Potato Potato

Powisset Farm grows many varieties of potatoes that end up in my kitchen after a farm distribution. Some are pictured below:

 My favorite variety of potato is All Blue.  

The reason is their vibrant color!

The Food and Pottery Connection:

Food:  All Blue Roasted Potatoes

All Blue Potatoes -

 scrubbed free of dirt and cut into like size pieces

Olive Oil

Kosher Salt

Roast potatoes in a 425 oven for 35 minutes.

Pottery: Serving Bowl 

in a color equally as beautiful with hints of orange to play up the All Blue potatoes.

Lisa WB Walker Wheel-thrown Bowl

Lemon Balm Iced Tea

Lemon balm is a perennial herb from the mint family. I picked some from the Friendship Herb Garden at Powisset Farm this past week.  Rubbing the leaves between my fingers produced a lovely lemony smell.

"Lemon Balm is native to the Mediterranean region, and has been cultivated for more than 2,000 years."

"Lemon balm’s popularity continued throughout the centuries, and it was enjoyed as a tea to combat mental confusion and as an elixir thought to extend lifespan. So widespread was lemon balm’s reputation for promoting longevity and dispelling melancholy that by the 17th century, French Carmelite nuns were dispensing their Carmelite Water to a faithful following. The lemon-balm infused “miracle water” was thought to improve memory and vision and reduce rheumatic pain, fever, melancholy and congestion."

"Introduced into Great Britain by the Romans, lemon balm is now found in both England and North America, brought by colonialists who had come to rely on it for teas and flavoring. American Shakers grew lemon balm as a relief from mild fevers. One of the herbs grown in Thomas Jefferson’s gardens, lemon balm was well established as an important culinary herb, one especially suited to syrups and beverages."

Food and Pottery Connection~

Food:

Honey Lemon Balm Spritzer - Makes 48 ounces.

Adapted from Bon Appetit August 2011.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup honey
• 2 cups warm water
• 1/2 cup lemon juice 
• 1 cup cold water
• 1 cup lemon balm, lightly packed 
• lemon slices
• 2 cups cold sparkling water

Instructions

1. In a large pitcher, mix honey and warm water until honey combined.
2. Add lemon juice, and 1 cup cold water. Mix well.
3. Crush lemon balm and add to mixture. Using a muddle or wooden spoon handle, smash lemon balm in bottom of pitcher. Add lemon slices and refrigerate mixture until chilled
4. Once chilled, add 2 cups of cold sparkling water. Stir.
5. Pour through a strainer into individual tumblers over crushed ice.

Pottery:
Colorful Tumblers

wheel thrown tumbler soon to be trimmed, fired and glazed in blues and whites

Join me at the Farm on Saturday

Powisset Farm Spring Festival is Saturday, May 19th, 10-3. 

It is the start of a great season of CSA in Dover at a Trustees of the Reservation gem.

Powisset Farm Fall Fest Pottery Tent

The Food and Pottery Connection:

The "Food" comes from Powisset Farm Blog:

Click the link for a recipe for Roasted Rosemary Radishes!

The "Pottery" is my wheel thrown, hand trimmed stoneware bowl. Durable for a season of cooking; yet, delicate in color with warm pinks bringing out a cascade of speckles.

A blend of clays create a speckling under a pinky rutile glaze. A green sprig adds detail.

What is CSA?

"CSA is a worldwide movements, called Community Supported Agriculture.  It honors a commitment between growers and consumers in which consumers pay up front for a weekly share of the harvest.  Bypassing distributors and supermarkets gives farmers financial support ... to continue farming.  In turn, the consumers, often known as shareholders, receive regular boxes or baskets of fresh, local and often organically raised produce, from a source they know and trust."  except from Farmer John's Cookbook: The Real Dirt on Vegetables

Miss you, Molly!

Good Night Irene

CSA in Dover, MA

Distribution was canceled for today at Powisset due to the recent "tropical storm" Irene.  Downed tree limbs and wiring issues have caused electricity to be cut off from the barn.  The Powisset farm crew is such a hard working group; I send them good wishes as they work through these issues.  

