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On the far corner of the Riverwalk Farmer’s Market lay a simple, single table stall. Across it are several boxes of mushrooms. Portabellas, criminis, shitakes. It is easy to walk past. You could, after all, get those things at the grocery store. But why? Why not just get them from a local seller.
Davidson Exotic Mushrooms are priced competitively with the same varieties as I could get them in the grocery store. What’s more is that they are a cornerstone of my weeknight meals, and now I know that I can get them at a local seller. This is the kind of service that I am unused to seeing at a farmer’s market. I’ve never been able to get mushrooms at a farmer’s market. He even has a card available with his number so you can ask him to hold onto a certain amount of mushrooms if you can’t make it early. I love this guy. He makes my mushroom stroganoff that much better.
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 My sweet tooth is insatiable. I know this, you know this. We all know this. The farmer’s market in Milford had a special treat for me this week in Sweet Tia’s Bakery. It was their first week down at the market, and oh my god. This lady can make a mean cupcake. I purchased a dark chocolate mint cupcake as a small breakfast, and I cannot begin to tell you how much I loved it.
There’s something special about mint baked into a cupcake or even a cookie. It takes on a whole different taste on the tongue that went nicely with the dark chocolate chips she whipped into her mint frosting on the top of the cupcake itself. That, and if you give me an Andes mint on anything. I’ll be happy. I was on love. I could have tried any number of special and wonderful types of cupcakes, even alcohol infused. I was sorely tempted, but I wasn’t ready to party at nine in the morning. Maybe next time. What I love most about Sweet Tia’s is her enthusiasm about what she does. It’s absolutely infectious when you’re standing at her stall and listening to her talk about each flavor. She clearly loves baking. I am so glad she decided to join the Milford farmers’ market, and I look forward to seeing her there the rest of the season. If you can’t make it to the farmer’s market, she ships nationwide and does delivery across three states. You can check out her facebook page and her website for more details. Support your local chefs and craftsmen. They’re making something special just down the road from you every day, like this girl is!  This week at the Riverwalk Farmer’s Market, The Cheese Board appeared for the first time this seasons. They were listed last week, but were not present much to my husband’s disappointment. He loves cheese. I love cheese, but we were not disappointed when we spotted The Cheese Board among the vendors. They have a fine display board with them to show what cheese they have, most of which I have never heard of or seen in my life. We only tried two, but we walked out with a section of both that we sampled. Most of the cheeses were available to test. It was a great sales technique. St. Andre cheese is a triple cream brie that captured my husband and I the moment a spoonful of the cheese hit our tongues. It melted the minute I put it in my mouth, and it had such a wonderful, creamy flavor. We used it later that day for grilled cheese. We added absolutely nothing to the grilled cheese unlike we normally would, and I wanted no additions. This luxurious cheese was well worth the money spent. The Cheese Board’s display appears to be able to change on a whim, so we will be visiting regularly to see what other artisan cheeses appear. Check them out next time you’re at the Milford Farmer’s Market!  May 5th was the first day of the Milford Farmer’s Market. It was a lovely, cloudy day to walk beside the Mispillion River and visit local vendors. Open 9 am to 1 pm, the first day of the market had vendors for produce, plants, baked goods, and fudge. According to the market facebook page, a total of 26 vendors are signed up to participate throughout the season.
Many of the vendors accepted cash only, so I was ill prepared with my debit card. There were a few vendors that accepted cards as well, so the trip wasn’t a total waste. Make sure you bring cash to fully experience what’s available. The good news is that there are other things going on alongside the market most weeks, so if you make the trip and don’t have cash, you can enjoy a live show in the morning and visit the shops downtown. The produce selection is already pretty great. I got my hands on a wonderful bunch of asparagus and sugar snap peas that are just to die for. I am super thankful for the high number of growers that are out at the Riverwalk now that my diet has changed to incorporate more vegetables. Time to eat good and eat local! If you’re looking to grow things yourself, there is at least one plant vendor there with herbs and starter plants for you to pick up while you’re shopping. Not every vendor was there the first weekend, so I am sure that there will be more the farther we get into the season. I will keep an eye out. The market is a good way to tell what’s in season, and purchasing local benefits the community. For the entire season, I will be highlighting one vendor each week that I have purchased from during my visit. There is no vendor spotlight this week in order to appropriately cover the whole of the Market. I am very much looking forward to having this vehicle through which to get local produce for my cooking going forward. The direction of my cooking is shifting to more plant based meals, and I will feel better for it knowing the ingredients are coming from local growers. It's special to me. The difference is in the taste. There’s love in every leaf, pod, and stem. I know where it came from and who grew it. So my goal is to get as much of my produce as possible from these sources during the season. Support local growers and eat better. It’s a new year with new ideas to explore. |
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May 2020
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