 The businesses in downtown De Pere have rotated in and out over the years even since my arrival– but now is a time of growth and change. Multiple new businesses have started up this summer, and the latest among them is Voyageurs Bakehouse’s third location: right on Broadway in Tazza’s previous location. I welcome the change as a De Pere resident that so often forgets to drop by the Green Bay location after the farmers’ market. I’ve forgotten it so often in fact that I have never stepped foot in one of their brick and mortar locations as much as I have wanted to do so. There was always an excuse. ‘Oh, I can just get a loaf at the farmer’s market.’ or ‘Oh, they’re probably selling the same things as the farmers’ market stand anyhow.’ Neither of these excuses matched the reality that I encountered once I walked into the doors of the new location.
Every table was full of excited visitors enjoying breakfast at the start of their day. The sourdough loaves I most often associate with the business were proudly displayed along the wall above the cash register while their smaller confections were in a glass case for me to stare at longingly while I awaited my turn in line. Croissants, cinnamon rolls, little cakes, and tartlets. There was even a menu of sandwiches available from the kitchen.
I took it easy on this visit by choosing two croissants and a cinnamon roll to take home with my car full of farmers’ market goodies, but what I saw on the tables of happy customers gives me hope for the sandwiches coming out of the kitchen on their very own sourdough. I’ll certainly be back to try out the sandwiches, but in the meantime, all the things that I loved about Voyageurs are a little closer than they used to be. You can make a visit of your own Monday through Saturday between 8 am and 2 pm and pick up some of their delicious goodies for yourself. If you get your hands on one of their sandwiches before I make it back, comment below and let me know how it was!
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 Last Wednesday, I ventured out of my home kitchen to join the folks from Adam’s Heirlooms– whom you all know I love– and Sweet Willow Wellness– who frankly deserves more of my patronage– for a two hour class on one of Adam’s Heirlooms’ flagship products, Shrubs. The word shrub may conjure up ideas of tiny bushes, but this is certainly not that kind of shrub. Drinking vinegars are making an active resurgence.
From mocktails to sparkling waters, appetizers to desserts, Dianna and Rebecca showed us all some marvelous ways to use the shrub concentrates in our homes. There is so much more to it than adding a teaspoon or two to a glass of water and calling it a day, and all ten varieties that Dianna sells at the farmers’ markets on Saturday mornings were put to use in one way or another right before my eyes. What I got was not what I expected when I signed up for the class, I’ll be honest. I love pretty much everything that comes from the folks at Adam’s Heirlooms, so I signed up out of loyalty more than anything. I like the shrubs, but I did not buy them very often prior to this class. The few times I had was usually to share them with visitors and have them experience some of the things I enjoyed in Green Bay as a treat to mix in some ice cold water after a long walk in Titletown.
There’s a rumor out there that Dianna will be doing more classes at Sweet Willow in the future, and I highly encourage you to consider them when they are announced. I will share them when a formal announcement is made.
I have a few class inspired recipes on the horizon that I am excited to share. In the meantime, look at all of these pictures! Consider visiting Sweet Willow in De Pere and the folks at Adam’s Heirlooms at the Saturday Farmers’ Market. You can have your own small tasting experience at the Farmers’ Market before choosing a shrub to take home for yourself. The folks at the market always have sampling options mixed into some cold water during the warmer months and warm during the cooler ones.
This early in the season in Northeast Wisconsin sometimes sees a smaller number of choices with the cold often holding off growing season up here longer than most other parts of the country, but it’s been warm this year. I fully expected to see items in the stalls that I wouldn’t normally see in Green Bay until later in June. For that reason, I decided to spend most of my time during this market with my old favorites.
