Good morning!
Happy 4th of July to my American readers! I hope you are having a wonderful long weekend!!
I fully intended to post last night, however good intentions don’t always translate into actions! By the time Eric and I got back from the market, unpacked, cleaned up, had lunch it was 6pm and then we got a last minute invitation to go to a friend’s place for the night. But I am now here, rested up, and I have the Oakville Organic Farmer’s Market #3 recap!
The weather was finally sunny and hot, hot, hot! We were all hot and sticky before the market even started! I think between Eric, Karly, and I we must have drank a gallon of water.
Notice anything different here?
That would be a new canopy tent from Costco! Our other tent broke last Saturday after we got home from the market. We left it outside to dry out and the next day we went outside and it was in a heap on the driveway and poles were bent every which way. The rain had pooled on top and was just too much for the tent to take I guess. Mark my words, I will never buy a cheap tent again!
We headed to Costco and picked up the Ferrari of canopy tents! It is excellent quality, looks beautiful, and comes with 4 rain walls should we need them. Other vendors also commented that our tent felt cooler than other tents yesterday!
Empower is also hot, hot, hot.
For week #3 I sampled two new flavours in addition to our weekly Empower and Liberate samples- Classic and Present. Both flavours were a hit!
Present almost sold out!
GLO DOUGH!
I made a full tray this week and we sold every single one of them! I need to keep making more and more. I didn’t make chocolate macaroons this week because I ran out of my organic maple syrup.
They went fast!
Friday night I also made 10 Cherry, Banana, Coconut Butter Mini Loaves to sell at the market, but sadly I over-cooked them and they were too dry!
I froze the leftovers and I think Eric is going to take them to work this week. Next time, I will have to be careful not to overcook this bread. It was much better slightly undercooked than overcooked so please disregard my comments about it needing to cook longer….
We put out lots of mini Canadian flags for Canada Day weekend. Aren’t we festive!?
Some lovely blog readers came to visit me, including:
Daniela (left)…who has a connection to OSGMOM! Daniela was the winning bidder on OSGMOM”s purse that was up for auction in Shop 4 A Cause 2!! She is wearing the purse in the photo and she just loves the purse!
I also met another Angela (right) from Eat, Spin, Run, Repeat!
Week 3 was our best-selling week yet at the market. Empower continues to be our best-seller which is no surprise because it has always been a best-seller and we are also sampling it every week. Basically whatever we sample sells really well! The only flavour I don’t sample is Adore (s’more with homemade graham crackers) because that bar sells itself!
Our only complaint again about the market is that it starts late and finishes late (9:30am-2pm). At noon, it literally DIES off. I don’t even need to look at my watch because I know when it is noon because there are literally no people in sight.
Ninety-five percent of our sales occur between 9am-11am. I suspect everyone goes home to eat their garlic scapes at noon! I think that the market hours should be from 8am- 12:30. It is a bit frustrating standing there and not having any people walk by because I know we could be selling out every single bar if the market had more traffic. We also aren’t allowed to pack up early, so we basically just stand around and pass the last 2 hours with few customers. I think I might speak to the market director to see what her thoughts are about it…
I also did my ‘grocery shopping’ for the week!!!
I went back to the Baba-Link Organic Farm where I bought my Purslane last week. Pat is such a sweetheart! We have long talks about strange greens and Gooseberries.
Rainbow Chard…
Red kale and mixed greens…
Sugar peas…
Snow peas…
And some red!
I also went over to chat with Bob from The Fresh Veggies and I told him I had no idea what I bought last week! :lol: I think he was quite amused.
Those of you who guessed Fenugreek were correct!!! I guess I thought they said FENNEL but it was actually Fenugreek! Now I need to figure out how to eat it….
When Eric and I got home we both cracked open our favourite beer by Mill Street, Original Organic.
Sluuuurrrrrp! It felt so good on a hot day.
Then I made lunch featuring rainbow chard!
Despite how beautiful chard is, I have never been big on the flavour (or smell!). I figured I would give it another try to see if I could learn to appreciate it.
Into the skillet went chard, sweet potato, tomatoes, garlic scapes, green onion, sunflower oil, seasonings, sea salt, curry, etc.
When I cooked the chard I was reminded at how much I detest the smell of chard! Ewwwww.
I sprinkled it with my seedy glo dough crackers…
It looked beautiful!
However, sadly I had to choke this down. I am still not a fan of chard. It is so strange because I will literally eat ANY GREEN, but chard just doesn’t jive with me.
Luckily I had lots of spices and sea salt on it though so they helped mask the taste!
More energy later on…
Look what else I bought!
Yes that would be a delicious basil plant!
Sadly, the one I trans-planted did not make it (I should have left more stem on it and I clipped it too low!). I bought this basil plant from Clover Roads Organic Farm.
I told the farmers that it was likely I could kill their dear basil plant and they still trusted me and gave me a pep talk. Thanks Inge and John! I told them I will bring them a progress picture when it grows….gulp!! I dream of it growing so big that I will be eating copious amounts of basil on my sandwich every day just to keep up.
You can see the hope in my eyes! (I also think you can see the basil plant quivering with fear…)
I shall sing to it every day. I need a name for it though…
Thanks to Karly for the beautiful hanging flowers she gave me for my birthday last month! I am happy to say I did not kill them!
Today’s question: Are there any greens you refuse to eat and just can’t like the taste no matter how much you try them?
I’m off to bake an order and then Eric and I are off to the beach for an open-water swim. We have totally been slacking in the swim department, so hopefully it goes well. Have a great day!
Congratulations on doing so well at the market!!! You’re really talented to be able to make these creations and have them be an immediate success! All the photos of the flowers are absolutely gorgeous, too. :) And as for the questions, there’s no veggie I won’t try!
