Foothill Flavors

Expect Food and Fun at the Farmers Market

By Antoinette May Herndon

Having trouble making connections with friends? Does it seems like some people are just never there when you call? Or their answering machines aren’t working—at least they’re not recording your messages. Doesn’t it sometimes appear like everybody’s literally out to lunch?

Well, have I ever got a remedy for that! I know an “in”spot where you are guaranteed to run into everybody, but everybody. It isn’t a pricey charity benefit either or a chic watering hole. Far from it. Think down home. Way down home.

I’m talking about the Sunday Farmer’s Market in Jackson. You’ll see everybody you know there, neighbors, friends, people you haven’t seen in ages. What better place to catch up on all the latest gossip while filling your basket with every kind of goodie.

Diane and Mike Krilitich and their son, Sean, started the market three years ago and its been a going event ever since.

“We were thinking sustainability,” Diane remembers today. “We’ve always liked growing things for ourselves and wanted to keep the community healthy by offering good fresh food to everyone.”

The fruits and veggies offered at the Sunday Farmers Market are about as fresh as anything can be—they are each picked that very morning.

Currently there are 17 vendors involved in the market. They sell flowers, plants, bread, strawberries, soaps, meats, body lotions, tomatoes, eggplants, beets,

turnips, cucumbers—whatever lush and growing thing that you can possibly imagine.

A very special attraction is the honey manufactured by the Krilitichs’ flying friends at Paloma Polinators. It’s super good—most especially spread on the fresh bread which is also on sale at the market. The Krilitich family has 80,000 bees doing the busy thing.

An additional Farmers Market treat are the ongoing contests and demonstrations. The recent zucchini contest was a stand out. Can you imagine zucchini chocolate cake or buffalo stuffed with zucchini? Personally, I can’t. Maybe that’s why the winner on that one was Brenda Nasser with her classic zucchini bread.

What’s coming up? A scone contest.

The Market’s highlight for me was a cooking demonstration by Susan Kumare. A clinical social worker practicing in Jackson, this was Susan’s debut as a cooking star. “I wore my grandmother’s apron for luck,” she confided, “and also used her spoon and worked on her tablecloth.” Grandma’s force was definitely with Susan as she sailed through the demo like a cooking pro.

“I love to cook and collect recipes,” she explained. It definitely showed.

WATERMELON, FETA AND BLACK OLIVE SALAD

1 small red onion 2-4 limes, depending on juiciness 3 lb. Sweet, ripe watermelon 9 oz. Feta cheese bunch of flat-leaf parsley bunch of mint, chopped 3-4 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil 4 oz pitted black olives black pepper to taste

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Peel and halve the red onion and cut into very fine half-moons and put in a small bowl to steep with lime juice. Remove the rind and seeds from the watermelon and cut int approximately l to 1/2 inch triangular chunks.

Cut the feta into similar sized pieces and pout them into a large, wide shallow bowl.

Tear off springs of parsley so that it is used like a salad leaf, rather than a garnish, and add to the owl along with the chopped mint.

Pour onions, along with their juices over the salad in a bowl, add the oil and olives, then using your hands toss the salad so that the feta and melon don’t lose their shape.

Add a grinding of black pepper and taste to see whether the dressing needs more lime.

Go ahead make it right away so we can rave together at next Sunday’s Farmers Market. See you there!

VITALS: The Farmer’s Market is located in Mel & Fay’s parking lot in Jackson from 10 until l each Sunday morning. The first Sunday in October will be the season’s closing day. Watch for the opening on the third Sunday in May 2011.

PICTURE

Susan Kamure used her grandmother’s tablecloth for luck at a recent cooking demonstration at the Sunday Farmer’s Market in Jackson.