Tag: shrubs

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Winter Farmer’s Market Finds

Did you know that there is an indoor winter Farmer’s Market in Carbondale? You can find a great variety of local food and products on Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Carbondale Community Farmer’s Market. The market is located in the movie theater entrance of University Mall. It runs from December through March and makes it a bit easier to still get fresh, local produce, dairy and meat products. There are wonderful locally made food products, baked goods, and beverages as well as handcrafted and artisan items.

You can enjoy local musicians as you shop, and there is a Kids Club with a different activity each week. On January 27, there is a cooking demonstration, and February 2 is the yearly seed swap. Ellen Esling, CCFM Indoor Market Manager, does a wonderful job with the weekly event.

Fresh Local Produce

My new favorite product by Glaciers End is the Winter Solctice Shrub. (A shrub is a drinking vinegar that has been used by many generations as a beverage. ) Although some people drink it by itself, I prefer adding a little splash to a glass of ice and seltzer water (or club soda) for a refreshing drink. I’ve also used their shrubs in marinades and vinaigrettes. Glaciers End is usually at the Winter market.

Glaciers End
Winter Solctice in Seltzer Water

If you like mushrooms, Flyway Family Farms has a wonderful selection of gourmet mushrooms. Although I tend to like the shiitaki or gourmet mix, I recently used their Black King Oyster mushrooms in a vegetarian stir fry. A great way to try a variety is with the Gourmet Mix.

Flyway Family Farms

Black King Oyster Mushroom Stir Fry

You can usually find lettuce and salad mixes at the winter market. Kale is one of favorites. If you like zuppa toscana, kale is one of its ingredients.

Kale

Those with a sweet tooth can find a variety of wonderful treats.

Get Dipped’s Vanilla Cream Pie
Eagle Point Emporium’s Freeze Dried Candy

You can also shop for great gifts or yourself!)

Eco Friendly Makeup Remover Pads

Beautiful Gourds and Dream Catchers
Lapis and Blue Lace Agate Earrings
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Farmer’s Market Finds

As you’ve likely heard before, farmer’s markets are a great local shopping adventure. Some are practically one stop for your grocery needs. Even in winter months, the Carbobdale area is blessed to have a couple of farmer’s market options. The Community Farmer’s Market is open December through March from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on the movie theater wing of the University Mall at Carbobdale. L.E.A.F. Food Hub is an online farmer’s market with pick up locations in Carbondale, DuQuoin, Carterville, Marion, Herrin, Cobden, and Tunnel Hill. Some home delivery is available.

Macarons

Carbondale Community Farmer’s Market

Herbal Teas by Mustard Seed Sowers. My favorite is the Holy Basil. Licorice Mint is also good. My daughter loves the Chocolate Mint.

Honey & Shrooms has local honey and beeswax.

Glacier’s End has many wonderful shrubs and products like hickory and elderberry syrups. The Mexican Mocha Hot Sauce is wonderful. Cordials such as their Honeysuckle are great additions to drinks.

Honeysuckle Cordial complements the flavors in a homemade sparkling raspberry spritzer.
A large variety of bison products are available.

If you have SNAP/Link, it can be used to double your buying power on eligible food products at the Farmer’s Market

If you have stayed away from Farmer’s Markets because you are concerned about prices, I can tell you that there are various price points. Some gourmet local items may run a bit more than you would spend but can be used sparingly to add flare to your dishes. Many things really don’t seem any higher than national chain store prices. For example, I actually paid less for cube steak at the Farmer’s Market than I would have paid at the larger chain store. Actually, there was a better variety of meat available at the farmers market than at the chain store . Please keep in mind that if you can’t find something on bare shelves at a larger store, you might find an even better local product through one of the local markets or stores.

Flyway Family Farms has a great variety of mushrooms like shiitake, oyster, and lion’s mane. They also have seasonings and Mushroom Jerky.

Warm potato and green bean salad made with a vinaigrette containing Glacier’s End’s Apple Butter Ginger Shrub. The Shrub helped to add a bit of acidity to the vinaigrette while echoing the freshly grated ginger root.

Gallo Pinto (Costa Rica’s national breakfast dish) made with brown rice by Cahokia Rice. They also have white rice. Both are available through L.E.A.F. Food Hub.

Baked Vegetable “Stir Fry” with shiitaki mushrooms from Flyway Family Farms.

Marinated shiitaki mushrooms (Flyway Family Farm) and chicken kabobs on Rosemary BBQ Skewers from Flora Bay Farm

Carbondale Community Farmer’s Market

L.E.A.F. Food Hub goodies delivered to our home.

