Clarion River Organics

CSA option for low incomes

noreply@blogger.com (Zeb) — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:15:00 +0000

We are happy to announce that Clarion River Organics CSA shares can now be paid for with Farmers Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) vouchers and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) cards. And to make our shares even more affordable to people with low incomes, we are offering a 50% discount to anyone paying with SNAP.

Organic food and CSA shares are often seen as something for people with extra money. It shouldn't be that way. Most of us actually can fit a good amount of local organic food into our budgets if it we make it a priority. But it is difficult for some people to put up a couple hundred dollars at one time for a CSA share. Thanks to the USDA which is trying to help farmers use the SNAP payment system, and thanks to all our CSA members whose commitment has made it possible for us to create this opportunity, we're trying to lower that barrier.

If you or anyone you know would like to use these payment methods for the Clarion River Organics CSA share just give us a call and we'll tell you how exactly it works.

Strawberry Harvest Party - May 26 - Reserve Your Spot Now!

noreply@blogger.com (Mark) — Tue, 15 May 2012 23:00:00 +0000

We are happy to announce our first farm event of the season, our Strawberry Harvest Party. The details for the event are in the flier below. There is limited space, so you will have to reserve a spot.

This is our first (and biggest) farm event of the year. We hope you can make it out to meet our farmers, see our produce and fields, and celebrate the first fruits of summer together!

Only 2 Weeks Left to Register for Our Full CSA!

noreply@blogger.com (Mark) — Mon, 14 May 2012 20:35:00 +0000

Our first CSA delivery is coming up in just a little over 2 weeks--which means there are only 2 weeks left to sign up as a member for the full season.

Yes--there is still space. Our cooperative is young, and our CSA is even younger, and we have plenty of room for growth, so we are accepting as many people as sign-up this year.

We will also be accepting sign-ups throughout the season, but if you're interested in joining--we encourage you to join now and not miss out on some of our spring produce (like asparagus and strawberries) that won't be around for long.

If you are interested in our CSA, we encourage you to learn more by clicking on the "CSA" tab at the top of this page. If you have decided you would like to sign up, you can do so here.

Organic Art

noreply@blogger.com (Zeb) — Thu, 10 May 2012 15:50:00 +0000

Brooklyn artist Luisa Caldwell makes paintings incorporating the little stickers found on fruits and vegetables. Here is a piece she did using our Red Kuri Squash sticker as daisy petals.

I love how she evokes the beauty of nature using man made stuff that would usually go in the trash. It very much in the spirit of the beauty we're trying to create with Clarion River Organics. Check out more of her work at her site: luisacaldwell.com

noreply@blogger.com (Shauna) — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 18:41:00 +0000

+Clarion River Organics at the Pittsburgh Farm Markets+
Hello Farm-Fresh Local Produce lovers!

The Sewickly Farmer's Market is now OPEN and we're excited.We've listed the market schedule at the end of this newsletter, so be sure to check out your closest seasonal market!

Also, be sure to come down and check out our new DAIRY STAND! All the Riverview and Pasture Maid dairy products are now located at a separate stand at the Public Market. We expanded into a second stall so that we can bring you MORE exceptional local farm-fresh cheese from MORE family farms, and so we could have more room for all the amazing fruits and vegetables we are growing this year. (see more in the highlight section!)

GOAT MILK, you say? We would like to start carrying goat milk at the dairy stand but we need at least 10 people to order - $7/half gallon - $4/quart - Place your order in the online store or email

..ONLINE STORE? Yes! We've opened the online store, a new and exciting way to purchase the variety of goods that our farmers are producing. You can place an order for meat, produce, dairy products, grains and more, and then pick up your goods at the Public Market on Saturday that week.

Also, MORE GRAINS are on the way! Not this weekend but next weekend we will have in freshly milled local organic grains, Corn, Wheat, and Spelt:
Corn meal, polenta, puffed corn, spelt berries, spelt flour, honey coated puffed spelt, golden spelt flour, bran, and whole wheat flour

To find more ways to keep up with the farms you can follow our blog (interesting news from the field!), facebook (socialializing and important updates), or twitter (tidbits and bites)!

This Week
From our Clarion River farms we've brought down:
- Daikon Radish
- Turnips
- Mixed fingerling potatoes
- Red Beets
- Russet & Red potatoes
- Eggs
- Beef (Organically Raised, Grass-Fed)
- Pork (Organically Raised, Pastured)
- Chicken, stewing (Organically Raised, Pastured)
- Lamb (Grass-Fed)
- Goat
- Rabbit

Organic Grains
- Rolled Spelt
- Spelt flour
- Pancake Mix

And also:
- Greens from our friends at Goose Creek Gardens.

