Veggies in the Valley

For many people the beginning of Spring heralds the start of another year of fresh vegetables. Admit it, nothing says Spring like a crunchy pea pod or succulent stalk of asparagus.

The Lehigh Valley has it's fair share of the vegetable
trade; from vegan desserts, to farmer's markets, to
independent farms bursting forth with their freshly
picked crops, to it's very own vegetarian society aka
Lehigh Valley Vegetarians.

I spoke with Mr. Frenkel on the phone and he was more
than happy to send me more resources than I would be able to list here.
If you are in the Lehigh Valley or surrounding areas,
send him an email, tell him Anne sent you, and he'll
gladly add you to the mailing list.

Lehigh Valley Vegetarians
2509 Stones Throw Rd.
Bethlehem, PA 18015
Phone: 610-709-8984
Contact: Len Frenkel
e-mail: frenkel@rcn.com


Here are some listings I was able to find~linked where there is a website or other info.


Farmer's Markets

Bethlehem Farmer's Market

Campus Square at Lehigh University, South Side Bethlehem

Thursdays 12 - 4

Summer only

Plaza Grower's Market
PPL Plaza, 9th & Hamilton
Wednesdays, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., rain or shine
June through October
info@plazagrowersmarket.com

Allentown Fairgrounds Farmer's Market
17th & Chew Sts.
Allentown, PA 18104
(610) 432-8425

Easton Farmers' Market
1 S. Third St., 4th Floor
Easton, PA 18042
(610) 250-6758
eastonfarmersmarket@rcn.com
Emmaus Farmers Market
235 Main St.
Emmaus, PA 18049
(610) 965-6279
emmausmainst@enter.net


Health Food Stores


Garden Gate Natural Foods
17 South 9th Street
Allentown, PA.
610-433-8891

Queen's Nutritional Products
1450 Pennsylvania Avenue
Allentown, PA
610-691-6644

Sign of the Bear
514 North Street Cloud Street
Allentown, PA
610-429-8575

Nature's Way
143 Northhampton Street
Easton, PA
610-253-0940

The Old Copella Store
2064 Bushhill Center Road
Bath, PA 18014
Phone: 610-759-7573

Shaffer's Health Center
1825 Chew St.
Fairgrounds Market
Allentown, PA 18104
610-439-1013
484-695-9496

Frey's Better Foods
1575 Main Street
Hellertown, PA 18055
Phone: 610-838-6989

Taste Of Nature
241 S Broadway
Wind Gap PA 18091
(610) 863-4616

Healthy Alternatives
7150 Hamilton Blvd.
PO BOX 466
Trexlertown, PA 18087
610-366-9866

B-Natural Health Foods
2 North Robinson Avenue
Pen Argyl, PA 18072
(610)863-3388

Area Produce and Dairy Farms

Gottschell Farm
5318 Limeport Pike
Coopersburg, PA 18036
Steve and Nicole Shelly
Steve: (267) 671-5340
Nicole: (267) 496-6303
nicole@gottschellfarm.com

Strawberry Acres
1767 Clearview Rd.
Coplay, PA 18037
(610) 262-1890 or (610) 261-2323
upikfruit@aol.com

14 Acre Farm
169 E. Whitebear Dr.
Summit Hill, PA 18250
Kevin Ruch & Albert Sabatini

Pheasant Hill Farm
Don DeVault
3502 Main Road East
Emmaus, PA 18049
610-965-6871
pheasant_hill@emmausmarket.com

Klein Farms Dairy and Creamery
410 Klein Road; Easton, PA 18040
(610)252-0961
kleinline1@aol.com

Cihylik Farms
Box 546, Cove Road
Treichlers, PA 18086
610-261-1261
Nicholas Cihylik

Lettuce Alone Farm
1846 Independent Rd.
Breinigsville, PA 18031
610-285-2779
Chuck Armitage

Rolling Hills Farm
PO Box 250
Saylorsburg, PA 18353
610-498-2431
fpollock@enter.net
Frank Pollock and Heidi Secord

Stagecoach Orchard Apiary
PO Box 381
Lehighton, PA 18235
610-377-1875
Peter Sliwka

Suyundalla Farms
1848 Clearview Road
Coplay, PA 18037
610-261-9098
skorinko@fast.net
Kenneth and Heather Skorinko

Tara Pome Farm
6825 Woodlawn Drive
Zionsville, PA 18092
610-965-4833
Greg and Joanne Widney
and their children
Jake and Joya

Wills Valley Farm
379 Dunkels Church Rd.
Kutztown, PA 19530
610-683-5540
bock@enter.net
Timothy and Ann Bock

