MARKET MUSINGS

August 14, 2013 · 0 Comments

By Jan Freedman

It’s now August at the Farmers’ Market and there’s not very much that the farmers don’t have yet on their tables.
There are leafy greens of every variety: cucumbers, onions, beets, zucchini, eggplant, beans both green and yellow, peas and edible pods, carrots in a range of colours, broccoli, cauliflower, several varieties of mushrooms, peppers of many types and lots of corn.
Come to the Market to see for yourself all the wonderful local produce that our farmers bring to us each week.
When it comes to fruit, there is a huge variety available now at the Market. We still have lots of late and ever-bearing strawberries, raspberries in several colours, each type with a unique flavour, blackberries, red and black currents, blueberries, plums, apricots, and peaches are now ready.
It is a season of plenty at the Market so be sure to visit us to have your choice of the freshest local produce. If you want a large quantity for preserving or baking, it would be best to come early in the day or to place an order with your favourite farmer to ensure that your choice will be available.
The next vendor I’d like you to meet is new to the outdoor Market this year and shares a booth with Nancy Wood of Heartsease Co. Eva Nagy of Design by Eva has been living in Aurora for nine years, having moved here after her husband died.
She has always been a busy person and still is.
She became involved in sewing for a few reasons. She had always loved to sew and finds it very relaxing, just as she does spending time with her variety of exotic birds. Another reason was because of necessity. She needed something to carry her jazzercise exercise mat in as well as a few other items. So, she took some fabric that she had on hand, designed a pattern and made herself a bag.
When her classmates saw it, she made some more for them to purchase. The possibilities were endless when it came to the choice of fabric textures and colours, it developed into an art project.
Realising that her bags were popular, she decided to start a small business doing what she loved to do. In addition to the mat bags, she created totes, shoe bags and bottle bags. She also designed and made some portfolio bags for artists to carry their artwork to shows and exhibitions.
One of her most popular items is her adorable small jewellery pouch, which sells so well that she has trouble keeping them in stock.
Although this is Eva’s first time as a vendor at the outdoor Market, she is loving being there and looking forward to the rest of the season. I recommend that you visit her booth to see the inventive and practical designs she creates.
Here is a delicious recipe from Eva which represents her Hungarian heritage.

GULASH SOUP
10 ½ oz. shank of beef
1 oz. lard
1 large onion
½ tsp. paprika
Salt to taste
½ tsp. caraway seeds
3-4 peppercorns
1 medium carrot cut in quarters
1 medium parsnip cut in quarters
1-2 sweet paprika peppers left whole
1 pound potatoes peeled

Cut the meat and potatoes into ¾ inch pieces. Stew the onion in lard over low heat until golden but not brown.
Remove the pot from the heat, add the paprika, salt, meat and 1 quart of water. Add the caraway seeds and peppercorns in a tea ball or cheesecloth bag for easy removal before serving. Return pot to low heat and simmer, adding the vegetables after 30 minutes. When the meat is nearly tender, another 30 minutes, add the potatoes. Then, when every ingredient is tender, the dish is done.
You can serve the soup immediately or reheat when required. You can serve some dried hot paprika on the side which may be crumbled into the soup to taste. Also, fresh white crusty bread is always served with this soup, which is often served in a small cauldron. Enjoy!

The Farmers Market would like to thank all the talented seniors from the Aurora Seniors Association who performed for us all last Saturday on Seniors’ Day at the Market. Special thanks to Charles Sequeira, our President, to Judy Buchanan who leads the Silver Stars performers, to Joy Gannicott who accompanied one of the singers and to Richard Heinzle, the Director of the Evergreen Choir, who played the piano to entertain us in the morning.
Of course, a huge thank you to all the talented performers and line dancers who were wonderful. Thank you also to the young band, One Percent, who played for the remainder of the market day.
See you at the Market!