a kid. Many of us love ice cream.  We crave for it during hot summer days, even during the cold northeast winters. It is a wonderful treat to have as we watch movies like “Sleepless in Seattle”, or “When Harry met Sally”. Can you tell I am a fan of Meg Ryan! Ice cream is a sweet treat for all ages. It has been proven that whether you are young or old, you will never outgrow your love for Ice cream. So, why do we love ice cream so much? Here are some thoughts:

1. There are so many flavors to choose from. Ice creams are famous because of their flavors. 

2. Having a bad day at work or in school? Got dumped or got your heart broken? Eating ice cream helps lighten up one’s mood.

3. It is delicious and refreshing and makes you want more. 

4. What’s for dessert? Ice cream is always a sure way to satisfy those dessert yearnings. 

5. Ice cream reminds me of when I was a kid screaming for ice cream!  “I scream, you scream, we scream for Ice Cream!”

One culinary item that my wife relies upon when making her ice cream cake is a spring form pan. Spring form pans are a kitchen essential for producing flawlessly smooth cheesecakes, perfectly crusted tarts, or intricate ice cream cakes without damage to their tops, bottoms, or sides. Meant to eliminate the risks associated with removing cakes from traditional pans, removing your product from the pan is the final step before placing your delicate treats on display, serving to your family or guests, or packaging them to go.

Stop by Compliments to the Chef, your Neighborhood Kitchen and Cutlery store located at 33 Railroad Place. We have an assortment of spring form pans and accessories to assist with adding that special dessert to your menu. 

To our daughter Aubrey: You give us a thousand reasons to smile every day. We are so proud of the woman you are. Happy Birthday to you, our beautiful daughter! 

May love and laughter

Light your days

And warm your heart and home;

May good and faithful friends be yours

Wherever you may roam;

May peace and plenty bless your world

With joy that long endures;

May all life’s passing seasons

Bring the best to you and yours! 

~ Traditional Irish Blessing

Wishing all of our Foodie Dad’s a beautiful Father’s Day weekend. Remember my Food Friends, “Life Happens in the Kitchen”.  Take care; John and Paula. 

Although I cannot share Paula’s recipe for her ice cream cake, I have included another fantastic ice cream cake recipe to make.

Take Care, John & Paula

As Saratoga-area children anticipate their last day of school, the first question on many parents’ minds is, “What are we going to do all summer?” The Saratoga Farmers’ Market’s Power of Produce Club offers children and families a free and easy answer to that question. 

Power of Produce Club (also known as POP Club) is a 12-week program that begins next Wednesday, June 21, and runs through the first week of September. It takes place each Wednesday, 3-6 p.m., at the farmers’ market and gives both children and their parents a chance to learn about local foods and farming hands-on. 

Each time participants visit POP Club at the Wednesday market, they will receive a $2 POP coin that kids can use to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables from a farmer. The coins are geared toward children between the ages of 5 and 12. In addition, children will receive a stamp on a POP passport. After receiving four stamps, children will be eligible for a prize.

The project aims to help children see how food and farming are intrinsically connected to strengthening community ties. By buying produce from our vendors, children form what might turn into lifelong relationships with local farmers. At the same time, children gain basic money skills and participate in weekly activities that offer a sense of how to enjoy local produce when it is at its finest.

Power of Produce Club is made possible by support from The Christopher Dailey Foundation. In addition, educational activities are being organized by numerous community partners like The Children’s Museum at Saratoga, C.R.E.A.T.E. Community Studios, Little Wings Farm School, Saratoga Springs Public Library, and more.

The first event occurs next Wednesday, June 21, with a 45-min family-friendly opera of Oscar Wilde’s The Selfish Giant presented by Opera Saratoga. Free activities will be provided, and market interns will serve fruit and yogurt cones (with dairy-free & gluten-free options). Children get the first stamp in their POP Passport, a $2 POP coin, and a free apron from SNAP-Ed NY. 

POP Club’s annual End of School Celebration will be held the following Wednesday, June 28, with a concert by Jack & Steve Zucchini sponsored by Stewart’s Shops! There will be free, fun activities and food tastings hosted by the Saratoga Springs Public Library, The Children’s Museum at Saratoga, and Saratoga Farmers’ Market interns.

The Saratoga Farmers Market is 9:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Saturdays in the food court of the Wilton Mall. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for previews of what’s fresh.

Hello my Foodie Friends!   

The sounds of cooking can be kitchen music to our ears with the sounds of beeps, pans, clinging, clanging, and thuds in your kitchen.  Having the right cookware is important to the entire culinary experience. As we gear up for Father’s Day, this may be an item to consider for the person who has everything. 

