Julia Babinat, Tama County Farm Bureau vice president and public relations officer, and Dawn Kupka, Toledo Farmers Market Master, present bags to Jennifer and Caryn Nieland, for their use as market vendors. The Iowa Farmers Market Association and Farm Bureau have formed a partnership this year. Chronicle/John Speer

Market Report for June 13, 2014

Friday the 13th didn’t stop the vendors at the Toledo Farmers Market.

Kristi had her table full of tea rings, kolaches, rohlicky, cinnamon, and caramel rolls, pies, cookies, bars, and breads. Devin and Mason had asparagus, radishes, green onions, jelly, and perennial plants. Darold had turnips, mustard greens, spinach, and green onions. Dale, was back with his honey, honey stix, bees wax candles and pollen. Chuck and Ginger had kohlrabi, spinach, red lettuce, beets, popcorn, green onions, eggs, breads, pies, and dried pepper powder. Dawn brought green onions, rhubarb, cat nip, rosemary, thyme, lemon thyme, cilantro, jams, and bars. Sheryl had ceramics, homemade scrubbies, towel sets, hankie dolls, and potholders. Jim was back with his homemade leather goods. Shirley, Freddie, and Michael brought rohlicky, kolaches, noodles, cookies, and buchty.

Karen had her soy candles and soy candle products. Those Nieland girls had eggs, and a few plants along with good conversion. Kathy’s grand kids, Madi, Kate, Natalie, Olivia, and Josh ran grandma’s table for her. They had a large assortment of cinnamon rolls, nut coils, cookies, and bars. Next week they will be bringing some new recipes. Nina had fudge, pies, cookies, and breads. Will and Thea had their soy candles along with hair bows, rubber ducky soaps, and beautiful Patriotic wreaths. Red Earth Gardens had lettuce, kale, kohlrabi, radishes, spinach, and some plants.

As you can see our market is growing each week. Next week we will have a new vendor. Be sure to come and check everything out on Fridays from 5-7 p.m. on the east side of the courthouse.

There was a photo taken at market this week of Julia Babinat and myself handing out Farm Bureau bags to vendors. The Iowa Farmers Market Association has formed a partnership with Farm Bureau in West Des Moines.

At the IFMA conference held in February in Des Moines, IFMA handed out boxes of bags to the markets that attended the conference. Those bags were to be distributed to the vendors of their markets. A big THANK-YOU goes out the Farm Bureau and the Iowa Farmers Market Association for the bags. The vendors appreciated them very much.

Jennifer with Red Earth Gardens brought her camping stove and made samples for customers to try. She made a salad out of red lettuce, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper, and a squirt of honey. This was delicious. Jennifer also made a kale stir fry mix. The recipe is as follows,

KALE WITH CARAMELIZED ONION

2 teaspoons olive oil, 1 1/2 cups chopped red onion, 2 teaspoons honey, 3/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, 1 (10 ounce) bag of prewashed chopped kale. Heat oil in a large dutch oven over medium high heat. Add onion, saut 7 minutes or until golden. Add honey, salt, and pepper and cook 2 minutes. Add kale, cover reduce heat to medium low and cook 6 minutes or just until kale is tender, stirring after 3 minutes.

Be sure to come to the Toledo Farmers Market and purchase your kale today. See you at market.