Farmers Markets 2017

[MelissaH]

I'm back home after a couple of weeks out of the country, and went to our local market last night. It started up for the season last week (while we were away), and I'm told that it was pretty bare because it rained cats and dogs and the wind howled. Yesterday, we saw some lettuce and other salad greens, the stand where we typically get asparagus was there with rhubarb and salt-size potatoes also, a few places had overwintered apples, and many stands had flowers.

 

I'm looking forward to asparagus tonight, our first of the season.

[suzilightning]

We are scheduled to get our very FIRST farmer's market here in Jefferson Township.  The sad part - for me - is that one of the moving forces, Tom Galfo, I had in storytimes at the library when he was 4 and 5 years old.     "I'm getting old, Gandalf..."

[Alex]

I saw the first strawberries of the season today -- $4/pint. We already have some decent California ones in the fridge, so we won't have much use for the local ones over the next several days, but there's plenty more coming. I did buy some purple asparagus ($5 for 2 pounds), which has been in season for several weeks now. I also picked up some eggs and meat from my favorite purveyor.

[kayb]

Local market had blackberries today. I shall have blackberry cobbler tomorrow. I did not take my pug, Lucy, with me, as she had surgery on Thursday, and I thought she might not be up to wrangling the crowds. Many of the vendors asked after her; my chicken and beef purveyors sent her a package of chicken soup bones as a get-well present!

 

And the vendor from whom I always buy my tiny new potatoes had a special basket of them saved back for me; all marble sized. He knows how I love the tiny ones, roasted whole underneath whatever kind of meat I'm cooking. 

 

I love my market vendors. They are just the nicest people in the world. The little Amish girls who always look forward to playing with Lucy sent her a cookie to "help her get well."

Edited June 3, 2017 by kayb (log)

[sartoric]

Another Sunday at the Bundall farmers market.

The haul - tomatoes, cauliflower, English spinach, eggplants, potatoes, ginger, lemons, garlic, habanero chillies, zucchini and a pigs ear for Patch. All rather pedestrian.

 

By contrast, last weekend we drove about 30 minutes to the Burleigh Heads farmers market, and scored - potatoes, silverbeet, leek, shredded green papaya, bitter melon, tomatoes, Thai eggplants and birds eye chillies. Nearly all the stall holders were Asian, and the produce more interesting to me.

 

We've nearly finished all those chillies...

[Alex]

Farmers market vegetables, pre-pickling: cucumbers, zucchini, carrots, radishes, garlic scapes

 

 

 

Ready for hibernation:

 

[sartoric]

Today's haul.  Bitter melon, baby Brussels sprouts, green chillies X 2, coriander, zucchini, green baby eggplants, spinach X 2, green mangoes (for chutney), half a cauliflower, limes, lemons, pineapple and a bag of Roma tomatoes. Not pictured, two large potatoes which will be used to try and save the unfortunate Indian mashed potatoes in the dinner thread.

 

This lot cost a shade under $50, has been origamied into the veggie crisper, and now the challenge is to use it all before next Sunday.

[BeeZee]

my town's Farmer's Market is kind of sparse. I don't know if it will pick up in August, but at this point there are just 3 farms and the rest of the stands are people selling stuff like handmade soap, pet treats, popcorn...used to have more vendors. There was a pickle guy who had some awesome pickled mushrooms, a local beekeeper...oh well, there was a Hawaiian shave ice truck, which looked like fun. I picked up couple of items from 2 of the farmers, one each green and golden zucchini, a nice tomato, and a white eggplant. Planning to make zoodle salad and just roast that eggplant.

[Tri2Cook]

Finally made it to the local farmer's market for the first time this year. Didn't have as much time to browse as I would have liked, just a quick sneak from work before the lunch crowd hit. I saw more veggies available than usual for this early so maybe it's growing. Saw a vendor selling artisan breads but didn't make a stop there either. I did make sure to hit the booth for the lady from the semi-local elk farm. She brings her own products along with cheese from the semi-local cheese maker (primarily different Goudas but they do a nice Swiss as well). Grabbed some elk summer sausage. I also grabbed a chunk of extra aged Gouda and, since she didn't have the stinging nettle Gouda this trip, I gave in to curiosity and tried their newest product... a honey and clover Gouda. I like it. Grassy in a pleasant way with a hint of sweetness and honey that's really nice. Will repeat that one. I did a quick stop at the booth from the semi-local beef farm as well, just grabbed a couple packages of extra hot beef sticks. They're a nice, heavily smoked dry-cure product that don't live up to the "extra hot" label at all but are tasty just the same.

