Fresh Sheet: May 22nd

Another market day is just around the corner! Filled with great food, beautiful jewellery, the creative works of wonderful artisans, and fantastic busking entertainment, there's sure to be something for everyone.

If you are looking for a particular vendor, stop in at the SWEFM Info Tent where you can view a map of the market and figure out where to find your favourite stalls (though we make every effort to keep vendors in consistent locations, our market make-up fluctuates from week to week to accommodate both our part time vendors, and the vendors who bring seasonal items)... of course sometimes, it's more fun to simply wander and happen upon them!

Our veggie growers will have plants ready for your gardens and hanging baskets all set to beautify your front porches, balconies and backyard decks.

Alberta Beverage Container Recycling Corporation will be on site with their mascot, MT (pronounced "Empty") to help us to recycle bottles and cans on site and educate all of us about the importance of recycling.

Remember, next week, May 29th, is our Annual Garden Festival... so please continue saving your egg cartons, old pennies and bags of rice (along with any other food items you might like to donate) to the food bank. The Edmonton Food Bank will be on site accepting donations, we'll be filling a wheelbarrow to overflowing (we hope!) with bags of sealed rice, and Servus Credit Union will be there, organizing and collecting pennies in their community-inspired penny drive on behalf of the food bank.

Here's what you can expect to find at your community market this week...

For The Kids

The giant inflatable slide will be here!!! From now on, each Wednesday, kids can come and have a blast on the towering, incredibly huge, ever-so-fun giant inflatable slide! It's 16 feet wide, 30 feet long and 22 feet high!! Just think how much energy your kids will expend racing up and down this slide... and how well they'll sleep at night! Rides will be $1 each, or $5 for unlimited slides.

Once again, wee ones can be transformed into butterflies and tigers when they get their faces painted with wonderfully creative and vivid designs by The Dolphin Lady that will be sure to spark their imaginations and instil a little wonderment into their lives. Pretzel will be there as well, creating amazing balloon figures in fabulous designs and colours as only he can, sure to amaze the inner child in all of us!

For Your Kitchen

Though the farmers' fields have yet to produce crops with fresh fruits and veggies to bring to market, there are still lots of great offerings to be found on site, Wednesday. Dargatz Family Farms, The Holden Colony and Riverbend Gardens will have their over-wintered potatoes, carrots and squashes on hand. There will be eggs and honey as well. And of course, Good Morning Honey will have their bee-made products on hand.

There are other staples available as well, such as... fresh bread at Prairie Mill Bakery or gluten free bread at Celebrate, Gluten Free. Do you have a hankering for something Mediterranean (think Italy, Greece & Turkey)? There are pre-made items like dips at Theo's Greek Kuzina and Turkish food at Melodi's Kitchen. There are pastas... both regular and gluten-free at Back To Basics.

There's plenty of fresh produce available from our local greenhouses! TR Greenhouses and The Holden Colony will have cucumbers (large, long English and small sized, great for snacking & packing in lunches for the kids), tomatoes (including small, sweet tomatoes on the vine and my personal favourite... the incredibly chewy, meaty & unbelievably flavour filled zebra tomatoes) and peppers (sweet & hot).

Plenty of options are available for meat for your weekday meals, from whole chickens, cuts of beef and bison through to prepared sausages, deli meats and jerkies. Be sure to check out what is available this week... and remember, vendors like Red Tractor Meats and Sunworks Family Farm all accept pre-orders which make your market shopping very simple. Just go to our website (http://www.swefm.ca/meat-vendors.html), find their profile (in alphabetical order on our list) and click on their links to connect to their websites to place your order. Then, show up on wednesday and make your last stop at their booths, pick up and pay for your order, and head straight home to your fridges and freezers.

For Your Wednesday Night "Dinner at the Market"

The food trucks are back! Once again, expect to find delicious comfort food from the food trucks, those gourmet kitchens on wheels. Bully will be back, serving great, inventive foods that feature meat, bread, fruit  & veggie vendors at our market (remember last week's Red Tractor Meats topped salad?). Sailin' On will be on hiatus this week, replaced by Food Fighters (they have served steak sandwiches and chicken parmesan sandwiches in the past). There may be one more meal truck on site this week. And then, of course, Fat Franks will be on hand serving hot dogs and cooked smokies & sausages. Desserts can always be found at Pink Kernel (ice cream, mini donuts, cotton candy), Sweet Stuff (cupcakes), Phil's Fudge, and soft icecream cones at The Butchers' Bus.

