This Week at the Farmers Market by Charlene LeJeune

Hi, friends! Well, I’m planning for a gorgeous day tomorrow. Make sure you get a chance to stop by the Wednesday Farmers’ Market. There will be plenty of wonderful food and fresh vegetables to tempt your tastebuds.

Vintage Jazz will entertain us from the gazebo this Saturday morning – a little jazz to go perfectly with sunshine and blue skies. Grab your coffee and mosey on over to the cooking tent because market vendor Lena Brannon of 7 Grain Bakery will serve a healthy, 100% organic, whole grain breakfast of Savory Corn Grits, Whole Grain Cream of Wheat, Granola and Barley Oat Buckwheat Pancakes with Flaxseeds. Healthy doesn’t have to be boring! WOW!

Check out our new pasta vendor – Pastazz. His pasta flavors will follow seasonal vegetables. He was making ravioli – on site – last week. The squash filling was incredible! You’ll also want to try his fantastic sunflower seed/parsley pesto.  It doesn’t contain walnuts or Parmesan cheese but was absolutely delicious. Springtime just radiates color; pinks, oranges, and yellows of bougainvillea or crepe myrtle, Japanese magnolia, or azaleas. Trudy, Miss Betty, Alton & Sandra, and Dennis have a wonderful selection. Open a Crayola box of color with a lovely bouquet of snapdragons from Nancy. You’ve got to check them out!

Our veggies are full of color, too, which just means that they are jam packed with nutrients. Rich red beets, emerald green Swiss Chard, bright orange carrots, clean white cauliflower, dark green broccoli, add splendor to the surroundings (not to mention your tummy). You can also find turnips, snap peas, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, radishes, kale, bok choy and tat soi. Nick has a tasty spinach and lettuce mix and the cutest rattail radish seed pods that are spicy enough to brighten your salad. You could also try sautéing them with a little of Mauthe’s fresh cream butter, and add that to wilted spinach (Houston, A.J.) – oh man! And that’s just for starters; Spring is about to unleash a treasure trove of veggies – I can’t wait!

Lots of Love,
Charlene LeJeune
Abundant Life Kitchen