Harvest Festival

It is hard to believe the last Market of the season is already upon us! What a great season it has been, thanks to your support of buying fresh locally grown produce. Although the growing season is coming to an end there will still be winter vegetables, apples, dried herbs, honey, baked goods, strudel, coffee, nuts, pickles, maple syrup, jams and jellies, pork products, soap, decorative winter treetops and dried flowers as well as arts and crafts available at the upcoming Indoor Market. We will head indoors on November 14th and December 5th from 9 a.m. - 12 p.m., The indoor market is just in time for your holiday cooking and gift giving needs.

To close out the season we have some fun activities planned for this Saturday, so gather the family and help us celebrate autumn. We will be decorating mini pumpkins from 9:30 a.m. - 12 p.m. and we will also have a Farmers Market Scavenger Hunt! Master Gardeners will be back from 8 a.m. - 12 p.m. to answer your fall lawn and garden questions. In addition, Michael Riddle will be playing his great acoustic music from 10 a.m. - 12 p.m.

Meet the Vendors with Vendor Trivia!

We thought it would be fun to get to know all of our vendors a little bit better with some vendor trivia.

Q.) Which vendor travels the farthest to come to the Market?

A.) Chase Brook Natural travels 62 miles from Milaca, MN

Q.) Which vendors are local Bloomington Residents?

A.) Katie Buch of Sisters' Sludge Coffee, Patti & Steve Robrahn of Around the Corner Soap and Barbara Sautner of Summer Chase Gardens

Q.) Which vendors grew up in Bloomington?

A.) The Sisters' Sludge triplets Katie, Judy and Maggie; Mary of Mary's Sweet Tooth and George of St. Martins pickles.

Q. ) Which vendor is also a school principal?

A.) Aly Xiong who sells both Kettle Corn and Produce.

Q.) Who has grown over 10 acres of fresh flowers?

A.) Chia of Xia's fresh flowers and vegetables.

Q.) What is the most popular variety of apples?

A.) Honeycrisp

Q.) How many varieties of jam are available at the Market over the course of the season?

A.) Over 50 different varieties

Q.) How many pounds of food were collected at our VEAP food drive?

A.) 585 pounds of food - thank you to all who participated!

Winter Vegetable Soup - From Asparagus to Zucchini, A guide to Farm-Fresh Seasonal produce

4 garlic cloves, sliced
2 medium onions, coarsely chopped
4 cups sliced cabbage
1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped
4 carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped
2 large potatoes, peeled and sliced
4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
1 tsp. ground black or white pepper
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme (1/4 teaspoon dried)
Salt to taste
Tabasco or your favorite hot sauce to taste

Place vegetables in large soup pot with stock and 3 cups water. Bring to boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes or until vegetables are very tender. Cool to warm temperature, puree in food processor or blender in batches, return to soup pot. Add seasonings, herbs and spices. Heat and serve. Makes 6-8 servings.

Bloomington Farmers Market Information:

Hours
Market hours are 8 a.m. - 1 p.m.; for safety and fairness there is NO shopping before 8 a.m. Also, for environmental health reasons, pets are not allowed in the Market.

Parking
Please note the map and designated parking areas. The East Lot of Civic Plaza, where the Market is held, is for Handicap Parking only. There is plenty of Free Parking on the West Side of Civic Plaza. There is also parking across 98th street in the VEAP parking lot and at Public Works off James Ave.

In this issue

To learn more

Harvest Festival

Meet the Vendors with Vendor Trivia!

Winter Vegetable Soup - From Asparagus to Zucchini, A guide to Farm-Fresh Seasonal produce

We are looking forward to seeing you on Saturday!


	*Issue #11 - October 9, 2009*
In this issue Harvest Festival! Meet the Vendors with Vendor Trivia! Winter Vegetable Soup - From Asparagus to Zucchini, A guide to Farm-Fresh Seasonal produce To learn more Archived Farmers Market newsletters E-Subscribe Vendor List Vendor Location Map Music Calendar Master Gardener Calendar Market Poster Parking Map	Harvest Festival It is hard to believe the last Market of the season is already upon us! What a great season it has been, thanks to your support of buying fresh locally grown produce. Although the growing season is coming to an end there will still be winter vegetables, apples, dried herbs, honey, baked goods, strudel, coffee, nuts, pickles, maple syrup, jams and jellies, pork products, soap, decorative winter treetops and dried flowers as well as arts and crafts available at the upcoming Indoor Market. We will head indoors on November 14th and December 5th from 9 a.m. - 12 p.m., The indoor market is just in time for your holiday cooking and gift giving needs. To close out the season we have some fun activities planned for this Saturday, so gather the family and help us celebrate autumn. We will be decorating mini pumpkins from 9:30 a.m. - 12 p.m. and we will also have a Farmers Market Scavenger Hunt! Master Gardeners will be back from 8 a.m. - 12 p.m. to answer your fall lawn and garden questions. In addition, Michael Riddle will be playing his great acoustic music from 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. Meet the Vendors with Vendor Trivia! We thought it would be fun to get to know all of our vendors a little bit better with some vendor trivia. Q.) Which vendor travels the farthest to come to the Market? A.) Chase Brook Natural travels 62 miles from Milaca, MN Q.) Which vendors are local Bloomington Residents? A.) Katie Buch of Sisters' Sludge Coffee, Patti & Steve Robrahn of Around the Corner Soap and Barbara Sautner of Summer Chase Gardens Q.) Which vendors grew up in Bloomington? A.) The Sisters' Sludge triplets Katie, Judy and Maggie; Mary of Mary's Sweet Tooth and George of St. Martins pickles. Q. ) Which vendor is also a school principal? A.) Aly Xiong who sells both Kettle Corn and Produce. Q.) Who has grown over 10 acres of fresh flowers? A.) Chia of Xia's fresh flowers and vegetables. Q.) What is the most popular variety of apples? A.) Honeycrisp Q.) How many varieties of jam are available at the Market over the course of the season? A.) Over 50 different varieties Q.) How many pounds of food were collected at our VEAP food drive? A.) 585 pounds of food - thank you to all who participated! Winter Vegetable Soup - From Asparagus to Zucchini, A guide to Farm-Fresh Seasonal produce 4 garlic cloves, sliced 2 medium onions, coarsely chopped 4 cups sliced cabbage 1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped 4 carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped 2 large potatoes, peeled and sliced 4 cups vegetable or chicken broth 1 tsp. ground black or white pepper 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme (1/4 teaspoon dried) Salt to taste Tabasco or your favorite hot sauce to taste Place vegetables in large soup pot with stock and 3 cups water. Bring to boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes or until vegetables are very tender. Cool to warm temperature, puree in food processor or blender in batches, return to soup pot. Add seasonings, herbs and spices. Heat and serve. Makes 6-8 servings. Bloomington Farmers Market Information: Hours Market hours are 8 a.m. - 1 p.m.; for safety and fairness there is NO shopping before 8 a.m. Also, for environmental health reasons, pets are not allowed in the Market. Parking Please note the map and designated parking areas. The East Lot of Civic Plaza, where the Market is held, is for Handicap Parking only. There is plenty of Free Parking on the West Side of Civic Plaza. There is also parking across 98th street in the VEAP parking lot and at Public Works off James Ave. We are looking forward to seeing you on Saturday! Best regards, Keri Lahl Market Coordinator