Good job on the Farmer’s Market – The mini loaves sound DELICIOUS! Isthere a recipe?
I think I’ve seen fenugreek seeds added to curries, if that helps you decide what to with it!?
Have a lovely evening :)
The mini loaves were made using my Cherry, Banana, Coconut Butter bread from last week :)
Your tent/booth at the market looks great. I love seeing what your doing and how things are going. I’m starting my own granola business and I’m hoping to be at a farmers market next summer. I need to get my commercial kitchen license in the next few months. Any tips for starting out? I have already learned so much from you.
Two words… dandelion greens.
For the life of me, I cannot choke those bitter green down!
First of all, you look gorgeous in those photos of you planting basil. Like, supermodel gorgeous!
In terms of greens, I used to hate ALL greens a few years ago. Now I love kale and spinach, but haven’t tried chard yet. I wanted too, but i’m not so sure now :S I hate stinky foods – blech :P
Glad the Farmers Market is going well. Once word starts to get round about your products you’ll just keep selling more and more; they seem awesome! Do you have to stay at the Market until closing, otherwise you could just pack up a bit early? Good luck with the open-water swim; you’re a braver lady than me!!!
I can’t believe you guys had to stand out there till 2 – Katie and I walked around for about an hour longer and by that time we were dying of the heat! You and Eric are troopers!
I was watching an episode of Bitchin Kitchen last night and the host (Nadia G) made ravioli with Swiss chard and portabella mushrooms… Swiss chard doesn’t normally get me very excited but it actually looked quite tasty in this recipe! If you want to have a look, check it out at http://bit.ly/c4wTjQ.
Congrats on your record sales yesterday. I’m trying to make my Empower and Adore bars last but may just have to make an online order soon! :)
I have never seen anyone look so fab while gardening. I love your purple shirt!
Glad to hear the market was another successful day. Hopefully the market hours can be changed either this year or next. Your logic makes perfect sense to me! Farmer’s market people are early risers.
It’s so hard for me to eat Kale! I wish that I would like it, but I don’t even like Kale Chips! I guess I’m just a kale failure ;)
Our farmer’s market back home runs from 9am – 1pm. 9:30 is the busiest time that I’ve noticed, too.
I’ve decided that I am going to try your Glo bars! I’m a poor student though so I’m saving some money this sumer for my back-to-school-shop and Glo bars are on the list. I am thinking about investing in a blender to make Green Monsters, too. I need to do more research on blenders though. ;)
I am so happy that you had so much success at the market! It looks like fun too. :D As for greens… I haven’t tried very many because I grew up on iceberg lettuce so I’m still slowly opening up my options. But arugula is a bit bitter I find.
I am surprised the farmers market has such late hours. I am in the US (Iowa) and literally every market here is from like 7-12 or 8-12. If I were you, I would first talk to some of the other vendors to see if they have suggested a time change and if they have noticed the huge drop in customers in relation to the time. Maybe next week keep track of the percentage of customers in relation to time so you have some info to actually show the market director? Seems a shame for you guys to stand around wasting your time :(
Right now the green that I’m scared of is kale. I keep seeing it all over the blog world and everyone seems to love it but I put it in a smoothie once and have been scared away ever since. I’ve been thinking of trying kale chips though because that seems to be able to convert people over!
I love reading your Farmer’s Market recaps! You look gorgeous in the photos and it’s so obvious you love what you’re doing. :)
I don’t think I’ll ever be able to enjoy brussels sprouts. They just taste awful.
Great pictures!
~Amanda
you should see if anyone is actually counting the people who attend the market. my friend runs a market in Millersville PA and she was busy last week counting the people. if you have solid data then you can approach the market director with it. i think you are doing a great job!
There aren’t many veggies that I won’t eat but I’m not a fan of arugula. I’m not a fan of the peppery taste!
Congratulations on all the farmer’s market success :)
I don’t know how you do it all – farmers’ market, baking, photography, feeding yourself amazing meals, blogging, exercising, love, inspiring – you are one HELL of a woman!
Oh, and the gardening picture of you – incredibly beautiful — glowing!!
Angela,
Try making chard this way: cut leaves off chard stems. Chop stems, along w/onion, and saute in olive oil (in a Dutch oven or other large pot – preferably w/heavy bottom so it’s less likely to burn). When they have softened (onions are nearly translucent), add garlic to taste. As soon as garlic is fragrant (30 seconds – 1 minute), add chard leaves (chopped into small pieces). Add vegetable broth (probably 1/2 – 1 cup — you don’t want too much liquid, and you can always add more) so that leaves are allowed to steam. Cover and let steam over low heat for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally and checking to see that there’s enough liquid.
While chard is cooking, toast pistachios (pine nuts also work well). When chard has cooked to desired doneness, add 1-2 T of frozen orange juice concentrate (to taste). Stir so it fully melts and incorporates into dish. Add dried cranberries and toasted pistachios. Eat, and enjoy.
If this preparation doesn’t make you love chard, then you may want to give up trying. :-) I think it’s the combination of so many different flavors (sweet, savory, salty, etc) that makes the slight bitterness of the chard work so well.
Diane,
I’m trying this recipe too! Sounds amazing.
Thanks so much!!
Congrats on another great day at the market. If I am ever out in the Oakville area on a Saturday I am definitely going to have to drop by!!
Hi Angela,
I have been a vegetarian for most of my life. My children would easily and gladly follow in my footsteps but my husband loves meat and won’t go without. I find meal planning to be overwhelming. Do you have any suggestions that would make it easier and make sure I get all my protein needs taken care of?
hi Amy!
I would suggest cooking huge batches of lentils/chickpeas/grains/beans on Sunday that will last for the entire week. That is what I do :) Helps save time!
Looks like another great week at the market! Congrats!