Food Friday: Blackberry Cobbler

Ever since my husband and I went strawberry picking in May, we’ve been waiting for Chesterfield Berry Farm’s blackberry season.

We picked blackberries for the first time last year, and we had a blast. We also had a lot of berries! I used some of them to make a Blackberry dump cake, or blackberry cobbler. My family kept calling it “cobbler,” so that’s what it is to me, though really, it’s a lot like a dump cake, because you just dump the ingredients into the pan.

This was a favorite at our house; I hope it’ll be a favorite at yours too.

You’ve been warned: This recipe is super simple (kind of like that strawberry pie recipe I posted).

Simple Blackberry Cobbler

3 cups fresh blackberries, washed and well-drained

2 tablespoons sugar (optional)

1 box yellow cake mix

Butter or margarine

Coat the inside of a 9" x 13" glass baking dish with cooking spray, and cover the bottom of the dish with blackberries. Sprinkle a little sugar on top of the berries, if desired. Then dump yellow cake mix on top, and smooth it out. Put butter or margarine shavings on top (like this):

Bake at 350º for about 30 minutes or until golden brown. Feel free to serve with a generous dollop of whipped cream, ice cream or nondairy whipped topping!

Trying to find my green thumb: Part 1

Early last summer, my husband and I tried planting a backyard garden in tubs and water jugs.

(Cucumber plant in an old water jug.)

(Potatoes growing in tubs.)

We ended up with a couple of banana peppers, a few tomatoes (that had been pecked by birds) and a couple of tiny potatoes.

(Banana peppers growing in an old water jug.)

(A mangled mess of tomatoes with tomato cages and bird netting on top.)

This spring, we tried to plant early season crops—such as broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, rhubarb and onions—in the ground.

(Hard to see the garden due to all of the weeds!)

The weeds took over and nearly nothing grew.

I write gardening articles for Virginia Farm Bureau’s member magazines, so I really should have known about weeds. Oddly enough, around the time when the garden in our yard was dying, I covered a gardening demonstration on the importance of weeding and irrigating your garden.

It’s all making sense now.

So this summer, we’re trying to grow vegetables again. But we’re going a different route.

Enter the raised bed/box garden.

 (Our latest gardening adventure--the raised bed/box garden.)

Most raised garden beds aren’t up on cinder blocks in the yard, but my father-in-law has had continued success with this method. He offered to build us a box, and we took him up on his offer.

The box is 1 foot deep and about 12 feet long. It’s made out of old scrap wood, and he drilled holes in the bottom.

Last weekend we planted two pickling cucumber plants, two varieties of jalapeno peppers, one green bell pepper plant and one banana pepper and four varieties of tomatoes. They’re in a mix of composted manure and Miracle Grow potting mix for vegetables.

I’m really excited to see how this garden grows! So far, my husband has remembered to water it in the mornings before he goes to work. That’s usually one of our biggest problems—forgetting to water!

Andy Hankins, an alternative crop specialist for Virginia Cooperative Extension and host of the From the Ground Up segment on Farm Bureau’s television show Real Virginia and in Cultivate magazine, recommends watering in the mornings.

I’ll post an update on my garden adventure every three weeks this summer. Stay tuned!

Food Friday: Crunchy and cruciferous fruits and veggies deserve to be celebrated

Peppers like these at the Williamsburg Farmers’ Market make colorful, nutritious veggie dishes (Photo by Sherri McKinney, Virginia Farm Bureau).

It’s summer, and that means farmers’ markets are in full swing. Is there anything more appetizing than wandering through booths stuffed with vibrant green, red and yellow peppers, orange tomatoes, purple plums and yellow squash?

Summer is the time for eating fresh fruits and vegetables in peak season. And, interestingly enough, June is National Fresh Fruit and Vegetables Month.

The following recipe from a cookbook compiled by county Farm Bureau women’s committees in Southeast Virginia combines the best of the season’s vegetables with protein-rich beans for a flavorful medley.

