Music by the Chorus of the Old Dominion Saturday June 27!

Ashburn Farmers Market Saturdays 8am-noon Ashburn Village and Shellhorn Roads, behind the Giant.
Music by the Barbershop Quartet--the Chorus of the Old Dominion on Saturday June 27.

Enjoy musical entertainment by the Chorus of the Old Dominion, Loudoun's A Cappella Chorus for men. They performed their selections of Bluegrass, Gospel, Show Tunes, Pop and Do-Wop at over 30 events in 2008 throughout Loudoun, Fairfax and Clarke Counties. Visit their web site at odchorus.org for information on joining the group or to book them for your event!

FREE! FREE! FREE! Reusable market bags distributed courtesy of Ryan Park Shopping Center this week!!

This Week on the LVHMA Farms

Bob Haskins of Haskins Family Farm in Middletown, VA (Purcellville, Leesburg & Brambleton Markets) has devised a weay to spend less time out in the pasture doing chores. The turkeys now have their own 4 ft feeder, and has commissioned another 8 ft chicken feeder to accomodate the 350 or so birds currently out on pasture. An ordering mistake has given the Haskins 50 extra chickens, so additional feed, watering and shelter capacity is needed. In order to provide additional shelter for the free range chickens, Mary and Bob took a 2x4 frame intended for an 8x16 foot greenhouse, placed 3 cattle panels for a "hoop roof", purchased a used billboard tarp (1/2 advertising the movie "Marley and Me", 1/2 advertising Bud Lite -- go figure!) and now have plenty of shelter space for the additional chickens.

Cheeseman Allen Bassler from Oak Spring Dairy in Upperville, VA (Purcellville and Leesburg Markets) reports that the cows are happy when it is not raining and the mud is drying up, so they get to eat all that nice green grass. The recent rains have given them enough growth that they are ready to do a second cutting of hay. The farm has been blessed with 5 new heifer (girl) calves this spring, and now is the time for the kids to train the heifers how to lead for the upcoming Show season. Allen says that it is nice to have the kids out of school to break them to lead as it is a "back-saver" as well as a time saver for him!

We talked a little bit about plasticulture last week, and Astrid Pleitez of Pleitez Produce in Montross, VA (Leesburg, Cascades & Brambleton Markets) tells us that she hasn't had problems with all of the rain because she uses plastic under all of her crops to keep them clean. This year she has used a two sided plastic--top side white and the bottom side black. The black side helped keep the soil warm in the early spring to get her plants growing quickly, while the white side will reflect the light when it really gets hot this summer and the produce won't get damaged like it would on regular plastic. This week they removed the finished cauliflower and broccoli from the plastic covered rows and will be re-planting the rows with another crop, re-using the plastic to keep expenses down. They have also tilled up the finished strawberry beds and have ordered new plants which run $260 per 1000 plants. They replace their strawberry plants every two years and have ordered Sweet Charlie, Chandler and a new later variety so that they will have an even longer strawberry season next year.

Deb Fay from the Lavender Path in Lovettsville (Leesburg Market) was absent last week for a very interesting reason--Deb has been selected to work air traffic security for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver and was attending a training session. Although going to the Olympics will be a "working" vacation, Deb hopes to catch a couple of the events while she is there. Stock up on lavender products this week--work will keep Deb out of the Leesburg Market for the Summer.

Check back next week for more news from the LVHMA Farms!

New at the Market: Raspberries!

Raspberries are members of the rose family and along with blackberries, are often referred to as "brambles". They have what is called an "aggregate" fruit, which is a group of smaller fruits formed around a recepticle or core. When picked, the recepticle remains on the plant giving the raspberry a hollow core. Raspberries also have what is termed a "hairy" fruit, where blackberries are smooth. Red raspberries are indigenous to Asia Minor and North America, with seeds discovered at Roman forts in Britian. The British cultivated the fruit through the middle ages and exported their varieties of raspberries to New York by 1771.

Raspberries rank near the top of all fruits for antioxidant strength and contain a significant amount of Vitamin C. Although no clinical studies have been completed, raspberries are likely considered to combat cardiovascular disease, allergies, age-related cognitive decline and age-related degeneration of eyesight.

Raspberries are delicious used to make smoothies, and can be added to muffins or pancakes. They make wonderful pie fillings, alone or in combination with other fruits and berries. You can even make your own raspberry vinegar or salad dressing! Be sure and enjoy the beginning of berry season--try out our recipe this week: Raspberry Almond Coffee Cake!

Earth Day Every Day Tip:

Use a toaster oven for simple baking tasks. This countertop appliance uses only half as much energy as an electric oven, plus using it keeps the whole kitchen cooler!

Products in season for the month of June
Apples * Arugula Asparagus Basil Beef Beets Bok Choy Breads Broccoli Broccoli Raab Cabbage Carrots * Cheese Cherries Chicken Cilantro Collards Cucumbers Currants Dill Eggplant Eggs Fava Beans Fennel Flowers Goat Green Beans Jams & Jellies Kale Kohlrabi Lamb Lettuce Mint Onions * Parsley Pastries Pies Plants Pork Potatoes * Raddicchio Radishes Raspberries Rhubarb Sage Salsa Soaps Sorrel Soups Spinach Strawberries Summer Squash Swiss Chard Tat Soi Thyme Tomatoes Turkey Turnips * Wine Wool & Products Yogurt This week's recipe

Raspberry Almond Coffeecake
--a favorite from AllRecipes.com

1 Cup Fresh Raspberries
3 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
1 Cup All-Purpose Flour
1/3 Cup Sugar
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder
1/4 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1/8 Teaspoon Salt
1/2 Cup Sour Cream
2 Tablespoons Butter, melted
1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 Egg
1/4 Cup Sliced Almonds

1/4 Cup Sifted Confectioners' Sugar
1 Teaspoon Milk
1/4 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray an 8 inch round cake pan with cooking spray. Combine raspberries and brown sugar in a bowl. Set aside. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Combine sour cream, butter or margarine, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and egg, and add to flour mixture. Stir just until moist. Spoon 2/3 of the batter into the prepared pan. Spread raspberry mixture evenly over the batter. Spoon remaining batter over raspberry mixture. Top with almonds. Bake for 40 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack. Combine confectioners' sugar, milk, and 1/4 teaspoon vanilla. Stir well. Drizzle glaze over cake. Serve warm or at room temperature. "Berry" delicious for breakfast or for dessert!