Hello  my Foodie Friends!     

It’s that time of year for me to share my annual Halloween memories. Halloween is only a few shorts days away and for the little chefs out there the excitement is building.  How many of us remember going apple bobbing during festivals or when attending a Halloween party? Bobbing for apples is no easy task. Bobbing for apples is a classic Halloween game where you are challenged to take a bite out of an apple that is floating in water while your hands are behind your back – with the task of getting as many apples as you can. 

Many readers stop into my store and ask how Paula and I met. We typically reply that we both met while working together in a restaurant. However, the real first time we met was at a church Halloween dance a few years prior. My church knew how to throw fun events. Everyone came dressed in costume.  I dressed as a gangster and my brothers were dressed as my henchmen.  There were many events at the dance and one particular event was bobbing for apples which I was known as a pro. My father always said I had a big mouth, so that is why I was so good at it. I always thought that he was giving me a compliment. Now, hmmm?  During the dance, the nuns who spent the better part of their school days trying to keep the boys and girls apart, wanted to pit the boys against the girls in the apple bobbing contest. My brothers convinced all of the other boys that I should go last in case it was close; then I would seal the expected victory. We were all then paired off against our female opponents. I was paired with a beautiful young lady who was dressed as Pocahontas. She had her hair in what is called a “French braid” (I had to ask my daughter Aubrey, what that hairstyle is called before I wrote this article). The dressed up “Pocahontas” (also had something on the end of her braid called a scrunchie? (Aubrey also had to tell me what that was). As the competition progressed, it finally came down to the last couple to decide who walks away as the victor. There was a lot of cheering from my brothers who knew how good I was at apple bobbing, since we grew up every fall playing this game. When I looked across the bucket of water, Pocahontas had a big, beautiful smile and I felt something strange. When the nun said “go”, we both plunged our heads into the bucket of water for our apple. The first one to get an apple, wins. I found my apple and was coming up out of the water when something struck my eye.  I winced in surprise and the apple fell out of my mouth. Pocahontas was up and out with a huge apple, and the girls cheered and the boys groaned.  When I looked into the eyes of my opponent, I swear there were sparks and fireworks coming in my direction. I never saw her again and never forgot that look. A few years later, a beautiful young woman with her hair in a French braid started working at the same restaurant I worked, where I was asked to train her. When we looked at each other I realized it was Pocahontas! Her real name was Paula. Of course, she didn’t recognize me so I said, “Pocahontas do you like apples?” She squinted at me and then smiled and said “it’s you!” That, my Foodie Friends, was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Bobbing for apples is one fun way to get apples. However, I think most of us prefer to either pick them from our favorite apple orchard or get them from an apple stand. There are so many ways to prepare apples during this season. One essential tool is an apple peeling machine. The apple peeling machine is made of metal and not only peels apples but cores and slices them too. Just suction the peeler to your countertop (some models affix to a work surface with a vice), fit the apple on the skewer and crank away. 

This season, stop by Compliments to the Chef, your Neighborhood Kitchen and Cutlery store, located at 33 Railroad Place to pick up the essentials you need to make your apple delights. Share your stories of Halloween or how you met your special someone who is the apple of your eye. 

Remember my Foodie Friends, “Life Happens in the Kitchen!”

Take Care, John & Paula

My kids talk about their Halloween costumes nearly year-round, so it’s fair to say that Halloween is a big deal in our house. For us, Halloween is more about celebrating the spirit of the season; roasting pumpkin seeds, making festive snacks, selecting pumpkins and carving them, making crafts, and exploring nature as fall takes hold. Weekly visits to the farmers’ market enhance these activities and experiences, creating tangible and meaningful Halloween traditions.

Halloween-themed foods allow for creative and fun cooking, especially when preparing food with children. Apple slices sandwiched with nut butter suddenly become monster lips. Add roasted pumpkin seeds for teeth. Cut carrots into rounds and top with chèvre and halved black olives to make spooky eye snacks. You get the idea. Except for olives, all these ingredients are available at the farmers’ market.

Roasting pumpkins and having fresh purée on-hand offers so many possibilities. A small pumpkin (about 3 lbs.) will make roughly 4 cups of purée. Start by cutting the pumpkin in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds and strings. Save the seeds for roasting. Brush the pumpkin flesh with oil, sprinkle with salt, and place the flesh side down on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Pierce the skin a few times with a fork to let steam escape. Roast at 350 degrees for approximately 50 minutes. Once cooled, purée in a food processor. You can add pumpkin to cinnamon rolls, smoothies, curries, soups, macaroni and cheese, oatmeal, and many other foods.

