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The North Georgia Candy Roaster

Market Schedule Updates

The following markets are already closed for the winter:

Annandale, Lubber Run, NOVA (permanently), FSK and Goddard.

On Sunday 12/4 Westover hours change to 9:00 - 1:00.

This is a seasonal change, and there will be others so stay tuned as I could remember one at any moment; at my age I don't know when it'll happen!

Next up: Both Pike Central Farmers Market and the Half Street Farmers Market will close in two weeks; the last day of the season for both is 12/17/22.

If your location is ending for the season, and you just can't imagine being without our produce perhaps take a look at the MARKET SCHEDULE.

We plan on being at Friendship Heights on Christmas Eve.

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ONLINE ORDERING

For pre-order and pre-pay  "Grab and Go"

Click on shop if you already have an account

 on the new site and are ready to pre-order.

Link to the new website for signing up  

to create an account.

Email us at  twinspringsfruitfarm@gmail.com or call 717-334-4582, if you have some concern that needs to be addressed person to person. You may get the answering machine, but an actual human will call you back ASAP.

We have two periods for taking orders:

1. Ordering for the weekday markets opens up at 1:00 PM on Monday.

Ordering becomes unavailable on Tuesday at 1:00 PM, for Wednesday markets, and subsequently on Wednesday, at noon, for Thursday markets.

2. As of Wednesday at 5:30 PM we open up the Website for taking orders for all of the weekend markets.

We do this by taking down weekday markets as pick-up locations, and show only weekend locations as active pick-up sites.

At 1:00 P.M. on Friday we will remove the Saturday market locations as active pick-up locations, and only the seven Sunday sites will remain. These will shut down for pre-ordering at 1:00 PM on Saturday.

We would also love to have the boxes returned.

Twin Springs' Gift Baskets are available through the pre-order site. Select your own favorite variety of apple, and the preserves that you want in the basket.

You can't go far wrong with Evercrisp or Goldrush, or with Red Raspberry Preserves or perhaps Strawberry.

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Fresh local Dairy Items Have Returned to the Pre-order System

Cream Line Milk (1/2 gal.)

Chocolate Milk (1/2 gal. or 12 oz.)

Buttermilk (Qt./32 oz.)

Heavy Cream (Qt./32 oz.)

Yogurt (12 oz.) Blueberry or Strawberry



Current Greenhouse Photos 

The row to the right in the nursery house above is all trays seeded to "Trust" tomatoes, as well as Sungold and Dasher for the

spring greenhouse crop. It represents just one of

a number of staggered plantings.

Above are the seedlings to replace the fall tomato plants as seen below. There are actually many more for the spring planting because experience indicates that we will sell way more in the spring than we do in the fall.

Sweet pepper plants, above, having just emerged a day or two ago are being raised to replace the worn out plants below. But lest we forget, the planting below produced literally tons of wonderful orange, red and yellow peppers.

Above is the same row, a week later, that Tom is

watering in last week's photo seen again below.

From nothing comes something.

Below is the block of the next Manar cucumber plants that will soon go in to replace ones about to be removed this week. This endless cycle, for greenhouse cucumbers, is about every three months, year-round.

This replacement schedule is often the reason why we are very light at market every once in a while. Disease problems are another reason.

This is a good time of year in some respects, very few insect pests

spreading fungal infections; on the other hand there is a lack

of natural light which decreases the plants' vigor and

overall health. LED lights are a big help,

but are no substitute for the sun.

Below is my old, semi-retired, Toyota pick-up truck doing duty

on the farm as it will no longer pass PA inspection.

Pipes, filters, fittings, vales, pumps - Oh My!

A lot to maintain.

Every fall Jesse must winterize our fairly extensive irrigation system,

most of which he pretty much installed. Lots of underground pipes

and wells, which will be fine when it gets really cold, but what

you are seeing is all above ground equipment which must be

protected from freezing. There are plenty of above ground

pipes which only need to be properly drained, but as

you can see below there is plenty which needs to

go into some sort of shelter.

North Georgia Candy Roaster

I'm going to bring you up to speed on this wonderful, but nearly unknown, except perhaps down south, winter squash variety. Of course it is in the same category as our very popular BonBon and Sunshine squashes, as well as our Delicata, Butternut, Honeynut and Blue Hubbard, all of which are virtually interchangeable in most recipes. They each, however, have their own distinct qualities, and customers invariably develop their favorite, or "go to" variety.

