Aromatic

Who doesn’t love garlic? My brother for one, but our family loves it. The farmers market had a variety of forms. There are also different types of garlic although I don’t know which types these are.

Colors of the market

Where did the weekend go? Well, in my case, today (Sunday) was spent with grandson and family, walking in the morning and hanging out on the beach in the afternoon, not online much. Saturday morning we were once again at the farmers’ market and I didn’t push the stroller this time so that I could take some more photos. Here’s the first, colorful round. I could gorge on these berries!!

A pile of edible flowers grabs my attention. This stall sells bags of wild arugula and several salad mixes, one of which includes some of these flowers. I can’t buy any until Tuesday, the day before I go home, so that they’re as fresh as possible, but they served as food for the eyes during our visit.

I’d be happy to eat these peppers just raw and remember that colorful fruits and veggies are so good for you, pleasing both eyes and body.

Don’t expect to see much of me online tomorrow (Monday) as I have sole care of my grandson while my daughter goes in for a job interview and my son-in-law works. 🙂 I foresee lots of walks in my immediate future as well as lots of love and cuddles.

Finally, a reminder to check your spam folder. Tonight I found 43 spams after several days of none. No legitimate comments, so I deleted them all.

One Word Sunday: shopping

for One Word Sunday

Wordless Wednesday…Bounty

Farm to table, part 2

It’s Saturday morning and I’m not at the Naperville farmer’s market.  In fact, as this posts, I’m hopefully fast asleep.  Later today, I hope to be visiting a farmer’s market in Philadelphia, but in the meantime, here are the rest of the photos I promised on Thursday.  OK, there are some non-food photos here, but they’re still part of the market.

Farm to table, part 1

When we lived in Cleveland, we were blessed to have a network of fantastic farmer’s markets all around us with the flagship market being the closest.  Most Saturday mornings I rolled out of bed and hurried to get to the market by 8 am or earlier.  When I first started going, arriving at 8 meant being one of the first customers.  But as the market became better known, there were more and more people there earlier and earlier.

Not only did I shop there, but for the better part of a year, I was part of the farmer’s side of things, selling chèvre for with Rob from Mackenzie Creamery.  It was so much fun.  It also gave me an appreciation for what many customers don’t consider.  A vendor arrives quite early in order to set up by opening time.  If the vendor has lots of product, it may take an hour to get ready.  Customers often arrive early, wanting to buy even though the vendor isn’t yet set up.  Finally, if the weather is bad (cold, rain, wind, snow, or a combination), the customer may stay home or just zip through the market to buy what’s on the list.  But the vendors who brave the weather, are there often for 5 or more hours!

Naperville also has a farmer’s market, a real farmer’s market that basically has only food items.  I go most Saturday mornings and am finding my favorite vendors and products.  Here are a few photos from the most recent trip.  I came home with green beans, corn on the cob (to cook and freeze), a peck of apples, two pints of raspberries, a gigantic head of romaine lettuce, a six-pack of the most wonderful apple cider cake doughnuts, and probably some things I don’t recall now.  I’ll share a few photos today and then on Saturday, while I’m visiting a farmer’s market in Philadelphia, weather permitting, I’ll share the rest (from Naperville.)  Enjoy!

Going local

After a long, cold winter, the farmer’s markets are finally open.  Spoiled by a city where the market near us was open for all but about two weeks a year (albeit on a much smaller scale in winter), I’ve been waiting for this moment since last fall.  However one of the problems with a once-a-week market is getting through the end of the week when I’ve used up all my purchases.  Fortunately, there’s a small market on Wednesday afternoons in the parking lot of a nearby church to supplement the much larger Saturday morning market at the railroad station.

I didn’t need much, but I’ve been craving the ambiance, the colors, the freshness…the summertime-ness…of the market, so it was a joy to immerse myself in it on a lovely Saturday morning.  Come with me and you can enjoy it as well (and you won’t spend a thing!)

Go not gently into that dark winter

The days are getting colder.  Vegetable colors fade from brilliant reds, peaches, blues and oranges to more muted colors. Fruit becomes less soft, more crisp and crunchy. But during the last market a few weeks ago, produce made its last, colorful stand.  I bought squash, apples for yet more applesauce and other end-of-summer goodies and enjoyed the last warmth of the season.

“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien

“Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”

“Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”
– Michael Pollan, In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto

If you stay away from grocery stores, Michael Pollan’s admonitions become much easier to follow. Join me in my weekly Saturday morning trip to the North Union Farmers Market at Shaker Square in the eastern suburbs of Cleveland for food, mostly plants. You can also get eggs, cheese, and grass-fed, no-antibiotic meat if you choose, local honey and much, much more. (All quotes are by Michael Pollan.)

Lettuce alone

Today at the farmer’s market, I bought the largest head of romaine lettuce I’ve ever seen for a mere $3. While it’s true that romaine is both delicious and nutritious, lettuce look at its beauty.