Springtime Farmer's Market

It is that time of year again at least in Lane County, Oregon. It is Springtime and open season at Lane County Farmer's Market. I was so excited to meander around the Farmer's Market and check out every booth to see what was in season. I found lots of organic salad greens, braising greens, root vegetables, herbs, squash, hazelnuts, colorful plants, vegetable starts, organic meat and poultry and farm fresh eggs.

I also came across a booth that sold locally grown wheat, lentils, beans, wheat berries, teff and more. The Mill is called Camas Country Mill and is owned by The Hunton Family in Alvadore Oregon, near Fern Ridge Resevoir. We got to talking and I shared with them that I had just made my Wheat berry Waldorf Salad. Both Tom and Sue were inspired and want me to send my recipe to them so that they can try it and possibly share the recipe with others.

After scouring the market I selected fresh local baby spinach, salad greens, chives, bok choy, mild radishes, red leaf lettuce and collard broccolini. I also purchased some of Camas Country's stone ground hard red wheat flour, garbanzo bean flour and an Ethiopian grain called brown Teff grain. I am looking forward to making some fresh homemade rustic bread.

I was also looking for Golden (yellow) Beets, but had no such luck. (I want to remake the Roasted Beet, Apple and Fennel Salad that I had at Adam's Sustainable Table on our food crawl). I did talk to one of the vendors that was selling plants and veggie starts and asked if she had the starts to Golden Beets. No such luck either, but she told me to check out Down to Earth or Market of Choice as she delivers to them too.

So I headed on over to Down to Earth and they had two six pack containers. So I will grow my own Golden Beets. I also picked up five blueberry bushes too, to plant in the backyard. The kids will love picking blueberries for their cereal every morning.

Oh... the bounties of Spring and the anticipation of Summer that is not so far off. Looking forward to my trips to the Farmer's Market.

Tri color Cauliflower, who knew?

Cauliflower doesn't come only in white anymore. I was at my local Grocery Outlet last week and noticed these colorful cauliflowers in lime green, purple and orange. The labels said rich in beta carotene and vitamins. I would assume they were colored from the juices of other veggies. I just had to buy them, because they were so beautiful and different. I thought that they would look lovely in a salad. Buying three will inspire me to research cauliflower recipes also. I plan on roasting some florets this week.

Do you have any ideas or recipes for cauliflower you want to share?

Farm Fresh Eggs

Here is my hen Henrietta sitting near a basket full of Farm Fresh eggs out in my front yard. There are brown eggs and green eggs. They are really cool looking and taste just wonderful. F.Y.I. Henrietta didn't lay all those eggs. Matter of fact she didn't lay even one of them. You see... Henrietta is my ceramic (fake) hen. She lives up above on top of my kitchen cabinetry. I have a Rooster too, his name is Rocky, maybe you'll meet him someday too. I live in a subdivision where I can not own any type of fowl within the city limits. Boo hoo!!! So I purchase my farm fresh eggs from my dear friend Teriann who lives on a farm. Lucky her!

Here is a close up of some of the eggs. The pale green and brown eggs are just about the same size. They are so large that sometimes the egg cartons can't shut close. Then there are the teeny tiny eggs from Teriann's Banty hens. They are just too cute.

Hope that you didn't mind my spoof. The funny part is that my neighbors were watching me put Henrietta out on the front lawn with the basket of eggs and taking photos. I must have looked like I had lost my marbles. Oh well, it was all in good humor and laughter is contagious, even if it is at yourself.

Thank you Teriann for such wonderful eggs and delivering them to me on Friday mornings when we get together for coffee.