It’s almost that time of year again! For those of you who have not yet begun thinking about Thanksgiving, fear not – UMass Fresh is here to save turkey day! For the second year, UMass Fresh will be selling full holiday meals available for pickup on or before Thanksgiving. Each meal is intended to feed 6-8 people and is filled with a variety of locally-sourced ingredients. ​

The full menu includes:  

•​ Misty Knoll Vermont Roast Turkey With Old Fashioned Turkey Gravy
• Pioneer Valley Grown Vegetarian Butternut Squash Lasagna With Sage Cream
• Happy Valley Organic Herbed Bread Dressing
• Local Chive Mashed Potatoes
• North Hadley Sugar Shack Maple Mashed Sweet Potatoes With Spiced Walnuts
• Joe Czajkowski Shredded Brussel Sprout Tops
• Homemade Cinnamon Orange Cape Cod Cranberry Sauce
• UMass Bakery Local Cranberry Grain Bread
• UMass Bakery Local Apple Pie

Other items, including Cold Spring Orchard apple cider and Mapleline Farm eggnog, will be available for purchase at the pickup location. ​

Make sure to place your order at http://umassdining.com/thanksgiving by Friday, November 17th at 4:00 PM to take advantage of this opportunity to eat a delicious holiday meal while supporting local farms and businesses. 

Orders will be available for pickup at the Campus Center’s Harvest Market on:
​
• Wednesday, November 22nd from 12:00 PM to 7:00 PM
• Thursday, November 23rd from 8:00 AM until 7:00 PM

​Need a last minute gift? Want to support your local farmers and show your loved ones that you care? Look no further than the UMass Fresh Local Breakfast Basket!

Every careully crafted basket contains everything you need for a special, delicious holiday breakfast you can feel good about. 

​- 1 LB Four Starm Farms Pancake Mix 

- 1 PT North Hadley Sugar Shack Maple Syrup

- 1-12 OZ jar Czajkowski Farm Tripleberry Jam 

- 1 - 8 OZ jar Bear Meadow Farm Apple Butter

- 1 Peterboro Holiday Centerpriece Basket

Make perfectly delicious, perfectly local panckes at home! Here's our chef-tested recipe:

Ingredients:
1 cup UMass Fresh Local Pancake Mix
1 egg
1 cup buttermilk or water
2 tbsp melted butter or vegetable oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
butter or vegetable oil, for greasing

Directions:
1. Heat frying pan over medium heat. 
2. Place pancake mix in a medium bowl; in another bowl, whisk together egg, buttermilk, melted butter, and vanilla. 
3. Pour liquid ingredients into pancake mix. Gently whisk until just combined- lumps are okay.
4. Lightly grease pan with butter; remove excess with paper towel.
5. Using a 1/4 cup measurer, gently pour batter onto pan.
6. Once bubbles begin to form around the edge of the pancakes, carefully flip the pancakes.
7. Serve with North Hadley Sugar Shack maple syrup and Czajkowski Farms jams.

1. Keep it local!
​Make your pancakes even more special by creating our recipe with New England products like Mapleline Farm buttermilk and Cabot Creamery butter.

3. Don't go crazy with the butter...or oil.
When coating your pan with fat to cook your pancakes, use as little butter or oil as possible. Wipe up any excess with paper towels - there should be no fat pooling on the pan.

Craving something green as the days get cooler ? Look no further than UMass Fresh. Grab your own UMass Fresh Box this Friday, November 4th, at The UMass Student Farmers' Market on Goodell Lawn from 12:00 PM - 4:00 PM.

When you purchase a UMass Fresh box, you are getting a bountiful package of all the ingredients you need to prepare a meal for 4-6 people. The included recipe features ultra-local, organic produce from producers like the UMass Student Farm and the UMass Permaculture Gardens and is expertly developed by UMass Dining chefs.

"Pay What You Will" for this gourmet dinner just an oven away! No one is refused a box with our sliding scale program.

Looking to spice up your weeknight dinner plans? Look no further than this UMass Student Farmers' Market Yaki-Ramen recipe perfected by chefs here at UMass Dining. This delicious recipe features ultra local, organic, student grown produce from the UMass Student Farm. You can get your hands on this ultra-fresh produce every Friday this semester until November 18th from 12-4 pm on Goodell Lawn at the UMass Student Farmers' Market!

Ingredients:

Water
3 Bundles Fresh Ramen Noodles
3 tbsp Canola Oil
1 tbsp sesame seed oil
2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
2 oz onions, sliced
2 oz carrots, sliced thinly
2 oz kale, shredded
2 oz cooking greens, shredded
2 oz arugula
4 oz bok choy, shredded
½ tsp crushed red pepper (optional)
1 tbsp sesame seeds

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Boil the ramen noodles for 2-3 minutes or until slightly al dente. Strain and rinse under cold water. Season the cooled ramen with 1/3 of the canola oil.
2. In a sauté pan, over med-high heat, add 1/3 of the canola oil, add sesame seed oil, and the cooked ramen noodles. Add half of the low sodium soy sauce, and sugar to the ramen, stir-fry for 1-2 minutes. Remove noodles from the pan and place on the side.
3. Adjust heat to high. Add the last 1/3 of the canola oil, onions, and carrots, stir-fry slightly. Add kale, cooking greens, arugula, bok choy, and the other half of the low sodium soy sauce, stir-fry for a few more minutes or
until vegetables are cooked through.
4. Return the cooked ramen to the pan and toss well. Garnish with sesame seeds.

What's better than some hearty stew on a cool, crisp autumn evening? Our head chefs at UMass Dining developed a satisfying, healthy, local and easy recipe for an Autumn Stew featuring produce from the UMass Student Farm and the UMass Permaculture Gardens, as well as gleaned butternut squash from Plainville Farm of Hadley, MA: