Ayers Creek Farm

[Jim Dixon]

trillium introduced me to Ayers Creek, and it's worth making the trip to Hillsdale to pick up some of his beans, if nothing else. Here's what will be available this Sunday at the Hillsdale Farmers Market:

from the Ayers Creek email...

Corn Meal/Grits --  Whole grain, grown and stone ground on the farm.  We will have meal (#18 mesh), fine grits (#14 Mesh) and coarse grits (#12 mesh). At the present, we have two varieties, "Northstine Dent," an old Michigan variety, and "Roy's Calais Flint," a very old Abenaki variety from Vermont.  The Dents are starchier, and tends to cook up on the sticky side.  The flint corns contain a higher percentage of opaline silicate and more protein, and tend to cook up with a lighter texture.  The flavors are different as well.

Flint corns need a shorter season (75 - 90 heat unit days).  They are grown in New England and other short season areas of the US.  In northern Italy, especially in the foothills of the Alps, red or yellow flint corn is used for polenta.  The dents need 100 heat unit days or more, which translates in more than a month's difference in Oregon. We have to complete the drying of the ears under cover.  In the south and much of Italy, the higher yielding dents are used for grits, polenta and cornbread. 

The fine grits and coarse grits are separated to provide consistency in cooking time.  There is a diffence in texture, but they are interchageable.

Popcorn -- "Tom Thumb," also called "Lady Finger," is an traditional New England variety developed ages ago by the late Elwyn Maeder of the University of New Hampshire.  Popcorn is a nutritious whole grain food, great for children and adults.  We pop it in a bit of grapeseed oil.

Carrots -- Freshly dug today.

Parsnips -- Freshly dug today.  We will have some parsnip recipes at the market.  This when they are at their very finest, sweet and fragrant.

Asian Turnips -- Red and white, good tops as well as roots.  These are mild enough to mix into a salad raw.

Purple Top Turnips -- On special occasions, my friend's mother would serve cured calf's tongue.  Accompanying the tongue was always Fanny Farmer's turnip souffle.  It is a wonderful dish and good with any cut of beef or on its own.

Black Radish  --  Earthy and pungent, black radish is best sliced or julienned, then salted for a few hours before eating.  Will keep for a week or more once salted.  Good as a snack when sliced, or as a relish when grated or julienned.  Particularly good as a garnish on sweet vegetables such as squash.

Potatoes -- Desiree, a good red variety. 

Salad Greens --  A mixture of radicchio, cutting chicory, chervil, chick weed, arugula, miners lettuce, mache (corn salad), wild cress. 

Escarole, Endive, Sugar Loaf & Castelfranco Chicory -- Although used in salads for the most part, endive and escarole are delicious in soups, especially chicken based.

Smallage -- cutting celery, much more intense flavor for cooking beans or preparing chicken stock.   

Dry Beans

Winter Squash -- By the slice, Pandana, Marina di Chioggia, Sucrine du Berry, Muscat de Provence, Butternut, Jarrahdale, Long Island Cheese.  The Marina and Jarrahdale are not so sweet as the other varieties and have a deep squash flavor.

If you want more information about the Italian beans we carry and healthy bundle of new recipes, the Rodale Press has published a new book, cited below, on the subject.  It is available at Powell's.  Although I have yet to try any of the recipes, the book presents the most comprehensive and accurate discussion of Italian bean varieties I have seen to date.  This is the first publication I have cited where the publisher's location is given as a website rather than a city.

Barret, Judith. 2004.  Fagioli : The Bean Cusine of Italy.  www,rodalestore.com: Rodale Press . 273 p.

One warning...once you eat Ayers Creek's beans, you can't go back to store-bought.

Jim

[Abra]

Jim, do they sell beans online, for those of us who blanch at a 200 mile drive to buy beans? Not me, I mean, I'd go to the ends of the earth for a good bean, but my keyboard is so much handier!

[Jim Dixon]

I don't think they have anything online, but here's the contact info:

(503) 985-0177

aboutard@orednet.org

And since Portland is covered with a sheet of ice today, I'm not sure if the Hillsdale Market will even be open. Most everything that requires travel around town has been cancelled.

One online bean source is eGullet member Rancho Gordo.

Jiim

[Jim Dixon]

I just learned that the Sunday market is cancelled for today.....

Jim

[food junkie]

Nice! Thanks for the info., Jim.

[Abra]

Thanks, Jim, I'll check 'em out. I can get a lot of specialty beans here, but I'm always looking for more.

[trillium]

The beans that Anthony and Carol grow are really amazing. I've bought specialty beans everywhere I've lived, and while it's true that he grows some varieties that are even more "specialty" then others (tarbais, zolfino), what makes them stand out is the care and attention that gets put into growing, picking, curing and finally selling them. You really can taste the difference. I'm very excited that they're venturing into grinding corn, I'd been meaning to mail order fresh ground corn for polenta and making, but now I don't have to. Fresh polenta is a revelation, it tastes and smells like actual fresh and creamy corn, not dust.

Summer brings melons worth their weight in gold, fresh shellies, and wonderful berries and currants.

regards,

trillium