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By stacey, December 17, 2011 7:19 pm

The end of the season is nearly here! Stock up on produce while these quality homegrown fruits and vegetables are still available.

APPLE UPDATE:

• We’ll have Jonagold, Empire, McIntosh, Macoun, Cortland and Twenty Ounce apples until we close on December 24th.

• Varities we’re getting low on: Red Delicious, Crispin, and Northern Spy.

To store apples for a long period of time, it’s important to keep them around 33-35 degrees F. Because of their sugar content, apples won’t freeze at 32 degrees. If freezing does occur, it will have an affect on the quality so be sure to keep them from temperatures below 30 degrees.

You could also enjoy the flavor and nutrition of apples throughout the winter, preserved as applesauce, dried apples, apple butter or apple juice. Click here for safe, simple recipes from the National Center for Home Food Preservation.

Over the years our customers have told us about storing their apples in large coolers, like the kind you would take to a picnic or on a camping trip. Storing apples in an insulated container like a cooler will help to maintain an even temperature, and keep the apples from freezing. In a cooler, your apples could be kept in a place where they might freeze otherwise, (in a garage, shed, or on a porch). I’ve also heard of people wrapping each apple in newspaper to keep them from bruising or

spreading rot. It is important to make sure all of your apples are free of rot, because it will

eventually spread in long term storage.

VEGETABLE UPDATE

With the mild weather we’ve had this December, cold season vegetables have lasted quite awhile. As temperatures finally drop into the appropriate December range, crops are experiencing one freeze too many. What we have now is it for fresh vegetables!

As of December 17th, we have a good stock of Romanesco, Cabbage, Broccoli, Kale and Brussel Sprouts, Butternut and Acorn Squash.

To enjoy these healthy veggies throughout the winter, check out the website of the National Center for Food Preservation. They have some great articles on freezing vegetables (like broccoli) and the proper way to blanch.

Locally grown potatoes are another great item to stock up on at this time of year. Right now we have seven 50 lb bags of red potatoes, as well as one 50lb bag and two 10lb bags of white. potatoes.  To properly store potatoes, keep them in a well ventilated, dark place

While your here, be sure to check out our selection of locally made gifts, stocking stuffers, and unusual gift-giving ideas! It’s always worth a stroll through the greenhouse to enjoy some holiday color from the poinsettias too.

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By stacey, September 20, 2011 9:10 pm

Below is a listing of everything available from the fields and orchards at Kirby’s Farm Market for the end of September and early October! Call to place orders for large quantities (585)637-2600.

Decorate for Fall: Little white and orange Pumpkins, Gourds, Pie Pumpkins, tons of beautiful Mums, and Straw Bales. Soon to come: cornstalks and a fun variety of big pumpkins!

Kirbygrown Vegetables: Acorn Squash, Delicata Squash, Swiss Chard, Kale, Garlic, Sweet Corn(done by Sept 30th),  Eggplant, Cucumbers, Green Peppers, Red Peppers, Sweet Hungarian Peppers, Hot Peppers

Kirbygrown Fruit (done by early October): Tomatoes, Peaches, Nectarines, Prunes, Pluots

Kirbygrown Apples: Honeycrisp, McIntosh, Cortland, Gingergold   (Coming soon, dates are Approximate: Twenty Ounce 9/23, Empire 10/03, Golden Delicious 10/05, Macoun 10/05, Red Delicious 10/08, Jonagold 10/10, Crispin 10/15, Northern Spy 10/15)

Locally Grown Produce: Potatoes, Onions, Broccoli, Cabbage, Carrots

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It’s Canning Season!

The weather right now couldn’t be better for canning. Spend a few hours in a steamy kitchen with baskets of gorgeous fruits and vegetables, putting them up for the coming winter, and you will relish every cool breeze. But you’ll relish the satisfaction of putting up your own fruits and vegetables for a delicious and healthy winter even more!