This unique pumpkiny squash thingy has a really cool history. I found that the North Georgia Candy Roaster is rare and was originally bred by the Cherokee Indians in the Southern Appalachians of North Carolina and Georgia in the 1800s.

The seeds are heirloom, and you can save the uncooked seeds to plant next spring. North Georgia Candy Roaster has a nutty, mildly sweet buttery flavor and excellent taste when roasted, boiled or mashed or makes a perfect candidate for pies.

I've had a couple of customers tell me how wonderful this squash is, wide eyed when relating just how superior the pie, or simply oven roasted squash is, relating how quickly it was gobbled up by family.

I would encourage everyone to branch out and try any squash with which you are unfamiliar, especially the North G. C. Roaster. I've had some recent feedback from customers who have taken the plunge and gone home with one of these, admittedly, intimidating squashes. 

Most of them are pretty large, and perhaps it needs to be shared with a friend or relative. Personally I think that one might want to make use of its versatility, and pre-cooked portions may always be frozen for later use. Perhaps make a soup out of a couple of pounds, and a Sweet Potato Pie out of the rest, or the wonderful, festive recipe that follows, from Rachel at SimplySeasonal.

The squash can simply be cut as you need a portion; just protect the rest of the squash by keeping it cool and dry. The wound from the cut will dry off and protect the rest of the squash, much like a sweet potato will do. I've rarely seen any rot get into a cut squash, if the surface of the squash looked good.

North Georgia Candy Roaster

(Cucurbia Maxima) 

What follows is a mish/mash of myself and Cathy

ORIGIN:

Rare heirloom variety. Originally cultivated by the Cherokee Indians in the Appalachian Mountains of the southeastern portion of the United States. It is still most often grown in parts of northern Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee.

Like many of the winter squashes enjoyed in America, this one continues to be cultivated because of seeds provided by Native Americans. The North Georgia Candy Roaster Squash is part of a group of candy roaster squashes that were all cultivated by the Cherokee and vary in shape from oblong to round. It was one of the squash that was planted in the three sisters pattern.

TASTE:

Smooth and sweet. Becomes sweeter with time. We are bringing ours out at this time because it has reached a good level of sweetness. This is true for most winter squash, they tend to improve for anywhere from a couple of weeks to a few months. Our very late Winter Sweet, a kabocha squash not unlike the BonBon (a buttercup variety) will come out in a couple of weeks, as we are almost out of the BonBon. They have definitely improved over the past couple of months.

USES:

Substitute in recipes that use other winter squash or sweet potato. This squash can be fried, baked, or roasted. Make into a purée and use like you would puréed pumpkin in breads, pies, or pasta dishes.

It's also a delicious addition to soups, stews, or casseroles. Pairs well with flavors like chipotle, chili, cinnamon, nutmeg, and curry.

TO PREP FOR COOKING:

Cut lengthwise and remove seeds with a spoon. This squash can be roasted with the skin on and then the flesh can be scooped out and the skin discarded once cooked. A good sharp vegetable peeler can make pretty short work out of removing the skin; or see just below.

If planning on cubing or cutting the squash, I find it's easiest to remove the skin by cutting the squash in two or more sections, so that it will fit in your microwave. Microwave each half on high for 3 minutes before peeling. Peel downward with squash upright on the table.

SIZE:

8-15 pounds, with an average of 10 pounds. Up to 18 inches long and 6 inches wide.

STORAGE:

This squash is valued for it's ability to winter well and it's intensely sweet flavor. Store up to 5 months in cool, dark conditions.

The flavor actually improves through the winter. It's the end of December and I've had one squirreled away for a couple of months now!

Roasted North Georgia Candy Roaster

Cathy Greer Mazanec, MPH, RDN, LDN

Click on - Notes and recipes for winter squash, from Cathy

With this recipe I was shooting for really simple and easy, as well as reasonably fast. The NGCR are large and may seem intimidating, so to familiarize yourself with them "KISS" (message to myself) - keep it simple stupid!

Ingredients

1 (approx. 6-7 pound) North Georgia Candy Roaster

3 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil

¾ - 1 tsp. seasoned salt (Cathy's recipe)

½ tsp. black pepper

½ tsp. cinnamon

 Preparation

• Using a sharp peeler, peel skin off the candy roaster squash.

• Cut squash in half length-wise and scrape out the seeds. Discard or save seeds for roasting or planting.

