News and blog

Update for Saturday, March 9th

Hi everyone.  Just a quick update for this week.  The items offered from the farmers- Zang, Kistaco and Greenawalts- will be very very similar to last week's offerings.  See below for details.  I have updated the meat offerings for the J.L. Kennedy Meat stand.

At PA Made Cheese, we have a fresh shipment of goat cheese from Riverview Dairy.  We also have a special shipment of organic cows milk cheese from Cow Girl Creamery in California- Mt Tam and Red Hawk.  This is a one time event.  We  were able to get this shipment as a result of my recent visit to California and meeting the owner of Cowl Girl Creamery.

See you at the market- David Lagnese

******************************************************************************************
The Update....

J.L Kennedy Meat Stand

Special items for this week....

- EXTRA-LEAN GROUND TURKEY
- BONELESS PORK SHOULDER cut to order

PLUS-

- BEEF BACON
- BEEF JERKY
- BEEF STICKS

**please place order for your st. patty 's day pickled corned beef - available on sat. march 16th

**please place your EASTER order a.s.a.p. for sat, march 30th... deposit required for all ham and lamb orders

**please keep phone call orders and any messages to ring in during our business hours of 9-9 mon-thurs and 9-6 on friday...

The number at the farm is 724-898-2316.

Greenawalt Farm

Kew Park Coffee Bar-  We have a fresh batch of beans that were roasted by Commonplace Coffee Roasters.  Also, will have fresh squeezed grapefruit, tangerine, and orange juices.  We are on the last box of tangerines so get it while you can. 

PA Made Cheese-   Hopefully you were able to meet Dale and Martha Liveremore from The Ark Farm in Jefferson County, PA when they visited the market a few weeks ago.  The Livermores manage a herd of about 100 grass-fed sheep, and also operate a creamery that makes sheep milk cheese.  We liked the Livermores (and their cheese) so much that we will begin selling their cheese starting this week.

Check out their website at:  http://www.thearkfarm.com/index.html

When I was in California I met Peggy Smith, one of the founders of Cow Girl Creamery.  They are a world class creamery that were pioneers on the artisinal cheese industry in our country.  They operate a cheese chop at the Ferry Building market in San Francisco.  The cheese is fabulous.  Although I am committed focusing on locally made cheeses at PA Made Cheese I do want to occasionally share other cheeses at the market, and with our local cheese makers.  I call them "inspiration" cheeses in the hopes that our local cheese makers might start making similar styles. I have made arrangements with Cow Girl Creamery to have some of their fabulous cheese shipped in to the market.  It will be here in a few weeks.  Learn more about Cow Girl Creamery at:  http://www.cowgirlcreamery.com

California Connection- In addition to my visit with Cow Girl, I also had the opportunity to visit the Van Dyke Ranch in Gilroy, California.  I get most of my dried fruit from Van Dyke. I was able to meet Peter Van Dyke, the owner of the farm and got a great tour of the entire operation.  The farm is in a beautiful location, right next to a mountain.  This is kind of a quite time of year at the farm as there are not even blossoms on the trees.  Peter explained that this is the time of year when they prune and maintain the trees.  Peter keeps the farm organic so there are very specific methods that are used.  He explained that the cherry trees are nearing the end of their product life cycle, so he is getting ready to pull them out and plant new trees.  It will take about 5 years to complete the process of replacing the trees.  It was really great to meet Peter and gain a better understanding of the care that goes into growing and processing his fruit.

I also established a relationship with a new fruit grower- Bella Viva Orchards.  They grow some amazing fruit and have developed great expertise in processing and drying fruit.  I now have some dried Rainier cherries and dried Pluots for sale at the market.  Pluots are a cross between plums and apricots.  The dried version is very soft, and sweet but tart.

