Farmer's Market Fridays - 8/26/11

Oh, Farmer's Market Fridays...I knew from the start that what we shared this summer had an expiration date; however, that didn't make our last day together any less difficult.  Next Friday I'll be back at work and I don't have a Friday off until long after the market has ended for the year.  (But sometimes I can only get doctor appointments on Friday mornings - cough! cough! - so we may meet again.)

It was sad to say my good-byes to all my Friday friends - Chuck at yoga (though I can see him other days during the school year), Mike from Avalon, Amy and Charlie from Living Stones, and Farmer Glen from Chelsea, MI.  Of course either Katie or my mom will continue to pick up our CSA share, so I'll still get that each week.  And if I want a date bar I know my mom would grab one for me.  It just isn't the same as being there, though.  And all the potatoes and carrots that my mom could get for me from Farmer Glen just won't cut it when I don't get to hear him say, "Take 'er easy!" when we say good-bye.  sigh.  The memories.  I wore my sunglasses so no one could see my tears.  (Just kidding - the real tears will come NEXT Friday when reality sets in.)

I'm thankful that it was a perfect summer day for my last one at the market.  All the produce was bright and bountiful.  I sort of wanted to buy everything but managed to exercise great restraint.  (Our refrigerator only holds so much.)  I bought a huge watermelon from Farmer Glen that I'll cut up for Brian's birthday dinner on Sunday.  I also bought 2 quarts of the amazing peaches to share with Katie so I can make peach crisp.  Mmmmm, I can't wait!

Flaming Fury peaches from Kapnick Orchard

A HUGE watermelon from Farmer Glen

In the CSA share today we got the following:

• 2 bunches of beets (1 red, 1 golden)
• 2 bunches of kale (1 red curly, 1 dinosaur)
• 4 big tomatoes
• 3 jalapeno peppers
• 2 Thai peppers
• 1 cantaloupe
• 2 summer squash
• 2 patty pan squash
• 2 bell peppers
• 2 eggplants

CSA share

By the time I had all that, plus the watermelon, peaches, a package of cookies for Brian, and 2 date bars*, I could barely carry everything back to the car!  I definitely got in my strength workout for the day!

Since we've gone to Starbucks the past few weeks, my mom and I went to Panera Cares today for our coffee.  Since they're non-profit, it's always nice to go there and give a little extra to help out those who don't have enough money for a good meal.

I'm going to head out now for my run and then cool off with a refreshing Banana Chamomile Smoothie.  Maybe I'll sit out on the patio, sip that, and do the crossword puzzle.  Yes, that sounds like a great thing to do on this gorgeous summer day.

Happy Friday!

*The 2nd date bar is for my friend Aaron, who has been dropping not-so-discreet hints about me bringing one to boot camp for him on Saturday.  I thought he might need a little motivation to get out of bed in the morning!  This is also a test to see if he actually reads my blog posts.

Farmer's Market Fridays - 7/29/11

Rain, rain, and more rain!  That's been the story of the last 24 hours.  After so many days of bone dry weather, however, I welcomed the rain with open arms.  By "with open arms" I mean I lounged around on the couch and felt grateful for not having to water - NOT that I was out there twirling around in puddles or having a Shawshank moment.

It was still drizzling when my mom and I went to yoga this morning.  So it was a dank, dreary morning, I was half-asleep, and my muscles were still sore from Wednesday's boot camp.  I thought that surely these things would add up to a long, painful yoga session at Sattva.  Aside from the 5-minute-per-leg pigeon pose, it went by surprisingly quickly.  I was a little more in tune with my breathing than usual and before I knew it, the lights were dimmed and it was time for savasana. 

After yoga we headed back across the street to the Farmer's Market.  Although the rain has been wonderful for the plants, it kept many of the vendors away this morning.  I noticed right away that Avalon was not there.  What?!?  No date bar?!?  But it's Friday!  Such a letdown.  Only a few tears were shed before I put on a brave face and soldiered on. 

