The Weblog
Your Weekly Reminder to Order; Try Bruschetta!
Good evening to everyone within The Wednesday Market community.
The Market is open for ordering. Please remember to place your orders by 10 p.m. on Monday. Orders are ready for pick up between 3 and 6 p.m. on Wednesday. We are now in full swing with summer vegetables. Be sure to check the website for all of this week’s product offerings. Here is the link: http://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
I am writing to you from my Aunt Sharon Dean’s dining room table in Peachtree, North Carolina, just outside of Murphy. I don’t know how the weather has been at home, but here in western Carolina, it is sublime! Today was sunny and warm – but not too hot – with low humidity and a stunningly clear cobalt sky. The low temperature will dip into the mid-50s overnight, and more of the same is predicted for the next few days.
This evening, 17 family members and I sat down for an alfresco supper. Our menu consisted of grilled sweet corn, grilled eggplant (thanks Elise!), bruschetta made with heirloom tomatoes, freshly made hand-grated coleslaw, Mom’s potato salad (best in the whole world!), platters of sliced cucumbers, tomatoes, and sweet onions, Aunt Sharon’s homemade chili, my sister Teresa’s pickled cauliflower, and grilled hamburgers and hot dogs. We concluded our meal with ice cold watermelon and an assortment of pies: blueberry, cherry, apple, and bourbon pecan. Needless to say, we are all stuffed! What a pleasure today has been preparing our feast while visiting with my favorite kin!
Here is a quick and easy way to use up an abundance of tomatoes: make bruschetta. Dice several tomatoes; add a clove or two of minced fresh garlic, a splash of balsamic vinegar, and a pinch or two of salt. Kosher or sea salt, if you have some, makes this dish especially tasty. Finish with a chiffonade of basil. To chiffonade basil, take several large leaves off the stems, stack them one on top of each other, and roll up tightly along a long side. Make very thin parallel cuts until all of the basil has been cut. You should have a pile of deliciously fragrant basil “ribbons” when you finish. Scoop it all up and add it to the tomatoes. Stir gently, taste, and add more garlic, basil, or salt to suit your taste. Cover and let sit at room temperature for an hour or two – if you can wait that long! Slice a baguette or loaf of Italian bread on the bias, brush with olive oil, and grill until the bread is toasted and golden, turning once to make sure to toast the other side. Be careful and check the bread frequently so that you don’t make burnt toast! Top the grilled bread with a tablespoon or two of the tomato-garlic-basil mixture and enjoy!
As always, we thank our customers and farmers for your commitment to our Market. We appreciate your support of the buy-local movement, and we’ll see you on Wednesday.
Thanks,
Beverly
Red, White, and Blue for The Fourth; The Market is Open!
Good evening to The Wednesday Market community. We hope you are having a great weekend!
The Wednesday Market is open. Please place your orders by 10 p.m. on Monday. Orders are ready for pick up on Wednesday between 3 and 6 p.m. Be sure to check the website for all of this week’s product listings. Here is the link: http://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
As we prepare to turn the calendar page from June to July, many of us are packing up to leave town for a long holiday weekend over the Fourth of July. And if we aren’t leaving, then we are at least contemplating how to celebrate our nation’s Independence Day. Most of our celebrations will include a cook-out or a meal. What’s on your menu?
At the Walter house, we like to prepare a grilled supper for the Fourth. Joe will put a brisket in the smoker, and I’ll prepare vegetable skewers. We like grilled onion, squash, zucchini, mushrooms, bell peppers, and cherry tomatoes.
Lifestyle magazines are full of glossy photographs of recipes featuring red, white, and blue fruits and vegetables to carry out a patriotic party theme. How about watermelon and tomato salad, potato salad, or blueberry and strawberry trifle? Flag cake, anyone? Or, are hamburgers and hot dogs more your style? Just Google the Internet for “Fourth of July Foods” and you’ll find a plethora of ideas to inspire you.
Whatever strikes your fancy, you are sure to find many of the items you need for your Fourth of July party right here at The Wednesday Market. We have blueberries – that’s for sure! And potatoes for potato salad. And Angel Food Cake and Sour Cream Pound Cake for trifle. And wonderfully rich cream to whip or turn into ice cream. And, the list of possibilities goes on and on!
Thank you for supporting locally grown agriculture and for choosing to buy locally. We’ll see you on Wednesday.
