MARKET MUSINGS

November 11, 2015 · 0 Comments

By Jan Freedman

As you probably know, the outdoor season of the Aurora Farmers’ Market and Artisan Fair has ended and now we move indoors to the Armouries on the second Saturday of each month, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. There will be more about our first indoor market later in the column.
The end of the outdoor season was timely given that we do not have any more vendor biographies for this year, until we accept some new vendors. Therefore, in place of a biography, we will present an interesting recipe.

SEASONAL FRUIT LEATHER
8 cups of fruit, such as berries, apples, pears, peaches or plums
1 cup water
Sugar to taste
Lemon juice to taste
Spices such as cinnamon or vanilla or any others that appeal to you
Rinse the fruit and remove any branches or leaves. Chop and remove pits and seeds
In a large saucepan over medium heat, bring water and fruit to a simmer. Reduce heat, cover and let simmer 10-15 minutes, until fruit has softened. Uncover and mash the fruit in the pan. Taste and add sugar and lemon juice if necessary. Add sugar 1 TBSP. at a time and lemon juice 1 tsp. at a time. Add any spices that go well with the fruit you are using (try using cardamom with apples for a Swedish flavor profile). Simmer the mixture until it has started to thicken – about 5-10 minutes.
Puree the mixture in a food processor. Taste again and adjust the sugar or lemon juice and spices. Pour the mixture onto a large baking sheet with a rim to a thickness of 1/8-1/4 inch.
Preheat the oven to its lowest setting-around 140F. Place the baking sheet in the oven. For conventional ovens, prop open the door about 1 inch to allow airflow.
For a convection oven, use the convection setting as it will dry the fruit leather more quickly. There is no need to prop the door open on a convection oven as the air will circulate by itself.
Allow the fruit leather to dry in the oven until it no longer runs when the pan is tipped and a knife doesn’t slide into it easily. This will take anywhere from 8-24 hours.
Peel the fruit leather off the baking sheet, cut into strips and roll up in parchment paper. Store in airtight containers, such as glass jars, in the cupboard for several weeks or in the freezer for a year or more. ENJOY!

The first indoor market will be on Saturday, November 14 at the Armoury located at 89 Mosley Street. These are most of the vendors you can expect to find at the first indoor market, keeping in mind that there are sometimes last minute cancellations that are beyond our control. Also, there may be a few additions to the list between now and Saturday:
Andy of 19th Avenue Farm, Warren and his beef from Abbott Family Farm, Peter from Oakridges Finest , John of Pefferlaw Creek Farm with his Ontario Maple Syrup, and Andre’s Pioneer Brand Honey products will be available at 19th Avenue Farm on this date, but Andre himself will be at all subsequent indoor markets.
Among the food vendors, you can expect to find Cathy of Catharina’s Kitchen with her cookies, scones and loaves and sometimes pies, Cosmo’s Smoked Meats, Gabriel’s Café with his famous back bacon sandwiches, Tricia of Green River Coffee, Jan’s Country Pantry with preserves and homemade chili, Megan of Nutmeg Bake Shop and her tarts, cookies, squares and scones, and Sasha’s Sweets with fudge, lollipops and dog treats.
The artisans will include Anne of Eurasia Jewellery Design and her stone and bead bracelets and pendants, Nancy Wood of Heartsease Co. and her fabric bags, Victoria of Green Leaf Designs with her one of a kind jewelry, Eva Nagy and her fabric bags, mats and jewelry bags, Kim of Kibo Natural Body Care products with her natural soaps, lotions and shampoos, Lucy of Limitless Jewels and her sterling silver jewelry and Sue of SDD Flags with her handmade flags and banners.
There will be music by Aaron Morris, a craft table for the children and lots to see as well as something tasty to eat on Saturday so plan to drop by for a visit and be sure to place any orders for items you need for Christmas, as we have one more indoor market before Christmas on Saturday, December 12.