This was unfortunately the kind of Saturday morning where I needed to walk right past Cold Climate Farms. They always have a line forming first thing in the morning, and even after some time browsing other stalls, they still had a significant line waiting to purchase with them. This is an opportunity for me to put my attention elsewhere, and it's an opportunity I can’t let pass. I found many similarities in the available produce this time of year compared to last year– the choices are much more limited this soon than they will be in even two weeks. There was, however, an abundance of early season alliums to sample. Green garlic has already come, and I wonder if we’ve missed our window for garlic scapes. I’ll find out in a few short weeks, as I often don’t see scapes for sale until later in June. Even if that window has passed, I did manage to get my hands on a bundle of chive blossoms– a treat I have never tried before. Green onion with a strong, purple bulb. Green Garlic. Chive blossoms– these were the mixed wares I left with from Adam’s Heirlooms and Full Circle Community Farm. Asparagus was available at almost every grower’s stall, and I suspect that will remain the same next week. Next weekend will be asparagus weekend for me, as I entered this week with two very specific goals: I needed Irish bacon, and I needed ramps. Ramps were unfortunately not with any of the vendors on site that I’ve seen in the past. This could be another growing season issue. It’s been so warm this year that my expectations will surely be tested every week. At least I got my Irish bacon and my wide selection of alliums to enjoy with a sliced loaf of Breadsmith Sourdough. This year, we are embarking on a true Market Meals Segment where the main ingredients of a dish must come from our local Farmers’ Markets here in Green Bay. As this week’s meals are finished, this article will be updated with links to the recipes I created. I love ours Farmers’ Markets in Green Bay, and if I can convince even one reader to visit based on a meal I cook, then I consider it an honor to send them to our local farmers.  Finding some of my favorite farmer’s market vendors in the offseason can be difficult, but many of them keep their own storefronts open year round. Breadsmith of Green Bay is one of them. While some of their products are available in our local grocery stores, I recently decided to stop into their storefront on Holmgren Way to see what they have available in the dead of winter. I didn’t know what to expect. The parking lot is usually empty given how close it is to the Epic Event Center. There’s nothing going on at Epic in the hours that I stop into the mall adjacent area of Green Bay. That chilly Saturday morning, Breadsmith had their pepperoni loaf as their special. They advertise these specials on the chalkboard that they set outside the doors first thing in the morning, and it is specials like this that don’t wind up in our grocery stores. They have different special breads each day, all of which are advertised ahead of time on their social media. Likewise, you can’t get the Cheddar Sourdough that I grabbed for myself that morning to enjoy throughout the rest of the week.
 The Farmer’s Market Season kicked off last week, and I made sure I found my way downtown for the Saturday Morning Market first and foremost. The evening markets across Green Bay offer a variety of vendors and new experiences. However, I have a soft place in my heart for the Saturday Morning Market after years of attendance. It’s my priority each week once the weather turns. I have many vendors that I make a point to visit, but I know that I’ve missed out on good stuff in years past. Turns out, even after nearly four years, I still haven’t discovered all of the gems. Near the Walnut Street Entrance sits the Behnke Farms van, and it’s a van I have both stopped at and walked past a thousand times. This is my fourth year attending the market, and for that reason it sometimes feels hard to find something new to highlight for you, dear readers. Behnke Farm recently caught my attention again over the winter when they started carrying and advertising their picahna at the Winter Market on Military.
Am I a month late? Absolutely. However, We’re all resolving to be different in the new year, and for me, that always starts with food. How will Eating Normal be going into 2023? Well… 1. Start Composting Food Waste I carry a lot of guilt about food waste. It’s especially hard as a single woman with very few friends in the area to share my creations with when I am recipe developing. I have signed up with Greener Bay to begin composting my food waste, and in the month that I’ve had my bucket hiding in my pantry, I already feel less guilt about experimenting with my cooking. Even if I don’t eat EVERYTHING, I know it will have a second life. If you’re interested in doing the same, please check out Greener Bay’s website for additional details. Pickup and Drop Off options are available depending on what’s best for you. 2.Cook Even More I’ve started to fall back onto old habits as a single woman, one of those being my dear friend the instant ramen packet. Feeding only myself and struggling with food waste guilt has really changed the way I cook. I know I deserve to eat better, whole foods– but God, is it hard to do that just for me. I’ve been cooking for other people my entire life. If it wasn’t my husband, it was my parents before him. Now that it’s just me, it’s hard. Now, cooking for me at this point is as simple as making myself hard boiled eggs for breakfast. But 2023, I will make myself do it. 3. Make Cooking Videos I’ll continue to try my hand at short form cooking tutorials like you’ve seen from me already in 2022, but with more frequency. The current food media climate is built on them. Playoff football and the Super Bowl are coming quickly, so expect snack related videos in the month of February. 4. Admit Defeat– Cookbook of the Month I have never, ever, in the history of this blog managed to do a cookbook every single month of the year. It’s over, folks. We’re closing that segment. I may review a cookbook every once and awhile, but with the belt tightening as I work through divorce, I just can’t afford a new cookbook every month even if I wanted to. America’s biggest food holiday is right around the corner, and if you haven’t started considering where you’ll get the best parts of the meal, allow me to assist you in doing so as locally as possible. With the regular farmer’s market season over, your only chances come in very limited dates. There are, however, brick and mortar locations to shopping for local produce and meats in Green Bay and the surrounding area that may take some planning to hit at the right time. We’ve compiled these locations for you as well as any dates and times of indoor farmer’s markets below. As supply chain issues are being threatened in the news, what better way to soothe your anxieties about providing a tasty holiday than to shop from your neighbors?
