Post-thanksgiving usually means LEFTOVERS. Here are some strategies that might make your leftovers more exciting than the meal itself.

• Make Stock. Here is a recipe and some background info. If you were lucky enough to take home the turkey carcass (or any other bones) it is really easy to make. Mostly you just need bones, water, salt, and leftover veggies. I use whatever I have on hand like carrots, celery, onions, garlic, wilted greens, kale ribs. The other key piece is staying at home for 3-4 hours to let it simmer. Not only, can stock be used to make soup, but it can also be used to make your polenta, rice or beans more exciting. 
• The broiler (or toaster oven) is your friend. Some things hold up well to reheating in the microwave, but if you would prefer your food got crispier instead of soggier, the broiler is where it is at. Do you have leftover mashed potatoes and turkey? Or roasted winter squash and sautéed greens? Grate some cheese on it and stick it under the broiler until it is golden brown. 
• Leftovers remix. Can you chop up your leftovers and use then as a salad or pizza topping? Of course you can. Think turkey meat or veggies.
• Empanadas. This is a great recipe for leftover turkey empanadas. This concept can be applied beyond just thanksgiving leftovers. I'm pretty sure that half the time my dad makes a lamb or pork roast he is doing it just to have an excuse to make empanadas later. 
• The obvious answer is always freeze it. If you're sick of thanksgiving leftovers now, freeze what you've got and it will be really exciting in February. You get bonus points if you can package it so that each container is a meal of turkey/sweet potatoes/broccoli casserole/whatever and you can just defrost one at a time. 

Did you know that farmers in Upstate New York can grow vegetables all winter long?! It's pretty amazing. We're going to be telling you all about it in the coming months here are some lingo you might hear us use.

Hoophouse - When we say hoophouse, we mean an unheated structure made of metal pipes and covered in transparent plastic. This traps heat from the sun to help us grow vegetables even when it is freezing cold outside.

Greenhouse - We have a greenhouse that is pretty similar to our hoophouse except that it has a gravel floor instead of a dirt floor and it does have a heater. We use the heater sparingly - the greenhouse is still uninsulated, but it makes a big difference. This is where we start all of our seedlings and grow things like pea shoots and microgreens. We put in some new raised beds for more winter growing space - this is a fun experiment for us.

Winter Greens - Some vegetables are better at growing in the winter than others. These vegetables are winter greens. They include kale, spinach, Swiss chard and the like. As long as there aren't crazy swings in temperature, they can handle freezing a little bit. It even makes them sweeter. The plants produce more sugar when it's cold outside to act as a natural antifreeze.

Storage Crops - These are vegetables that are grown in the summer during the regular growing season, but do well when stored in the proper conditions for many months. Think onions, garlic, winter squash and sweet potatoes. While not technically grown in the winter - they sure are tasty to eat in the winter.

There are still spots available for our winter CSA at the farm it starts the first week in November and pick-ups are on Fridays from 4:30 pm to 7 pm. We hope to see you there.

Cooking pasture-raised meat, eating from whole animals and buying meat from local farms are all a different experience from buying meat in the grocery store. 

Our animals are raised with love and care and we want to make sure you're getting the most out of your meat shares!

Here are some resources to help you out!

• For red meat like lamb and beef, these are great tips.
• These are lamb specific cooking tips.
• Making sure sausages are cooked all the way through, but not dried out can be tricky. Putting them in water in the pan to sort-of steam the sausages as a way to insure you cook them all the way through before crisping them in the pan. I've read you can also use beer, which sounds fun.  
• Eating real whole animals means that every cut does not come out perfectly consistent in shape and size, but it is the best way to make use of every bit. This is a great video about Whole Pig Butchery. 
• This walks you through popular cuts of pork and how to cook them.
• While our meat shares are not half or whole animals - some of these things still hold true. Buying meat directly from farmers is a little different. I appreciate this customer sharing his experiences.
• One of the other factors is slaughterhouses and we have a big shortage of them. This article gives a good overview.

If you've got favorite recipes to share or questions about what it takes to get meat from the farm to your freezer email leanna@maitrifarmny.com. 

On the farm we practice rotational grazing. This means we move our animals throughout the property so that they never stay in one place for a long time.
 
The animals are healthier – moving to fresh grass means they’re not standing in their own manure. Being outside in the fresh air also is better for their respiratory health than being cooped up in a barn like feedlot animals. We had the vet out for a visit and he said our animals looked great!
 
Rotational grazing also means ruminants, like our sheep, are getting the most calories out of the grass. They eat as much as they can in a small area for two or three days and then move on to the next slice of grass. I move them every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. They get so excited about new grass – check out this video.
 
Eating the grass from the top makes the grass shed roots below the surface of the soil. The sloughed off roots decay and become organic matter. Manure also adds organic matter to the surface of the soil. The sheep leave the pasture better than they found it. This is the real magic. This is how we sequester carbon. Another farmer made a great slideshow explaining the link between rotational grazing and carbon sequestration – in this case sheep function a lot like little cows. Your lamb chops are fighting climate change!