Finally I visited an olive farm in Gilroy.  I met the owner and toured the milling facility and the olive grove.  The farmers name is Jeff Martin.  He calls his farm Frantoio Grove.  He has about 3,000 trees, all of the Frantoio variety.  He recently purchased a Pieralisi olive mill.  This is a huge investment for a single farmer to make.  Its also a big deal because it means that the olives can be processed very quickly after harvest.  This produces a very high quality olive oil.  It is a very impressive operation and the oil is excellent.  I will have it for sale at the market next week.

The Greek Gourmet- will have homemade spinach and meat pies at the market each week- in addition to 20+ flavors of hummus.  Stop by and talk to Jack at the booth.

BANDY Woodworks will have children's toys and games, and great items for the home and office using local reclaimed and salvaged wood and non-toxic finishes.  Cutting boards and wine racks make a great Valentine's gift for the foodie on your list!  Their booth is on the right when you walk in the front door from N. Sheridan, directly across from Greenawalt's.  Preview some of the items carried at the market by visiting  www.bandywoodworks.etsy.com.

*****************************************************
Visit the market's website for information on the market and all the vendors.  You can sign up for a weekly email update.

http://www.farmersmarketcooperativeofeastliberty.com/

Also,  check out the video about the market produced by Ths folks at East Liberty Development (ELDI).  It was directed and produced by local film maker Michael Pisano. So a great big thanks Michael and ELDI's Margaret Graham  for producing the video. So please check out the video and share it with others.

*********************************************************

The Farmers' Market Cooperative of East Liberty is located at 344 North Sheridan Ave., adjacent to the Home Depot parking lot.  The market operates year round- and is open from 5 AM until 12 noon every Saturday of the year.

Update for Saturday, March 2nd

We had a real nice crowd at the market last Saturday.  Thanks to everyone for coming out on the last Saturday of February. 

With this being the first Saturday of March, it makes me hopeful that spring weather is just around the corner.  Please see below for the weekly update.

See you at the market- David Lagnese

******************************************************************************************
The Update....

J.L Kennedy Meat Stand

Special items for this week....

- BONELESS PORK SHOULDER cut to order
- BABY BACK PORK RIBS

**please order your pickled corn beef for pick up on sat  march 16 th... it is always a sell-out item and of course is limited -as are all these wonderful local products  for st patt's day...

**please keep phone call orders and any messages to ring in during our business hours of 9-9 mon-thurs and 9-6 on friday...
 
The number at the farm is 724-898-2316.

Greenawalt Farm

Kew Park Coffee Bar-  We have a fresh batch of beans that were roasted by Commonplace Coffee Roasters.  Also, will have fresh squeezed grapefruit, tangerine, and orange juices.  We are on the last box of tangerines so get it while you can. 

PA Made Cheese-   Hopefully you were able to meet Dale and Martha Liveremore from The Ark Farm in Jefferson County, PA when they visited the market a few weeks ago.  The Livermores manage a herd of about 100 grass-fed sheep, and also operate a creamery that makes sheep milk cheese.  We liked the Livermores (and their cheese) so much that we will begin selling their cheese starting this week.

Check out their website at:  http://www.thearkfarm.com/index.html

When I was in California I met Peggy Smith, one of the founders of Cow Girl Creamery.  They are a world class creamery that were pioneers on the artisinal cheese industry in our country.  They operate a cheese chop at the Ferry Building market in San Francisco.  The cheese is fabulous.  Although I am committed focusing on locally made cheeses at PA Made Cheese I do want to occasionally share other cheeses at the market, and with our local cheese makers.  I call them "inspiration" cheeses in the hopes that our local cheese makers might start making similar styles. I have made arrangements with Cow Girl Creamery to have some of their fabulous cheese shipped in to the market.  It will be here in a few weeks.  Learn more about Cow Girl Creamery at:  http://www.cowgirlcreamery.com

California Connection- In addition to my visit with Cow Girl, I also had the opportunity to visit the Van Dyke Ranch in Gilroy, California.  I get most of my dried fruit from Van Dyke. I was able to meet Peter Van Dyke, the owner of the farm and got a great tour of the entire operation.  The farm is in a beautiful location, right next to a mountain.  This is kind of a quite time of year at the farm as there are not even blossoms on the trees.  Peter explained that this is the time of year when they prune and maintain the trees.  Peter keeps the farm organic so there are very specific methods that are used.  He explained that the cherry trees are nearing the end of their product life cycle, so he is getting ready to pull them out and plant new trees.  It will take about 5 years to complete the process of replacing the trees.  It was really great to meet Peter and gain a better understanding of the care that goes into growing and processing his fruit.