Some of the most popular things to put up this time of year: stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato juice, canned peaches, canned pears, peach jam, applesauce, and apple butter. Every family has their own traditions. Last week the Kirby family canned tomatoes and peaches, this week we’re making salsa! What preserving traditions do you have?

Freezing produce instead of canning is a great alternative. Quick, easy and definitely less steamy! You can freeze just about anything, but peaches, tomatoes, peppers, sweet corn, and sauces work wonderfully.

Follow this link to read tons of great information on preserving, canning and freezing fruits and vegetables form the experts at Cornell Cooperative Extension. They have fantastically comprehensive lists that will inspire you to make the most of the fresh fruits and vegetables so unique to WNY!

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By stacey, August 9, 2011 10:04 pm

August is a beautiful month at the market.  Produce, perennials, and great food! Mouse over for captions, click for larger images, and enjoy!

Does this cool weather make you think about Fall? It will be here before you know it! Make sure you take full advantage of the wonderful summer produce filling the market throughout August and September!

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By stacey, June 9, 2011 5:53 pm

va lottery

Definitely one of the lesser known vegetables, rhubarb is tart, tart, tart. Just about any rhubarb recipe you encounter will also have a good amount of sugar in the ingredients list. Next time you pick some up, try a bite of it raw and you’ll know why. Although rhubarb is most often found in pies and crisps, sometimes in breads, and occasionally as a sauce (my favorite), I’ve also heard of plenty of people eating it raw dipped in sugar. For those that favor this method, there’s usually a story about hiding in grandmother’s garden among the tall rhubarb leaves, with the sugar bowl.

History and Nutrition:

Wikipedia tells us that rhubarb has been enjoyed for thousands of years in China and Russia. As an import, it’s value topped expensive spices like cinnamon in medieval Europe, but it didn’t appear in the states until the early eighteen hundreds. Rhubarb’s biggest nutritional contribution is Vitamin K (45% of your daily allowance) and Vitamin C (16%). It also tallies up a notable amount of Calcium (10%), Potassium(10%), and  Manganese (12%), among other nutrients. The leaves are, in fact, poisonous. That’s why you will never see them for sale, we always chop them off first.

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Recipe: Rhubarb Sauce

New to the flavors of rhubarb? I definitely recommend trying this recipe for Rhubarb Sauce. It’s incredibly simple, you get to put it on vanilla ice cream, and it would be impossible to feature the flavor of this unique vegetable to a higher degree.

• 1 Cup Sugar
• 1/2 Cup Water
• 2 lbs Kirbygrown Rhubarb, trimmed, washed, and cut into small chunks.

Preparation: In a saucepan simmer sugar and water until sugar is dissolved. Add rhubarb and simmer for 15 minutes,  stirring occasionally. Adjust sugar to taste.

Set aside to cool for about twenty minutes, then serve warm over vanilla (or strawberry!) ice cream, or simply in a cup by itself. It’s also a great breakfast chilled, with vanilla yogurt.

Variations: Stir in 1tsp vanilla extract before serving to balance out the rhubarb with some mellow sweetness. For another delicious variation, add 1 cup of fresh, chopped Kirbygrown strawberries or whole raspberries right after you take the sauce off the stove.

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If you’ve tried all of the the usual rhubarb options and you’re looking for something new, check out some of the ideas at epicurious. The sweet/sour/savory chutney paired with a pork tenderloin is definitely on my to-do list! Have any favorite uses for rhubarb, or stories of grandma’s garden? Let us know, we’d love to hear about it!

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By stacey, April 8, 2011 10:08 pm

UPDATE: After hearing from our customers we took another look at our prices. We hope the new options available (as listed in this post) make a CSA share a more viable option for you! Prices are corrected below.

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Thank you for being patient as we calculated the pricing for our CSA shares. Whew, that’s a lot of numbers to crunch!

A Full share will provide 4-6 people with most of the produce they will need for the week. The cost is $650 $625.

*

A Half Share will supply 1-3 people with most of the produce they will need for the week. The cost is $390 $320.