Fortunately, our friends from Living Stones were there so we picked up our CSA shares.  We have some new things to try out this week, which is exciting!  

 Full CSA share - squash, cucumbers, onions, peppers, kale, rainbow chard, beets, basil, corn shoots, and 2 bags of salad mix

These are corn shoots.  I've never seen these before and am not sure yet what I'll do with them.  They sound interesting, though!

These are radish pods.  They taste like radishes but have the texture of snap peas.  I'll probably either add them to a salad or stir-fry them.  They weren't in the share but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to try these strange little veggies.

Despite the 10 inches of rain Chelsea received, Farmer Glen was there with all of his beautiful vegetables.  I imagine his journey this morning being something like a scene from Oregon Trail.  You know, the part where you get to the stream and have to decide to ford it or take a ferry?  I doubt there was a ferry that early in the day so I'm thankful he successfully forded the flood and made it to Dearborn safe and sound.

From Farmer Glen - beets, Yukon Gold potatoes, and carrots (check out that cool twisty one!)

My last stop was over at Prochaska Farms for some tomatoes.  Aren't they beautiful?  I'd tell you what kind they are but when I asked the girl at the stand, I did my usual thing where I heard her answer but didn't actually listen.  She may as well have been talking to Charlie Brown.  So if you ask me, they're "wah wah" tomatoes.  Oh well, they look good no matter what they're called.  

After the market we walked over to the Panera Cares Cafe.  My coffee was just the pick-me-up I needed but it wasn't the same without my date bar.  At least the company was still good.  My mom and I had a nice visit.  It's always fun to gossip catch up with each other.

Tonight is dinner at Woodbridge Pub with my family to celebrate my mom's birthday.  If you're a regular visitor to my blog you know how much I love Woodbridge!  If I try something new I'll be sure to let you know about it. 

Have a great weekend! 

Farmer's Market Fridays - 7/22/11

Happy Friday, everyone!  I don't have too many pictures to share with you today.  Honestly, it was so hot already at 9 a.m. that we didn't stick around long at the Farmer's Market and I didn't take a single photo there.  I got my date bar from Avalon, my CSA share from Living Stones, and some potatoes and beets from Farmer Glen.  Then we quickly scooted into Panera Cares where I could enjoy my date bar in the A/C with an iced coffee.  Ahhhh...

Living Stones CSA

I have to say that I am VERY impressed with the amount of produce I received in my share today.  Up until this week, I was a little disappointed with the shares, especially since it's a full and half of it belongs to my friend Katie.  By the time we split it up it hasn't left either of us with all that much.  We didn't get our share last week because the crops were not quite ready so Living Stones took a week off to nurture them.  That seemed to do the trick!  I left with my huge bag nearly overflowing with fresh, beautiful greens and vegetables.  Our share included red and green kale, collards, brassica greens, rainbow chard, squash, kohlrabi, 2 bags of salad mix, basil, and 2 kinds of beets.  Not a bad haul, huh?  Amy promised tomatoes next week.  I can't wait!

I had to take a close up of these squash.  Aren't they beautiful?  They'll be delicious sliced and grilled.

By the way, I made sure to go to bed a little early and managed to stay awake during yoga this morning (unlike last week)!

Farmer's Market Fridays - 6/24/11

It was a rather dreary day at the Farmer's Market.  The sky was overcast and gray this morning and just as my mom and I left the yoga studio, a light mist began to fall.  The mist soon turned into a drizzle and then into full-fledged rain.  We didn't stay long at the market and I was feeling too cold and damp to even take out my phone to snap a few pictures.  We made our usual stops - Avalon for a date bar, Living Stones for our CSA shares, and Farmer Glen for asparagus and parsnips.  My mom also went to another booth for some potatoes but I didn't catch the name of the farm.  That was it.  We put our goods into her car and hurried into the warmth of the Panera Cares Cafe for a hot cup of coffee, where I enjoyed my date bar.

