Come Saturday morning.......

I am really not a big fan of our local farmers market. It is only opened Saturday mornings…and can be extremely crowded. I find most “townies” consider going to the market as an outing…a place to gather and socialize. When I go the market, my purpose is to actually shop.

And it is not all local. Quite a bit of the “fresh” produce is from the US……especially through the winter months.

I have visited a bit more often this year just to check on the availability of local produce. There are two stalls from up river (Hartland, Centreville area) that carry their own grown veggies…and they are delicious. But you can’t depend on them making the trek to Fredericton every Saturday through the winter months. But they do try…and their produce is excellent.

Of course during the summer months it is the best place to find local berries. Right now there are lots of local apples…..Lobo is my favorite eating and cooking apple.

One of the nice things about being a blogger and being public…people tell you about different products to try. One new thing I have been told to try… (and did)….is the Balkan yogurt sold at the market. It is almost as thick as ice-cream…..probably the best yogurt I have ever had.

The market is worth the visit…if you can arrive before 9 am. It gets a tad too busy for shopping if you arrive closer to 10. If I am planning a visit…I aim for 8:30…..lots of room to walk and make your selections, meet the vendors. Everyone seems happier.

West Coast

CBC recently reported British Columbia had had a good growing season this year. I wonder why we don’t seem to carry fresh BC fruit and vegetables in our grocery stores. In all my searches, I have only found frozen rhubarb from BC. The grocery stores certainly carry produce from California.....I would prefer BC. Especially since they have had a good growing season.

Eggplant and Pears

I thought I would check out the south side Superstore today.....and found pears from Nova Scotia...yeah. I triple checked. They are from Nova Scotia. I also found eggplants labeled a product of Canada...but on closer inspection...they are a product of the USA.

This store wins the prize for incorrect labeling.

Predictions

As far as I can tell from the polls...Michael McCain did not do as well as I had hoped he would. In fact...my predictions were way off. Oh well.....

I think as long as I mention Michael McCain...I can justify this post still being about Canadian food.

Going...going....gone

Well.....it appears the only Canadian fruit I can find this week are apples and cranberries.I have not checked all the grocery stores or vegetable stands, but would expect it is the same story. No more peaches and pears from Ontario. I missed the local market this past Saturday. They might still have local pears.

You can still find local squash, potatoes, carrots, onions, turnip and cabbage. But you probably won't find all of them at the same place.

In Fredericton, if you find something you like…it probably won’t be there when you return. Not all of the Sobeys carry the same products...nor do the Superstores. I can only find my cereal at Aura and the Superstore (south side). I find more Canadian produce at north side Sobeys....but check the south side Superstore. What I can’t find at one...I might find at the other.

Who is behind this annoying little inconvenience?

I predicted local produce would start to disappear by mid October. Maybe I should try and predict the election results.

Pease porridge hot

I love oatmeal, but I have not had great success in making a decent pot of porridge. Until now……and using a slow cooker. Just add all the ingredients (water, oatmeal, salt, fruit and any flavorings) to the pot before you go to bed, turn the pot on low, and in the morning your hot cereal is ready. It really works. I might suggest the next time I try this method, to quarter the recipe. Or have a Porridge party.

The New Addition

Isn’t she lovely? I haven’t given her a name yet…but already I am very attached to her. I really should have added her to the family last year……where was my head. She is about half full right now.......tomatoes, beans, spinach, grape leaves, haddock, shrimp, applesauce, peaches, pears, blueberries, rhubarb, strawberries, cranberries…with more to come. The beans, tomatoes, grape leaves and rhubarb are from our garden.