Somewhat Hidden Gems at the Bellevue Farmers Market

As the Thursday Market falls on the same afternoon as summer swim meets for my kids, sometimes my visits have been speedier than I would like. Yes, I volunteered to set up the pool deck, but don't we all have to take time to smell the roses (or rose-like lettuces)?

Lettuces so beautiful you can't bear to pull any leaves off!

Or maybe you prefer darker "petals"

Those lettuces aren't the only somewhat-hidden gems. Have you found these?

(1) The chocolates at Soulever Chocolates. Most of us have been lobbying for chocolate to be elevated to one of the four food groups, and Soulever is squarely on board, offering "chocolate that is health conscious, and tastes good, for you." Meaning, high quality chocolate, low-glycemic sweeteners, and no soy or wheat. (Did not know wheat in chocolate was a problem, but there ya go, if that matters to you.) Having only tried Theo's Chocolate because it was soy-free, I expected Soulever to be in the same ballpark--not the case! Soulever is creamy and just the right amount of sweetness. My husband ate the Dark Chocolate candy I got him with audible groans.

A flavor for everyone!

Now that we ate dessert first, it's on to...
(2) The main course. Chicken or Salmon or Beef or Pork or--heck--baked potatoes slathered in special sauce and thrown on the grill.

The marketing half of Seven Red Tagines

On Saturday I had time to stop and sample the authentic, Moroccan-inspired "elemental sauces" at Seven Red Tagines. If you like fresh, complex flavors, pick any one of these and you won't go wrong. I loved the Cilantro flavor, but as cilantro can be controversial in some families, I went with the also-delicious Basil. The sauces taste awesome right out of the jar (see the dipping hand in the picture), and I could picture even stirring in some yogurt and sour cream to make them into dips, but I hope to buy a nice piece of salmon and lay it on the grill. The sauces would be perfect when you have no idea what to make with the chicken you have in the fridge, or when you've been invited to someone's house and they already have a wine-cellar full of wines more expensive than the one you were going to give them.

(3) Speaking of wine, sometimes you're packing for a picnic or backpacking or boating, and the thought of toting a heavy, fragile glass bottle sounds like a drag. One of our vintners has thought of that!

Wine bags!

Piccola Wine Company has these 750mL wine totes they call bolsitas, after the bags carried by farmworkers in the vineyards. 750mL equals two bottles of wine, and they offer whites and reds in this eco-friendly packaging. The wine stays good up to a month after the bolsita is opened (in case you don't actually drink much and tend to go on loner picnics).

(4) A new meat farmer on Saturdays!

Some of the ranch hands

Windy N Ranch of Ellensburg is a full-service meat provider, offering "beef, pig, lamb, goat, fryer chickens, stewing hens, free range chicken eggs and free range duck eggs all on [their] Certified Organic pastures." Yowza! If you've been wondering where you were going to get your next grassfed goat fix, look no further. Seriously though, I still remember my college geography professor telling us we should all switch to goats because they're one-stop shopping (milk, meat, hide) in the most environmentally-friendly package (i.e., they even eat weeds and thorns and what-have-you, so you don't need miles of prime grazing land).

And finally, now that we've had our main courses of lettuce, chocolate, all-purposes sauces, and meat, it's time for another dessert. Did you see these?

That's genuine baklava, baby!

(5) That's right--at the place that makes falafel and kebab plates, you can also find homemade baklava (not to be confused with homemade balaclavas, which are useful if you want to rob banks).

You'll have to look elsewhere for these...

If you've never tried baklava, one of my favorite Maud Hart Lovelace books (Winona's Pony Cart) describes it as "a delicious-looking cake, criss-crossed like a checkerboard and oozing honey."

So no matter how little time you have to speed through the Market this week, be sure to find some of our hidden gems and suggest a few of your own!

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

Somebody stole summer. I don't think I was alone in imagining (unrealistically, but nevertheless) that the sun and warmth would last till October 1.

But no.