This brings me back to the time my father and his friends went on their yearly hunting trip to Vermont. I have shared this story before, yet I love telling it, especially in honor of all our foodie Dad’s.  Every year four dads got together for a week of deer hunting. After about four years in a row of not bringing back a deer, my mom got wise and had a meeting with the other moms. They gave each dad a condition they had to fulfill if they wanted to go. They were required to bring all their children over the age of five. The negotiations went on for months and my Dad, who was the ring leader, gave in. Therefore, there were some very excited little boys and girls who got to go with their Dad on a weekend long vacation. Dad’s cookware at the “Cabin” was not the best and the first night the dads had great time laughing and enjoying their “refreshments” (as they referred to them) while we ran around endlessly.  It started getting dark and I asked my dad when we were going to eat?  He told me to go ahead and cook something up.  I replied: “Dad, I’m seven”.  There was literally no food.  My Uncle Cass found some cans of beans and first looked at the other dads then to all ten of us kids and with a very loud and enthusiastic voice said: “Hey kids, how about some BEANS!”  Then all the dads started yelling, “beans, beans beans”, and then the kids started yelling “beans, beans, beans!” Cass started pouring six cans of beans into a wooden handled sauté pan while singing made up songs that we all joined in on. He kept stirring and singing while we assembled at the table peacefully.  I must admit he had me more excited to eat a plate of beans than I have ever been for a meal. “Ok”, he said “here it is kids” and we cheered. As he turned around the wooded handle came loose and the pan spun around multiple times and the beans went flying. Hot beans hit like little bean pellets bouncing off every child at the table.  No one was hurt because all of us were laughing so hard we were couldn’t talk.  Cass thought he killed us. A good plan would have prevented this disaster. However, it is to this day one of all our favorite times with our dads.  Dad had a tense moment explaining to mom why her three boys had red dots on their foreheads.  

So many of our customers come in and state that they want good cookware. They are tired of going through generations of cookware that does not last or is not providing them with the heat conduction or distribution they are looking for in cooking.  Good pans are worth their price because they manage heat better. Being a “good conductor” and “heavy gauge” are the key features of good cookware. 

Here’s how these characteristics affect cooking. You get responsive heat. Good heat conductors, such as copper and aluminum, are responsive to temperature changes. They’ll do what the heat source tells them to do—heat up, cool down—almost instantly. You get fast heat flow. Heat flows more easily through a good heat conductor, assuring a quick equalizing of temperature on the cooking surface. You get even heat diffusion. A thicker pan has more distance between the cooking surface and the heat source. By the time the heat flows to the cooking surface, it will have spread out evenly, because heat diffuses as it flows. You get more heat. Mass holds heat (heat is vibrating mass, so the more mass there is to vibrate, the more heat there will be). The more pan there is to heat, the more heat the pan can hold, so there’s more constant heat for better browning, faster reducing, and hotter frying.

Our staple products for cookware include; Hestan, Viking, LeCreuset, and Lodge cookware. Buying good cookware could be a wonderful gift to give your culinary enthusiast. Stop by Compliments to the Chef – your neighborhood Kitchen and Cutlery store located at 33 Railroad Place. We have a large assortment of cookware. Make sure you have the best cookware to do the job right. Make music in your kitchen with the sounds of stirring, pots and pans clanking. Play some music while you cook. Dance and embrace those who make those creative dishes that say “I love you”. Remember my Foodie Friends; “Life Happens in the Kitchen!”

Take Care, 

John & Paula

Who’s ready for strawberries? How about the season’s first cool, fresh cucumbers? Crisp greens? Flavorful fennel? Every day, local farms harvest the freshest flavors of spring. So stroll through the pavilions of High Rock Park and fill your market basket because the culinary possibilities are endless!

The crisp sweetness of spring fruit and vegetables can be enjoyed as a main course or as a side dish, along with grass-fed beef, pork chops, farm-raised chicken, or a hearty mushroom main. And the best part of spring cooking is the simplicity. Minimal effort is required to make flavors sing; the bulk is prepping the fruit and vegetables and putting them into a bowl.

In creating a balanced spring salad, tasting is required to ensure the flavors are balanced with an acid, like tangy citrus or vinegar, and then seasoned with salt and pepper taste. Sweetness is optional; if desired, honey and maple syrup are excellent options. However, dressings can be as simple as local Greek yogurt or olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Fresh herbs are ideal in uncooked foods; their flavors brighten and elevate fruits and vegetable combinations in spring salads. Parsley, chives, basil, and dill can often be used interchangeably. Mint lends a distinctive flavor depending on the salad.

