• Homemade Raw Blueberry Jam: A Healthy Recipe That’s Easy Too

    Our president, Vikki Proctor, has a gift for finding delicious, easy and healthy recipes that exploit the freshness of market produce. Here’s one. She explains:

    This is a fabulous blueberry jam-no cooking, no sugar, 10 min. Read all about it here. I did add 1/2 tsp vanilla. Honestly=AWESOME!

     



  • Final Details About Saturday’s Harvest Celebration
    A dozen great Evanston kitchens pair with a baker’s dozen of producers to serve you an unforgettable meal at “The Harvest Celebration: Truck to Table at the Downtown Evanston Farmers Market.”
    It all happens on Saturday, from 11am to 1pm, right at the Downtown Farmers Market.
    It’s happening, rain or shine. A giant tent and community tables will be set up for you to enjoy your meal.
    The adult admission is $50 for 8 tastings. Children 9 and under, up to 3 per family, are free, and will receive three tasting tickets each.
    On Saturday, ticket holders should stop by the blue Friends tent in the southwest corner of the market to pick up their tasting tickets.
    There will be entertainment, outstanding food, and a chance to say thank you to our great farmers, food purveyors, plant sellers and home grown artists. AND marvel at the fact that our Market is 40 years old! Come join in the celebration!
    Here are twelve more great reasons to get your tickets right away–the pairings of restaurant/chefs and producers, along with a menu of the dishes they will be making for you.
    Restaurant/Chef
    Dish
    Producer
    Bake 425 
    Fresh Tomato Margherita Pizza 1st Orchards & Greenhouse
    Gotta B Crepes

    Ryan and Kathia Jones
    Raspberry Crepe “S’More” Seedling Fruits
    Found

    Chef Nicole Pederson
    Smoked Ivory Char Marinated Eggplant & Peppers  Lake Breeze Organics
    &
    Aqua Terra
    Farmhouse

    Chef Eric Mansavage
    Harvest “BLT” Panzanella Salad  Geneva Lakes Produce
    Bistro Bordeaux

    Executive Chef Gide Merriman
    Champignon Bourguignon  River Valley Ranch & Kitchens
    Campagnola/
    Union Pizza

    Chef Vince DiBattista
    Wood Grilled Beets & Spigarello, Robiola & Sunflower Seeds  Kinnikinnick Farm
    Cooked

    Chef Jona Silva
    Cauliflower Tabbouleh Skirt Steak  M & D Farm
    Boltwood

    Chef Brian Huston
    Gast Sausage Plum Mostarda  Gast Farm
    NorthShore University Health System

    Chef Lance Daly
    Quinoa & Roasted Vegetable Salad in a Sweet Potato Basket  Green Acres
    Koi

    Chef Sandy Chen
    Sesame Noodles
    Vegetables
    Chili Peanut Sauce
     Morlock & Girls
    Bravo Cucina

    Chef Tim Small
     Harvest Vegetable Bruschetta  Nichols Farm & Orchard
    Peckish Pig

    Chef Debbie Evans
     Roast Peaches Polenta Cake  Stovers Farm Market


  • Found’s Fabulous Recipe Served Up, and Market Day in Photos

    Whenever Chef Nicole Pederson of Evanston’s Found commands the Friends Tent at Saturday’s market, the results are full of flavor, and a tribute to the products found every week at our many vendors.

    This week’s tasty bite is yours to reproduce at home with the recipe below. You can also download it by clicking here.

    Scroll down below the recipe to see a gallery of products and people at last week’s market.

    Crispy White Corn Polenta Cakes with Plum- herb relish, chevre and baby mustard greens

    Found Dish

    For the Polenta

    • 1c whole milk
    • 1c heavy cream
    • 1c half n half
    • 4 oz butter 1T salt
    • 1 1/2 c white corn meal, finely ground (polenta)

    In a large stock pot, combine milks, butter, and salt . Allow to come to a boil and then slowly whisk in the polenta. Allow to simmer, stirring often, until thick and not starchy tasting. Taste for seasoning and add more salt if necessary. Spread evenly onto 2 parchment-lined 1/2 sheet trays. Cover with parchment and allow to cool in the refrigerator.