Mediterranean Succotash

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 red onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 bell peppers, seeded and chopped

1 bunch asparagus, chopped

2 cups frozen corn kernels (Later in the summer you certainly can substitute fresh kernels)

1 can butter beans, drained (or an equal amount of cooked fresh butterbeans, once they become available)

handful of flat-leaf parsley, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Heat skillet over medium heat. Add oil, onion, garlic and peppers. Sauté, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes. Add asparagus and corn; continue cooking 3 to 5 minutes. Add butterbeans and cook until beans are heated through, about 1 to 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper; finish by sprinkling parsley on top.

Country restaurant eschews tried and true ag practices

Why, Cracker Barrel, why?

Why cave under pressure from animal rights groups to stop buying pork from producers who use scientifically approved gestation crates?

Why alienate customers who love inexpensive pork chops and barbecued ribs?

Cracker Barrel just joined six other food companies that have announced moving toward gestation stall-free pork suppliers.

Vance Fouraker, Cracker Barrel’s vice president of strategic sourcing, said, “We’re seeing an evolution in Americans’ awareness and attitudes regarding meat produced with higher welfare in mind.”

He added that “gestation crates may not be the best method to meet higher animal welfare goals, and we are committed to evolving sustainable alternatives.”

Gestation crates do many helpful things. They confine pregnant sows and protect them and their newborn piglets from other aggressive sows. They also prevent a sow from accidentally injuring her piglets, while allowing the piglets to nurse. Additionally, gestation crates ensure individual feeding and greater ease of veterinary care for each animal instead of letting them fend for themselves in a group.

Many restaurant chains have been pressured by the Humane Society of the United States, whose goal is to end all animal agriculture, to buy pork exclusively from producers who don’t use gestation crates.

Domino’s pizza was one of those chains. But Domino’s refused.

A spokesperson said those who raise animals for food employ accepted, scientifically-proven practices that are in the animals’ best interests, and the company doesn’t have a problem with that.

Cracker Barrel, on the other hand, feels that its customers want meat produced “with higher welfare in mind.”

In my experience, higher welfare for animals means more expensive fare for humans. Cracker Barrel is not an upscale restaurant; it serves country-style food that’s been eaten on farms across the nation for centuries.

And the farmers who provide that safe, wholesome food hope that Americans appreciate the care that goes into producing it.

Who wouldn’t want to eat that?

Proposed egg law ‘not what it’s cracked up to be,’ farmers say

A bill before Congress stands to make Americans' eggs more expensive, farmers are asserting (Virginia Farm Bureau photo).

The Egg Products Inspection Act Amendments of 2012, currently before Congress, would mandate installation of specific kinds of cages for egg-laying hens. U.S. egg producers say it would impose hardships on their sector of the agriculture industry while making eggs more expensive for consumers.

Lindsay Reames, assistant director of governmental relations for Virginia Farm Bureau Federation, explains the situation in thie Real Dirt video blog post.

Bob Stallman, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, also spoke out againsta the bill in USA Today on June 12.

Share a tender moment, with new potatoes

New potatoes are potatoes that have been harvested before they reach their full size (Photos by Pam Wiley, Virginia Farm Bureau).

 

If you’re shopping at your local farmers’ market or farm stand, be sure to look for new potatoes.

“We’ve been digging for about three weeks,” said Dana Boyle, a Westmoreland County produce grower whose family operates Garner’s Produce. “We planted them right about St. Patrick’s Day, and we have a really good stand this year. … People just go crazy for them.”

New potatoes are actually the same potatoes you might buy later in the year when they reach their full size. The “new” part refers to their having been harvested early,when they are smaller and their skins are thinner.

The simplest way to prepare them is to cover whole, washed new potatoes with water in a saucepan, bring the water to a boil and then back the temperature down to a simmer. Partially cover the pan, and simmer the potatoes for about 10 minutes or until they are fork-tender. Drain the potatoes and serve them topped with butter and a little salt and pepper.

If you want to take that a step further, halve or quarter the cooked potatoes and saute them in butter and/or olive oil with a little minced garlic, finely minced rosemary and freshly ground black pepper.