*indicates products only available at the Pittsburgh Public Market

:: HIGHLIGHT: More Cheese! ::

We have expanded at the Pittsburgh Public Market!

In an effort to be loyal to more local family farms, we're bringing in DELICIOUS cow & goat cheese from Western PA dairies -- most of which are available to sample at the stand, just ask if you don't see it out!
The cheese stand is called Family Farms Creamery because it will carry all things dairy from family farms that process their own milk that they are producing.
There is some amazing cheese from Clover Creek Cheese Cellars and fun 100% grass-fed cheeses from Milky Way Meadows located near Meadville.

Keep up to date with Family Farms Creamery at
http://www.familyfarmscreamery.com/
"Long Live the Micro-Diary...Long Live the Family Farm!"

Farm Market Schedule

Day Location Time Season

Tuesday SouthSide (18th and Carson) 3:30 - 7:00 May - November

Wednesday Phipps Conservatory 2:30 - 6:30 June - October

Fox Chapel 3- 6:30 June - October

Thursday Market Square 10:00 - 2:00 June - November

Upper St Clair 4:00 - 7:00 June - October

Friday Oakland 4:00 - 7:00 June - October

Pittsburgh Public Market 10:00 - 6:00 Year Round

Saturday Sewickley 9:00 - 1:00 Now- Thanksgiving

Pittsburgh Public Market 9:00 - 5:00 Year Round

Sunday Pittsburgh Public Market 10:00 - 4:00 Year Round

Spring Planting

noreply@blogger.com (Zeb) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 00:59:00 +0000

The greenhouses and fields of Clarion River Organics are a storm of action and change this month. Every day seeds are being planted, fields are being plowed, and rows of vegetables are getting set for production.

Almost everything starts in the greenhouse. The first seeds were planted into cells trays about eight weeks ago: cool weather greens like lettuce and cabbage, as well as tomatoes and peppers that will be grown in plastic-covered high tunnels. These days it is the summer crops like zucchini and field tomatoes that are being seeded into trays

Below on the left are baby cabbage plants and on the right are broccoli transplants.

On the left is a close up of the broccoli transplants, and on the right a whole table full of romaine lettuce.

Each farm in the Clarion River Organics co-op has it's own home-made green house. Our biggest farm has a new greenhouse of the standard type, seen below on the left. On right is the greenhouse one of our smaller farms built from scratch. It is sunk into the ground about three feet to conserve heat and it can be accessed from their basement for convenience.

Once the transplants have grown sturdy and almost big enough to put into the field, they are moved into cold frames as an intermediate step. Here they 'harden off,' getting used to the colder temperatures and drier air they will face in the field. Pictured below are fennel, swiss chard, and red cabbage in the cold frames on two of our farms.

While the transplants are growing in the green house, the farmers are getting the fields ready to receive them. First they plow down the thick cover crop that has grown over the fall and winter. A cover crop is a mix of plants put into a field just for the purpose of increasing the nutrient level and organic matter of the soil. It takes a team of eight horses to pull a two bottom plow.

Next they smooth out the ground with two pieces of equipment: a cultimulcher, and a pile of heavy boards nailed together. Seriously, it's just some boards they stand on as the horses drag them around, breaking down the remaining dirt clods so the soil is ready for bed making and transplanting.

The bed-maker then comes through and makes raised beds, lays irrigation lines, and covers it all in plastic in one pass. The farmers consider field plastic a necessary evil - it prevents weeds and it warms the soil, so it allows us to produce a lot more veges a lot earlier. But we realize it costs us and the earth something to use and we'd like to get away from it if we can.

Then they bring the transplanter along and punch the little plants through the plastic into the warm soil. They then put metal hoops of the rows, as you can see above to the left. These hoop hold up the row cover, which is a synthetic cloth that keeps insects and wind from harming the plants and keeps them warmer too. The plants are now set to provide us a great crop of organic vegetables in a couple months.

Below are some pictures of the early tomatoes, planted into the high tunnels. These plants will bear fruit at least a month earlier than the field tomatoes, and they are all heirloom varieties. Since we're still getting nights below 20 degrees, this farmer has a small wood stove in there to supplement the protection provided by the tunnel and the layer of row cover fabric you can see draped over the plants.