This Week's Line-Up

There are new vendors at the market this week, including a few familiar faces... Jenny's Gems will be back. There are also a couple of new vendors, Moonshine Doughnuts (formerly Heritage Baked Goods), Hemperial Fidelis (selling hemp oil and products) and Ada's Soap Shop.

For information on these vendors, and the ones listed below, be sure to go to our website Browse Vendors By Category. There you will find excellent descriptions & eye catching photos of the vendors that come to our market & the products that they bring. Browse by category to find out more about the personalities behind the creations, the produce & the food items, and to find out what each vendor will be bringing to market. Please note that not all vendors you see here will be at EVERY market as some come part time (like when their items are in season, or once or twice a month, etc.).

You will be amazed when you see the wealth of creativity, the level of inspiration and the amazing quality of goods that will be at the Southwest Edmonton Farmers' Market... your neighbourhood market where communities, artisans and farmers all come together .... this season.

Artisans & Crafts People:
Ada's Soap Shop (natural products that do not irritate eczema, olive oil soap, soap shapes)
Hemperial Fidelis (soaps, lotions, natural bug spray (body/bath stuff), soy candles, 1/4" twine, raw hemp, hemp seeds, organic and pressed hemp oil)
Jenny's Gems (jewellery)
Jewels by Amy (crystal & silver jewellery)

Baked Goods:

Celebrate Gluten Free (gluten free; flax bread, cheese buns & bread, multi grain bread, banana & lemon loaves, cookies, cupcakes, cinnamon buns, brownies)

El Mercado Tortillas (2 types of authentic Mexican corn tortillas)

Inked Cakes (sweet breads & loaves, brownies, bars & squares... formerly Robert's Loaves from Alberta Beach)

Moonshine Doughnuts (gourmet doughnuts in various flavours... formerly Heritage Baked Goods)
Prairie Mill Bread (organic, preservative-free bread)

Raspberry & Cocoa (Tea cakes, puff pastry, croissant, green tea)
Sweet Stuff Cakes (cupcakes)

Meat & Dairy:

Butchers' Bus (Sausage, smokies, pepperoni, pork or turkey jerky)
Food Direct (fish)
Red Tractor Family Farm (fresh, frozen meat) 
Sunworks Organic Farm (chicken, beef, prepared sausages)

Food Trucks & Concessions:
Bully Food Truck (gourmet comfort foods like mac & cheese, poutine, turkey burger, salad, pulled pork grilled cheese sandwich) 
Fat Franks (gourmet hot dogs, smokies & drinks) 
Food Fighters (gourmet sandwiches)
Original Canadian Kettle Popcorn (kettle corn, cotton candy, soft drinks)
 The Pink Kernel (mini donuts, cotton candy, shaved ice, kettle corn, lemonade, water, yo yo balloons)

Fruits And Vegetables:

*** Note... many of our vegetable producers will be bringing plant starts, stored potatoes and garden plants to the first few market days until their produce is ready. Only greenhouse operators will have fresh vegetables like peppers, tomatoes, long beans and cucumbers at the early season markets. Fruit vendors do not start coming until mid June.

Dargatz Family Farm (produce, bedding plants, eggs, pickles)
Holden Colony (vegetables, pickles, salsa, garlic powder)

Riverbend Gardens (vegetables)
TR Greenhouses (veggies, jellies & salt)

Prepared Foods:

Back to Basics (frozen lasagna using fresh pasta including gluten free and vegetarian versions, homemade soup, homemade ice-cream & icecream sandwiches)
Fruits of Sherbrooke (jams, jellies & condiments)

The Glass Pantry (premixed cookie, scone, muffin, bar... in a mason jar)

Good Morning Honey (packaged honey in various sizes, beeswax candles, beeswax, lip balm, night cream)
The Mallow Fellow (gourmet marshmallows in 20 flavours)

Melodi's Kitchen (Turkish food)

Phil's Fudge Factory (Fudge, fudge dipped apples)

Simply Supper (burgers, ribs & ready to go meals)

Theo's Greek Kouzina (prepared Greek food... like amazing tzatziki, humus & red pepper feta dips!!)