A third option comes from Bringing It to the Table, a recipe book published by county Farm Bureau women’s committees in Virginia Farm Bureau Federation’s Southeast District. Instead of cutting the potatoes into wedges, like you would with mature-size potatoes, try halving or quartering them.

Oven Fries

5-6 medium red-skin potatoes, washed

½ teaspoon dried thyme

½ teaspoon dried rosemary

2 tablespoons olive oil

dash of paprika

Preheat oven to 400°. Cut potatoes into wedges and place in a large casserole dish. Mix all the ingredients together, making sure potatoes are well-coated. Bake 45 minutes; turn potatoes over, and bake another 10 to 15 minutes.

There are many varieties of new potatoes from which to choose. These are fresh from the ground and in need of a good washing.

Food Friday: Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie Day

(Photo courtesy of Colombia Culinary Society)

Maybe you have strawberries running out of year ears by now, but tomorrow marks National Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie Day.

If you’re not familiar with rhubarb, this could be the perfect occasion to give it a try. While the stalks are crisp like celery, they have a strong, tart taste. They are most commonly used in desserts, such as pies like this one from the Simply Florida Strawberries cookbook.

Happy eating!

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

1 egg

1 cup sugar

2 tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups fresh rhubarb, cut into ½" pieces

1 pint fresh or frozen strawberries, halved

9" unbaked pie crust

Topping:

¾ cup flour

⅓ cup brown sugar, packed

½ cup quick-cooking oats

½ cup butter or margarine

In mixing bowl, beat egg and beat in sugar, flour, and vanilla. Mix well. Gently fold in rhubarb and strawberries. Pour into pie shell.

For topping, combine in a small bowl flour, brown sugar and oats. Cut in margarine until mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle over fruit. Bake at 400° for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350° and bake for 36 minutes or until brown.

Antibiotics and livestock—an ongoing dialogue this week

(Sam Gardner of Bedford County raises replacement heifers for dairy farms. 

Photo by Kathy Dixon, Virginia Farm Bureau)

This week there is an interesting discussion going on in Roanoke about farmers using antibiotics in livestock production. The Roanoke Times is inviting everyone to read a point and counterpoint on the issue and comment on their blog.

One point is made by Bedford County farmer Sam Gardner, president of Gardner Heifers Inc., who also is a member of the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation Young Farmers Committee. He was a 2011 winner of the VFBF Young Farmers Environmental Stewardship Award, which recognized efforts on his family’s farm to protect natural resources.

Gardner argues that responsible use of antibiotics in livestock helps ensure healthy animals and healthy food.

Get in on the discussion today! Contributors’ rebuttals will be published June 10.

Food Friday: Shake and make butter to celebrate June Dairy Month

(Photo courtesy of Oklahoma Agriculture in the Classroom)

Today marks the first day of a month-long celebration of June Dairy Month in Virginia and across the nation.

Milk is one of the top farm commodities in Virginia, ranking third in 2010 with $332 million in cash receipts.

That’s just for milk; the figure doesn’t include cheese, butter, ice cream, yogurt or other dairy products.

In honor of cows everywhere, I’d like to share an easy and family-friendly butter-making recipe with you. Our Agriculture in the Classroom staff share a variation of this recipe with teachers for use in their classrooms. Teachers use this activity to help children who think butter comes from a plastic tub at the grocery store draw a connection between the milk that comes from dairy cows and the butter that’s spread on their morning toast.

I have mentioned here before that my grandfather was a dairy farmer. He always had farm-fresh milk and butter at home. I didn’t love the milk, but I couldn’t get enough of the butter.

When I ate breakfast at Grandpa’s house, ordinary toast was extraordinary because of the sweet cream butter that was slathered on top. Everyone should get to experience this.

And by following a few simple steps, you can make your own butter at home. Tammy Maxey, AITC senior education programmer, said very cold cream works best.

Butter in a Bag

1 pint heavy cream

1 pinch salt

1 large re-sealable plastic bag

Pour cream and salt into bag, seal the bag and start shaking it. After 15 minutes of shaking, chunks of butter will start to form. Drain excess liquid from the bag and seal. Refrigerate the butter until you're ready to use it.