Now let’s talk about spring’s fruit and vegetable stars available at the Wednesday and Saturday markets – winning combinations for salads. Strawberries, greens (from spinach to bok choy to lettuce mix), beets, radishes, fennel, cabbage, carrots, parsnips, and even the last of spring’s asparagus.

The Saratoga Farmers Market is 9:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Saturdays in the food court of the Wilton Mall. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for previews of what’s fresh.  

Hello  my Foodie Friends!  I love Pasta. There, I said it. It is a weakness I have. Homemade pasta is a bigger weakness. Once you experience homemade pasta, it is close to impossible to go back to the store brand pastas. Making homemade pasta can require extra time – but it is worth it. If you haven’t ventured past the convenience of dried pasta, it’s time to make some changes in your life. We have nothing against dried pasta — there is definitely a time and a place for it, and in fact, sometimes there’s nothing better for a quick and satisfying weeknight dinner. If you’ve ever tried homemade pasta, however, you understand what pasta is really all about. Homemade pasta is a little chewy and very tender; it really does just melt in your mouth. It may sound difficult, but making your own pasta is actually much easier than you might think. Fresh pasta comes together quite quickly. Mixing and kneading the dough takes about 10 minutes, then you let it rest for 30 minutes. You can use this resting time to pull together the ingredients for the pasta sauce. After resting, rolling out and cutting the dough takes maybe another 10 to 20 minutes, depending on how fast you go and how many helpers you have.

Speaking of helpers, it helps to have a few. You can definitely do it by yourself, but it’s really nice to have an extra set of hands, especially if you’re hand-cranking the dough through a counter-top pasta roller. Whether working by yourself or with someone else, I find that you fall into a rhythm of rolling the sheets of pasta, cutting the noodles, and sprinkling everything with flour.

Once you’ve made your pasta, you can cook it right away, dry it, or freeze it for later. When you do cook it, remember that homemade pasta cooks much more quickly than the dried pasta you buy in stores. Give it about four minutes in salted boiling water, taste it, and keep checking in one-minute increments until the pasta is al dente. Add spinach or carrots to create colorful pastas; the dough contains very concentrated vegetable juices, but they don’t have an overt vegetable taste. They are delicious, and I am pretty sure they could still pass a picky-eaters’ taste test. Unless the picky-eater hates colors. 

Note: The name of the game at this point is to keep everything well-floured to prevent the pasta from sticking to itself or the roller as you work. If the dough starts to feel sticky as you roll it, sprinkle it with flour. Also sprinkle flour on any pasta you’re not working (rolled, cut or otherwise) with and keep it covered with a dishtowel.

Stop by Compliments to the Chef, your Neighborhood Kitchen and Cutlery located at 33 Railroad Place store to pick up a Pasta machine and other pasta accessories. Work your magic in the kitchen. Enjoy dinner al fresco (Caesar salad, bread, pasta, chicken Marsala, tiramisu for dessert and, of course, finished with home-made limoncello) and share an evening with great company and interesting conversation – all the ingredients for a truly memorable meal. Remember my Foodie Friends; “Life Happens in the Kitchen!” “Mangia!”

Take Care, John & Paula

Before The Bread Butler opened its doors in 2020, Adreas Mergner would bring bread to his daughter’s school or when she had playdates. “People were saying it was some of the best bread they have ever eaten,” Andreas Mergner reminisced.

Mergner opened The Bread Butler during the Covid-19 pandemic after he became a stay-at-home dad when his escape room business declined because of the pandemic. Through his love of baking bread, Mergner transitioned his life toward a new business and began delivering baked goods to his customers. In April 2020 is when Mergner officially opened The Bread Butler.

Mergner says The Bread Butler relies on good reviews and word of mouth. “Really, we just want people to try it. We do have samples at the farmer’s market. Come by look at it, smell it,” Mergner said, “That’s really all we try to do at the farmer’s market is get people to try it.”

Their weekly staples include Italian-style loaves, crispy crust semolina flour loaves, and flavorful whole wheat sourdough loaves with poppy and sesame seeds. You can also find banana crumble – a moist banana bread with a coffee cake-like topping, lemon poppy cake, and peach hibiscus muffins. 

In addition to these offerings, The Bread Butler brings various items week-to-week, including baguettes, black currant croissants, challah, cheddar jalapeno loaves, ciabatta, and more.

“Market-goers are the ideal customer for us because they care about quality. We use organic flour, we mill our own whole wheat and rye, and we care about what we make. We try to make tasty stuff,” Mergner said.

All of their breads use organic, local flour. And almost all of their breads use a sourdough starter in various amounts, which can be attributed to their flavor.