A Few Reminders:

Don't forget that the market has moved slightly to a new location... no longer hidden to the west of the rec centre, you will find the Southwest Edmonton Farmers' Market in the first parking lot, bordered by 23rd Avenue on its south side. Look for the signs, inflatable slide, flags and tents... you can't miss it.

Remember that there is always overflow parking to the west of the Terwillegar Recreation Centre, just follow the signs. Many of the parking lots between the west doors of the rec centre (down the arena hallway) and the Catholic High School (Mother Mary Margaret) are often virtually vacant.

Please drive slowly when visiting the Farmers' Market. Leger Road and the parking lots surrounding the Terwillegar Recreation Centre will have lots of people on foot at market time. There are 2 crosswalks that lead to the market location. Please be mindful of our traffic patrol volunteers.

Volunteers will be on site doing everything from answering questions, manning the Community & Info Tents, entertaining kids and directing traffic to schlepping things and directing people within the rec centre itself. Please be sure to give them a smile and thank them for helping to make our market such a community driven, friendly & inspired place to be.

Visit our website at http://www.swefm.ca
Like us on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/swefm.ca
Contributed by Sheri Hendsbee

Red Pepper Jelly

It's time for our Farm Fresh Recipe of the week... a weekly feature that will appear on the blog throughout our market season. Sometimes it will feature my favourite recipes, and many times it will feature favourite recipes of others... our vendors, our shoppers, our sponsors and our volunteers. Always, some of the ingredients will be available at our market... helping you to shop local for your health, and for the health of the community in which you live!

Dad's Red Pepper Jelly

My father introduced pepper jelly to me about eight years ago. I had never heard of it before and at first thought... eeewwwww! Why would you ever want to eat a sweet jelly made out of peppers!

Trust me! Get some aged white cheddar from Everything Cheese, put it on a nice, seedy rustic cracker and top with a teaspoon of this pepper jelly... it's incredible!

Or get some wonderful bread from Prairie Mill, lay down some butter lettuce from T.R. Greenhouses, top with some roast chicken from Sunworks Farm or Red Tractor Meats, and top with pepper jelly... hands down, it'll be the best roast chicken sandwich you've ever had!

This recipe has become our signature appetizer when entertaining in our home. It is incredibly simple to make and looks beautiful. I make sure that I make a number of batches throughout the year so that we have enough to give away in Christmas gifts to special friends.

And the beauty of it is that though our gardens are not producing fresh vegetables yet, T.R. Greenhouses has the peppers... both red and spicy... that you need right now, to make this at home!

Ingredients:

4½ c. (approx. 3 large) red peppers, diced

3/4 c. (approx. 5) fresh red chilli peppers, diced

4½ c. white vinegar

19½ c. granulated sugar

18 oz (2 pouches) liquid pectin

Directions:

Combine the chopped peppers and the vinegar in a blender. Blend until smooth. Pour into a large pot. Add sugar. 

Heat on medium high heat until the sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes. Stir in the pectin. Return to a full rolling boil. Boil hard 1 minute. Remove from heat. Skim off foam.

Pour into hot, sterilized, small 1/2 c. jars. (use about 45... they're the size you need to serve this appetizer once to 4 people) or 1 cup (use 22 jars).  Fill to within 1/4" of top. Place sterilized metal lids on top and screw metal bands on securely.

Visit our website at http://www.swefm.ca
Like us on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/swefm.ca

Contributed by Sheri Hendsbee

Fresh Sheet: May 15th

Pretzel (left), Puppets On A String (centre), Dolphin Lady (right)

The first market day of the season always brings with it tremendous excitement, and this season is no exception! We're hosting Puppets on a String... entertainers that are always huge hits with children. Wee ones can get their faces painted with wonderfully creative and vivid designs by The Dolphin Lady that will be sure to spark their imaginations and instil a little wonderment into their lives. Pretzel will be there as well, creating amazing balloon figures in fabulous designs and colours as only he can, sure to amaze the inner child in all of us! And Edmonton Public Librairies will be on site giving out free library cards. There will also be an incredible...

