Hello Neighbors,
Please come to the last Waitsfield Winter Farmer's Market this Sunday at the Masonic Lodge on Main Street (Rt 100) in Waitsfield. From 11am to 3pm, we'll have a variety of vendors with goodies for moms and people of all sorts.
I'll have a full fermentation line up with three different kinds of sauerkraut and three variations of kimchi. In the sauerkraut department, I have Celtic Kraut (organic green cabbage with dill weed, dill seed and leeks), German Kraut (organic green cabbage with carrots and juniper berries) and a Kraut du Jour. This one is organic green cabbage with jalapeños, horseradish and garlic, and it is surprisingly mild and deeply flavorful. I will continue making Kraut du Jour throughout the summer as a way to experiment with different flavors and textures of sauerkraut and to bring play and experimentation into a craft that I love.
The kimchi I am selling are all very similar to each other in their vegetable content (organic napa cabbage, carrots, daikon, cilantro, ginger, etc) and mixture, and then I spiced them all a little differently. I'll have Saida's Kimchi, which is the first ferment I made on this amazing journey and is mild with warming ginger tones, Smoky Kimchi, which was a fermentation accident turned wonderful, and Spicy Kimchi, which gets its fire from Korean red pepper, ginger and garlic and is "medium" on the spicy scale.
Looking for something festive to drink that fizzes and pops? I'll have a few different flavors of kombucha in elegant bottles.
And that's just me!
To my left at the market, we have Rick Rayfield of Tempest Books and Mad River Chorale, etc, fame. In addition to being an amazing citizen-- Cub Scout leader, community activist, food shelf patron-- he is also an awesome bread baker. He'll bring fresh bread in different varieties to the market, like Maple Moca with black cocoa, maple syrup and molasses, Sesame Wheat, Cinnamon Raisin (drooooool), and challah. I don't know which type he'll have for this market, but I do know his bread is delicious, and Rick deserves all of our support.
To my right, we've got the nice folks of Vermont Whey Fed Pigs. Nacho and Donna are a great team, combining enthusiasm, intelligence, ethics, and passion in their pork business and as a result, creating delicious and nutritious pork. They sell pork by the pound at the market-- from hams to chops to bacon and sausage-- and are happy to talk to you about their bulk pork buying programs.
To Nacho and Donna's right is Dennis from Storytime Bakers. Storytime specializes in Armenian style baked goods with lovely phyllo dough triangles, roasted red pepper-pomegranate-walnut spread, strawberry bread, and blueberry muffins. Their tasty baked goods are available singly or in packages, and you'll enjoy interesting flairs on familiar flavors and shapes.
Right as you come into the Masonic Lodge, you'll be greeted by our fearless leaders Vern and Evelyn of Gizmo's Pickled Plus. In addition to their many pickles, relishes, jams and jellies, they've also got fresh duck and chicken eggs, beautiful pies, quiches and frittatas, fresh produce, maple syrup, honey, fresh ground horseradish.... I'm sure there is more, and they've got samples and stories to share with you as you shop.
Across from Gizmo's is Quayle with her beautiful and delicious handmade chocolates. Yum, yum, yum! She's has creative and decadent chocolates in many sizes and flavors to please the chocolate lover in your life. Her handmade peppermint patties are tingly and rich on the tongue. Her caramels melt in your mouth with their buttery depth. Her truffles are smooth and sophisticated in their flavor profiles. The artistry and pleasure she takes in her work is obvious in all of her creations.
So come on by and see what we've got.
Most of us will be in different places for summer markets, so if you miss us this Sunday, you'll be able to find us when you need us. I'll be at the Waterbury Market on Thursdays from 3-7, starting on May 21st and so will Storytime Bakers. Rick will be selling bread from his bookstore on Saturdays. Gizmo's will be in South Royalton, Waitsfield and Stowe. Whey Fed Pigs are available online and in Winooski on Sundays, and Quayle will be returning to chocolate making when the weather is cool enough to prevent her creations from melting.
And then when the summer is through, the winter market will reopen in Waitsfield on the Sunday after Thanksgiving. In the meantime, I wish all mothers, sisters and daughters a peaceful, safe and fulfilling Mother's Day.
In health,
Beki Auclair
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