>>Our CSA Meeting is coming up next WEDNESDAY, APril 13th at 7pm. Please come by with your questions and ideas! We can’t wait to hear from you.

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By stacey, April 5, 2011 1:24 am

CSA Informational Meeting

We hope you can make it to our first meeting! Topics for discussion include our farming practices and what you can expect from a CSA share with Kirby’s. Then we will open the floor to questions! Your feedback will help us make decisions throughout the season, starting with our first meeting.

A few details about our CSA Shares

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By stacey, March 21, 2011 11:11 pm

We spent this afternoon hammering out the structure of our brand new CSA program. There is still more work to do, but we are all very excited to offer 50 CSA shares! for the 2011 season.

If you don’t know much about CSA, (which stands for Community Supported Agriculture) check out the articles at localharvest.org. This is a wonderful site with so much information on what’s available from small farms across the country. (We used it when we visited California last year and enjoyed some really fantastic produce.) We’ve also used it for sourcing locally grown beef and pork. Kirby’s has our very own listing, and if you have an opportunity we would love for you to share your experiences at Kirby’s by reviewing us on the site. We need to see some green stars on there!

Stay tuned to learn more about Kirby’s CSA shares! We’ll be posting more details soon. If you have any questions feel free to email or message us on facebook.

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By stacey, December 19, 2010 7:47 pm

Today marks the beginning of the end of the season for us here at Kirby’s! There are only five more days left until we close for the winter at 2pm on Friday, December 24th. It is traditional for us to run sales the last week of the year. As a special Holiday thank you, our Poinsettias are 25 % off.

It’s time to stock up on homegrown produce for the winter! As of today, our Kirbygrown apples are all 25% off.  While you’re here, don’t forget the keeping potatoes from Rush’s – they’ll store very well and last for months.

All gift shop items  and jams are 20% off.  Finish up your Christmas shopping and save a little money at the same time!

We hope you’re enjoying the holiday season, see you soon!

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By stacey, October 6, 2010 7:09 pm

I have two questions.

#1. DO YOU LIKE TO BAKE?

For the bakers out there with a little bit of competitiveness in ‘em, we have a contest for you… KIRBY’S HOMEGROWN DESSERT CONTEST! With every season that comes around, we love hearing about the creations you make with the produce we grow.  Pies, Cobblers, Cakes, Muffins…. so many wonderful things! We decided it was time to gather it all together in one place and discover the dessert that rises to the top. So use your creativity, your ingenuity! Pull out your rolling pin and show us what you’ve got!( Click HERE to read more, including rules, dates and times.)

There are PRIZES!

All entries that receive 4 or more stars win a place in our new cookbook.
1st Prize – $25 Gift Certificate to Kirby’s and a Festival Tshirt

2nd Prize – $15 Gift Certificate to Kirby’s and a Festival Tshirt

3rd Prize – $10 Gift Certificate to Kirby’s and a Festival Tshirt

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#2. DO YOU LIKE TO EAT?

Now, for the eaters! This is a contest, and we need judges. That means you. If you’re like me, and you always go for a “sampler plate” at the holiday dessert tables (how can you take just one thing, when everything looks good???) this is your day. The first 50 customers that come to our Kirbygrown Dessert Contest tasting area promptly at 2pm will be designated “Official Tasters” and it will be up to you to pick the best desserts. We use a five star rating system, so don’t worry you don’t have to be super critical. Just let us know what excited your tastebuds!

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By stacey, September 15, 2010 10:06 pm

Our Pick Your Own Apple Orchard is loaded with fruit right now! As of September 15th there are still some Honeycrisp and Gala out there, with plenty of McIntosh, and Macouns soon to come. Red Delicious, Ida Red, Crispin and Empire are a few other varieties that will be available by early October.

Picking apples is a favorite fall tradition formany of our customers. Heading out to the orchard rain or shine, often with a flock of children in tow, is a great way to experience the farm. We hope you have a chance to try it out for yourself! Apple picking is available whenever the market is open.