More Warm Winter Weirdness

noreply@blogger.com (Zeb) — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 11:28:00 +0000

Winter ended last week but the effects of the unusually high temperatures linger on. The fruit tree blossoms came out much earlier this year. That's dangerous because a hard frost could wipe out the whole season's fruit in one night.

Here is a mulberry tree in full bloom on one of the Clarion River Organics farms.

And here is a plum tree. These were taken on Monday, March 26. That night temperatures dropped to 25 degrees, which could be a killing frost. Here is what we found the next day.

These plum blossoms got singed pretty badly, but not totally destroyed, so we don't know yet whether the trees will still bear fruit this year.

The peach blossoms have some damage but weren't hit quite so hard. Luckily, as you can see in the photo below, there were still lots of unopened blossoms on the peach tree so there is a good chance we'll get fruit out of them this summer.

The good news is the apple blossoms were still in the bud stage, so they weren't affected at all. But the unseasonal warmth continues and we have another month of potential frosts to get through, so we're either going to have early fruit or no fruit this year. We're keeping our fingers crossed.

Saint Kilian Parish - New CSA Pick-up Site in Cranberry Twp

noreply@blogger.com (Mark) — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 03:29:00 +0000

Many people have expressed interest in a CSA site in Cranberry Township--and here it is! We're very glad to announce that Saint Kilian Parish on Franklin Rd in Cranberry--just down the street from our friends at Restaurant ECHO on route 228 will be a pick-up spot for our CSA farm-share program this summer.

If you're interested in our CSA, there is a lot more information on the tab at the top of this page. You can sign up there, and if you've already signed up, and would like to change your subscription to this site, please email us and we will be glad to change that for you.

Gearing Up for the New Season

noreply@blogger.com (Zeb) — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 16:16:00 +0000

Last week the farms got in their seed and soil orders. With 11 farms growing produce, we use a lot of potting soil just to start the seeds. Like, 25 pallets, 1500 bags, 22,000 pounds worth. One semi trailer full came into the warehouse and now sits ready for the growers to take as they need.

Here is the seed order for our biggest grower, Rippling Brook Farm. Although it doesn't look like a lot, that is tens of thousands of seeds that will yield a tremendous amount of produce if all goes well this season. Soon we'll have greenhouses full of young seedlings, and not long after that it will be time to get into the fields. Can't wait!

New CSA pick-up site in Erie!

noreply@blogger.com (Carla) — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 22:16:00 +0000

We are excited to be delivering to Erie now! If you call Erie home, pick up your Clarion River Organics CSA share at Frankie & May Fresh Grocer. Pickup will be on Wednesday.

Harvesting Ice in a Warm Winter

noreply@blogger.com (Zeb) — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 01:42:00 +0000

Because the growers of Clarion River Organics do not have electricity on their farms, they rely on ice to cool their produce throughout the summer. They usually cut the ice from their ponds during the coldest part of winter when temperatures are in the teens and below for days on end. That yields six inch thick blocks which will last all through the summer and into the next winter. Unfortunately this winter was so warm that thick ice never formed on the ponds. Finally the farmers broke down and after a cold couple days in February they went out in boats to collect the thin layer of ice that was their last hope. Using garden rakes they broke the ice into pieces and pushed it towards the end of the pond by the ice house.

There a motorized conveyor carried the ice into a small hole cut out of the wall of the ice house.

As you can see, the ice this year was only about a half inch thick.

By the end of the day they had filled the 16 foot by 16 foot room 8 feet high with ice.

The ice in that room will keep any produce stored in
the adjacent room at 35-40 degrees even in the hottest months of summer.

The farmers cleared this entire acre-plus pond of ice in one day. This should be enough to get them well into the fall of this year, and hopefully next winter will be a better ice making season.

New CSA Pick-up Site in Squirrel Hill

noreply@blogger.com (Mark) — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 20:55:00 +0000

We are very happy to announce that we are offering our CSA at Commonplace Coffeehouse in Squirrel Hill this summer.

Commonplace is located on Forbes Ave between Murray and Shady Avenues--between Sun Penang and the Carnegie Library. We really look forward to having this great spot to connect with the community in Squirrel Hill. If you're interested in more info on our CSA and what exactly a pick-up location in, please check out the tab at the top of this page!

Bloody Mary Mix

noreply@blogger.com (Mark) — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 20:36:00 +0000

Our bloody mary mix is featured in the On the Rocks column in this week's City Paper.

As they note--you can find it every Friday, Saturday and Sunday at our stand in the Pittsburgh Public Market in the Strip.