I also established a relationship with a new fruit grower- Bella Viva Orchards.  They grow some amazing fruit and have developed great expertise in processing and drying fruit.  I now have some dried Rainier cherries and dried Pluots for sale at the market.  Pluots are a cross between plums and apricots.  The dried version is very soft, and sweet but tart.

Finally I visited an olive farm in Gilroy.  I met the owner and toured the milling facility and the olive grove.  The farmers name is Jeff Martin.  He calls his farm Frantoio Grove.  He has about 3,000 trees, all of the Frantoio variety.  He recently purchased a Pieralisi olive mill.  This is a huge investment for a single farmer to make.  Its also a big deal because it means that the olives can be processed very quickly after harvest.  This produces a very high quality olive oil.  It is a very impressive operation and the oil is excellent.  I will have it for sale at the market next week.

The Greek Gourmet- will have homemade spinach and meat pies at the market each week- in addition to 20+ flavors of hummus.  Stop by and talk to Jack at the booth.

BANDY Woodworks will have children's toys and games, and great items for the home and office using local reclaimed and salvaged wood and non-toxic finishes.  Cutting boards and wine racks make a great Valentine's gift for the foodie on your list!  Their booth is on the right when you walk in the front door from N. Sheridan, directly across from Greenawalt's.  Preview some of the items carried at the market by visiting  www.bandywoodworks.etsy.com.

*****************************************************
Visit the market's website for information on the market and all the vendors.  You can sign up for a weekly email update.

http://www.farmersmarketcooperativeofeastliberty.com/

Also,  check out the video about the market produced by Ths folks at East Liberty Development (ELDI).  It was directed and produced by local film maker Michael Pisano. So a great big thanks Michael and ELDI's Margaret Graham  for producing the video. So please check out the video and share it with others.

*********************************************************

The Farmers' Market Cooperative of East Liberty is located at 344 North Sheridan Ave., adjacent to the Home Depot parking lot.  The market operates year round- and is open from 5 AM until 12 noon every Saturday of the year.

Update for Saturday, February 23rd

Thanks to everyone for continuing to support the market throughout these cold winter months.  We will be open again this Saturday, of course, as we are every Saturday all year.  We still have some locally grown items, local meat from the Kennedy's, and eggs from Greenawalts.  Kistaco Farm is still pressing cider from local apples.  We also have some carefully selected shipped in fruit and vegetable items.

To do my part, I continue to develop relationships with small family fruit, nut and olive farms in California.  I was lucky enough to travel to California recently and got to visit some fruit farms an olive farm, and a cheese maker.  See the update below for more details.

See you at the market- David Lagnese

******************************************************************************************
The Update....

J.L Kennedy Meat Stand

Special items for this week....

**AGAIN- MORE CHIPPED SIRLOIN TIP esp for the folks who missed cut-off last week

**BEEG ROASTS- eye of round...rolled rump...arm/shoulder...chuck...or any higher-end loin roast like sirloin or delmonico...rib-eye...new york strip.. filet/tenderloin
call by thursday eve so we can have it cut special for your order

**we'll start taking orders next sat for the st. patty 's day raw corned beef which can be picked up sat march 16 th....just specify how many pounds you need please. Special items for this Saturday, February 16th...

**please keep phone call orders and any messages to ring in during our business hours of 9-9 mon-thurs and 9-6 on friday...
 
The number at the farm is 724-898-2316.

Greenawalt Farm

Kew Park Coffee Bar-  We have a fresh batch of beans that were roasted by Commonplace Coffee Roasters.  Also, will have fresh squeezed grapefruit, tangerine, and orange juices.  We are on the last box of tangerines so get it while you can. 

