The Grains Project is a program of GrowNYC


In this Issue

Upcoming Market Dates
Conferences of Note
Mettā Recap
Home Bakers Meet-Up Save-the-Date
Upcoming Market Dates
The Grainstand  continues its weekly presence at  GrowNYC's Union Square Greenmarket every  Wednesday  and  Saturday .  

#drinklocal  : Beer & Spirits of New York  pop-ups will go on hiatus at the end of December.
The pop-up will return April 1st, 2019.

Stay current with pop-up news at  grownyc.org/drinklocal and explore what New York State craft beverage producers have to offer at the locations listed here:

Grainstand Schedule
Wed.  12/19 USQ   Nahmias et Fils Distillery
Sat.    12/22  USQ   Springbrook Hollow Farm Distillery
Sat.    12/22 Ft. Greene  Prohibition Distillery
Sun.   12/23  Columbia   Springbrook Hollow Farm Distillery
Wed.  12/26 USQ Closed (however the market is open)
Sat.    12/29  USQ  Harvest Spirits Farm Distillery
Sat.    12/29 Abingdon  Springbrook Hollow Farm Distillery (confirm before posting)
Sun.   12/30 Cortelyou  Springbrook Hollow Farm Distillery
 
Wed.  1/02   USQ Closed (however the market is open)
Sat.    1/05   USQ
Sat.    1/05   Inwood
Wed.  1/08   USQ
Sat.    01/12 USQ
Sat.    01/12 GAP 

Pre-ordered bulk bags are available at the Union Square Greenmarket every Wednesday and Saturday.  Check availability and pricing here .  
Wholesale orders of $250 or more can be delivered through Greenmarket Co. , GrowNYC's wholesale distribution program. 

For more information or to place an order, email us at [email protected]
Notable Conferences
The Grains team will be attending a couple wonderful conferences in the near future. We're going to have to split up, though, because they are at the same time!

January 18-20
Saratoga Springs, NY
The keynote speaker will be Leah Penniman, Co-Director & Program Manager of Soul Fire Farm and author of the upcoming book, Farming While Black: Soul Fire Farm’s Practical Guide to Liberation on the Land, available in early November

January 18-19
Olympia, WA
The  Cascadia Grains Conference  brings together farmers, bakers, brewers, distillers, brokers, investors, policy-makers and others to strengthen the role of grains in our local food economy.
Local AP & Pastry Flour? It's a Thing!
Just in Time for Holiday Baking
Photo: Evelyn's Crackers "English Soul Cakes" made with emmer and buckwheat.
Classic sugar cookies made with Greenmarket Blend (AP flour) from Champlain Valley Milling.
As you venture further into your holiday baking this month, a study in flours could mean everything. A recent article by  Amanda Mull published in The Atlantic nimbly illustrates how all flours – even all self-rising ones—are not the same.

Upon moving to New York City, Mull discovered that biscuits made in the North did not measure up to those from her home-state, Georgia. She set out to recreate an authentic southern biscuit, only to discover that the task was nearly impossible. After much trial and error, she diagnosed the problem as the flour.  Mull’s pursuit led her to Robert Dixon Phillips, a retired professor of food science at the University of Georgia, who pointed out that she needed soft wheat because “it has less gluten protein and the gluten is weaker, which allows the chemical leavening—the baking powder—to generate carbon dioxide and make it rise up in the oven.” Her problem is that she couldn't find any soft wheat in New York City.

The thing is, the North CAN grow soft wheat as well as the hard wheat used for bread baking, and several of our farmers are growing soft wheat and winter wheat varieties that achieve that lower protein content needed to make beautiful biscuits.

At the Grainstand, we have several wheat varieties that have a protein content between 8-10% and work beautifully as pastry and all-purpose flours.

We recommend the following flours for use in cookies, quick breads, pastries and biscuits:

  • Greenmarket Blend from Champlain Valley Milling. 10% protein. Available in both white and whole wheat flour. Roller milled.
  • All-purpose flour from Wild Hive Farm. 10% protein. Stone ground, sifted.
  • Fredrick soft winter wheat from Champlain Valley Milling. 8.9% protein. Available in both white and whole wheat flour. Roller milled. 
A Marvelous Night at Mettā
Thank you to Chef Negro Piattoni and the staff at Mettā for hosting a benefit dinner for the Grains Project. Chef Negro thrilled us with dishes using ingredients from seven different grain farms and mills, while Breukelen Distilling provided the Rye whiskey as the base of a delicious Manhattan cocktail. Thanks to all who attended!!
An amazing menu with emmer berry risotto, hemp oil pesto, a roasted cornmeal dessert porridge, and a Rye Manhattan from Breuckelen Distilling.
Thank you to all who came out for this very special evening!
Chef Negro Piattoni plating a pork chop with heirloom hominy stew from the Iroquois White Corn Project.
Grains Project Director June Russell with sales head Henry Blair and Maine wheat farmer Aimee Good.
Save the Date HOME BAKERS MEET-UP
Mark your calendars for Monday, March 4th , the date of our next Home Bakers Meet-up!

Donate to GrowNYC
For nearly 50 years, GrowNYC has proudly worked with our neighbors to protect our environment and improve quality of life for all New Yorkers.

This charitable season, please consider supporting GrowNYC. Individual donations like yours are the most valuable sources of funding we receive, and we need your help to continue to make New York City a better place to live.

If you'd like to help keep the GrowNYC Grains Project going, please donate online at www.grownyc.org/donate
or by mail to GrowNYC PO Box 2327 NY, NY 10272.

Any level gift is meaningful. Thank you for your support.
GrowNYC/Greenmarket | 212-788-7900 | www.grownyc.org