Vegetable Goat Cheese Gratin

noreply@blogger.com (Mark) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 15:22:00 +0000

Whole Foods Market chef Aaron Stout featured our produce in his Vegetable Goat Cheese Gratin recipe for the latest issue of Edible Allegheny.

You can check out the recipe here.

And as always--if you have a recipe using our produce-we'd be glad to share it! Just email us.

Arugula anyone?

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan) — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 02:59:00 +0000

We have about 25 bags of the good stuff at the Pittsburgh Public Market. You know you want it, you know your body is craving fresh, green, peppery, goodness.

CRO granola

noreply@blogger.com (Nathan) — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 19:41:00 +0000

Just made some delicious peanut butter granola using our Puffed Spelt and Rolled Spelt. Pick some up at the Pittsburgh Public Market this weekend and make your own. Its easy, and cheaper and tastier than any cereal at the grocery store.

Generic recipe from Chow

New CSA Pick-up Site in South Side

noreply@blogger.com (Mark) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 22:42:00 +0000

I am very happy to announce that we are offering our CSA at Delanie's Coffee in the South Side. Delanie's Coffee is a great new coffee shop located on Carson St between 17th and 18th St, right next to the Post Office on the same block as Penny's Diner and The Milk Shake Factory--and just half a block from Fat Head's.

As a major bonus, it is located very close to parking lots at 18th and Carson, and 18th and Wrights Way (behind the shop).

Customer Shared Recipe: Goat Curry

noreply@blogger.com (Carla) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 17:38:00 +0000

Thank you to our valued customer who sent their recipe to us. We love to see and hear what people are doing with our produce, meat, and other items.

Goat Curry

2lb goat pieces

1 small onion

1T salt

2T Olive oil

1 cup of malty beer or sweet liquid

1 medium onion diced

5 cloves of garlic minced

1 inch piece of ginger grated.

1.5qt chicken stock

Curry mix

1 cup yogurt

1 lemon

Curry mix

2 teaspoons cumin seeds

2 teaspoons black peppercorns

1 teaspoon cloves

2 cinnamon sticks

3 tablespoons coriander seeds

1 to 2 teaspoons chilli powder

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

Toast whole spices then grind and combine with powdered spices.

1. Marinate goat overnight with onions, salt, olive oil and sweet liquid

2. Sear goat pieces in hot pan then remove.

3. Lower heat and add onion, ginger and garlic. Cook until onions begin to carmelize.

4. Deglaze pan with 1.5 quarts of chicken stock

5. Add spice mixture and goat. Simmer until goat is tender 3-4 hours, add water as needed.

6. Add salt to taste and yogurt. Serve with lemon.

New CSA Pick-up Site in Lawrenceville

noreply@blogger.com (Mark) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 01:12:00 +0000

We have just confirmed Espresso A Mano in Lawrenceville as a pick-up site for our CSA. I know we have a lot of customers who live, work, or spend time in Lawrenceville, so I'm excited we are able to add this location--I'm sure this is the beginning of a great partnership.

If you are wondering what a CSA is or would like more information about our CSA, please visit the tab at the top of this page for more information.

If you aren't acquainted with it already; Espresso A Mano is an excellent neighborhood coffee shop on Butler Stret between 36th and 37th Streets; just a block from the Round Corner Cantina and Piccolo Forno.

You can pick-up our CSA at Espresso A Mano on Wednesdays from 2-8pm June through October. We will drop the bags off along the back wall and you can stop in and pick yours up anytime during that period.

If you are interested in joining our CSA - you can Sign Up Here.

Harvest Dinner Pics

noreply@blogger.com (CRO farmers and staff) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 20:47:00 +0000

Check out some pictures from our Harvest Dinner.

Wonderful food and drinks, special people, cozy and beautiful barn, what a great evening!

Special thanks to photographer Rick Virgil

Fall and Winter CSA First Newsletter

noreply@blogger.com (CRO farmers and staff) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 21:27:00 +0000

Curious what is going on with the Fall and Winter CSA? What is there to be found in CSA boxes in the beginning of November in Pennsylvania? Well, here is our newsletter from the first week of our Fall and Winter CSA...

Hello members!

We are so happy to be able to offer a Fall and Winter CSA, this is exciting for us! It is a nice and sunny outside and we are busy here mulching and cleaning the fields for the winter. Hopefully we have a few more days like this so that everything can get done!