If you’re not feeling too creative or lacking time, you can get Halloween goods straight from the Saratoga Farmers’ Market vendors. Burger’s Market Garden will have hand-painted mini pumpkins, and Saratoga Suds ‘n’ Stuff will have spooky soaps.

For the sweeter side, visit NightWork Bread for their incredible chai snickerdoodles, and TogaNola will have their ‘fan favorite’ pumpkin spice granola. Muddy Trail Jerky Co. has mulling spices perfect for simmering with cider from Saratoga Apple. 

Let’s enjoy a final Saturday market at High Rock Park, as next Saturday, November 5, the Saratoga Farmers’ Market will move to its indoor home at the Wilton Mall food court. 

The Saratoga Farmers’ Market is open Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Wednesdays from 3 to 6 p.m. at High Rock Park through the end of October. The market will be open on Saturdays from 9:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. in the Wilton Mall Food Court starting November 5. Find us online at www.saratogafarmersmarket.org and follow us on Facebook and Instagram. 

We know and love/hate the vagaries of fall: sun and warmth, then rain and chill; mornings in the 30s; afternoons in the 70s. We await those first hard frosts with worry about our gardens even as we wonder at Nature’s beauty amid it all. 

Fall’s seesaw weather patterns are showing up these days at the Saratoga Farmers’ Market, where pumpkins, potatoes, and frost-tolerant mustard greens share space with peppers and tomatoes. If you like to eat with the seasons, you can enjoy summer and fall together.

I used to fear hard frosts as early as September. Those frosts would kill the vines that give us squashes, peppers, and tomatoes. Now, with changes in our climate patterns, these plants often make it through mid-October, and their fruits might remain fresh into early November. 

Adapting our diets to these shifting patterns allows for a new array of flavors. 

Keep some sweet, mild, and hot peppers on your countertop, along with the garlic, onions, ginger, lemongrass, and turmeric at the market now. When it’s time to create a stir fry, soup, stew, or a dish like meatloaf, try replacing the dried black and crushed red peppers from most recipes with fresher, plumper green bell or frying peppers.

Many farmers’ market regulars have come to enjoy shishito peppers, blistered with a little oil in a hot skillet. Padron peppers offer a similar sweet-with-a-kick flavor with a more sustained warm burn. Both work well as a snack or can add a spicy edge to stews, casseroles, and risotto. 

Green tomatoes are abundant now, partly because our warmer fall lets outdoor plants keep producing fruits. These fruits seem less buggy than their summer counterparts but are not ripening red because, in part, of diminished daylight. Still, a tomato is a tomato and can be eaten green.

Consider a green tomato sandwich, with slices of a firm, plump green tomato in between toasted and buttered slices of artisanal bread with perhaps a bit of cheese and spicy mustard greens. Or keep a few on the counter to chop up and toss into whatever happens to be cooking. Their moisture helps keep other ingredients from drying out, and their tangy taste complements other flavors. Green tomatoes can replace tomatillos in taco fillings, salsas, or chili Verde. 

And at least one meal of fried green tomatoes is an October must-have.

The Saratoga Farmers’ Market is open Wednesdays from 3 to 6 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at High Rock Park. The farmers’ market will move to the Wilton Mall on November 5. Find us online at www.saratogafarmersmarket.org and follow us on Facebook and Instagram. 

Hello my Foodie Friends!   

During my childhood, my grandmother’s kitchen was always full of people, laughter, and the aroma of delicious food. I have wonderful memories of the whole family getting together at her house for regular Sunday dinners and holiday meals, and of me and my four other siblings standing at her kitchen table while she taught us how to make some of her magical dishes. I think what I have taken away from these memories is that food brings people together. For many of us, some of our greatest influences for our love of cooking comes from those we watched cook and make our food memories. When I ate my grandmother’s food, I knew in my heart that food was her way of showing love. Among the foods I looked forward to includes her soup. Her soup would be the “fix” for so many things like helping me to feel better when I was sick, or just simply to give me the comfort with the soul-filling flavors and scents that I needed. Helping my grandmother was a task that was given to the “older” grandchildren. My grandmother was a very small woman and needed assistance carrying the large pot of soup to the table. I can still visualize her using a large spoon as she would stand on her tip toes to view and stir her soup. 

There are a variety of cooking vessels you can make your soup in such as a soup pot, stock pot, or a dutch oven. We carry a multi use pot called a Multipot. The multipot includes an 8-quart stainless steel stock pot, pasta insert, streamer insert and lid. This multipot can be used to steam vegetables or as a pasta strainer among many options. We carry the multipot by VIKING which is perfect for all cooking methods, including induction. The 3-Ply Stainless Steel-clad construction of the multipot combines three layers of metal to create one solid piece that is formed into the vessel, making the pot extremely responsive to changes in heat.