By Leanna Mulvihill, Livestock Manager

Making our food more accessible is something we’re thinking about on the farm. We’re thinking about figuring out ways to give shares to folks at prices they can afford, distributing them at the right time and place and making sure people feel confident that they can use everything in their share.
 
Part of food access, for me, has been volunteering at the Food of Life/Comida de Vida Pantry at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Amenia, NY. This is one important piece of taking care of our community. Maitri Farm donates product to the pantry and we are really happy to do so.
 
There is still a gap. Our food is still too expensive for a lot of people who don’t go to the food pantry.
 
We understand that a lot of folks in our community struggle with food access and are trying to figure out how to address this. It’s important to us to feed full-time Dutchess County residents, not just weekenders.
 
We are inspired by what some of our peers are doing – Rock Steady, Poughkeepsie Farm Project, Healthy Food For All and have been dreaming up ways to implement similar programs.

This year we are piloting our Low Cost CSA Share program. This is half off of our every-other-week vegetable and every-other-week egg shares. We're excited to see how it goes!
 
Do you know of a community group that might be interested in receiving low cost CSA shares? Let’s talk! We are happy to help with fundraising and talk through what might be the most effective way to go about it. We’re looking for groups to partner with.
 
What are your needs? What’s the most effective way to get food to you? What are your favorite vegetables? What’s your favorite thing to cook?
 
We want to listen. Please email me leanna@maitrifarmny.com

Name: Leanna Mulvihill
 
Age: 27
 
Hometown: New Paltz, NY
 
Job Title: Livestock Manager
 
Describe your job in five words: Keep animals moving. Feed People.
 
Favorite book: A Long Way From Chicago by Richard Peck – This is an excellent read-aloud book for kids and adults.
 
Currently listening to: The Hamilton soundtrack!
 
What you do when you’re not farming: volunteering at the Comida de Vida/Food of Life Food Pantry or hanging out at the Lantern
 
Favorite joke:  What did the fish say when it swam into a concrete wall?  DAM!
 
Favorite Place on the Farm: The next paddock where the critters get a fresh slice of pasture to enjoy.
 
Thing you can’t get through a day on the farm without: Long pants. You gotta cover up out in the pasture! There’s ticks, prickers and all kinds of things to protect yourself against.
 
Top Five Goals for 2017
 

1. Feed as many people as we can! Growing our CSA feels like a powerful way to support our community
2. Stay hydrated. Whenever I feel grumpy, it’s usually because I didn’t drink enough water.
3. Keep up my excellent sunscreen application record.
4. Practice storytelling. I’m taking a workshop in radio production this Spring. I’ve wanted to do this for years and am finally able to make it happen.
5. Make new friends. I’m so excited to get to know the community in Wassaic and Amenia.

Sackett Square is the site of our Amenia CSA drop-off. They are a community market run by Lauren and Brielle Williams. We're so excited to work with them and do our shopping at Sackett Square. 

What made you want to start Sackett Square?
We have always noticed the beautiful abundance of farms in the area and have spent a lot of time driving to and from farm stores just to get fresh, local products. 
We always said it would be great to have a one-stop-shop with all local goods. We wanted to provide an outlet for farms to supply families in the community with fresh, healthy food in a more convenient way.  

How does it feel to start a business where you grew up?
Opening Sackett Square Marketplace in the area where we grew up has been especially exciting because we have been able to create the kind of place we have always wanted to see in our own community.

What’s your favorite meal to make at home?
 Fresh tomatoes and basil from my garden to make a summer sauce over any kind of pasta. -Lauren 
Goat cheese, caramelized shallots, and kalamata olives with chili flakes and honey over fresh greens. -Brielle

How does your family talk about food?
The way our family talks about food is loud, passionate, and with our hands. Everyone in our family has their own gardens or delicious recipes that have strongly influenced our love of food. 
 
What are you the most excited about for Sackett Square in 2017?
We are most excited about connecting with the community to build an awareness of local products and take advantage of the opportunity we all have to work together for health, happiness, and success. 

What has surprised you the most?
The most surprising has been the amount of people within the community who are farmers or crafters and want and need a place to offer their goods, and to connect with each other. 

What are your dreams for Sackett Square in the future?
Our dream for Sackett Square is to be the place where everyone in the community comes for all their local goods, and to see the community benefit from putting money back into our own soil.   

When is Sackett Square open and where are you located?
 Sackett Square is open weekends 9-4 and is located at 3312 Route 343 Amenia, NY. This is above Back In the Kitchen and across the street from the Amenia Library

How can people get in contact with Sackett Square?
Everyone should feel free to send an email to sackettsquare@gmail.com, give us a call at 845.337.1192 or stop in and see us! ​