Plans for a family weekend went to the wayside with the approaching storm and I was looking for a recipe that might give us some good leftovers if we lost power. Which we did...

peppers from the farm

Eggplant Lasagna - serves 4-6

Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone

"stuffing"
3 lbs eggplant, sliced 1/3" thick
1 lb instant lasagna noodles
8 oz mozzarella (8 oz)
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
6 basil leaves, torn

"sauce" 
2 1/2 cups milk
3 garlic cloves
4 Tablespoons butter
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup cream


1. Roast eggplant in a 425 oven 15-20 per side.  Make sure to use olive oil on each side and a sprinkle of kosher salt.
2. Slowly heat milk and garlic to a boil on the stove top. Set aside covered for 15 minutes. 
3. On the stove top, melt butter, stir in flour, pour in garlic milk - combine all with a whisk and simmer 20 minutes until thickened.
4. Lightly butter a 8x10 baking dish. Spread 1/2 cup sauce on bottom. Add a layer of pasta and cover with 1/3 cup sauce. Lay down 1/3 of eggplant, 1/3 of mozzarella, 2 T Parm and 1/3 of basil. Repeat twice. Top with final layer of pasta and cover with remaining sauce and Parm. Cover with foil. Bake at 400 for 25-30 minutes.  Remove cover and bake 10-15 more minutes. Let stand for a few minutes before serving.

cucumbers from the farm

The weather change and the upcoming start of the school year has got me thinking about fall and a collection to go along with it... blues, browns, greens, whites

beans from the farm

 

The Mug

One could make a case for "The Mug" as one of the most important elements in the pottery and food relationship. Most of us start our day with coffee or tea in our favorite mug.  The Mug functions as a drinking vessel and a conduit to nourish our body and soul.

In anticipation of farm stand sales this summer, I threw a variety of mugs.  A successful glaze kiln yielded the fine assortment pictured above. In order to understand my mugs better, I filled each with water.  Why?  I wanted to see exactly how much liquid each would hold.  As a functional piece of pottery, food and beverage usage needs to be considered. Here's what I found:

18 ounces

16 ounces

14 ounces

12 ounces

What's local and good to eat while you are sipping your morning java?  This is a favorite when Blueberries are in season...


Blueberry Pound Cake 
Cooking Light 1998

2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup light butter
1/2 (8-ounce) package 1/3 less-fat cream cheese -- softened
3 large eggs
1 large egg white
3 cups all-purpose flour -- divided
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (8-ounce) carton lemon low-fat yogurt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Cooking spray
1/2 cup powdered sugar 4 teaspoons lemon juice                                                                                                     
1. Preheat oven to 350.


2. Beat first 3 ingredients at medium speed of a mixer until well-blended (about 5 minutes). Add eggs and egg white, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine 2 tablespoons flour and blueberries in a small bowl, and toss well. Combine remaining flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture alternately with yogurt, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Fold in blueberry mixture and vanilla; pour cake batter into a 10-inch tube pan coated with cooking spray. 


3. Bake at 350 for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. 


4. Cool cake in pan 10 minutes; remove from pan. Combine powdered sugar and lemon juice in a small bowl; drizzle over warm cake. Cut with a serrated knife.

I'm selling these beautiful mugs at the Powessit Farm Stand today, August 2nd from 1:30-6:30.

Inspiration

So much of the inspiration for my pottery comes from the local food that I eat as a result of being a member of a local CSA.  That inspiration comes from not only the way that I use the food in recipies, but also the actual food itself.  Take for example these two tone bowls.

I am spellbound by a summer squash that is green, yellow, green ... It is a special type called Zephyr Squash.  It is a hybrid of a crookneck squash and a delicata squash.  Use it the same way you would any summer squash (It's just prettier). They are the inspiration for my beautiful two tone bowls.

