Port Orchard Farmers’ Market Newsletter – Issue No. 11 – July 2, 2009
Last modified on 2009-07-02 23:56:28 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
In This Issue
Homestead Berries
A Taste of Eden
Recipe – Basil Oil
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
On July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was approved by the Continental Congress, setting the 13 colonies on the road to freedom as a sovereign nation.
As always, this most American of holidays will be marked by parades, fireworks and backyard barbecues across the country. The farmers market is open on the 4th, as usual. You’ll find it an excellent place to get fresh fruits & vegetables, bread, salad fixings, condiments, barbeque meats and seafood of all kinds for the feast. You can pick up a beautiful fresh flower bouquet for the table too.
It’s dry out there this year, so be extra careful around fireworks of any kind. Remember to find a quiet haven for your pets too as many of them find our celebration very traumatic.
AT THE MARKET THIS WEEK
RAFFLE We’re holding a fundraising raffle for the market. There will be various prizes but the grand prize is a beautiful Red, White & Blue Afghan handmade & donated by Joanne Drewes. In case you didn’t know her, Joanne was a longtime market member and vendor who passed away last year after a long illness, but not before completing this gorgeous afghan as a gift to the market. Come down and view this work of art.
Raffle tickets are $1 & the drawing will be at 1pm (must be present to win).
KIDS STUFF We have giveaways for children at the Market Booth so bring the kids by for patriotic pinwheel spinners, flags & pins.
ENTERTAINMENT An assortment of performers, including music and storytelling will be on hand to entertain us.
FRUITS & BERRIES ARE IN:
Several Farmers have delectable strawberries and cherries too, including organic! Get them while they are here because they are one of the true pleasures of, and signs of, summer. Apriums and pluots and peaches & nectarines will be here soon!
Have a safe and super fun Birthday! We’ll see you at market, it’s going to be a spectacular day!
Laura Pittman-Hewitt, President of the Port Orchard Farmers’ Market
Upcoming events –
July 4 — Happy Birthday USA! Come celebrate at the market
Raffle — red/white/blue afghan, tickets $1, drawing at 1PM at the Market Booth
Kids — patriotic pinwheels, pins, flags at the Market Booth all day
July 11 — Chris Craft Rendezvous at the Port Orchard Marina
Cup painting at Quitz Time Crafts
Gary Earl
Homestead Berries
Gary and Christina Earl raise berries on their Homestead Berries farm in south Kitsap. Lots and lots of berries – strawberries, raspberries, and marionberries, to be exact. The Earls employ organic practices on their place, and they have about three and a half acres in berry production. That’s a lot of hard work. A LOT of hard work.
Gary Earl of Farmstead Home Berries
Gary has been selling berries at the Port Orchard Farmers’ Market for four years now. The Earls also sell berries at the Silverdale Farmers’ Market, and they will take custom orders for flats of berries. This year they will do some U-pick by appointment – contact them at 360-876-7205 for a custom order or an appointment to pick berries at their place.
June-bearing strawberries are ripe now, and the everbearing varieties will ripen, in lesser numbers, throughout the summer. Expect to see Gary at the market with his beautiful red raspberries by the second week of July, weather permitting.
We’re lucky to have a premier local bakery, A Taste of Eden, bring their bounty to the market each Saturday. A family-owned and operated business for over 15 years, the bakery started in Gig Harbor, was located in Port Orchard for a bit, has recently been operating in Rochester, and is now moving operations to a 109-year-old building they’re remodeling in Chehalis.
A Taste of Eden offers over 1500 different items, including breads of all kinds, dessert items, cookies (!), pastries, jams and jellies, sauces, spice blends and rubs. Their specialty item is sweet bread, and they have 94 varieties to choose from. They also offer gluten-free and sugar-free products. Family members do all the work, from making the products to selling them at farmers’ markets, major shows all over the state, website orders (see their website at the link below), and a soon-to-open retail store and café in their new location in Chehalis. What more can they do? Wedding cakes. Soon to come.
Basil Oil
Favorite Farmers’ Market logo
1 1/2 cups (packed) fresh basil leaves
3/4 cup olive oil
Blanch basil in medium saucepan of boiling water 10 seconds. Drain. Rinse under cold water. Pat basil dry with paper towels. Transfer to blender. Add oil; puree until smooth. Transfer to small bowl. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and chill. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes before using.)
Makes about 3/4 cup. Can be used as a dipping sauce or in replacement of standard olive oil in cooking to give your meal an extra perk!
Please take the time to cast a vote for the Port Orchard Farmers’ Market as America’s Favorite Farmers’ Market! Follow the link below, and either enter the zip code of 98367 or find us on the Google map. (At last check, we were woefully behind the Poulsbo Market in votes.) If we win, we get some nifty market bags that we can distribute to you, our loyal customers!
Port Orchard Farmers’ Market
Every Saturday, 9AM to 3PM
On the waterfront in Port Orchard
P.O Box 8247
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