FRIDAY'S FARMER'S MARKET

 

Hello, friends.  I'm so glad to be back with you.  Thank you for understanding that I was sick this week and didn't get any posts up.  I am doing much better now.  I think I'm entirely over being sick.  Keep your fingers crossed.

My friend Kathy goes to a Senior Center several days a week.  They do lots of things there.  But every Friday a farm brings in some things for them that they can't sell.  The produce is borderline.  Still good, but not good enough for their farmer's market.  All the people at the center are able to help themselves to whatever they want.

Kathy has been bringing things home for awhile.  But now the lady she lives with has told her she doesn't want the veggies any more.  I don't know why.  Maybe because they are "borderline" and she can't use them fast enough.  Kathy called me and asked if I would be interested.  Yes!  Of course!  Kathy picks up the produce on Friday and brings it to church for me on Sunday.

I haven't been taking pictures of it, but I am going to begin to this week.  What we can't use we share with our friend, Rosemary, who is going through a tough time these days.  She lives two blocks from us, so I go through the things and Joe takes her a bag each week.  It has been three weeks now (this Sunday will be the fourth week) and I am loving it.  Let me tell you what I have gotten.

Week 1:  sweet potatoes, white potatoes and cauliflower

There were six large sweet potatoes so I used two, gave two to Rosemary and will use the other two this week.  The white potatoes was a five pound bag and I am working my way through them although I gave three to Rosemary.  The cauliflower unfortunately did not last and I had to dump it.

Week 2:  pretzel rolls, wheat rolls, eggplant, yellow and orange peppers.

The pretzel rolls didn't last long at all.  Joe loved them.  There were six in the package.  I got one.  It is just like a soft pretzel but in roll form.

We haven't eaten the wheat rolls yet, but they are in the fridge and are doing OK.

There were two eggplants.  I gave one to Rosemary.  They looked awful on the outside and I anticipated having to cut a lot of it away.  But inside it was beautiful.  And so sweet!  Fried eggplant made us an entire dinner.  Unfortunately it was the night I began to get sick.  I had four slices and went running to the bathroom.  So Joe got almost the whole thing.  And loved it.

I gave the two orange peppers to Rosemary and kept the two yellow ones.  There was no way I was going to use four peppers.  And I was too sick to cook and freeze them.  We had stuffed peppers with them when I was feeling a bit better.  Still, Joe ate most of mine.

Week 3:  (last week) asparagus, cauliflower, broccoli and carrot packs, yellow peppers, country white bread, ciabatta

There were two bunches of asparagus.  I gave one to Rosemary.  The other I am having for dinner tonight.  There were two cellophane bags of broccoli, cauliflower and carrot pieces.  Cut sort of like you would for a salad.  I gave one to Rosemary and we will have the other soon.  There were two yellow peppers and I kept both of them so I could make stuffed peppers again now that I am feeling better.  All of the vegetables were beautiful.

There were two loaves of bread and I kept both of them.  We go through bread quickly around here.  At first I thought they were the same thing, but then I read the labels and they are different.  This will be fun to try.

Kathy also gave me a box of strawberries, but unfortunately they had gone bad before I got them.

I can't wait until her phone call this afternoon to see what we are getting this week.  This is saving us so much money on food and we really appreciate it besides enjoying the surprise of what we will get each week.

See you later.

Kathy