Truck Rally

Be sure to make Wednesdays, Dinner At the Market Night 

for you, your family, friends & neighbours this week and every week!

Our Grand Opener will see us hosting a terrific line-up of food trucks! All the rage on the North American Foodie Scene, some of our food trucks bring unique fusion cuisines and gourmet twists on comfort foods to our market. Expect to try delicious things like:

• a wonderful Greek gluten free option: lemon roasted potatoes topped with slow roasted lamb shoulder is gluten free from Theo at the Little Village Food Truck
• the ever-famous Mac & Cheese or Smoked Beef and Roasted Veg Salad (featuring beef from Red Tractor Meats and veggies from Riverbend Gardens) at Bully Food Truck
• a Coconut Bacon BLT Wrap served on a flour tortilla, with coconut bacon, home made roasted garlic mayo, fresh lettuce, tomato and shredded carrot at Sailin' On

Sometimes the list of vendors on our website can be a tad confusing. Some only come part time, some vendors are there all the time, and some miss just one market in the entire season. On Tuesdays during market season you can check here, on the blog, to see who's coming to market this week....

Here's Who Will Be At Our Market This Week!!!

For information on these vendors, be sure to go to our website Browse Vendors By Category. There you will find excellent descriptions & eye catching photos of the vendors that come to our market & the products that they bring. Browse by category to find out more about the personalities behind the creations, the produce & the food items, and to find out what each vendor will be bringing to market. Please note that not all vendors you see here will be at EVERY market as some come part time (like when their items are in season, or once or twice a month, etc.).

You will be amazed when you see the wealth of creativity, the level of inspiration and the amazing quality of goods that will be at the Southwest Edmonton Farmers' Market... your neighbourhood market where communities, artisans and farmers all come together .... this season.

Artisans & Crafts People:
Expressions by Lori (custom fit women's clothing)
Farmstead Bath & Body (cold process soap, lotions, lip balm, scrubs, bath melts, bombs, bubble bars)
Jewels by Amy (crystal & silver jewellery)

Orange Avocado (silver)
Tea Garden (tea cup bird feeders)

Traveling Author, Lynn Link

Baked Goods:
Celebrate Gluten Free (gluten free; flax bread, cheese buns & bread, multi grain bread, banana & lemon loaves, cookies, cupcakes, cinnamon buns, brownies)
El Mercado Tortillas (2 types of corn tortillas)
Inked Cakes (sweet breads & loaves, brownies, bars & squares... formerly Robert's Loaves from Alberta Beach)
Prairie Mill Bread (organic, preservative-free bread)
Sweet Stuff Cakes (cupcakes)

Food Trucks:

Bully Food Truck (gourmet comfort foods like mac & cheese, poutine, turkey burger, salad, pulled pork grilled cheese sandwich)
Fat Franks (gourmet hot dogs, smokies & drinks)
La Poutine (gourmet poutines... it's not 100% sure that they can come opening day)
Little Village Food Truck (Greek street food)
Original Canadian Kettle Popcorn (kettle corn, cotton candy, soft drinks)

The Pink Kernel (mini donuts, cotton candy, shaved ice, kettle corn, lemonade, water, yo yo balloons)

Sailin' On (Vegan)

Meat & Dairy:

Butchers' Bus (Sausage, smokies, pepperoni, pork or turkey jerky)
Food Direct (fish)
Greenstein Farms (lamb)
Red Tractor Family Farm (fresh, frozen meat) 
Sunworks Organic Farm (chicken, beef, prepared sausages)

Fruits And Vegetables:

*** Note... many of our vegetable producers will be bringing plant starts, stored potatoes and garden plants to the first few market days until their produce is ready. Only greenhouse operators will have fresh vegetables like peppers, tomatoes, long beans and cucumbers at the early season markets. Fruit vendors do not start coming until mid June.

