Turkey expert and Geneva resident Renee Ferguson, known to some as the ‘Turkey Lady,’ will be signing her cookbook Saturday at the Geneva Green Market.
Mark Weaver, who with his wife Connie helps run the market at Inglenook Pantry, 11 N. Fifth St., said more vendors will be at the market this weekend and they expect a good turnout.
Ferguson’s expertise comes from the 14 years she previously worked for Butterball.
“I handled people’s turkey traumas,” Ferguson said.
She recalls an incident in which a customer called in for advice, asking whether the pop-up timer in their meat thermometer would change color. Ferguson said she advised the caller that it was not a pregnancy test.
“Everybody has a funny story about turkey,” Ferguson said.
Her book “Talk Turkey to Me,” which was published in 2006, highlights her expertise with the bird and features humorous anecdotes as kitchen lessons learned.
“It’s just a seasonal favorite because it’s timeless,” Ferguson said.
A chart for safely thawing a frozen turkey in a refrigerator is included in the book. Ferguson said it should be thawed one day for every four pounds it weighs. She also advises people not to overcook a turkey and to use a thermometer.
A common mistake, Ferguson said, is to accidentally cook the turkey with the neck and giblets intact, though they should be removed and thrown out.
Besides baking in the oven, a turkey can be deep-fried, but Ferguson said she will be grilling her turkey outside this year. She said a gas grill emits a controlled heat and the benefits include freeing the kitchen for cooking side dishes.
“Space in the oven is at a premium on the holiday,” Ferguson said.
Some of her favorite sides include an old-fashioned apple sausage and herb stuffing and sweet potato with smoked cheddar and cider.
“It’s a very savory flavor,” Ferguson said.
She also likes to have family help with the cooking and preparation during the holiday.
“It’s more than just sitting down and eating,” Ferguson said. “It’s the time that you spend with each other.”
In addition to the book-signing event, Green Market founder Karen Stark said they will pick the winner of a Thanksgiving challenge in which participants have submitted 250-word essays detailing their holiday meal story for a $100 certificate to be used at the market.
Turkeys, such as the black spanish and bourbon red, will be sold on Saturday, but Stark expects they will sell out quickly and advises customers to preorder by sending an e-mail to genevagreenmarket@gmail.com or calling (630) 208-9321.
COMMUNITY WINTER MARKET
Besides the book signing, Green Market organizers hope this Saturday’s event will attract more people to the market’s indoor winter version.
It was moved indoors this month in its third year and Stark also hopes the market will encourage local farmers to produce more in the winter.
“This year, more local farmers are extending their season,” Stark said. “We’re kind of their test market.”
She said they are learning each year what more can be grown in organic soil indoors and under fluorescent light.
Local farmer Izabella Kowklski said vegetables with a short growing period, such as parsley, chives, onions and radishes easily can be grown indoors. In fact, she sees a benefit in being able to control the heat and light factor.
“You have more control over your environment,” Kowklski said.
The idea of the Green Market is to sell locally grown produce, organizers said. According to Stark, produce tastes better when fresh and loses more than half of its nutrients within 72 hours if not frozen.
“You really have to consume it, right away,” Stark said.
So far, the market has not been extremely profitable, but it has been successful in uniting a community effort around an idea.
“We don’t sell a lot of lunch items during the time (of the Green Market),” Weaver said, but added organizers see the industry of “buying local” growing in the future and plan to expand the market to a larger facility.
Weaver said the market keeps dollars in the downtown area to support the city.
“It’s almost a spiritual thing,” Weaver said.
Stark said the practice of shopping local benefits local farmers financially and prevents large amounts of fuel from being expended in the long-distance shipping of food.
“It’s about having choices in food,” she said. “This is not a fad. This is about health.”
