(Field out back of the barns, near the manure pit.)The corn is up out of the ground in most of our fields, in spite of frost, flooding, windy conditions, and cool daytime temperatures. My husband Dan is searching the weather reports for a few dry days in a row to cut the alfalfa. The darkness and daily wind shears are starting to get me down, since they make biking such a dicey proposition.
(Dan, getting things ready before market starts.)Our fourth farmers' market Saturday in City Hall Park was coupled with a Ben and Jerry ice cream give-away. Nothing packs a public space like an offer of free dessert, no matter how close to 50 degrees the thermometer might hover.
(Before B & J arrive.)
(After B & J arrive.)
They were promoting a new product: "flipped out!" single-serving vanilla fudge brownie sundaes. The B&J crew even sent a worker around to distribute sundaes to the vendors who couldn't leave their booths to cross the park for a nosh!
How nice was that? Too bad Dan missed out; he was in line at the opposite end of the park getting a pulled pork sandwich from Island Barbeque.
The sun peeked out a few times and there was a short, light rain, but that didn't hinder shoppers, tourists, or news crews from venturing out. Channel 3's Keagan Harsha did a piece on Burlington Farmers' Market (BFM) as one of the sixteen markets in Vermont that currently accept food stamp debit cards for EBT (electronic balance transfer) withdrawals. I think he didn't mention this tidbit: anyone who forgets to bring cash or checks can use their debit card to buy wooden tokens that all vendors accept as currency.
This story came a week after Eva Sollberger did a piece on BFM, which is available for viewing on the Seven Days website www.7dvt.com in the "Stuck in Vermont" section. Check it out if you can - I get to have a few (very few) words.
The big surprise this week was that strawberries were available! I couldn't believe it. There's snow on Jay Peak, hail on the porch, and berries in B-town at the same time. I suppose that I shouldn't be surprised since so many of the vendors have greenhouses that advance and extend the growing season.
Savvy shoppers come early to get those items like berries or those dark red beets with flesh that looks like ribbon candy, or to have first crack at crops making their first appearance, like Hon Tsai Tai.
This Chinese brassica has green leaves and thin purple stems that can be used for stir-fry or salads. I'd never heard of it before, and had to write down how to spell it after calling it "that broccoli-stuff" for two weeks.
At the Boucher booth, beef skirt and flank have sold out; eggs, sausages, and cheeses are doing as well as they usually do.
Bacon is always a slow go before tomatoes come around, but that should be picking up soon, especially if growers are using greenhouses - I mean, if there are strawberries in May, can tomatoes be far behind?
