The Can-Can-Weekend

Bread & Butter Pickles | Photo: Kelly Hunt You may recall me whining a bit about not being able to hit the markets every weekend this summer because it was the “summer of camping” and I found it hard to fit it all in. Well, this past weekend I made up for it – BIG TIME! I decided that I would hit Trails End Market on Saturday. I had plans to find what I needed to make the “Relish, Sauce and Chutney Recipe” from Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver – which is not a cookbook, but instead, a book of fiction. I bring this up – because this is really my book – the book that made it all click for me – the book that turned my thinking on local eating and made me really think about the way I eat and shop. This particular recipe I made two years ago with my cousin Nicole. It takes quite a while and a ton of ingredients but you end up with barbecue relish, a sweet and sour sauce and a wicked tasting chutney, that people are always trying to steal out of my pantry! Where the heck am I going with this post? Well, I went to find all the ingredients for that recipe, but I found so much more at Trails End Market. It”s just crazy there, you can find just about anything! You want some dill weed? Some potatoes? Hey,how about a live chicken? You can have it all! Well I had it all,and that is where this post brings me. I brought home a huge bushel of tomatoes, a basket of concord grapes, some red onions, a basket of red and white potatoes, carrots, some fresh dill, some cilantro, a basket of pimento peppers, a bushel of pickling cucumbers and two baskets of peaches! It took me four trips to the car in the pouring rain, where I ruined my newly styled hair but was happy with my haul in the end. Now – the pickles. I bought a bushel of pickling cucumbers. They are like normal cukes, but smaller. I wanted to make bread and butter pickles for the first time. I started those yesterday morning and finished them off after work today. I had so many cukes, that I also made dill pickles yesterday. My pantry is filling up now – but I still have tomatoes left over from the HUGE bag that I purchased for just $8. So, I am thinking that maybe tomato sauce is in order sometime later this week, if I find the energy. If you are interested in making Bread and Butter Pickles – I pretty much followed the Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook, Limited Edition Recipe: 4 Quarts (16 cups) sliced cucumbers 8 medium onions – sliced 1/3 cup pickling salt 3 cloves garlic cracked ice 4 cups sugar 3 cups cider vinegar 2 tablespoons of mustard seeds 1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric 1 1/2 teaspoons celery seeds In a huge pot, combine cukes, onions, pickling salt and garlic. Add about 2 inches of ice on top and refrigerate overnight (or at least 3 hours). Remove any remaining ice and drain, remove garlic. In a big pot, combine sugar, vinegar, mustard seeds, turmeric and celery seeds. Bring to a boil. Add your cucumbers and onions, return to a boil. Sterilize 4 large jars and lids and screw tops. Pack hot cucumbers into your jars, fill with liquid to a 1/2 inch from the rim. Place lids and screw tops on and return to water bath for 10 minutes at full boil. Remove to cool – label and store for about 3 weeks before eating.  Read More

Trails End Market Haul-er-am-a!

Hi there! Hello July, Hello summer, Hello hot weather! I have been in Vancouver Island for the past ten days for a little summer vacation. We had a terrific time, the weather was amazing – apparently not a regular thing for the West Coast, but we loved the sun and we were glad to hear that it shined for us. The West Coast is rugged, beautiful, fresh and a truly wonderful place – we even tried a little surfing! I wont be raving about my vacation too much, but I wanted to let you locavores know that there is lots of excitement out on the West for the “eat local movement”. I did a little “agri-tourism” while I was there – yes, I convinced Sean into visiting some farms, a Cidery and a few wineries. We even managed to hit a few markets where I witnessed many signs designating what was local and what was not. Sustainable seafood was also really big in some places, which was awesome to see. People in the Pacific West are lucky to be able to include wild crab, salmon,halibut and tuna within their local diets (supremely jealous of that!). Although I had an amazing time and it was sad to get back on the plane,it is still a very good feeling to be back home. The markets are in full swing here – Today I ended up at Trails End Market, simply because I slept in (apparently I am still 3 hours behind!). Onto my haul – what did I haul? Carrots, garlic, baby zucchinis, reg. cucumbers, cherries (2 kinds!), red and white new potatoes, yams, sugar snap peas, canning cukes, asparagus (yes! it is still in), and mushrooms. I also hit Heeman”s on the way home – but I will post about what I found there later.. off to watch a movie and enjoy the last hours of my vacation! Trails End Market 4370 Dundas Street East, London, ON  Read More

Trails End Farmers Market

Hot hot heat did not keep me out of the market today. I hit the Trails End Market at about noon today, it was very hot, very sweaty and very unsexy. Well.. except for all the fresh cherries and raspberries… now that”s sexy! Yes, that”s right readers.. the time has arrived for cherries and raspberries! The photo above is what I decided to haul out of there today. I bought red currants, raspberries, cherries (2 kinds) green and yellow zucchinis, dill, small cukes, dill weed, zucchini flowers, and 3 gia-normous yams. There were a ton of vendors at the Trails End market. I don”t make it out there very often, as it is open only on Saturdays and it is a bit of a jog from my diggs,but I have to admit that I wish I lived closer. It is jam packed full of vendors,and people! These are some of the things that I saw available at the market today (but definitely not all!):Cherries, raspberries, red currants, zucchini, yams, potatoes, snap peas, beans, lettuce, onions, every kind of herb, cucumbers. One small warning, there are alot of unlocal items there, masquerading as local food, if you are unsure at all, just ask the vendor, they are happy to let you know! Also, the inside portion of the market has all kinds of goodies like meats, eggs, poultry, baked goods and oodles of flea market finds. For the record.. I saw chicken feet for sale, I was going to photograph, but a man in front of me promptly bought up the last bag before my eyes.. apparently these are a popular item..who knew?! I believe that the Trails End Market is open year round, but the outdoor farmer stalls are open on Saturdays throughout the summer. Trails End Market4370 Dundas Street East, London, ON  Read More