On Saturday I had the rare opportunity to have some alone time at the farmers market. Since I was heading to the sale at Garden House on my way back I decided to try a market I haven’t been to in a while. I headed south to the Kalmazoo Farmers Market. I forgot how absolutely lovely it is! I haven’t been there (sadly) since before Otto was born because I always head north to Fulton St. or west to Holland. This was a nice change of scenery and it reminds me that each farmers market in the area has it’s own vibe. The Kalamazoo market was so laid back but also had all of the proper covid precautions in place. The market starts at 7am and I was there around 830. I waited in line maybe 10 minutes before I was able to shop because they were limited the amount of people at one time for social distancing purposes. The market is set in a square U shape and has a few vendors in the middle.
I resisted the urge to buy yet another fig tree because I still have two to plant that need a home. These were varieties also that need to come inside every winter and with my luck I would totally forget about them. I did however stock up on cheese from The Cheese People. I bought a brie with blue cheese, an Apricot brie, A gruyere and soft chevre. I also stocked up on
- currents
- black cherries
- black apricots
- sweet corn
- candy onions
- raspberries
- blueberries
- garlic scapes
most of these ingredients went into the corn and burrata dip I made over the weekend and it was phenomenal.
The thing I really enjoyed about this market was it had a touch of the city to it. It was nestled near the downtown and everyone was so laid back and kind. Masked up and happy to just be there. The farmers were proud and chatty about what they had to offer and I was on no schedule to move fast. It was just really enjoyable and so relaxing.
After the market I had a few minutes to kill so I drove to Fido Motors Coffee which is about 2 minutes up the road. Another place I last visited while pregnant with Otto. They make an amazing iced vanilla latte with almond milk. It was the perfect end to a perfect morning. As much as I love my family it is nice to have some quiet time to myself and really soak up a hot summer morning at the market. We stayed home and cooked the rest of the weekend just enjoying the farm and all the snacks we made.
Have you been visiting the local farmers markets yet? What has been your new favorite discovery?
