I went to two farmer's markets this week and felt like I was going to explode from all the happiness inside me. I was effervescing like a can of pop, and a gigantic goofy smile was not enough to let out all of my excitement. At the first farmer's market, on campus, I bought tons of veggies for less than $10! Here is part of the bounty:
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| sweet peppers of various colors. the one on the right looks especially beautiful as it's transitioning between yellow, green, and red. |
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| green beans. I want to learn to make the stir fried green beans with fermented black bean specks (anyone have that chinese recipe? I've only eaten it in restaurants) |
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| bok choy: great for stir fries! |
Then, today Steve and I ventured to the Midtown farmer's market, per request of Nathan M. He has a food booth (both here and at the Uptown market) where he creates and sells imaginative lefse and cookies. His budding enterprise is called Varma. His menu takes the traditional Norske lefse and adds some flair with toppings such as dark chocolate, cherries, almond butter, etc. His vegan sweet potato lefse is very popular, since it had (sadly) sold out by the time I arrived halfway through the market.
Though the menu is mostly sweet items, he hopes to expand to include more savory types of toppings. Next year, he is considering adding some meat. This isn't a crazy idea, since varme polse (hot dog rolled into a lefse) is a popular item at other lefse stands. (Yes, I am familiar with the production and vending of lefse...crazy but true! I am a genuine Norwegian girl.)
I also had the chance to sample his "compost" cookie. He described this cookie as having a constant base to which other exciting (and sometimes mysterious) items are added. He urged me to guess the mystery ingredients, but then immediately answered his own questions. The cookie had pretzel, walnuts, and chocolate. The cookies mesh well with the theme of the booth, which seems to be "Let's throw in whatever is tasty!" I certainly approve!
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| heating up the lefse... |
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| ...and smothering it in butter before adding the other toppings! |
Any questions about this deliciousness can be directed to nathan@locallefse.com