• Cut each half in half cross-wise, then slice in ½ inch crescents.

• Chop the crescents into ½ inch pieces.

• Place squash pieces in a ziptop bag or bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Toss well so that the pieces are well coated.

• Spread squash pieces in a single layer on a large baking sheet covered with parchment paper.

I'm a true believer in using good quality, but well seasoned baking pans, i.e. good and darkened by lots of use, without parchment paper - it promotes darkening and caramelization, and yes you may wish to flip them with a spatula half way through roasting.

• Season with something like seasoning salt*, black pepper and cinnamon.

*I have used homemade "Emeril's Essence" (I confess that it is my fallback seasoning - for baking fish, lamb or pork chops, sautéd kalettes, lots of things, even on prime rib at Christmas.)

• Roast in 400 degree preheated oven for 35 – 45 minutes until pieces are golden brown and tender to the touch.

Notes:

• Rotate pan 180 degrees half way through cooking time for even browning.
• If you are using non-stick baking pans, you may need to toss the squash pieces halfway through the cooking time to prevent burning on the bottom.
• Adding a pinch of nutmeg to this recipe might be delish!

~~~~~~~~~~

Rowan running through the NFT house



Bosc Pears - (seen to the right) Bosc may be eaten quite firm, but are wonderful if left out until they have turned very "rusty" brown and have some "give" at the shoulder.

Bosc are also considered to be a great baking or poaching pear; they hold their shape well and are sweet enough when still very firm.

Kalettes - (seen above) There will be lots available. The plants are still quite healthy.

Romanesco - (seen above) Quite a few will be available.

Celery and Celeriac are still available.

How to Cook Sweet Potatoes, with many fine recipes and storage advice, etc.

My take on the purple sweet potato was that it was fine, but not great. Not sweet enough, and not really enough flavor. Perhaps they have further cured, an upped their sugars. I'll have to test a couple.

Stayman - (seen above)  This is a wonderful variety, from early America. It is often called Stayman Winesap, but we use just Stayman to forestall any confusion with what we know and grow as the true, original Winesap.

Ludacrisp - (seen to the right) Paul had a customer who wanted to try one, so he cut her a sample and she just said "WOW". You may want to try a couple. I think that it is a "love it or leave it" variety of apple

They are definitely on the sweet side.

Golden Delicious - (not seen) It is hard to beat a Gold that is just picked as it is quite crisp, sweet and very juicy, Julia Child's favorite baking apple.

Mutsu - We are about out of these.

Fuji - (seen below) We are now sending down the wonderful Sun Fuji. It is another great fresh eating apple.



Honeycrisp - (seen above) We will have plenty of these very popular fresh eating apples. They would also be extraordinary in a raw salad.

Apples Only Sold Online

Call and ask about the availability of Cortland and Grimes.

Garlic - We've got plenty of German hardneck garlic this season.

Shallots - Try them sautéed and put over a grilled steak. The name of this french variety is Ambition.

Tomatoes - 😫 unfortunately this is the final picking of the fall tomato crop, so you will see very few after the week ahead.

Dasher - Whatever they can get out of the greenhouse just prior to removing the plants to make way for planting the spring crops.

Sungold - Ditto

Red Onions - These have a great, reasonably mild, flavor.

Candy Onions - Fresh, fairly sweet onions.

Basil, "roots on" - We are back to having plenty. If put in a glass with an inch or so of water it keeps for weeks.

That is our Genovese Basil seen to the right in NFT channels in the newest of our greenhouses.

Romaine - None this week.

Delicata - The last few of these will go down this weekend.

We will start sending down the two acorn squash we raised this season. Heart of Gold and

Honeynut - A variant on the venerable Butternut. This variety is quite a bit smaller than its big brother, but packs a giant flavor, a bit stronger and sweeter than the butternut.

Sunshine a Kabocha squash - is a sweet, smooth textured winter squash, which is perhaps the most popular of the many which we grow. It is perfect for pumpkin pie or any similar recipe.

BonBon a Buttercup squash - is very similar to the Sunshine in its usefulness in almost any squash recipe, whether in a soup or casserole, pumpkin pie or just served like mashed potatoes. We are very close to running out of BonBon.

Spaghetti Squash - I've put in instructions for cutting these and roasting to get the strands of squash out for use as a substitute for actual pasta.

Above is apparently how not to do it to get this nicest strands.

Here is a link to a site that not only has a five star recipe, but also complete instructions for prepping the squash for any recipe.

Butternut - It is the most widely grown winter squash, it being not only a great all around squash, but also a good "keeper".