Another useful tool in making soup is a soup sock. You can fill these cotton mesh bags with your favorite herbs and ingredients for flavoring stocks and soups. The finely woven material holds delicate herbs or expands to accommodate everything from bones to chopped vegetables. When cooking is complete, simply remove the bag – no need for straining! They are made of strong, 100% fine cotton mesh. The soup sock comes in a large size to accommodate all sorts of flavoring ingredients, from bones and whole vegetables to herb leaves. They will not impart odors or flavors into soups or stocks. The best part is that they help with a mess-free cooking – no need for straining. The packets of soup socks come in sets of three and they are made in the USA.

Stop by Compliments to the Chef, your Neighborhood Kitchen and Cutlery store, located at 33 Railroad Pl., to find the items you need to assist with making your favorite heartwarming soup. Remember my Foodie Friends: “Life Happens in the Kitchen.”

Take Care, John & Paula

Hello  my Foodie Friends!   

There are so many “must haves” in the kitchen. As I was cooking with Paula the other day, I found myself using the term “pass the frying pan” and using it more than once. I realized that the frying pan (skillet) is one of my most used cookware tools. A frying (skillet) pan is  a flat-bottomed, shallow pan with a slanted side and long handles. It is designed for sautéing or for shallow-fry foods. Frying pans come in various sizes from 8” to 12” (with some at 7, 9, and 11”). There are a variety of surfaces that include ceramic, non-stick, stainless steel, carbon steel, and cast iron. 

The frying pan can be considered an essential for any kitchen. They are easy to use and offer the ability to create a surface that heats up quickly. They are a versatile tool to use from frying to browning, searing, oven finishing using for pan sauces, or for making eggs in. With the frying pan being an integral part of the kitchen, care of the frying pan is very important to keep in mind based on what they are made of. Frying pans such as cast iron and carbon steel ones require seasoning upkeep. Frying pans with ceramic and non-stick surfaces require proper care with the types of tools used within the pan, how they are cleaned, and the temperature they are cooked with. An important point to know about frying pans is the way you use the heat. 

Stainless steel frying pans are a work horse. The multi-ply pan comes with an aluminum or copper core with stainless steel coated on the inside and outside of the pan. The multi-ply pan functions as a heat conductor. You can cook practically anything in a stainless- steel frying pan. They can tolerate higher levels of heat than a non-stick pan and are typically safe to put in the oven (of course use an oven mitt when taking it out of the oven since the handle will be hot). They are great for menu items that require high sears and oven finishes like steak, chicken, and pork. When cleaning a stainless-steel pan, cool the pan first. You may need to soak it. Use an item like Bar Keepers Friend as a mild and safe product to scrub your pan back to its beautiful stainless finish. We encourage hand washing versus putting in the dishwasher. 

When using a non-stick frying pan, keep in mind that the non-stick coating can be compromised from excessive heat. The non-stick pan is best for delicate foods like eggs, fish, crepes, or various sauces that require low to medium heat. Acidic foods can also wear away the coating. Most non-stick pans require the use of wood, silicone, nylon, or rubber utensils. There are many new non-stick pans that now permit the use of metal tools. It is not recommended to put non-stick pans in the dishwasher as the surfaces usually cannot handle the dishwasher heat. The most important part of caring for your non-stick fry pan is to not go above medium heat. 

Cast iron and carbon steel frying pans are heavy and very versatile. They can be used from cooking eggs, to frying, searing, and baking. You can use higher temperatures with cast iron. However, cast iron and carbon steel pans need to be seasoned and properly maintained. There are coated cast iron pans that are glazed with an enamel coating that makes it easier to clean. 

The bottom line is you need to determine what your cooking style is and what you wa.nt to use the frying (skillet) pan for to choose the right kind of pan. You may need several for various foods that you are cooking. 

Stop by Compliments to the Chef, your Neighborhood Kitchen and Cutlery store located at 33 Railroad Place to round out your kitchen with the tools you need to create your best possible culinary collection. Remember my Foodie Friends, “Life Happens in the Kitchen.”

Take Care, John & Paula

Thick soups, hearty meats, cheese, and rustic bread. For a lot of us, these are the foods of fall. They’re warming, flavorful, and rich – and sometimes perhaps a bit too rich to easily digest.

However, pairing these fall favorites with such seasonal chicories as Italian dandelion greens, radicchio, frisée, escarole, and Belgian endive can help. These beautifully colored, glossy leafy vegetables all offer meals a bitter taste. That taste helps break up the fat and can be quite pleasing to the palate.