    Plum and summer herb relish

    • 1 1/2 c walla walla onion, small dice
    • 1 c evo
    • 1/2 c apple cider vinegar
    • 1t salt

    Combine all ingredients in a sauce pot – btab (bring to a boil) – remove from the heat and cool.

    • 1T it flat leaf parsley, chopped
    • 1T white cherokee mint, chopped
    • 1c red and yellow plums, pits removed and diced

    Gently fold herbs and plums into chilled onion oil mixture

    For the Goat Cheese Sauce

    • 1/2 c goat cheese
    • 1/2 c heavy cream

    Mix together until fully incorporated and smooth.

    For the Plum Sauce

    • 1small onion, sliced
    • 1cloves garlic, sliced
    • 2 c  plums, pitted
    • 1T white wine vinegar
    • 4 T light brown sugar
    • 1T soy sauce
    • Salt to taste

    Caramelize onions in a small amount of butter or oil. Add remaining ingredients and cook down until reduced by 25%.  Puree mixture in the blender.

    To serve, cut polenta in 2 by 3 inch triangles . Sear pieces in a small amount of oil in a heavy bottomed skillet, until golden brown and heated throughout . Serve on top of goat cheese sauce then drizzle with plum sauce,top with plum relish and baby mustard greens.

    (Enjoy making this recipe, but please don’t reproduce online. You can link to this pdf version kindly provided by Found.)

    Last Week’s Gallery



  • Harvest Celebration Honors 40 Years of Our Farmers Market !

    It’s about time for our biggest annual event: The Harvest Celebration!

    Join us on September 19, from 11:00-1:30 p.m. to celebrate the bounty we find weekly at our farmers markets and the 40th Anniversary of the Downtown Evanston Farmers Market by attending The Evanston Harvest Celebration, a “Truck-to-Table” community event hosted by Now We’re Cookin.’

    This event will tantalize your taste buds, as top local chefs partner with prominent Midwest sustainable growers to deliver the culinary event of the North Shore season. For the first time, the family event will be held right at the Downtown Evanston Farmers Market, 1800 Maple Avenue, on Saturday.

    Great Food, Great Price

    Tickets give attendees to a wonderful eight plate tasting. Get your tickets by 1pm, September 5th, and save with early-bird pricing–$40. After the Farmers Market closes on September 5, ticket prices will be $50. Kids 9 and under receive 3 free kid meal tickets.

    Here’s What Your Participation Supports

    The Evanston Harvest Celebration benefits both the Downtown Evanston Farmers Market and Friends of Evanston Farmers Markets, a non-profit organization that educates the public about the benefits of eating fresh, locally grown foods, advocating greater access to healthy food for all community members, regardless of means.

    Funds raised at the event will be used to continue Friends’ educational projects as well as provide support for its LINK matching program, which enables families who otherwise couldn’t afford the market to buy fresh produce, eggs and cheese. You will also be supporting The Spud Club, an in-market kid’s educational program provided by the Evanston Farmers Market.

    Thank you for your support, and we look forward to seeing you!

    To register and get your early bird tickets click here.



  • Evanston’s Plastic Bag Ban Has Begun. Does It Affect the Market?

    First, some snapshots from last week Market and Tent Event. The demo salad is a little out of focus, but it you want to see the Chef’s Demos at their best, sign up for our newsletter to get the schedule and visit the Friends Tent at the Downtown Evanston Market from 9 to 11!

    In case you missed it: Evanston enacted its ban on plastic bags. It’s not a total ban, only affecting stores in Evanston over 10,000 square feet. Although vendors at the farmers market encourage shoppers to bring their own bags, they aren’t prohibited from offering bags to those without. Some vendors have transitioned to more eco-friendly bags. Some vendors charge a small amount for such bags. It’s fair to say that every venue at the market would prefer to see customers bring their own bags. Still, at the Farmers Market, it’s not a requisite.

    For all the details, including a map of affected stores and locations where you can find reusable bag giveaways, visit the City of Evanston website, specifically http://www.cityofevanston.org/sustainability/waste-reduction-recycling/shopping-bag-ordinance/.