~~~~~Gift Baskets~~~~~

The following two items are offered online,

but are of course picked up at the market location of your choice.

Tomato Gift Basket ($40)

1 - 26 ounce jar of Marinara Sauce (the large size),

2 - 26 ounce jars of Tomato Soup,

2 - 16 ounce jars of Medium Salsa,

1 - 12 ounce jar of Spicy Peach BBQ Sauce



Holiday Basket ($45)

1 jar of Stayman Apple Sauce, 1 jar of Cortland Apple Sauce,

1 jar of Apple Butter, 1 jar of jelly, jam, or fruit spread (your choice), 3 lbs. of apples (your choice ), 1 package of Apple Snitz, 1 package of Apple Cider Caramels

Please leave a note to let us know which apple variety,

and which jelly, jam, or fruit spread you would like.

Twin Spring's Canned Goods

No preservatives have been added to these products

Jarred Peaches - They are back! Both online and at market - they are $7.00 a jar, and a case of 12 is 10% off, making it $75.60.

Chipotle Ketchup - A wonderful and mildly hot ketchup with which we are quite proud.



Marinara Sauce - Both the large and the small sizes, great as is, or can be used as a base for other recipes and additions.

Medium Salsa - Not too hot, not too mild.

Tomato Soup - Has been made; we will have plenty, hopefully right through the winter, and then sell out just as the next crop of tomatoes is getting ripe. We sold out all too early this season. It turned out to be very popular. 

Tomato Juice - Good and "tomatoey", great for a Bloody Mary.

Apple Sauce - No sugar or preservatives added, it is smooth and semisweet. If ordered online specify either Cortland or Stayman. At market it is more the luck of the draw, but is stamped on the lid as to what variety of apple we used.



Apple Butter (Fruit Spread*) - Some spice added, but no sugar or preservatives. If we were to call it "apple butter" the regulations say we must add sugar - go figure?

All canned goods may be purchased individually, or by the 12 jar case at 10% off. Many items may be ordered by going on the pre-order website. Cherry Juice may be ordered and is actually less expensive than purchasing the case right at market; i.e. it is considerably less expensive at $60, than the 10% off would make it.

*Fruit spread is a designation for preserves, as well as our Apple Butter, which are low on added sugar, the way we prefer it. Roseanne, who, along with her husband Philip, produces all our jams and jellies has all of her products lab tested for sugar and lets us know whether to call the product Fruit Spread or Preserves.



