Farmer Market Wednesday's - Spring Veggies

There are several things that I love about the warmer times of the year. The drear color of winter is slowly taken away by a blanket of green. Flowers burst into color everywhere. And of course the return of the sun; to not only brighten and warm our days but also to lengthen them.

Another of my favorite things is the return of fresh garden grown vegetables and fruit. The local farmers markets have slowly been returning. The early spring veggies and fruits can now be found, such as onions, cabbage, new potatoes, blueberries, strawberries and more. I am fortunate to live in an area where not only can I find a wonderful variety of fruits and vegetables but also a nice choice of farm raised meats, eggs, fresh butter, and ground flour.

Since this has become such a wonderful part of my life, I have decided to share it with my blog friends. Each Wednesday, I will feature my weekly jaunt to the market. I love that we have a choice of whether to go on a Wednesday or a Saturday. Sometimes the weekends can be so hectic and if one is not there the moment the doors open you may miss out on some of the choice products to choose from. Along with my weekly finds, I am planning to also share some of my favorite recipes.

This week I ventured to the nearby town of Norman, Oklahoma to check out their market. I was surprised to learn that they also have a mid week market. Needless to say I was not disappointed with what I found. Of course it was still small in size as it is still early for some markets and the mid-week markets are usually not as abundant as the weekend ones.

I had to pick up some new potatoes and fresh picked green beans. I loved how tender the potatoes were as I rummaged through them to find the small petite ones. You know they are fresh when your fingernail keeps slicing into them. I have plans to mix up a nice pot of green beans and new potatoes seasoned with some fresh ham this week for supper. I also picked up some newly picked sweet onions to add to my stew. A few nice little ones will do nicely as well as go with an occasional sandwich or just a treat.

As I strolled through the market I came across some peaches. Let me just say I am a sucker for peaches. Although Oklahoma peaches are not quite ready yet, the Georgia peaches I found will do nicely. They have a smell to them that is just wonderful. I can assure you all that as our peaches become more in season you can look for a post on peach jam as well as other wonderful recipes. We were so lucky to not have a late freeze and unlike last year, our peach crop should be a good one. We are even going to have a good crop of Apricots, another one of my favorites.

Lastly I picked up a beautiful head of sweet cabbage. This vendor had a large variety of choices and I am sure I will talk about them again. This specific variety is called tender sweet. I was assured that I will simply love it. The German in me loves her cabbage. I also found some fresh pinto beans. I have never had fresh beans and am eager to see the difference.

Until next week, enjoy yourself and eat something fresh…. Not only is it good for you but it taste so good.