Thanks,
Beverly
Weblog Entry
Good evening. The Wednesday Market is open. Remember to place your order by 10 p.m. Monday. Orders are ready for pick up Wednesday between 3 and 6 p.m. Please check the website for all of this week’s product selections. Here is the link: http://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
Blueberry season has arrived! I wanted to share a blueberry recipe this week to inspire you with ways to use these healthy little berries. A search of the Internet yielded thousands of recipes, and before I knew what happened, I was in over my head trying to choose just one recipe! How about some tips on choosing and handling blueberries, instead?
Blueberry Tips:
- How many cups of blueberries to make a pint? 2 cups.
- Best way to store them when fresh? Keep them unwashed and refrigerated. Wash in cold water before eating. If you wash them before storing in the refrigerator, they can get soggy and waterlogged.
- How to freeze them: Freeze in a single layer on a cookie sheet then pack in freezer containers or bags (this way they won’t freeze into a solid mass or block). You can also sugar pack them.
- Baking with frozen berries: Don’t thaw first (unless recipe instructs otherwise), keep them frozen when adding to batter and their color will bleed less in the final baked product. Also add a bit of thickener like flour or tapioca so it will combat any excessive juice the berries provide when thawed as they are being baked (will also help keep juice from boiling over).
- Baking with fresh berries: Toss them in flour first before adding to batter; this will help prevent them from sinking to the bottom during baking.
- Avoid soggy crusts when baking them in pies: Sprinkle the bottom of the crust with flour before adding berries; also, drain off any excess juice before pouring into the pie shell.
- Discoloration in baking: Do you know why blueberries can discolor baking a funky green in the area surrounding them? This is caused by a reaction they have with baking soda.
- What to look for when buying fresh: Look for excessive juice stains around or underneath the packaging, this is an indicator that they are too ripe.
- Are they overripe? Here’s a fix: Arrange them on a cookie sheet in a single layer and freeze for about 20 minutes until they firm up, eat right away or use in baking.
- Removing stains from hands: It never fails that your hands get stained when working with them. Try rubbing hands with a bit of fresh lemon juice before washing with soap and water.
And, now, here is a bonus for those of you who have read all of this post. Check out this link for “100+ Things to Make with Blueberries”: http://tipnut.com/make-blueberries/
Last week was another record-breaking week for The Wednesday Market in terms of sales. We thank our customers for being so loyal, and we thank our growers, producers, and vendors for providing so many quality products to choose from – week in, week out – all year long!
We’ll see you on Wednesday!
Thanks,
Beverly
Time to Order
Good afternoon, and Happy Father’s Day to all of you Dads out there!
The Wednesday Market is open. Please place your order by 10 p.m. on Monday. Orders are ready for pick up on Wednesday between 3 and 6 p.m. Be sure to visit the Market website to see all of this week’s product offerings. Here is the link: http://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
Several customers told us last week that they never received notice that the Market was open for orders. We don’t really know what happened! Technology is great – when everything works. I wrote and posted the weblog, as I always do, last weekend, but apparently the e-blast went into Never-Never-Land. Anyway, rest assured that even if you do not get a notification, the system will ALWAYS be on for ordering no later than Sunday morning. You can type Wednesday Market into Google to bring up the website and do your ordering from there. If you forget your username, please don’t make another account. Just shoot us an e-mail, and we’ll help you get back on track.
Here is what I wrote in last week’s blog. If you are one of the few who may have received it last week, please pardon the repeat:
Summer vegetables are coming in. Broccoli, cucumbers, green beans, peas, squash, and zucchini have all arrived, and tomatoes should be ready soon!
Whenever I think about vegetable gardening, I can’t help but think of my grandparents: Grandma and Grandpa Dean and Mamaw and Papaw Pickelsimer, all of whom lived in Fannin County, Georgia. Grandma’s garden had tomatoes, asparagus, and potatoes. Papaw’s garden had squash and green beans. And, although I can’t remember whose garden they came from, we had corn and okra, too. All of them were fabulous gardeners, probably more from necessity than by choice, but when they had more produce than they needed or wanted for themselves, friends and neighbors were bestowed with the extras.
Oh, the meals we consumed at their tables! Fried squash, fried okra, sliced tomatoes, green beans, mashed potatoes, cornbread, and biscuits were regular fare in both households. The food was not fancy, but it sure was fresh and bounteous, and tasted so good, especially when we washed it all down with milk from Papaw’s cows.
