Veggie tales

Nothing speaks to me of summer quite as resoundingly as a vegetable garden patch.  Be it humble or Herculean, there's just something primal and comforting about nourishment sprung from the ground--from nothing more than a scattering of minute seeds.  Those of us lucky enough to have our own vegetable gardens in the northeastern U.S., have enjoyed a season's worth of the best lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and corn I can recall in years.  The unique combination of abundant sunshine, fairly regular intervals of rain, and cooler-than-usual temperatures have provided the winning combination that farmers--pros and novices alike--spent the previous season praying for.  How nice when wishes are granted!

Don't have your own veggie garden?  No need to despair.  Enterprising folks have produced plenty of, well, produce for you, too.  And finding a stash of your favorite garden treats is as easy as checking out your local paper for a farmers' market near you.  Or go online, to www.localharvest.org/farmers'-market.  Incorporating maps into the site, users simply type in their home address, which directs them to the local map for their area.

According to the localharvest website, "farmers' markets are one of the oldest forms of direct marketing by small farmers. From the traditional "mercados" in the Peruvian Andes to the unique street markets in Asia, growers all over the world gather weekly to sell their produce directly to the public. In the last decade they have become a favorite marketing method for many farmers throughout the United States, and a weekly ritual for many shoppers.  In a farmers' market, a group of farmers sell their products once or twice a week at a designated public place like a park or parking lot. Some farmers' markets have live entertainment. Shopping at a farmers' market is a great way to meet local farmers and get fresh, flavorful produce."

A lot of businesses are getting in on a good thing, and booths for products other than produce are sprouting up. While strolling through my local farmer's market last summer, I actually met a representative from a utility company offering "green" energy (in this case, power derived almost entirely from harnessing the wind).  I decided to give the company a try, and am happy to report that my electric bills have decreased this year by about 13%. 

Innovation comes in many forms.  Some friends of mine have taken the farmers' market theme down a notch, infused it with some good 'ole-fashioned nostalgia, and a hefty helping of fun, to create their own roadside stand.  Complete with carved signs, an "honor-system" cash box like we recall from days (long) gone by, and the ripest, lushest produce in town, "The Stand" has quickly become my favorite hangout when I'm up in the Adirondacks.  Not only do they offer fresh produce, picked daily, but they make bread and mouth-watering molasses cookies "on the reg," and have a variety of unusual fare, such as maple syrup and butter (yup, they make it themselves), pickled relish and spicy salsa!  Up until last week they even had farm-fresh eggs, produced by chickens who resided down the road.  Unfortunately, a wily fox spirited a few hens away, prompting the owners to dispense with said fox--only to make conditions optimal for a hostile takeover by a gang of raccoons.  Now those hens are history, as are the fluffier-than-clouds eggs they produced.  The neighbors want to take up a collection to buy more chicks, and I'd personally patrol the coops for another taste of those farm-fresh beauties!  But that's a tale for another day.  Stay tuned!