Dargatz Family Farm (produce, bedding plants, eggs, pickles)
Holden Colony (vegetables, pickles, salsa, garlic powder)

Riverbend Gardens (vegetables)
TR Greenhouses (veggies, jellies & salt)

Prepared Foods:

Back to Basics (frozen lasagna using fresh pasta including gluten free and vegetarian versions, homemade soup, homemade ice-cream & icecream sandwiches)
El Mercado (authentic mexican tortillas)
Fruits of Sherbrooke (jams, jellies & condiments)
Good Morning Honey (packaged honey in various sizes, beeswax candles, beeswax, lip balm, night cream)
The Maple Farm (organic maple syrup)
The Mallow Fellow (gourmet marshmallows in 20 flavours)
The Maple Farm (maple syrup)
Melodi's Kitchen (Turkish food)
Phil's Fudge Factory (Fudge, fudge dipped apples)
Simply Supper (burgers, ribs & ready to go meals)
Theo's Greek Kouzina (prepared Greek food)

A Few Reminders:

• If you are new to farmers' market shopping and want to read a few tips, check out this old blog post, Farmers' Market Shopping Tips. 
• Remember, because food is served at our market, only service dogs are permitted. This is in compliance with Alberta Food Safety Protocol. So please leave your dogs at home.

• The market is now located directly on the corner of 23rd Ave and Leger Road, across from the Leger Bus Station and across from the Terwillegar Recreation Centre. It is no longer tucked around the side of the Rec Centre in the overflow parking area.
• There is PLENTY of parking. Be sure to follow Leger Road past the market. There are overflow parking lots located all along that road. You just might have to park a bit far away and then hike in to the market. Better yet, ride your bikes to the market or walk there!
• There is no ATM on site (though one is available inside the rec centre). Please bring cash with you for your purchases.
• We are still looking for a few volunteers... feel like being a Sign Angel? We would love a few people to babysit SWEFM signs and put them up in their neighbourhoods the evening before the market, and remove them the morning after the market. This will save us a lot of time, driving around & putting them in place. Contact our market manager, if you can help, or come and see us at the Southwest Edmonton Far,ers' Market Info Tent at the entrance to the market.
• Have a blast! Community Farmers' Markets are a terrific place to meet up with friends, families and neighbours. They're fun, vibrant places where connections can be made and where the community spirit comes alive!

Visit our website at http://www.swefm.ca
Like us on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/swefm.ca
Contributed by Sheri Hendsbee

Meet our Parent: The Terwillegar Riverbend Advisory Council

The Terwillegar Riverbend Advisory Council is a ‘super community league’ that represents 18 neighbourhoods in the city's southwest. The support and vision of TRAC have helped to create the Southwest Edmonton Farmers Market. Both organizations aim to enhance the quality of life in our quadrant of the city, contribute significantly to the vibrancy of the community at large, and provide many meaningful ways to form connections within our local community between neighbours, friends, families, city government, schools and businesses. TRAC is the parent organization, so to speak, of the farmers' market. I wanted to use this blog post to highlight some of TRAC's upcoming events and initiatives. By supporting these events, you are also helping to sponsor and support our market because a portion of the proceeds raised by these initiatives goes toward the farmers' market itself.

TRAC 10 K Fun Run
On Sunday May 26th, TRAC is partnering with the Running Room and Mother Margaret Mary Catholic High School to create a TRAC 10K, 5K, 3K Run/Walk & Spring Family Fun Fair that will be a blast for everyone involved! There will be a tremendous number of things happening at this fundraising event. If you register early, online, you will receive a significant discount (TRAC 10K Registration). The event takes place at the high school, which is located just behind the Terwillegar Recreation Centre, on Leger Road. There you will find:

All of this could not be possible without great sponsors.
See www.tracspirit.ca for the list of these terrific sponsors.

• the TRAC 10K 5K 3K RUN/WALK with *chip technology and a TECH T-Shirt     * NOW SERIOUS RUNNERS WILL HAVE THEIR TIMES ACCURATELY RECORDED!
• a Mini-Farmers' Market - Courtesy of  the Southwest Edmonton Farmers' Market
• a Pancake Breakfast - Courtesy of TRAC Seniors (if the weather is not very nice, the pancake breakfast will be held indoors) 
• a Fun Fair: tethered hot air balloon, jumpy thing, face painting, games
• a Nutrition Booth - providing snacks and drinks for the registered runners and walkers  
• the famous Popeye's T-Shirt Toss courtesy of Popeye's Supplements Canada 
• a warm-up provided by Infinite Fitness 
• a cool down led by Rejuvenation Health Services
• Lots of Prizes, including the GRAND PRIZES of 2 mini iPads!