PA Made Cheese-   Hopefully you were able to meet Dale and Martha Liveremore from The Ark Farm in Jefferson County, PA when they visited the market a few weeks ago.  The Livermores manage a herd of about 100 grass-fed sheep, and also operate a creamery that makes sheep milk cheese.  We liked the Livermores (and their cheese) so much that we will begin selling their cheese starting this week.

Check out their website at:  http://www.thearkfarm.com/index.html

When I was in California I met Peggy Smith, one of the founders of Cow Girl Creamery.  They are a world class creamery that were pioneers on the artisinal cheese industry in our country.  They operate a cheese chop at the Ferry Building market in San Francisco.  The cheese is fabulous.  Although I am committed focusing on locally made cheeses at PA Made Cheese I do want to occasionally share other cheeses at the market, and with our local cheese makers.  I call them "inspiration" cheeses in the hopes that our local cheese makers might start making similar styles. I have made arrangements with Cow Girl Creamery to have some of their fabulous cheese shipped in to the market.  It will be here in a few weeks.  Learn more about Cow Girl Creamery at:  http://www.cowgirlcreamery.com

California Connection- In addition to my visit with Cow Girl, I also had the opportunity to visit the Van Dyke Ranch in Gilroy, California.  I get most of my dried fruit from Van Dyke. I was able to meet Peter Van Dyke, the owner of the farm and got a great tour of the entire operation.  The farm is in a beautiful location, right next to a mountain.  This is kind of a quite time of year at the farm as there are not even blossoms on the trees.  Peter explained that this is the time of year when they prune and maintain the trees.  Peter keeps the farm organic so there are very specific methods that are used.  He explained that the cherry trees are nearing the end of their product life cycle, so he is getting ready to pull them out and plant new trees.  It will take about 5 years to complete the process of replacing the trees.  It was really great to meet Peter and gain a better understanding of the care that goes into growing and processing his fruit.

I also established a relationship with a new fruit grower- Bella Viva Orchards.  They grow some amazing fruit and have developed great expertise in processing and drying fruit.  I now have some dried Rainier cherries and dried Pluots for sale at the market.  Pluots are a cross between plums and apricots.  The dried version is very soft, and sweet but tart.

Finally I visited an olive farm in Gilroy.  I met the owner and toured the milling facility and the olive grove.  The farmers name is Jeff Martin.  He calls his farm Frantoio Grove.  He has about 3,000 trees, all of the Frantoio variety.  He recently purchased a Pieralisi olive mill.  This is a huge investment for a single farmer to make.  Its also a big deal because it means that the olives can be processed very quickly after harvest.  This produces a very high quality olive oil.  It is a very impressive operation and the oil is excellent.  I will have it for sale at the market next week.

The Greek Gourmet- will have homemade spinach and meat pies at the market each week- in addition to 20+ flavors of hummus.  Stop by and talk to Jack at the booth.

BANDY Woodworks will have children's toys and games, and great items for the home and office using local reclaimed and salvaged wood and non-toxic finishes.  Cutting boards and wine racks make a great Valentine's gift for the foodie on your list!  Their booth is on the right when you walk in the front door from N. Sheridan, directly across from Greenawalt's.  Preview some of the items carried at the market by visiting  www.bandywoodworks.etsy.com.

*****************************************************
Visit the market's website for information on the market and all the vendors.  You can sign up for a weekly email update.

http://www.farmersmarketcooperativeofeastliberty.com/

Also,  check out the video about the market produced by Ths folks at East Liberty Development (ELDI).  It was directed and produced by local film maker Michael Pisano. So a great big thanks Michael and ELDI's Margaret Graham  for producing the video. So please check out the video and share it with others.

*********************************************************

The Farmers' Market Cooperative of East Liberty is located at 344 North Sheridan Ave., adjacent to the Home Depot parking lot.  The market operates year round- and is open from 5 AM until 12 noon every Saturday of the year.