“Bitterness is valued by many culinary traditions around the world,” says Andrea Grom of Green Jeans Market Farm. “In French and Italian food traditions, bitter greens are typically paired with rich foods because they aid digestion.”

Grom first encountered chicories in 2009 while volunteering on organic farms in Italy and Germany through a program known as World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms, or WWOOF, which young farmers often tap to gain experience and exposure to different regenerative agricultural practices. At a farm in Tuscany, she fell in love with salads made with radicchio and Italian dandelion greens that her hosts prepared as well as a creamy risotto that included shredded radicchio. Later in southern Bavaria in Germany, she got acquainted with sugarloaf radicchio, a fall staple for Green Jeans, for several years. Her hosts created salads with radicchio, toasted walnuts, and chopped apple.

Longtime New Yorkers make escarole a part of Greens & Beans, a dish featuring cannellini beans, sausage, and a green. Many of my customers introduced me – a transplant – to what has become one of my favorite dishes.

Grom notes that chicories grow best in fall and spring. They are packed with nutrients and fall crops and can be wrapped tightly and stored in refrigerators for several weeks.

Green Jeans is among the many Saratoga Farmers Market vendors offering chicories this season. Look for the frilly leaves of frisée, curly escarole heads, deep red and purple radicchios, plus the green Sugar Loaf. Also, check out the spiked leaves that define Italian dandelion – not quite the wild leaf and yellow flower that fills our backyards and woods in early spring but still related. All of these, says Grom, “are vibrant, healthful greens that are wonderful as salads and in comfort foods.”

The Saratoga Farmers’ Market is open Wednesdays from 3 to 6 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at High Rock Park. The farmers’ market will move to the Wilton Mall on November 5. Find us online at www.saratogafarmersmarket.org and follow us on Facebook and Instagram. 

Hello  my Foodie Friends!   

When the temperature drops, it’s time to head to the kitchen to make a hearty, warming meal. Comfort food is all about hearty casseroles, soups, and warming stews. We love anything that gets slow-cooked, roasted or baked for maximum coziness. This time of year brings back memories of growing up in an Italian/Irish household (passionate mix). My fondest childhood memories were of all of my Aunts and Uncles coming over with my cousins. The house was full of activity, laughter, and of course, tons of food. The women in our family would conjure up traditional family recipes for all of us to devour while the men in the family chatted about politics, sports, and general life issues. One of my mom’s precious cooking tools was the cast iron Dutch oven. I can recall the smells of sauce, stews, and soups being made in this versatile vessel. They were in every one of my friends’ kitchens also. It was one of my favorites as head dishwasher in the family because it was the easiest pot to clean since there was no soap used and just hot water and a stiff brush and you were done. When mom said to get the Dutch oven out of the cabinet and put it on the stove, we knew we were in for a great meal. 

I have had many customers stop in and talk about how they love their Dutch ovens and how they use it for just about everything. A Dutch oven is the most versatile pot in your kitchen. A good Dutch oven is a kitchen essential, heavy and thick enough to conduct and retain heat and deep enough to handle large cuts of meat and quarts of cooking liquid. So many customers have discussed how they bake bread, make stews, or their favorite sauces or soups in their LeCreuset, Staub, Chantal, or Lodge Dutch oven. Dutch ovens are tall, heavy pots with tight-fitting lids. They are used primarily for slow-cooking methods such as braising and stewing. “Dutch oven” is the generic term for these pots. The often rustic, all-iron Dutch ovens can be used both on stove tops and in ovens, and some can be used over and under coals. The more stylish Dutch ovens specifically are known for their ability to go from the stove top–for quick starting techniques such as browning–straight into the oven for the longer cooking process. 

At Compliments to the Chef, we carry an assortment of Dutch Ovens. Autumn is a perfect time to make your favorite hearty culinary delight. Stop by Compliments to the Chef, your Neighborhood Kitchen and Cutlery Store located at 33 Railroad Place in Saratoga Springs for the tools that help you with your favorite recipes. Remember my Foodie Friends: “Life Happens in the Kitchen.”

Take Care, John & Paula

Hello  my Foodie Friends!   

Autumn spice and foods are among the beauty of this time of year. Along with the scents and visually stunning colors, is the time of year for hearty stews, salads, and spectacular comfort foods. With the chilly autumn nights, we yearn for the warm cozy foods. Autumn is such a beautiful time of year for foodies. It’s time to take trips to the orchards, time to get back to roasting and baking, and maybe even experimenting with delicious hot beverages. 

