(l-r): Anthony Kennette of Martenette Farms, Eileen Wong, owner of the Orangerie Test Kitchen, and Tomia MacQueen, founder of Wildflower Farm, pose for a photo during the organic farmers’ presentation at SCVTHS
On March 6th, students in the Somerset County Vocational & Technical High School Agricultural Science and Culinary Arts Programs learned about growing organic vegetables, as well as techniques for cleaning, processing and ultimately preparing them in the kitchen. In addition, three area farmers, two of whom are representatives from the Northeast Organic Farming Association of New Jersey (NOFA-NJ), participated in the event.
During the presentations, the three local farmers gave demonstrations and hands-on lessons explaining various techniques that are currently used in the field today. Eileen Wong, an owner of the Orangerie Test Kitchen, demonstrated cooking techniques and showed the possibilities of using mushrooms in the students’ dishes at home. Tomia MacQueen, NOFA-NJ Board Member and founder of Wildflower Farm, provided pantry gardening instructions on how to grow sweet potatoes, the garlic lifecycle, and how to use both the sweet potatoes and garlic in the kitchen. Finally, Anthony Kennette of Martenette Farms, a 1996 alumnus of SCVTHS who also serves as Production Manager for NOFA-NJ, demonstrated organic mushroom growing techniques. Kennette stated, "It is great to be able to share and educate the importance of sourcing local food seasonally and responsibly."
For more information on this story, please contact James Strickhart at (908) 526-8900, x7169 or jstrickhart@scvts.net.
(l-r): Tomia MacQueen, NOFA-NJ Board Member and founder of Wildflower Farm,
speaks as Eileen Wong, owner of the Orangerie Test Kitchen and
SCVTHS Culinary Arts Instructor Mark Mastrobattista look on during the presentation
(Below l-r): SCVTHS Culinary Arts Instructor Mark Mastrobattista,
SCVTHS Agricultural Science senior Emiliana Repreza of Bound Brook,
and Eileen Wong, owner of the Orangerie Test Kitchen,
create a dish during the presentation