In this weeks box:

Gold Potatoes
Rutabagas (this root vegetable is delicious in in soups, casseroles, roasted, or mashed with potatoes. They are high in beta carotene and store well up to a month.)
Red Butterhead lettuce
Arugula (these are great on a sandwich or added to a salad)
Napa Cabbage ( a favorite ingredient in Asian cooking. It is good in stir fries, soups, slaw, and of course kim chi.)
Buttercup Squash (similar to a Butternut in flavor)
Celeriac (sometimes called "celery root" , they have a strong celery flavor. It is easiest to slice off the top and bottom and then slice off the sides with a knife. They are great in soups and make wonderful stock. Recipe below)
Paprika Peppers (a small sweet pepper)

The next pick up day will be next Thursday, we will send out an email reminder. Have a great day!

Winter Warmer - Cream of Celeriac Soup with Champagne (borrowed from http://quirkykitchen.blogspot.com)

Cream of Celeriac Soup with Champagne(serves four, unless you have a straw and don't tell anyone you've made it, then it serves one)
2 tbsps butter
2 bulbs celeriac, peeled and cut into smallish chunks
3 cloves garlic, chopped coarsely
1 medium onion, chopped coarsely
3 cups chicken stock
1 good splash champagne (mine was rather old and flat, leftover)
1 tsp celery salt
1/2 cup single cream

I am not kidding here: simply throw all this, except for the cream, in a stockpot and boil gently for an hour. Then pulverize with a hand blender and add the cream.DIVINE! Where I thought it might be stringy, like celery soup which has to be strained, it was velvety. Where I thought it might taste as boring as it looked (white), it was complex andinteresting. And where I thought it might be simply weird, it was perfect. Comforting, creamy, perfectly smooth.thanks,and I hope you enjoy it!Kristen

New Web Site!

noreply@blogger.com (Mark) — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 17:13:00 +0000

Hi everybody,

I have been working with CRO for a couple months now, and I'm glad to say that we have all sorts of projects we are working on to prepare for the winter and next season. I plan on posting on here a lot more often to keep you informed about all of these projects, but the one I'm most excited about right now is our new web site.

We have decided that our blog is a much better way to communicate with everybody than our existing web site, so we are building a new site around it. This will allow us to keep all of you a lot more up to date on what's happening with us, and it will allow you to give input and communicate back with us.

The new site will be more of a constant work-in-progress, rather than a completed project, and we are very excited about that. I think it will give us a lot more opportunities to share with you and give us more flexibility and control as we change and grow.

I hope you will bear with us as we are going through this process and I look forward to keeping you updated on all of our projects as we build this together.

Harvest Dinner at Shady Elms Farm

noreply@blogger.com (CRO farmers and staff) — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 12:33:00 +0000

We are excited to announce our Harvest Dinner! It will be a fun evening with great food from Clarion River Organics, prepared by our friend Chef Justin Severino.

The proceeds go to a good cause. We believe everyone should have access to healthy, local food, and this dinner will help us fill that need.

We hope you can come! And please tell your friends!

Fall and Winter CSA

noreply@blogger.com (CRO farmers and staff) — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 01:46:00 +0000

Hi y'all! It has been a while. We have some exciting news! We are ready to accept members for our Fall and Winter CSA!

Expect lots of great potatoes, winter squash, cabbage, root vegetables, canned tomatoes, greens and more!

If you miss getting local and organic produce after the seasons change, this is probably for you!

We also have a Holiday Option, where you can receive extras including River View Dairy's goat cheese!

Visit our website to sign up or learn more.

We cannot have a blog post without pictures...

We have been blessed with lots of apples this year, so much applesauce has been made.

Last but not least, a preying mantis, can you see her? She was hanging out by us while we were working in the field one day. They are something special to see!

Take care!

2011 Farm Tour

noreply@blogger.com (CRO farmers and staff) — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 19:08:00 +0000

This past Saturday was our first Farm Tour as Clarion River Organics! Even though it rained on and off that day about 30 people showed up, we were delighted.

We saw some horses, goats, pigs and lots of chickens. At the Schmucker Family Farm we got to taste a delicious Asian Pear, Niagra Grapes, and Mulberries. Two growers showed us produce fields and their ice houses, and River View Dairy gave us a goat cheese tour, yum!

Rippling Brook Farm was our last stop where there was a hay/wagon ride pulled by two massive and beautiful Clydesdales.

We ended the day with blue skies and a picnic, it turned out pretty nice! Thanks to everyone who attended, we were happy to show you all around and for you to see how Clarion River Organics works. It was rewarding and special to see the interest in what is going on up here.