The clouds have returned, and I am thinking of trying to interest Tim Eyman in backing an initiative for a High-Pressure Tax. That is, all of us Washington taxpayers pony up to construct an enormous contraption that raises air pressure over the state and blows all the clouds and crud into Canada and Oregon, where they will be better appreciated.

Call me a genius, but I'm picturing something like this

In the meantime, I shivered my way through the Saturday Market for the first time last week and made some discoveries worth sharing.

This poor woman was selling ice cream sandwiches. I've been a sucker for ice cream sandwiches from the first It's It and cheap 7-11 Neapolitan versions of my childhood, but not on days when my hand would turn blue as I held the thing, and drizzle drizzled into it. However, I tuck this info nugget away because the day will surely come when the sun beats down again, and my only fear will be if I can finish it before it melts.

Artificial warmth could be had, however. If you haven't noticed, the number of wine and cider vendors at our Markets has increased, and they're offering samples! I noticed Eaglemount, a near neighbor of last year's Finnriver, had quite the array of hard ciders.

Beautifully bottled--great hostess gift!

I would have stopped to sample, but that too will have to wait for another day, because I was drawn irresistibly to the vendor right beside Eaglemount, lured by the savory, luscious, sausage-and-garlic scent.

The WiseGuy was indeed wise, to whip up such a batch of hot, aromatic yumminess on such a cold day. What better than a meatball sandwich wrapped in nothing but some foil and a napkin? It was a combination lunch/handwarmer!

First he stirred up the goods...

and then he jammed it inside a baguette, the innards of which had already been pressed down to the bottom by a special, baguette-rammer device. Amazing. I think we are witnessing the cool-weather equivalent to the invention of the ice cream cone. Yes, I did still manage to drop some down my front, but nothing that a little cold water and soap couldn't get off. And it was SO worth it.

Once my stomach was full and my hands were warm, I was then able to stop and smell the peonies (and daisies and other flowers).

And to linger over the

and the

Confession: this pic is from Thursday, but you know what I mean.

No matter the weather, this Thursday and Saturday the Market offerings can warm your insides or cool your fevered brow. We may even come to be grateful for the meteorological variations, for allowing us to try everything the Markets have to offer!

Strawberry Fields for a Few Weeks

Ah, bliss.

By now most of you have had your first real strawberries of the season from our wonderful farmers. If you've been buying them by the half-flat, as I have, you've not only been eating them out of hand, but you've even started to "waste" them in recipes.

To wit:

On the plate: Tuna salad sandwiches made from Fishing Vessel St. Jude (Market) tuna, topped with sunflower sprouts from Growing Washington, with a side of strawberries and a glass of homemade strawberry lemonade.

Followed by homemade strawberry birthday cake, thus:

Exactly three drops of food coloring went into this

I have so many things to write about the Market (and have not yet even gotten to visit the Saturday Market), but they will have to wait a week because we all know how quickly the window for each of our Washington soft fruits opens and closes.

Speaking of soft fruits, did you see these guys last week?

 But I digress...

Get these three recipes into your mouth before any more time elapses. Everyone will praise you to the heavens, the instant they can stop oohing and mmmming.

Tuna Salad Sandwiches
1 can Fishing Vessel St. Jude tuna of your choice
1/4 cup chopped pickles (I used my neighbor's homemade) or relish
a big squeeze of your favorite mustard
enough mayonnaise to moisten 
a handful of Growing Washington sunflower sprouts

Mix and spread on slices of your favorite bread. Top with sprouts.

***********************

Fresh Strawberry Cake (adapted from here)with residual Strawberry Lemonade
18 ozs fresh strawberries
1-2 tsp sugar, depending on how sweet the berries are
1/2 cup milk
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
2-1/4 cups cake flour, sifted
1-3/4 cups sugar
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1-1/2 sticks butter, softened

Hull strawberries and cut in large chunks. Put in saucepan and add sugar. Let sit an hour until they release some juice. Then add 1/4 cup water and simmer 15-20 minutes, until berries are soft.

Puree in blender. You will need 1/2 cup puree. Set aside the remainder for the strawberry lemonade.

Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease and flour two 9" cake pans.