Update for Saturday, February 9th

We have another special event lined up for this Saturday.  Dale and Martha Liveremore from The Ark Farm in Jefferson County, PA will be visiting the market.  The Livermores manage a herd of about 100 grass-fed sheep, and also operate a creamery that makes sheep milk cheese.  Dale recently has been reaching out to various people in Pittsburgh area including Slow Food Pittsburgh, Penn's Corner Farm Alliance and of course us at the Farmers Market Coop.  He is trying to get the word out that their sheep milk cheese is now available.  He will be sharing free samples of his cheese and also have cheese available for sale.  So please stop by and meet the folks from The Ark Farm.  They will be set up by 9 am.

Check out their website at:  http://www.thearkfarm.com/index.html

Please see below for an update.

See you at the market- David Lagnese

******************************************************************************************
The Update....

J.L Kennedy Meat Stand

Special items for this week....

- Extra Lean Ground Turkey

**GOAT...follows lamb pricing...please be specific with pounds or #'s needed...AVAILABILITY= LOIN CHOPS
 
**REMEMBER VALENTINE'S DAY AND FAT TUESDAY ARE RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER..we can have any special cuts of beef or pork you may want to make any special meal or dish on those special dates!

**Please leave ALL messages and place calls during our wide range of phone time of 9am-9pm mon - thursday and 9-6on fridays... we can fill your order if we have enough notice. thanks and see you all soon!

The number at the farm is 724-898-2316.

Greenawalt Farm

Kew Park Coffee Bar- Check out our newly chalked signage!  We have a fresh batch of beans that were roasted by Commonplace Coffee Roasters.  Also, will have fresh squeezed grapefruit, tangerine, and orange juices.

PA Made Cheese-   We have a new batch of Mushroom-Leek cheese from Common Folk Organics in Lancaster County.  This is a very unique cheese, and we have not had it in quite a while.  We also have a fresh batch of chevre and feta from Riverview Dairy.  As mentioned above, we also have a special visit from the folks from The Ark Farm in Jefferson County.

In case you missed it, check out two articles about local cheese that appeared recently in the Pittsburgh-Post Gazette. Thanks again to Virginia Phillips and the PG staff for supporting local food.

http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/life/food/local-cheesemakers-are-making-more-better-cheese-667963/

http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/life/food/new-artisan-cheeses-bringing-flavor-and-color-to-the-notion-of-american-cheese-668001/#ixzz2GGGjlo7I

California Connection- We a full range of organic and biodynamically grown dried fruit and nuts including- apricots, nectarines, pears, plums, and persimmons.  Nut wise- walnuts, almonds and pistachios.  We recently recieved a fresh batch of organic pistachios.

On the olive oil side, its worth noting that the early harvest "Olio Nuovo" has been selling well and is about half gone- only a few gallons are left.  So get it while you can.

The Greek Gourmet- will have homemade spinach and meat pies at the market each week- in addition to 20+ flavors of hummus.  Stop by and talk to Jack at the booth.

BANDY Woodworks will have children's toys and games, and great items for the home and office using local reclaimed and salvaged wood and non-toxic finishes.  Cutting boards and wine racks make a great Valentine's gift for the foodie on your list!  Their booth is on the right when you walk in the front door from N. Sheridan, directly across from Greenawalt's.  Preview some of the items carried at the market by visiting  www.bandywoodworks.etsy.com.

*****************************************************
Visit the market's website for information on the market and all the vendors.  You can sign up for a weekly email update.

http://www.farmersmarketcooperativeofeastliberty.com/

Also,  check out the video about the market produced by Ths folks at East Liberty Development (ELDI).  It was directed and produced by local film maker Michael Pisano. So a great big thanks Michael and ELDI's Margaret Graham  for producing the video. So please check out the video and share it with others.

*********************************************************

The Farmers' Market Cooperative of East Liberty is located at 344 North Sheridan Ave., adjacent to the Home Depot parking lot.  The market operates year round- and is open from 5 AM until 12 noon every Saturday of the year.