Bringing You Some Sunshine

Brothers Rodrigo and Alvaro Venturelli of Plan B Organic Farms | Photo by Lisa Logan

Hello Market Friends:

I hope you have a chance to get out and catch a few rays of winter sun! It does the heart good, and despite the chilly weather, the sunlight is getting stronger by the day.

This year, even more than usual, root cellars and storerooms on the farms are nearly bare. With the paradoxical combination of increased demand for local food, and so much uncertainty about whether they would be allowed to sell at farmers’ markets, many growers opted not to hang onto storage crops for winter sales.

We are so glad to have Plan B Organic Farms back at a moment like this! Alvaro, Mel and Rodrigo have been good friends to the market for many years now, bringing a combination of their own farm’s crops, and certified organic produce from other local and international growers. While we prioritize home-grown, we have always included some non-local foods at Dufferin, but we like sales of these items to benefit a local farm family.

This means you can skip the trip to the supermarket, and get sunny oranges and lemons, fresh ginger, and many other excellent organic fruits and vegetables along with all the other great foods we have available!

Sosnicki Organics has decided to stick around a little longer than they previously estimated (HURRAY!), so Jessie and the crew have been making more delicious perogies to go with their sauerkraut, cabbages, carrots and onions.

It’s a MotherDough week, and Carole has a wonderful list baking and fresh-milled flours. Last week I asked about her buckwheat flour, and she explained that most buckwheat is milled with the husks on, making a rougher flour that can be challenging to use. Hers, however, is made with hulled buckwheat, and she described the texture of the resulting flour as ‘soft as a baby’s bottom’. Gotta try that!

Always inspired to try new variations, Bobby and Mary have added several more options to Kawartha Broom Co’s list, including a lovely lightweight Kitchen Broom. You get a bonus package of Pollinator Plant Seeds from Canadian Organic Seed Company with their new Garden Broom, too!

Stay warm, and enjoy browsing through the many other good things we have for you!

Anne & the Market Crew