As a white girl, I like Farmer’s Markets. Alot. I like buying my produce from local farmers, and always make sure the food I buy is organic. I also like debating the relative merits of different types of lettuce, perusing through categorized mushrooms, and listening to buskers do their thing. It’s a fun Saturday.
Luckily, Chicago has dozens, if not hundreds, of Farmer’s Markets scattered around the city. A few weeks ago, I visted the opening day of the Green City Market. Now, I know I should have posted about this sooner, but, well, go here to see why it took a while.
Because the opening day was very early in the growing season, eating with the seasons meant that I had a limited number of options. Fortunately, they were tasty options, including purple asparagus. I’d never seen purple asparagus before, but let me tell you, it had quite a few people transported to Foody Heaven:
Pretty, isn’t it? I love that the farmer had color coordinated her veggies with her tablecloths. And speaking of pretty: Doesn’t this lettuce look like it could be a centerpiece?
I loved how alive and cheerful it looked.
Have I ever told you that I LOOOOOORVE the banjo? I wish I could play. No Farmer’s Market would be complete without some tunes played on a banjo and… um, does anyone know what that guy is playing?
Here’s a closer shot, to help you:
And then there was the yarn…
OH THE YARNY GOODNESS!!!
I am still drooling. But alas, I’m on a yarn diet, so I didn’t buy any. I really need to get through my stash before I buy any more. Let me tell you, it was a feat of self-control, one for the record books.
Then there was the milk, and boy oh boy was it tasty. Much… milkier, for lack of a better word, than what I’ve had from the grocery store. I bought cream, because I’d planned on making a sauce.
With these babies:
They were the special ones, hand picked by yours truly, chosen from all of these:
And there was a little tastee testing, although the guy grilling this cheese was a jerk. Let that be a lesson to you, Internet. If ever you are at a Farmer’s Market and come across a guy grilling cheese, don’t ask for a picture. He’ll get all snarky on you.
There were a couple of things I didn’t photograph. Like the grass-fed, free-range lamb I bought, and the duck egg that was given to me by the man selling lamb. The lamb became stew that was DEEEEELISH. The duck egg? Well, that was Sunday’s breakfast, or at least started out as Sunday’s breakfast. I’ve learned that while nothing can rival Peking Duck for the top spot on my list of Favorite Foods, duck eggs…. well, let’s just say that duck eggs are at the bottom spot of another list. Not mah thang, nope.
So Internet, let’s here it: What’s over at your local Farmer’s Market? And seriously, what is that guy playing?!
your farmers market looks awesome, I could so lose myself for a day there.
Well, seems everyone beat me to the hammered dulcimer identification. But why didn't you just ask the musician playing it?
The food looks delish – hopefully I don't have anything on this weekend (um, besides writing 150 report cards or so), so I can go to my farmer's market too – it's small (there are only 33,000 peeps here), but local and great. I also go to a butcher who uses local, organic, REAL meat for cold cuts. Can't wait to try the flank steak I bought last week!
I am soooo tagging along next time you go to the Farmer's Market!!!
It all looks gorgeous and delicious!
Great pics! Makes me wanna go to a farmer's market – now!
Love this post – you have made my mouth water with those pics of all the delicious veggies, oh and the yarn, cant forget that – yummy!
I think (?) he's playing the dulcimer …. great pics!
Mmmm, what gorgeous pictures. I can't wait for our local one to start up. I'm already sad that we didn't sign up for another CSA this year. Yum.
I also went to my local Farmer's Market this weekend, which apparently is no where near as fun as yours. Part of my problem is, I like to go on Sundays when it isn't a total zoo, so not all the vendors are there. But there still isn't ever a dulcimer or surly grilled cheese.
Mine also has friendly gorgeous lettuces, hydroponically grown and soooo tasty. I am still too early for corn, much to my disappointment, so I had to settle for some enormous, creamy elephant garlic bulbs, which are terrifically mild and tasty. I also got some new potatoes (love 'em simple, scored around the middle then boiled and served with sea salt and fresh dill and butter), and the fresh cabbages were just too tempting. I made slaw and a cabbage-roll casserole, which was a little heavy for summer but still very tasty. Ooh, and some huge spring onions, almost sweet, and great on the grill.
I can't wait til my basil girl is there. And the corn. I'm so over the strawberries.
And, unless you hate blogspot, I am almost 100% certain you can have your own domain name here…just use a redirect.
Not only is it a dulcimer, it's particularly, a hammered dulcimer. It's a lovely sounding instrument and anyone can usually get the hang of playing it.
That display of purple asparagus, made me drool. Yum.. So much pretty than white ones.
OH yeah…two other things. I seriously would not have been able to resist that yarn but then maybe that's why my stash has grown to scary proportions.
And, I designed the banner on my site. Want some help?
Yeah, it's a hammered dulcimer, a friend of mine played one (along with guitar, banjo, autoharp, upright bass, and any other stringed instrument he could lay his hands on).
And those mushrooms look so delicious, I remember going mushroom hunting for those morels when I was a kid, and then coming home and helping clean, batter, and deep-fry them. Yummy!
I am pretty sure thats a dulcimer.
And, man of man do those veggies look good.
It is a dulcimer. They are amazing to see/hear! My music teacher when I was growing up played one and was in a performance group with it too. And she taught us to play mountain dulcimers, which are just a small version shaped like a rectangle.
Ok, so looking more closely, I'm totally wrong about the autoharp.
Googling "stringed instrument mallet" got me to "hammered dulcimer". Which means I got to start my Monday by learning something new. Thanks!
Looks like a variation on the autoharp?
http://images.google.ca/images?client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&hl=en&q=autoharp&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2&aq=f&oq=
This looks awesome, I need need NEED to get to my local farmer's market this weekend.