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Watermelon radish from River to River Farm and Basil Microgreens from Autumn Ridge Farm kick this salsa garnish up a bit. Both were ordered through L.E.A.F. Food Hub.

Big Muddy Hogs in Hurst also carries many local items, such as bread from Baked on Division and Steam Shovel Coffee. They are located at 300 Adams Street. Many of the local farms and vendors give product updates and advise where you may find their products on Facebook and Instagram.

Links:

Big Muddy Hogs https://www.facebook.com/BigMuddyHogs/

Carbondale Community Farmer’s Market https://www.facebook.com/communityfarmersmarket/ http://www.carbondalemarket.com/

L.E.A.F. Food Hub https://www.facebook.com/LEAFFoodHub/ https://www.leaffoodhub.com/

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Shrub Tasting

No, I wasn’t out chomping on landscape. Instead, I tried The Burning Bushes Shrub, one of the drinking vinegars, from Glacier’s End. I purchased some earlier in the season from them at The Marion Farmer’s Market. I had tried earlier in the year to get some at the Winter Farmer’s Market (Carbondale Community Farmer’s Market) in Carbondale, but it was always sold out by the time I made it to the high school to shop. That told me it MUST be good!

First, I mixed up a quick marinade for boneless pork chops and added about a tablespoon of the Shrub to it before I dried them off and breaded them…

Then I added a aplash to a vinaigrette for watermelon and arugula salad.

I threw it all together, drizzled on some marinade made by shaking it in a jar with some olive oil, salt, and pepper. Then I tossed it  together with pieces of seeded watermelon, arugula, and queso blanco.  (Goat cheese, cotija, or feta would also have been good…) I would like to have added a bit of mint chiffonade for another layer of flavor, but I didn’t want to go out and pick it at the time…

I also mixed a healthy splash with some chilled club soda.

It was pretty refreshing. I decided I might like to add a bit of simple syrup for a bit of sweetness, but it was still good without it.  Adding a bit of white wine would probably work well too.

The Burning Bushes Shrub is a combination of elderberry, honeysuckle, strawberry, cayenne, and galangal.  I want to try Pearapple Rain next.  They actually make a variety of shrubs with unique combinations.

Links: 

https://glaciersend.com/

https://www.facebook.com/glaciersend/

You may wish to check the Glacier’s End Facebook page for updates and info on where to find the products. 

https://www.facebook.com/Marion-Farmers-Market-129111570446441/

http://www.carbondalemarket.com/

Please note that at this time, a new location for the winter market has not yet been announced. They cannot meet at the high school due to COVID-19 restrictions, but per their website, they still plan to return in December.

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Mystery Solved: Those Pretty Pink Succulents

During my trip to the Marion Farmer’s Market this morning, I looked at all of the pretty succulents at The Potager Garden’s booth. I noticed that some had some pink on them.

Recently, there have been photos circulating on social media of gorgeous pink succulents. Friends and I have been trying to locate some. Searches have not really netted any results.

I decided to ask if there were succulents that just came pink, or if they could turn pink. Since I’ve bought several plants from The Potager Garden, I knew that the Christiansons were very knowledgeable of their plants and would have an answer. They did not let me down. Justin explained that sometimes succulents can get a bit of a sunburn that makes them pink. It doesn’t hurt the plant, but its color changes. The extra sun is necessary to “stress” the plant. I was assured that this type of “stress” is not hurting it though. Succulents with color beyond the basic green require more light to maintain vibrant. Otherwise, their color can revert back to green.

I decided to get a Pencil Cactus. Actually, I’ve wanted to get another since I lost my large one several years ago. I had one that grew to be a couple feet tall from a start my sweet cousin had given me on a trip to see family in Louisiana years ago. I was sad when I lost it.

In addition to the Pencil Cactus, I found some lemongrass and lavender–both for culinary purposes as well as the garden.

Unfortunately, I didn’t arrive in time to make it to every booth. Since we are still under many COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, what should have been a five minute ATM visit at the bank took about half an hour because the cars in line for the other lanes had blocked the ATM lane…

I was able to pick up some Burning Bushes Shrub, one of the specialty flavored drinking vinegars, from Glacier’s End. Although they had just sold their last container of coffee steak rub, I was happy to find Volcan, Costa Rican coffee beans, at Cold Blooded Coffee Co. Their lemonade was delicious too! It was much appreciated after walking around in a hot face mask/bandana. Even on a cooler day, those masks can really warm a person up quite a bit…