WASHINGTON COURT HOUSE — We all grew up eating iceberg lettuce. In fact, at the grocery stores of my youth, I remember it as the only lettuce option. My family had a garden in most places we lived, but I don’t remember growing lettuce, so our salads would have been of the iceberg variety. And I have always loved salads, and was never particularly picky until I started growing my own leaf lettuce. The flavor!
You don’t really realize that iceberg doesn’t have “flavor” – it’s more of a vehicle for the flavor of salad dressing. Some chef I heard interviewed years ago, who referred to iceberg lettuce as “nutritionally bankrupt” was wrong….it is a good source of vitamin K, and of course it’s full of water and even has some fiber. But it is not a particularly nutritious green. And it is not grown locally….it is grown mostly in California and Arizona.
Consider trying locally grown romaine or leaf lettuce! They have slightly more nutrients, and generally the more color (think darker greens and reds) the better for you. Of course, you can’t go wrong with spinach, kale, chard, celtuce, and arugula, but you’re likely to find lettuce at our market.
The opening Saturday of the Fayette County Farmers Market saw rain roll through in several bands, and the temperature dropped significantly about 8:30 a.m. Fortunately, the rain held off until the vendors had set up their tents and wares (believe me… it is not fun to set up in the rain!). Then the community showed up in force, and supported the market despite the weather, visiting new and returning vendors and making for a busy day. On behalf of all of the market vendors and volunteers, thank you! And we look forward to seeing you most, if not all, Saturdays through the market season.
Weather permitting, the Carnegie Public Library mobile bike will be at the market and visitors will have an opportunity to check out Tony’s Traveling Tales, borrow or purchase books, pick up a copy of the library newsletter, and learn more about the library’s apps and digital resources!
The Market is open Saturday morning from 8:30 to noon. It is located in the municipal parking lot on the corner of South Main and East East streets. SNAP EBT food benefit cards and credit/debit cards are accepted. Those using the SNAP EBT card for food purchases receive matching dollar “Produce Perks” tokens ($1 for $1) good only for fruits, vegetables, and food producing plants. So,”buy one, get one” for up to $25 every market day. Five dollar coupons will be available again for Fayette County Farm Bureau members at each Saturday market; these can be spent at both the Wednesday and Saturday markets.
The following list contains the names and products of the vendors that expect to set up this Saturday. Other vendors may participate as well.
Bridge View Gardens (Hunter & Lorelle Rohrer): Fresh produce including spring onions and lettuce. Bedding plants: vegetables, herbs and flowering plants.
Cozy Baby Blessings (Nancy Cutter): Handmade baby essentials including crochet blankets, hats, flannel burp cloths, teethers and pacifier clips. Also crocheted kitchen dish cloths, pot scrubbers, quilted pot holders and wax melts in over 50 scents.
DSC Produce Farm (Darren Cox): 10 flavors of salsa (including pineapple and bean & corn), 5 salad dressings (including blueberry vinaigrette) and 3 BBQ sauce flavors. Sampling Guacamole starter.
Edlynns Attic (Robin Dement): Turtle and Highland cow baskets, baking mixes, yarn, loveys, wax melts, fingerless gloves, and dog treats.
Engeti (Alana Walters & Janet Bick): dinner rolls, cinnamon rolls, cakes, brownies, pies, cookies, and other baked goods.
Greens & Greenery (Katrina Bush): Rhubarb, leaf lettuce, plants (Shishito and other peppers, heirloom tomatoes, herbs native perennial flowering plants and trees), raw unpasteurized honey, pear butters, elderberry jelly, sourdough crackers.
Hostetter Kitchen (Melody Martin): Strawberries, pies (strawberry, rhubarb), yeast breads and rolls, cinnamon buns, zucchini and banana (tea) breads, cakes, bars, whoopie pies, buckeyes and more.
Jim’s Premium Ground Beef (Jim Hobbs): Premium ground beef in assorted packages (patties, bulk tubes).
Julie G’s Cookies (Julie Greenslade): Chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, ginger, snickerdoodle, sugar, pineapple, macadamia nut, peanut butter, peanut butter jumbos, peanut butter fudge, lemon bars and salted caramel butter bars.
PPCF/ The Jam Man (David Persinger): (Will not be set up until June 1st or 8th)
PPCF/The Pie Lady and S. Plymouth Raw Honey (Julie & Dennis Mosny): Banana cake, chocolate cake with caramel icing, cinnamon rolls and cinni mini’s. This week’s pies will be cherry, raisin, rhubarb, strawberry rhubarb and apple.
Red Maple Goats and Soaps (Cindy Grover): All natural goat-milk products. NEW summer fragrances, and goat-milk shampoo bars made with local, raw honey. Start your goat-milk adventure with a travel-sized button soap!
Rural Beans Roastery LLC (Kameron Rinehart): Assorted freshly roasted coffee (beans and ground) and a new Bourbon Barrel Aged coffee.
The Casual Gourmet (Jason Gilmore): Assorted baked goods.
Teter Farm (Owen and Kate Teter): Radishes, turnips, spring onions, garden seedlings, houseplants, strawberry hanging baskets.
Wood Designs by DW (Debbie Welch): One of a kind handcrafted wood items— signs, tables, gnomes, as well as bird feeders (freestanding and hanging) and hanging bird houses. Wooden solar mushrooms and sunflowers. Crocheted items including a variety of stuffed animals, kitchen towels, pot scrubs, pot holders, baby booties, and afghans. Will take custom and special orders.
Your Other Mother’s Kitchen (Don & Sara Creamer): Bread and other baked goods. Sewing crafts.
Katrina Bush is a vendor with the Fayette County Farmers Market.