[Alex]

It's peak growing season, so check out this looong list of items at tomorrow's market. Try to not drool on the peaches.

[Thanks for the Crepes]

18 hours ago, Alex said:

It's peak growing season, so check out this looong list of items at tomorrow's market. Try to not drool on the peaches.

 

Oh, I do love a good peach! We have had a really marvelous season for them locally here, but the last batch I bought, the first one I tried was inedible. Overripe and mealy. The subsequent two have been marginally edible, but not anywhere near what they were earlier in the season. So, it's kind of hard to tell about peaches just on looking at them. That's okay though, because when you run across the perfect ones, it makes all the disappointments worth it. A good peach is one of the high points of summer and life in general to me, and I feel blessed to have had a very good season for them. That does not happen every year.

[Alex]

A small haul today: pint of red raspberries ($4), medium cauliflower ($2), large green pepper ($1). The pint is minus a few. Well, more than a few. I also picked up a pound of coffee beans from my favorite local roaster.

 

[David Ross]

I just got back from our Farmer's Market and I'll post photos today.  It's been an unusually hot string of days in the 90's here in Eastern, WA, and in turn we're seeing wonderful produce and wild fruits coming our way.

[David Ross]

The highest mark on my calendar every year is set aside for our annual huckleberry season.  I could go on for pages, but the huckleberry is my favorite of all things. I couldn't wait this morning to head down to our Saturday Market and visit the Xoing family.  For a number of years now I visit their booth at the first whiff of the new crop of wild huckleberries.  Their Father picks the berries up on the mountains that rim Priest Lake in far North Idaho, not far from where I live in Spokane.  I've been worried about the crop this year given that last year the berries showed up three weeks early and the season was short.  And for the month of July we've had unusually hot, dry days in the 90's which I feared would sear the huckleberries.  But they shared that the berries are of good size this year but some traditional patches are barren.  They forecast fresh huckleberries through the month of August. 

 

Now you probably know that huckleberries only grow wild in specific regions of America.  And they grow best in high mountain areas above 3,000 feet, (although you may find some at 2,500 feet).  They can only be picked by hand, although some folks think a rake type of device works well,  (It doesn't, it strips the bushes).  And up here the apex huckleberry hunter aren't humans--they're bears.  So considering all of this, this season the price is quite reasonable at $45 for a gallon bag.  And I think some of my Chef friends down in Las Vegas would be quite jealous of that price.  Huckleberries are very persnickety and really only keep fresh for about 3-4 days in the fridge.  But they hold up well in the freezer and I stretch out my cache to last through the year with the last huckleberry used just before I buy the new crop. 

 

This is a bowl of fresh huckleberries that I'll make into a sauce for ice cream tonight, along with these wonderful onions the Xoing family grows in their back yard.

 

 

In the Fall the Xoing family picks wild chanterelles and wild morels in Spring.

[cakewalk]

@David Ross At this point I think I await your huckleberry posts almost as avidly as you await your huckleberries! 

[Alex]

Today's haul, at this small farmers market (sorry, I forgot to take pictures before putting things away) = 1 qt blueberries, 1 pt hydroponic strawberries, 1 cucumber, 1 pt yellow and red cherry tomatoes, 8 regular tomatoes of various sizes, 1 large bouquet of kale, 1 large basket of carrots. Also bought another pint of yellow cherry tomatoes and 3 early tart apples at a local farm market.

[robirdstx]

My husband and I visited our local farmers market in Clear Lake Shores this morning. There were not many vendors as the heat keeps the customers away at this time of year, but we found farm fresh eggs (we bought a dozen), organic vegetables (we bought some zucchini and yellow squash), and a local beekeeper selling filtered honey and beeswax. We already had an unopened jar of honey, but my husband bought some of the beeswax to use with his metal work. We also bought a quart jar of spicy dill pickles. Total spent $23.00