I'm working on this bunny bowl; it is in the first stage (greenware). It has been wheel thrown, hand trimmed and painted with underglaze paints.  Once it is dry, It will be fired in a kiln, then glazed and fired in another kiln. It will look different in the final state.   

The inspiration for this bowl comes from a couple of sources:

1. Someone asked to make a bunny bowl like I made last year, so I combed my sketch books and found a photo. My painted pieces are always original, so I experimented....

2. Fresh carrots from the CSA.  Tops have been cut off, but I remember what they look like: all green and curly. 

3. The dedham pottery dishes we use daily to eat on.

4. The shape of the form.  I'm inspired to paint on many  surfaces of my bowls. Painting the bottom of a bowl means that when you are finished eating and are in the process of washing up, you turn it over and the bowl rewards you with yet another gift.  

Tuesday is distribution day at Powessit.  I know there are many delicious veggies and fresh flowers awaiting. The farm stand is open from 1:30-6:30 and I'll be selling my pottery too.  Food and Pottery; each are inspirational!

See you in the barn on Tuesday, July 19th....

Distribution Starts Today - Food & Pottery Celebrates a New Season

favorite glaze combination

The 2011 season starts today at Powisset Farm where I join 300 members to support community agriculture, also referred to as a CSA. I connected recently with the farmers when I sold my work at the Powisset Farm Festival in May. I learned that they have expanded their venue to include two farm stands per week, one at Powessit and one at Rocky Woods. Area residents can now reap the benefits of the local food movement without becoming members.  

In anticipation of today's distribution, I've been creating bowls - big and small that will work with all sorts of recipes. White stoneware, colorful glaze combinations and under glaze paints are my ingredients as I forge ahead into a new season of food and pottery connections.  

small bowls right off the wheel

arugula

Yesterday, I received an email with pictures of what might be at the distribution this week.  I noticed arugula (something I had never eaten before joining a CSA) on the list.  This vegetable is bitter and delicious and something even my kids will devour!  

I stopped at the market last night to pick up a few staples so I could make this recipe tonight.  Served in a big open salad bowl, there 

won't be any leftovers...

Arugula Salad

Bunch of Arugula - washed and dried

Dried Cranberries

Crumbled Feta cheese 

Pistachio Nuts

Balsamic Vinegar

Olive Oil

Toss together...yum!

Later in the week, I'll be cooking with other veggies from this week's distribution like, lettuces, bok choi and radishes.  I'll refer to Powessit Food Blog for more ways to cook with this local fare.

Bowls, Bowls, Bowls...

Spring Farm Fest - May 21 - Making the Choice to Buy Local

A few years back, I picked up Barbara Kingsolver’s book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle and yes, I did make my book club read it (thank you ladies!).  At the same time I became a shareholder at the Powisset Farm CSA.  Perhaps it was the reading and the eating that worked together, but something changed in the way I was making choices for my family and my work as an artist.

The thrill of walking out into a field to pick beans off a vine (green, yellow and even purple varieties) or lifting a leaf and finding tiny ruby colored strawberries (and “sampling”… who could resist?).  It was just so fresh! I started to dread those trips to the grocery store where I had to admit to myself that I didn’t know much about what I was buying.

With this sudden change in lifestyle, my work as a potter changed. I started to delve into what makes a piece of pottery functional, not just pretty. How what we eat and what we choose to serve that food in really do go hand in hand.  Why wouldn’t you choose a handmade, one of a kind bowl to eat the lovely fresh local tomatoes in?  It’s a wonderful experience! One just needs to make the choice to do so.

This Saturday, May 21st, Powisset Farm, located at 37 Powisset Road in Dover, will host their Spring Farm Fest from 1-5pm.  Vendors will include wonderful local businesses and organizations that support sustainability, local agriculture, buying local and building community.  There will be local farmers, gardeners, potters and many community groups and non-profit organizations.  There will be farm tours, guided ecological walks, and live music.  This Fest marks the start of the new season.  If you haven’t been to Powisset before, bring your whole family and be prepared to fall in love….