Even as they aged, Mamaw and Papaw continued to plant sizable gardens, and when we were teenagers, my sister Sharon and I would be sent to North Georgia to help them “put up” the garden. Mamaw’s specialty was canning green beans. Lord have mercy, one summer we processed so many green beans that our fingers were calloused from all the work of stringing and snapping! At the time, I didn’t think I ever wanted to eat green beans again.
Thankfully, my parents have continued the planting tradition. Mama’s garden is now in bloom, full of white half-runner green beans, elegantly staked and strung by my Dad and brother Jeremy. The tomatoes are blooming, too. Hills of squash and cucumbers, along with rows of corn and okra, and a pepper plant or two round out this year’s spread.
With any luck, Mama and I will soon be in the kitchen, “putting up” vegetables, just like the old folks taught us. Thank you, Grandma and Grandpa and Mamaw and Papaw, for teaching us to grow our own food.
And, thank you to our farmers at The Wednesday Market for providing a bounteous harvest for us all! We will see you on Wednesday.
Thanks,
Beverly
Time to Order; Musings of a Thankful Granddaughter
Good evening to everyone within The Wednesday Market community. We hope you all survived the ferocious thunder and lightning storms of the past couple of days. Note to Mother Nature: Thank you for the rain, but PLEASE spare us the lightning!
The Wednesday Market is open. Please place your order by 10 p.m. on Monday. Orders are ready for pick up on Wednesday between 3 and 6 p.m. Be sure to visit the Market website to see all of this week’s product offerings. Here is the link: http://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
Summer vegetables are coming in. Broccoli, cucumbers, green beans, peas, squash, and zucchini have all arrived, and tomatoes should be ready soon!
Whenever I think about vegetable gardening, I can’t help but think of my grandparents: Grandma and Grandpa Dean and Mamaw and Papaw Pickelsimer, all of whom lived in Fannin County, Georgia. Grandma’s garden had tomatoes, asparagus, and potatoes. Papaw’s garden had squash and green beans. And, although I can’t remember whose garden they came from, we had corn and okra, too. All of them were fabulous gardeners, probably more from necessity than by choice, but when they had more produce than they needed or wanted for themselves, friends and neighbors were bestowed with the extras.
Oh, the meals we consumed at their tables! Fried squash, fried okra, sliced tomatoes, green beans, mashed potatoes, cornbread, and biscuits were regular fare in both households. The food was not fancy, but it sure was fresh and bounteous, and tasted so good, especially when we washed it all down with milk from Papaw’s cows.
Even as they aged, Mamaw and Papaw continued to plant sizable gardens, and when we were teenagers, my sister Sharon and I would be sent to North Georgia to help them “put up” the garden. Mamaw’s specialty was canning green beans. Lord have mercy, one summer we processed so many green beans that our fingers were calloused from all the work of stringing and snapping! At the time, I didn’t think I ever wanted to eat green beans again.
Thankfully, my parents have continued the planting tradition. Mama’s garden is now in bloom, full of white half-runner green beans, elegantly staked and strung by my Dad and brother Jeremy. The tomatoes are blooming, too. Hills of squash and cucumbers, along with rows of corn and okra, and a pepper plant or two round out this year’s spread.
With any luck, Mama and I will soon be in the kitchen, “putting up” vegetables, just like the old folks taught us. Thank you, Grandma and Grandpa and Mamaw and Papaw, for teaching us to grow our own food.
And, thank you to our farmers at The Wednesday Market for providing a bounteous harvest for us all! We will see you on Wednesday.
Thanks,
Beverly
The Market is Open; Farewell to a Friend
The Wednesday Market is open for orders. Please place your orders by 10 p.m. Monday. Orders are ready for pick up on Wednesday between 3 and 6 p.m. Please see the website for all of this week’s offerings. Here is the link: http://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
Concord Street Sweets products are not listed on the Market this week because the ladies have an early morning appointment out of town on Wednesday, June 4. All is not lost, however; they plan to set up a table Wednesday afternoon at the Market with a variety of their best-selling goods. Please plan to stop by and make your purchases in person.
Our market continues to grow each week with new customers and new product offerings. We thank you for your loyalty in supporting locally grown agriculture and for your interest in buying locally. As the volume of customers and products increase, we ask that you be patient with us in matters of checking in by vendors and checking out by customers. Sometimes our little building gets so crowded, especially on days when everyone comes all at once, and people have to stand in line and wait. Also, with people going and coming, parking can get crowded. Please know that we are here to serve everyone as efficiently as possible.