Fridays are always better when the sun is shining but with yoga, the market, a date bar, and time spent with my mom, who can complain?

Here's what came in our Living Stones CSA share this week:

Radishes and kohlrabi

Colorful chard

Kale and salad mix

Sunflower shoots

Farmer's Market Fridays - 6/17/11

Friday is my favorite day of the week, even in the summer when I'm not working and waiting for the weekend.  My mom and I spend the morning together.  We start with a 7:45 yoga session at Sattva Yoga Center, which was particularly challenging for me today due to the fact that it has been months since I've done yoga and I haven't been very good about stretching after my workouts.  Touch my toes?  I could barely touch my knees!  Hopefully next week will be a little easier.

Our next stop after yoga is the Dearborn Farmer's and Artisan Market.  Today is a gorgeous, sunny day - perfect for strolling around looking at all the beautiful flowers and plants, fresh greens, and ripe red Michigan strawberries.  I of course made a beeline straight to Avalon, as I do every week, for my date bar.  (Read my previous post for more about Avalon and my date bar obsession.)  Today they had a lot of their vegan goodies but I exercised restraint and only bought the date bar.  Although the 2-pack of Dequindre Cut Trail Mix cookies was awfully tempting...

The carrot cake, granola bars, and date bars are all vegan.  I can vouch for all of them - they are delicious!

Once I'd secured my date bar, we headed over to Living Stones Farm so we could pick up our CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) shares.  My mom gets half a share and my friend and I are sharing a full.  Living Stones is great because they help people with training and skills after they have been incarcerated.  They are wonderful people and their produce has never been anything but fresh and delicious.  Today our share included collards, salad mix, radishes, kale, lettuce, and sunflower shoots. We love having Amy as our personal farmer!

Next we went to visit our other favorite farmer - Farmer Glen.  He's there every week, rain or shine, always in his overalls and with a big smile on his face.  If you want some really delicious carrots, parsnips, asparagus, or Brussels sprouts, you have to get them from Farmer Glen.  Since I'd gotten so much from our CSA, however, I only bought a basil plant.  I think it's about time I plant my herb garden and you can't have an herb garden without basil.  My mom bought asparagus and Romain lettuce.

I love the handmade "no spray" signs he puts on everything!

We also went to Traffic Jam and Snug, where I bought Brian a package of Oatmeal Walnut Chocolate Chip cookies - 5/$5 and they are huge!  Unfortunately, Traffic Jam is not quite as vegan-friendly as Avalon so I don't ever get anything there for myself.


New to the market this year is Cellar Door Soap Co., which has a large selection of eco-friendly handmade soaps that are ALL VEGAN!  Even the Oatmeal Milk and Honey soap, which contains neither milk nor honey, is vegan.  Of course I had to buy it.  Each bar is $6 or you can buy 3/$15.  Along with the Oatmeal Milk and Honey I bought Vanilla Almond and Lime in the Coconut.  I see myself making several return trips to Cellar Door in the coming months to try the other scents.

Although I had already spent quite enough money as it was, I couldn't resist buying a quart of Michigan strawberries.  There's really no comparison between Michigan berries straight from a local farm and the California berries I usually buy at Kroger.  They are well-worth the higher price tag.

Fresh berries from Prochaska Farms

After we're done at the market we always walk over to the Panera Cares Cafe where we have coffee and I eat my date bar.  THIS is the best part of the morning!  (If you are unfamiliar with how Panera Cares Cafe differs from the regular Panera Cafes, please read  this article.  It's wonderful that they chose to open one in Dearborn and I support them whenever I can.)

So there you have it - all the reasons I love my summer Fridays.  Now I'd say it's time for a quick run and a refreshing Banana Chamomile Smoothie.  Happy Friday!

NOTE: Check back next week for more pictures.  I was trying to juggle my purse, produce, and baked goods (all while protecting my precious date bar) and in the process dropped my iPhone on the ground.  Thankfully it's okay but I was a little hesitant to take photos after that!