Newhard Farms
3250 Mauch Chunk Rd
Coplay, PA 18037
610-799-3303
Fax: 610-262-6602
info@thecornshed.com


Classes
The Nourishing Well
610-649-5797
Marilyn Moser-Waxman
**********

What would a post be without recipes? Here are three to whet your appetite for a little healthier eating.Vegetarian Paella
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 cup white rice
Few strands saffron or ½ tsp turmeric
2 cups water
2 small green peppers, finely sliced
4 oz fresh peas
4 oz fresh green beans

Heat oil in a large skillet; saute onion and garlic for 2 minutes. Add tomatoes;
cook 2-3 minutes. Add rice, salt to taste, and saffron. Mix well; add water.
Cook over low heat about 14 minutes, until rice is tender. After cooking about
10 minutes, add peppers, peas, and beans. Let stand a few minutes before
serving.
~~~~~~~~~~

Cajun Veggie Burgers
Makes 8 Burgers
Printable Recipe

2 cups cooked red beans
1 cup chopped celery
3/4 cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 medium green pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, pressed
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon dry mustard
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. With a spoon or your
hands, mix all the ingredients together until well
blended, and form into burgers. Arrange the burgers on
an oiled baking sheet, and bake for 15 minutes on each
side until browned.
~~~~~~~~~~

Anne's Lentil Salad
Printable Recipe

1 cup dried lentils
1 cup diced carrot
1 cup diced red onion
2 cloves garlic - minced
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
water - as needed
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tbls. lemon juice - preferably fresh
1/2 cup diced celery
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper

In a saucepan combine lentils, carrots, onion, garlic,
bay leaf, and thyme. Add enough water to cover by 1
inch. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered
for 15 to 20 minutes or until lentils are tender but not
mushy. Drain lentils and vegetables and remove bay leaf.
Add olive oil, lemon juice, celery, parsley, salt, and
pepper. Toss to mix and serve at room temperature.

I Love Falafel

Really I do. My oldest daughters love it too so I buy dry falafel mix often (Near East is good but I prefer Manischewitz). It is a bit pricey though so I found myself doing an intense search for falafel recipes. All I could find were recipes using cooked beans, mostly the traditional garbanzos.

I figured if the big companies could make an "instant" falafel mix, so could I.

I had 1/2 pound of dried lentils on hand and decided to give it a whirl.

I put the lentils into the blender and blended them to powder, added spices and flour (I am out of whole wheat so I used all-purpose), added water to the mix and fried away.

The first batch tasted fine, but they were a bit flat so I added baking soda to the next batch and although they don't taste like the commercial stuff, they were definitely good! They do need some parsley and possibly lemon juice added with the water but, all-in-all I was pleased with the result.

This is the basic recipe I came up with but keep checking back. I plan on trying whole wheat flour, matzoh or even panko as a binder.

Lentil Falafel
Printable Recipe

1/2 lb dried lentils
1/4 c flour
1 tsp baking soda
spices to taste-what I used was:
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. curry
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. salt
few dashes of black pepper

Grind the whole thing into powder in a blender or food processor.

To 1/4 cup of mix add 1/4 cup of warm water and let stand for 5 minutes.

Drop mix by teaspoonsful into hot oil and fry, turning once until browned. Drain on paper towels.

We eat our falafel in whole wheat pitas with fresh tomato, cucmber slices, and raita or tzatziki.

Cucumber Raita
Printable Recipe

1 cucumber, peeled and grated
1-1/2 C. plain yogurt
1/2 C. water
1/4 C. fresh coriander leaves, chopped
1/2 tsp roasted cumin seeds
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cumin/coriander powder
1/4 tsp chili pepper
Add cucumber to yogurt and water. Roll cumin seeds to a powder and add. Add coriander and spices.

Tzatziki
Makes about 2 cups
Printable Recipe

1/2 European cucumber, peeled and seeded
Salt
2 cups plain yogurt, drained 4 hours
4 cloves garlic, mashed in a mortar or minced
1 tablespoon fresh mint, chopped, optional
1 tablespoon fresh dill, chopped
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, optional
2-3 teaspoons lemon juice

Grate cucumber on the large holes of a hand-held grater until you have 1 cup of
grated cucumber. Spread cucumber on several layers of paper towels, salt lightly
and let drain for 15 minutes. To keep tzatziki rich and thick, be sure to blot
cucumber thoroughly. In a bowl, combine drained yogurt, cucumber, garlic, mint
(if using), dill, olive oil (if using), and lemon juice to taste. Stir to mix well, season
with salt and serve. This may be made ahead a day, but do not add garlic until the
day of serving.