We would also like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the contributions of Brenda Fayard, a Wednesday Market volunteer manager extraordinaire and dear friend. Many of you may not even be aware of all of the ways that Brenda has worked to keep the Market going, as she likes to work quietly behind the scenes! She was instrumental in the founding of the Market and has been the main point of contact for our growers, producers, vendors and customers throughout the past three years. Brenda is “retiring” as a market manager as of mid-June. She will continue to participate in the Market as a grower – Blueberry Hill Farm – but is stepping away from her managerial duties. Please join me and my fellow market managers and volunteers in celebrating our friend Brenda’s service, not only to The Wednesday Market community, but to Pike County in general. Brenda, we love you!
And to our customers, we’ll see you Wednesday at the Market!
Beverly
The Market is Open
Good morning. We hope you are having a great weekend.
The Market is open. Place your order by Monday at 10 p.m. Orders are available for pick up Wednesday between 3 and 6 p.m. Check the we site for this week’s product offerings. Here is the link: http://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
Enjoy the rest of this holiday weekend. We’ll see you Wednesday at the Market!
Thanks,
Beverly
Place Your Orders
The Wednesday Market is open for orders! Please place your orders by 10 p.m. Monday. Orders are ready for pick-up between 3:30 and 6 p.m. on Wednesday. Be sure to check the website for all of this week’s offerings. Here is the link: http://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
The bakers at Concord Street Sweets are back this week with all of their wholesome breads and delectable treats.
We hope you have an opportunity to get out and enjoy today’s pretty weather. As for the four of us Walters – we are heading out to a soccer tournament.
Have a great day, and we’ll see you at the Market on Wednesday.
Thanks,
Beverly
Happy Mother's Day from The Wednesday Market
Good afternoon and Happy Mother’s Day!
The Market is open. Please place your orders by 10 p.m. on Monday. Orders are ready for pick up on Wednesday between 3:30 and 6 p.m. Be sure to check the website for all of this week’s product offerings. Here is the link: http://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
Concord Street Sweets is taking the week off from the Market. Look for their products to be back soon.
We hope everyone has a great day, and thank you for supporting locally grown agriculture and for choosing to buy locally.
Thanks,
Beverly
May is National Strawberry Month; the Market is Open!
Good evening to everyone. The Wednesday Market is open for orders. Please place your order by Monday at 10 p.m. Orders are ready for pick up on Wednesday between 3:30 and 6 p.m. See the website for a complete listing of this week’s product offerings. Here is the link: http://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
It’s May, and that means it is National Strawberry Month! Have you ever gone to a “pick-your-own” strawberry farm? My mother and I have taken my boys strawberry picking a couple of times and it was lots of fun. The children marveled at the discovery of fat, shiny red berries peeking out beneath the broad leaves of the strawberry plants. They wanted to eat the berries as soon as they plucked them off the stems.
I have fond memories of helping my grandmother pick strawberries from the patch in her backyard. As family stories go, one day I got hold of a very stubborn strawberry that refused to be picked. Turns out it wasn’t a berry at all – it was Grandma’s big toe, with a red-painted toe nail!
We at The Wednesday Market are fortunate to have several strawberry farmers in our midst. Strawberry season doesn’t last forever, so be sure to enjoy them as much as possible in the next few weeks.
Ask my son Charlie what his favorite flavor of ice cream is, and he will answer “strawberry” every time, and last year for his birthday, he requested a strawberry cake. Here is a recipe for Strawberry Lemonade that I’ll bet you’ll enjoy as much as my boys do!
Strawberry Lemonade
Ingredients:
2 cups water
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
1 cup fresh lemon juice
1 pint fresh strawberries, hulled and halved
2 cups cold sparkling water or club soda
Ice
Mint sprigs, garnish
Whole strawberries, garnish
Directions:
In a medium saucepan, bring the water and sugar to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves. Add the lemon peel and lemon juice, stir, and remove from the heat. Let cool completely, then strain into a clean pitcher.
In a blender, puree the pint of strawberries and add to the pitcher with the lemon juice. Stir well to combine and refrigerate until well chilled.
Add the sparkling water and stir well. Pour over glasses filled with ice and serve, garnished with mint and strawberries.
Source: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/strawberry-lemonade-recipe.html
Have a great Sunday, and we’ll see you on Wednesday at the Market!
Thanks,
Beverly