Combine puree, milk, eggs, and vanilla and mix until well blended.

In a stand mixer, whip butter until pale yellow and smooth. Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl and then add to butter. Beat until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add wet ingredients and beat at medium until smooth and evenly combined, scraping down the bowl as necessary. (Add a few drops of red, if your batter isn't pink enough for you.)

Divide the batter evenly between the pans and smooth out.

Bake about 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cakes rest in pan for 10 minutes and then turn them out to cool completely on racks. Frost with your favorite cream cheese frosting.

For the lemonade, there's no exact recipe. I took the leftover puree and added lemon juice, cold water, and sugar alternately, to taste. It depends on whether you want your beverage to taste more like lemonade or more like strawberries. I wanted it right down the middle. If I'd had some mint, that would have made a nice garnish in the glass. Or maybe it would have been another place to use those delightful sprouts:

I might have to try growing some of these, as I have lentil sprouts, because they are crisp and sweet and tasty on sandwiches and salads. Which reminds me of one last Market salad to leave you with:

Spring Salad à la Bellevue Farmers Market
Fresh Market spinach
Cucumber
Sunflower sprouts
Strawberries
Balsamic vinaigrette or Green Goddess dressing with Market mint and parsley

The Omnivore's Bonanza

"I've really been reading a lot lately on nutrition," said a friend to me at the pool, as she pulled a Terra chip out of the bag and popped it in her mouth, "and I'm getting serious about getting rid of the junk food. Have you read Wheat Belly?"

I have not read Wheat Belly--only read about it, and its claims that modern American GMO wheat is the root of all evils. (Having not read the book, I wouldn't swear to that thesis in a court of law!)

Whether or not you believe that--I don't happen to, but I've dutifully put the book on hold at the library--I'm finding plenty to eat, wheat and otherwise, at this season's Bellevue Farmers Market. And speaking of the Market, Opening Day for the Saturday Market is here!

Ye Olde Compass Plaza

You remember Compass Plaza from last year, right? Across from CPK, and right in front of Rock Bottom Brewery? Barnes & Noble (of the blue check mark) has graciously offered to supply us with Market parking again, so think about adding a book to your picnic basket this weekend. Saturday Opening Day means, starting this week, we have two places to pick up all that wonderful food.

Which brings me back to my original point. If you have managed to freak yourself out about GMO wheat, the Market can help you with that. I mentioned our new vendor Wildflour last week:

Owner and baker Dr. Rebecca Johnson has traveled her own road of gluten-intolerance and suffering through awful-tasting, wheat-free alternative foods, with delicious results for us. Wildflour offers just about every kind of bready product, from loaves to muffins to cookies to scones, all gluten-free, mostly dairy-free, and baked in a peanut-free environment. Johnson also avoids bean, corn, and soy flours, for those of us who do freak out about GMO soy (hand raised).

Buy. Unwrap. Stuff in mouth.

In place of baked products, it seems Wheat Belly recommends Atkins-y diets of the carbless food groups, and the Market can help with that, too.

Cheese, glorious cheese and meat!

Eggs galore

Wild-caught salmon

And of course, vegetables a-plenty

Two or three more weeks of asparagus, folks! We had some on the grill the other day, brushed with olive oil. Perfection.

And the first strawberries of the season? They're called "Honeyeye." As in, Honey-I-am-never-eating-those-giant-tasteless-red-golfballs-called-California-strawberries-again. Even though we all know the berries get sweeter, the farther we go into summer-variety territory, these Honeyeyes from Hayton Farms were good enough to rinse and serve plain at a book launch party, as I did:

One last note--my ten-year-old Sherpa and I had to grab a quick dinner before said book launch party last week, so we took a friend's recommendation and hit up the Contigo food truck.

We both went for the "bowls," she for the carnitas (pork), and I for the beef. My mouth waters, even typing about it almost a week later. I highly recommend. If we hadn't been planning to put it aside for later, we would have tried the tacos. Thankfully, there are many more weeks to come, in which we hope to try every prepared food at the Market at least once!

See you this week, Marketgoers, for more food and fun in the sun.