Terwillegar Malbec

TRAC also has another, very creative fundraising initiative happening now and throughout the rest of the year. Partnering with Vines Riverbend Wine Merchants, they have commissioned their own red wine, called Terwillegar Malbec. This red wine is produced by the popular Australian Bleasdale Winery and can be purchased for $23.99/bottle at Vines (Vines' Website). For every bottle sold, $5 will go to TRAC to support many planned projects and programs, like the Southwest Edmonton Farmers' Market, that are happening in our community. 

The Official Launch of 'Terwillegar' will take place on Saturday, June 8th, 2013 from 2 - 5 PM at Vines Wine Merchants store (2331 Rabbit Hill Road) Come and celebrate the first Community Labelled Wine in Edmonton!A musical introduction, food and of course tasting! Vines Wine Merchants Website:  www.vineswinemerchants.com

The photo of Dr. Norman Terwillegar, courtesy of the City of Edmonton Archives EA-749-2

A very good wine, so far 15 cases have been sold, and the wine is not officially launched yet. The wine was also showcased at the EFCL Volunteer Appreciation evening at the Meyer Horowitz Theatre and at Vines' Spring Fling event, with great success. Here are its tasting notes:

• A luscious bouquet of dark fruits swathed in chocolate, roasted meats with mint, briar and violet, followed by notes of cassis and red berries. It leads to a medium bodied palate exhibiting pure varietal flavours, a quenching acidity, and a light gamey, meat character. Velvety smooth tannins and a soft finish. All too quaffable! ~ Steve Richmond, Vines Wine Merchants, ISG Certified Sommelier
• While Australia is certainly well known for their Shiraz, this Malbec can stand glass to glass with their top reputed grape. Created in the typical Aussie style, this wine is a delicious fruit bomb full of rich blackberry, smooth tannins and round yet full textures. This is positively a wine that will be a great crowd pleaser. ~ William Bincoletto, Vines Wine Merchants principal sommelier, International Sommelier guild Instructor

Everything Cheese, one of the vendors at our market, has partnered with this TRAC initiative and has paired 3 cheeses that go very well with this wine. 10% of the proceeds from the sale of these cheeses goes to TRAC:

1. Don Panchego (Island of Sardinia, Italy) Made from sheep's milk, this is a Manchego-style pecorino. Legend has it that a Spanish cheesemaker was let go from a creamery in Spain, so he took the recipe (dating from 1327) to Italy. The name is a play on the Spanish word "Manchego." It has an assertive bite and goes well with robust red wines like this one. 
2. Mimolette Extra-Vielle (XO) (Northern France) Made from pasteurized cow’s milk, it is a firm to hard, natural, inedible, brushed rind, extra-old chees that is very special and rare. It is cave-aged for 18 months and its orange colour comes from the natural colourant, annatto. The greyish crust (under the black wax) is the result of cheese mites, intentionally introduced to add flavour by their action on the surface of the cheese. It tastes a little like slightly smoky aged cheddar; sweet and savoury at the same time, with a hazlenutty flavour. 
3. Bleu Benedictin (Abbaye Saint Benoit, Quebec) This is a pasteurized whole cow’s milk cheese.  The monastery was founded in 1912 by exiled French monks who had moved to Belgium before relocating to Canada. Since 1943, part of the work at Saint-Benoît-du-Lac has been making cheese. It is the only cheese factory managed by Benedictine monks in North America. This cheese is aged at least 3 months in natural caves under the monastery. It has a superb, extra-creamy texture with a complex, pleasantly piquant, salty, lingering flavour. It is excellent served over a juicy steak with a red wine jus. 

I am always so pleased to see businesses that step up to give something back to the community in which they thrive. We have seen it in the generosity of our own sponsors, here at the Southwest Edmonton Farmers' Market. And I truly love it, when it is done in a creative, and meaningful way, like this partnership between TRAC, Vines & Everything Cheese. So kudos to Vines & Everything Cheese for investing in their communities and to TRAC for coming up with such unique partnerships to better our community!

Visit our website at http://www.swefm.ca
Like us on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/swefm.ca
Contributed by Sheri Hendsbee & Dr. Robert Agostinis