Piedmont Triad Farmers Market

Produce in season

Tomatoes

There is nothing better than homegrown tomatoes, and my family was the beneficiary of fresh tomatoes when I house-sat for friends in Julian last week. Irregularly shaped, cracked and featuring concentric stretch marks around their tops, they are no beauties. But the fruit is meaty, succulent and flavorful — like nothing off of a store shelf.

Watermelon

Tim and Jen Burke, who hail from Florida, were selling watermelons out of a utility truck at the intersection of High Point and Hilltop Roads in Greensboro last week. They had Sugar Babies, Stars and Stripes and a seedless variety. Tim said this load had been harvested near Burgaw about four days earlier. Another source for watermelon is the Piedmont Triad Farmers Market, which holds a promotional event on Friday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. And on Saturday, the Lexington Farmers Market will be the site for a watermelon-eating contest with cash prizes in both youth and adult divisions.

Sweet corn and then some

LaToya Winslow has recently purchased red potatoes, white eggplant, yellow squash, zucchini, onions, string beans, bell peppers, cabbage, tomatoes and sweet corn from the Greensboro Farmers Curb Market. The majority is sourced to Faucette Farms. The market is open on Saturdays from 6 a.m. to noon and on Wednesdays from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Eggplant

Eggplant is a key ingredient in ratatouille, a dish that Guilford College assistant professor Jane Redmont prepares with locally-source produce. She alternates between the Greensboro Farmers Curb Market and the Piedmont Triad Farmers Market in Colfax. She picked up tomatoes at the Colfax market from Moon Creek Farm in Yanceyville and yellow squash at the Greensboro market from NIMBY, or Naturally In My Back Yard. Other local ingredients include onions, garlic and fresh basil. The Colfax market is open Monday through Sunday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Cucumbers

Redmont also makes cucumber yogurt salad, like ratatouille, a carryover from her upbringing in France. The traditional salad consists of sour cream and fresh tarragon, but she substitutes yogurt and dill. Cucumbers are about to go out of season, but a second crop come in near the middle of September.

Joy 365: #212 Piedmont Triad Farmer's Market

Today I happened to be passing by the Piedmont Triad Farmer's Market and on a whim, I decided to swing by to see what was fresh.  There are a few farmer's markets around here, but that one, by far, is the very best.  It's packed fruits, vegetables, and various plants as far as the eye can see, handmade goat milk soap, fresh local honey, bouquets of colorful flowers, homemade sauces, free range meat, spices...you name it, if it's grown, cultivated or made in North Carolina, they have it.  I love all the colors, but I'm especially fond of the smells: a fragrant mixture of fresh mint, basil, popcorn, eucalyptus, and cut up fruits. Today, there was a carnivorous plant stand set up by S&J Greens .  I bought two carnivorous plants for the terrarium, a pitcher plant and a venus flytrap.  The pitcher plant has a bonus in it...a baby sundew.  The lady told me not to be surprised if more volunteers popped up in the pots.  She said they keep them all together in one place.  Well isn't that cool?  There are only a few places were carnivorous plants naturally occur, but most of them are native to North Carolina or the south in general.

Well thank YOU for following me! :o) I'm glad you're enjoying it. My oldest son, daughter, and myself all love creepy, odd, eclectic things, but my husband and youngest son just think we're weird. LOL If they could have it their way, our house would be all glass, chrome, and black leather. :oP Thank goodness we weirdos outnumber them heehee!

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