This is the new normal for a lot of people, especially in our generation. I’m not breaking any new ground by being a newly single woman at 30 after 6 years of marriage and 10 years of cooking to suit someone else’s food preferences. Eating Normal is now about eating and cooking for me, less about cooking for others.
Supporting local farmers remains important to me, but on a budget, the grocery store remains the easiest way to pinch pennies. Smart shopping methods that save me money will be shared to save you money. Pantry recipes will be as important as our market recipes. My life has changed in the blink of an eye. One of the first things to change was the way I eat, and it’s time to adjust to a new normal. I intend to document that adjustment as closely as I can. Fortunately, I will have more time to devote to content creation here and on my social media platforms. I appreciate your support through this dry spell of posting, and I hope that the new direction I am taking in my creative work with food will be enjoyable for you as readers and cooks. As you know, I never ask for you to take a look at my support page on the website to sign up for patreon or donate through kofi. If you decide to do that from this point forward, know that that money will go toward supplies for recipe development that only come from our local farmers. I will be revamping our patreon rewards to provide you with additional content if you choose to support. The number of heirloom variety growers at the Saturday Morning Farmer’s Market has grown in the last few years, but one of those I have always kept my eye on is Adam’s Heirlooms, who frequently had vegetable varieties on the table that I never saw before that day. One weekend, I happened to stop by and see two words that excite an avid cook: Berkshire Pork. Berkshire hogs originally hail from England, and in many cooking circles, they are considered some of the best available to a modern cook. They may not be Iberico pigs, but this variety of hog is talked about nearly as often as their Spanish, acorn eating relatives. I had to stop. I had to buy, and I learned a lot from the folks at the stand.
While most of my energy was focused on the animal husbandry portion of their offerings, the varieties of peppers and other vegetables on the other end of their stand remained peculiar and unusual compared to the other vendors at the market that morning. I will be back to investigate those further during the final farmer’s market as hot sauce preparations begin several weeks late in the Eating Normal House. Of note, you can access their website to pre-order what interests you most and pick it up at the Market this weekend. They have home delivery in the Manitowoc area if that is more your speed. I can only wish for a home delivery in Green Bay in the fast approaching off season.
Their previous business model focused entirely on the boards wasn’t as inviting for me as a person who doesn’t do much hosting at home. Access to a big cheese case, however, is very inviting. Cheese and crackers are a common snack in the Eating Normal House, and we left this visit with a brand new cheese in our lives after enjoying the cheese tasting during the event. Souper Day and Bountiful Boards have also taken on joint ventures in catering. If you’re looking to supply a tasty, locally produced lunch to an office or an event, stop in to the Revolution Market to investigate your options. Many of the potential items were available for sampling and viewing during the Grand Opening event– including a lunch box which would fill that office lunch void perfectly. We took home one of their cold sandwiches for lunch the next day and enjoyed the Souper Day crafted sandwich with Bountiful Boards cheese to its fullest.
These new expansions provide all businesses involved with a great opportunity, and we as a community would be foolish to ignore the opportunity that it also presents us. Eating well and eating local in the age of inflation takes some of the pain out of the wallet by putting the money into the hands of people you know, and the people here will know you. They make it their responsibility.
Here’s to a new era at the Revolution Market. |
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