The Bread Butler attends Wednesday and Saturday markets at High Rock Park. You can also find their bread at Honest Weight in Albany and their store on Central Avenue in Colonie. Flexible delivery options allow customers to pre-order by phone or on their website, thebreadbutler.com. Freshly baked bread can be delivered to your front door once a week for a small delivery fee.

The Saratoga Farmers Market is 9:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Saturdays in the food court of the Wilton Mall. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for previews of what’s fresh.  

Hello  my Foodie Friends!     

This is Memorial Day weekend. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate so we can have our outdoor picnics to celebrate the holiday. I am so happy to see the sun and the warmer temperatures. The season between Memorial Day and Labor Day brings the opportunity to host many outside events. Having a picnic with family and friends on a beautiful day can be a time that creates those unforgettable moments and memories that last a lifetime. 

Each week we write about the fun of creating and cooking fabulous dishes. However, with making these dishes comes the mess and dreaded task of cleaning up which becomes someone’s responsibility. Many conflicts occur within a household on whose turn it is to wash the dishes. I remember in my childhood, years fighting with my four other siblings on who would be assigned the chore of doing the dishes. Having grown up in a household with five children, my mother ran a tight ship and made sure all of us were assigned cleaning duties. Fighting over who was going to wash the dishes was a common occurrence even after my mother made it clear whose job it was that evening. Through the years we learned that washing the dishes did not take that long when each of us helped out. When we shared and helped each other in our household chores, we then had plenty of time to go and do what we wanted afterwards. While doing chores and playing together, we became good friends; a friendship that still holds today. 

“You know you’re an adult when you get excited when there is a new sponge in the sink.” Author Unknown. To this day, believe it or not, I enjoy washing dishes. I love bringing home new types of items to help me with this chore. One of our favorite items we carry is the Jetz-Scrubz cleaning sponge. This sponge will not scratch even the finest surfaces. They can last for several months and can be cleaned in the top tray of your dishwasher. The sponge has a foam side that holds suds longer and has a scratch-free scrubber side for pots and pans. Jetz-Scrubz is also made in the USA. 

This Memorial Day weekend, whose ever job it is to wash the dishes and clean up, try out this really cool sponge! Come visit Compliments to the Chef, your Neighborhood Kitchen and Cutlery Store located on 33 Railroad Place in Saratoga where we have Tools for Cooks! Have fun cooking and cleaning up. Remember my Foodie Friends, “Life Happens in the Kitchen.”

Take Care, John & Paula

Are you a Saratoga Farmers’ Market regular who arrives each week with shopping bags as well as a can of kitchen scraps for our compost collection bin? If so, thank you! Thanks in part to you, we’re expanding our compost collection efforts.

The market has partnered with a Saratoga-based small business Loving Earth Compost, to create a “Scraps to Soil” project at its Wednesday market. Loving Earth owner Hope LaBonty provides a bin for collecting food scraps and other compostable items each week. This material will be taken to Loving Earth’s composting facility to be turned into soil. That soil will be bagged and returned to the market in late fall. The market will then make it available to all of you on a donation basis.

Such soil is a perfect addition to backyard or container gardens, says LaBonty.

LaBonty grew up in western Massachusetts and is a member of the Wampanoag Tribe and has various ancestral European roots. Everyone in her family had gardens and believed in fostering connections between people, plants, and the earth. A desire to pursue those connections led LaBonty to the University of Maine to study ecology and environmental science and eventually to Upstate New York, where she has lived for about a decade with her family. 

She took over ownership of Loving Earth in March 2022. The compost collection business currently services more than 100 households in Saratoga.

LaBonty describes the exchange of scraps for soil as an act of reciprocity.

“A lot of people don’t have access to a lawn or backyard they feel comfortable composting in, but they still want to be part of this movement toward being more environmentally conscious,” she explains. “They want to be contributing to soil health and toward mitigating climate change, all of which can be done through composting.”

Compost is a valuable aspect of the regenerative agricultural methods used by many Saratoga Farmers Market vendors. I am one such vendor. My farm’s co-owner Jim Carlson has been transporting compost brought to the market to our farm to generate topsoil. This year, the market’s pilot project with Loving Earth is part of my activities as SUNY Empire State University’s Turben Chair in Mentoring. As part of this work, Loving Earth will offer an informational table and one-hour workshop from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. on June 7 and an activity during the Wednesday market’s summer Power of Produce Club for children on July 17 to teach children and families about the benefits of composting.

The Saratoga Farmers’ Market is open on Wednesdays from 3-6 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. at High Rock Park in downtown Saratoga. Find us online at www.saratogafarmersmarket.org, where you can sign up for our weekly newsletter, and follow us on Facebook and Instagram @SaratogaFarmersMarket.