Lisa WB Walker pottery will be for sale at the Powisset Farm Spring Fest.  She supports sustainability, local agriculture, buying local and building community.

Buy Local

Four-piece Planter by Lisa WB Walker

Herb Markers - two sets to choose from

Powisset Spring Farm Fest marks the beginning of the 2011 season.  On Saturday, May 21st from 1-5 in the afternoon, Powisset Farm will host local businesses and organizations who support sustainability, local agriculture, buying locally and community building.

A sampling of my wares, plus more will be for sale.  Stop by, purchase locally and enjoy the beauty of the farm.

Spoonrests

My membership at the Powisset Farm CSA inspired this blog.  Here is the first entry with a great recipe for asparagus. 

With the addition of a weekly farm stand is a great idea by CSA Manager, Meryl LaTronica.  It allows members to purchase more, the public to purchase less and the opportunity to visit Powisset Farm and the amazing farmers that make it all work. See you Saturday... 37 Powisset Road, Dover, MA  

In anticipation of the CSA season, all I can think about are bowls, bowls, bowls.... I won't have trouble filling them with the colorful selection of veggies soon to be distributed at the farm.

Green and Red

I picked up my final winter share distribution on Saturday. I am pleased with what now fills my cupboards, but sad to see the visits to Powessit cease until spring...

Kale and other cooking greens always challange me when it comes to how to prepare them. Last night I found a recipe that could be the answer to this dilema... I say serves 2-4 because my daughter and I finished the entire batch!

Simple Cooked Greens - serves 2-4
Farmer John's Cookbook

3 T butter or olive oil
1 tsp minced garlic
1 pound greens, rinsed, torn or chopped into bite size pieces
salt and pepper
extra olive oil

1. Heat butter or oil (I like to use a combo of both) in a large skillet or pot over medium heat. Add garlic; saute 1 minute.
2. Add greens immediately after rinsing them, with the water still clinging to the leaves. Cover; cook for 1 minute (if you are using kale or collard greens, add 1 cup water, cover and cook for 5 minutes).
3. Uncover the skillet, add salt to taste (this will ensure the greens stay a bright green), and give the greens a good flip and stir. Cover and continue cooking until greens are bright green, tender and wilted to your taste. (for spinach 1-2 minutes; swiss chard 3-5 minutes; kale or collard greens 20 minutes)
4. Season with salt, pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.

Seasonal red bowl for serving...

What's Cookin'

What's Cookin' in December? A couple of sales this weekend and a late season stir-fry.

Stir-Fried Daikon - serves 4
Farmer John's Cookbook

2 T olive or peanut oil
1/4 cup sliced scallion or onion
1 medium daikon, thinly sliced (about 3 cups)
10-12 red radishes, thinly sliced
2 T water
2 T soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp hot chili oil (optional)

1. Heat oil over high heat. Add onion and stir-fry. Add daikon and red radishes; stir- fry 1 minute. Add water and stir-fry until evaporated.
2. Add soy sauce, sugar, and chili oil. Stir-fry 30 seconds. Serve hot.

Spoon rests for all that holiday cooking...

Powessit Farm Stand Pottery Sale - December 4th 12-4 Dover, MA

The Good Food News

Each week I am blessed with an email entitled "The Good Food News". It is the Powisset Farm Community Supported Agriculture newsletter that lets me, as a shareholder, know what's up for the weekly distribution. I am always thankful that it is both well written and inspiring.

This week marks a turning point in so many ways. One, it's starting to feel like fall and the produce is changing to include more dark leafy greens, peppers and eggplants. We are saying good bye to cucumbers, tomatoes and summer squashes. Two, we start sign ups for a winter share (I'm keeping my fingers crossed I get one). And, three, it is the last time this season, I will be selling my pottery at the farm stand(Saturday, September 18th from 1:30-5:30pm).

Change of season inspires a change in color palette.