Baked macaroni and cheese has always been one of my favorite autumn comfort foods. During my childhood, pasta was always a staple to almost every meal. However, it was always a treat when my mother would make us home made mac n cheese. It comprised of the two things I loved; pasta and cheese. It was ooey and gooey and did not take much cajoling to get me to eat. I can recall the crackle sound of the cheese as it melted and browned in the oven. 

There was so much excitement in the kitchen as three little boys and two little girls were for a brief period mesmerized by the sounds and the smell of a kid’s favorite meal.

We knew that if we were quiet and let my mother cook, we would all get to taste her work. My mother had a master plan to get her few minutes of serenity and it worked every time. It was her super power. 

Mac n cheese also offers the ability to do just about anything you want to it. You can add BBQ pulled pork to the top or add delicious vegetables to it. There are many baking dishes to bake mac n’cheese in: stoneware/ceramics, cast iron, glassware and metal.  

Cast Iron Bakeware

Cast iron is affordable, and it only gets better with age! The most popular type of cast iron bakeware is the cast iron skillet, but you can get just about any shape of bakeware in cast iron. As long as you care for your cast iron and season it properly, you won’t have to worry about the metal reacting with the food. Cast iron skillets are the holy grail of bakeware. They are truly are the ultimate kitchen utensil. They have the versatility of metal, the reliability of glass, and produce the quality of flavor from ceramic stoneware.

Just make sure you season your cast iron skillets are seasoned properly. Doing this will prevent the metal from reacting with your food; plus, it makes it much easier to clean.

Glass Baking Dishes

Glass bakeware is probably going to be your go-to for most recipes. And that’s for a good reason: it’s good at conducting heat. 

Ceramic Stoneware Baking Dishes

Ceramic stoneware is really the best option for baking things evenly. It behaves similarly to glass, so it’s probably best to stick to more savory dishes, although desserts muffins and quickbreads do well in stoneware.

Metal Baking Dishes

Metal baking dishes are probably the most common type of bakeware. They are versatile, easy to clean, and they’re great for baking things like quick breads, muffins, and other sweet treats.

This autumn season, Stop by Compliments to the Chef, your Neighborhood Kitchen and Cutlery store located at 33 Railroad Place for an assortment of cool tools to assist with your autumnal creations. Remember my Foodie Friends; “Life Happens in the Kitchen.” 

Take Care, John & Paula

The whoosh of fall is here. It’s the time of year when we trade beach bags for light jackets, mums and pumpkins replace annual outdoor flowers, and summer salads give way to warm, comforting meals. While our lives are busy with obligations and activities, here are some ideas to slow down and get in the season’s spirit.

Fall Decor 

The season’s harvest of pumpkins and gourds of all shapes, sizes, and textures encourages creativity in indoor and outdoor decor. Hardy fall plants such as mums and flowering kale offer a fresh burst of autumnal color to front steps and window boxes. You can also find cut flowers and stunning dried wreaths at the Wednesday and Saturday farmers’ markets. 

Warm Meals

Cooler temperatures call for soups, stews, and oven-roasted meals that have the benefit of warming the house without turning on the heat. Fall produce such as squash, Brussels sprouts, and freshly dug potatoes are ideal for roasting with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Stew meat, chicken, lamb, pork, and beef roasts are fall favorites. They are easy to prepare and result in flavorful meals. 

Pumpkin Spice Everything

Love or loath, pumpkin spice is everywhere this time of year. Local producers do it right and use natural ingredients. From classic pumpkin pie by The Food Florist to pumpkin spice chèvre by Nettle Meadow, pumpkin spice products are aplenty at the farmers’ market. Are you looking to replicate the classic pumpkin pie spice yourself? Try Muddy Trail’s pumpkin streusel muffin mix and pumpkin pie seasoning (which is also excellent in pancakes on lattes, etc.).

Seasonal Comforts

Warm up with Feathered Antler’s soft knit hats and cozies as the temperature dips. Kim Dolan Designed has hand-dyed plush sweatshirts and long sleeve shirts. Kokinda Farm makes corn toasty warming pads perfect for relaxing and warming cold bed sheets. You can find comfort in a hot cup of locally roasted coffee or a custom tea blend from Something’s Brewing. Or maybe a Slate Valley Farms’ maple syrup drizzle on a steamy bowl of oatmeal. However you find comfort, fall encourages the pursuit. 

The Saratoga Farmers’ Market is open Wednesdays from 3 to 6 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at High Rock Park. The farmers’ market will move to the Wilton Mall on November 5. Find us online at www.saratogafarmersmarket.org and follow us on Facebook and Instagram.