Opening Day at the 2017 Mill City Farmers Market
Sunday, May 7, 2017 at 6:33PMDave and I were only able to take in the first hour of opening day, but we packed in as much as possible in that short period of time!
Welcome and Thank You to this seasons Mill City Cooks sponsor, Lakewinds Food Co-op. Jill Holter and Mary Jacobs provided shoppers with reusable totes. Look for a separate post about Lakewinds on our Farmers Market blog in the near future.
Some of the new vendors for 2017 were at opening day, including the following four (for which I'll be doing more in-depth posts on in coming weeks):
Lucas and Jenna of Kappers' Big Red Barn, Chatfield, MN, sell fresh cream, milk (regular and chocolate) and cheese curds. Dave is the chocolate milk aficionado in our home, and he gave it two enthusiastic thumbs up!
Claudia Fierro-Poppen of Ommie Snacks offers a variety of energy bars made with dried fruits and seeds. Note to vegetarian shoppers - these bars have no eggs or dairy. No nuts, soy or wheat either. If you want to see what's in them - just look at the two jars atop the display!
Phil Calvit is the creator of Calvit's Drinking Shrubs, which are available in an assortment of flavor combinations. I brought home a bottle of the Thai Basil (I'm a sucker for anything with "Thai" in the name), and while the label says "drinking shrubs", I think this particular flavor will add some fun zing to a crisp spring slaw.
Joe Silberschmidt of You Betcha! Kimchi will tempt you with three degrees of kimchi: Uff Da!, A Bit Nippy and Minnesota Nice. Get your probiotics with this versatile product - give a sandwich some crunch, dress up scrambled eggs, kick up a salad. (If you go with Uff Da!, be sure to have some milk on hand to cool off!)
So good to see all the young families return to the Market. Be sure to get your little ones signed up for a Power of Produce (POP) passport.
It's "sun's out - guns out" at Black Cat Natural Foods!
Dr. Harold Wilkins of Goldfinch Flower Farm working his magic.
Be sure to pick up some seedlings or flower pots in the coming weeks. You can find them at Green Earth Growers on the 2nd Street plaza and Loon Organics in the Train Shed.
3 Bear Oats serves up hearty porridge in both sweet and savory options - enjoy a meal at the Market, or take home for later.
Northern Fires Pizza is back!
First fresh pickings of the season!
Burning River Farm offers CSA shares.
Finally, Thank You to Cynthia Froid Group for the herb giveaway, which took place after we'd left.
Milly the Goat! :D
Here to help! The staff at the Info Booth is always happy to answer your Market questions.