Golden Raspberry Fruit Spread

Fig Preserves

Strawberry Fruit Spread

Blueberry Fruit Spread 

Blackberry Preserves

Black Raspberry Fruit Spread

Blackberry Seedless Jelly

Red Raspberry Preserves  

Red Raspberry Seedless Jelly

~~~~~~~~~~

The items in the below section are offered

at "Certain Locations". The list of them is

underneath the following entries:

Fresh and Local - We will have plenty of radishes and beets. Also some kohlrabi, red and green cabbage, as well as the above Napa Cabbage.

Uncle Henry's Hard Pretzels - They are made from their own sourdough yeast, kept from batch to batch, as well as unbleached local flour. Whole wheat pretzels are now available, as are 'low salt' pretzels.

Dipping mustard from McCutcheon's is now available, trust me, it's very good.

Lenka Coffee - We have both whole bean and ground. This is a "bird friendly" coffee, as it is truly shade grown.

Elizabeth's Breakfast loaves - which are local to us; she and Gary live just up the hill; Gary brings them down to us the evening before market, just after coming out of Beth's oven.

Michele's Granola - Baked fairly locally (near Baltimore), this granola 

has been a mainstay at these locations for a few years. I've found that this is a great topping for cobblers and such. It comes out super crunchy.

Baked Goods - From Stonehearth Bakery, located in Frederick; all items are baked "that" morning, and now individually wrapped or bagged: Baguettes, innumerable kinds of fresh breads, both sliced and unsliced, as well as croissants, scones and cookies, bags of rolls.  

"How to keep Breads Fresh and Fabulous", is a blog from epicurious. The two paragraphs that follow are from the article, but there is a good amount more.

Yes, the freezer is most often used for long-term food storage, but if you want to keep your freshly-baked bread in its most perfect state, even just for a few days, the freezer is the way to go. Freezing bread greatly slows down the staling, or retrogradation, process and eliminates the risk of mold growth. And when you take bread out of the freezer you can put it right into the oven or toaster—which actually re-gelatinizes the starches and makes the bread springy and chewy again.

The refrigerator, that miraculous 20th-century food preserver that keeps our celery crisp and our milk chilled, is actually the last place your bread belongs. According to Harold McGee, author of On Food & Cooking, refrigerating fresh bread can cause it to stale up to six times faster than bread left out on the counter. That said, the fridge is a decent place to store your store-bought bread because it will prevent mold and dryness.

Verdict: Whatever you do, don’t put your fresh bread in the fridge!

Tart Cherry Juice - Full of antioxidants, this tangy, pure fruit juice, no sugar or preservatives added, is great at taming aches and pains from conditions such as arthritis. It also helps extend your sleep time by perhaps 84 minutes.

"Family of Nuts" - lightly salted roasted cashews, pistachios, almonds, hazelnuts, and mixed nuts, all are nicely done, light on the salt. There are also dry fruits: apricots, figs, dates and raisins.

HERE is an article on tart cherries entitled "Cardiovascular disease remains the No. 1 killer of both men and women in North America. Changes in diet and exercise can go a long way in helping to keep your heart healthy."

Increase sleep by 84 minutes per night. See below for a write-up* 

Allen's, as well as some from other sources, fresh local eggs - Brought to Twin Springs weekly, both white and brown eggs from happy "free walking" hens, raised just outside of Gettysburg.

Pure Local Honey - Jim Small continues to keep us supplied with his local wildflower honey, totally unadulterated, and minimally heated -only when needed to get it to flow for bottling.

Honey - more popular than ever.

Fresh Hard Pretzels - Locally made, coming in both regular and Honey Whole Wheat. Hand made and freshly baked in our area. 

Artisanal Cheeses - Curt's locally produced cheeses: sharp cheddar, cheddar, Conall's lava cheddar, smoked cheddar, as well as smoked Jalapeño; also available are goat gouda and goat cheddar. 

Maple Syrup and Maple Sugar - Tapped and bottled on the Patterson Farm in Pennsylvania. Did you know that a jug of syrup may be frozen to keep it fresh; it will still flow, though quite slowly, when brought out of the freezer. Unlike honey, which simply won't go bad, other than perhaps crystallizing, maple syrup should at least be refrigerated, once opened, as it can develop mold.

I'm going to LINK HERE to an article, from Canada no less, which enumerates many recent discoveries about the benefits of replacing some sugars with natural maple syrup. Studies have uncovered a multitude of compounds in the sap, therefore the syrup, which can act as anti-inflammatories, many of which will be familiar from past newsletters, but who knew they were in maple syrup?

McCutcheon's Products - We carry an extensive line of jams, some fruit sweetened, ie. no cane sugar or corn syrup, and jellies, as well as many other great products, like Bread and Butter Pickles, Chow Chow, Relishes, and much more created right in Frederick Maryland. 

*Health Benefits of Tart Cherry Juice

A study of distance runners by Texas A&M University, in College Station, determined that short-term supplementation of dried tart cherry powder* improved running times, decreased inflammation and increased muscle metabolism and immunity.

The researchers divided 27 endurance-trained young adult athletes into two groups. Eleven participants were given a daily powdered tart cherry supplement for 10 days, and 16 were given a rice flour placebo. All completed a half-marathon near the end of the 10-day trial. The researchers tested fasting blood samples and a quadriceps muscle soreness rating prior to the run, 60 minutes after the run and 24 and 48 hours post-run.

The tart cherry group reported 13 percent faster average running times, as well as significantly lower inflammatory markers. They also reported 34 percent lower quadriceps soreness prior to the run. Tart cherry supplementation also increased immunity and resulted in better muscle metabolism. 

And another write-up, from the AARP Bulletin:

From the AARP Bulletin: "Talk to your doctor about ways to relieve pain without drugs. Heat, massage and acupuncture, for example, are effective for lower-back pain. Or try tart cherry juice. Drinking eight ounces twice a day has been shown in preliminary research in older adults to reduce pain and increase sleep by 84 minutes per night, says Robert Oexman, director of the Sleep to Live Institute in Mebane, N.C."

*We, of course, sell the 100% tart cherry juice bottled by our cider mill, Kimes, in Bendersville Pa. A case may be ordered at 10% off. 

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