Check out my farmer’s market, yo
By Monica on July 11th, 2008
So while Raleigh certainly isn’t vegan paradise, I wanted to elicit sympathy show folks why I found the NC State Farmer’s Market so exciting. Behold, this is my farmer’s market, all 5 booths of it:
The photo is from my car as I drive past because I have not bothered going so far this year. (Please ignore the dilapidated orange ghetto trains in the background, my town thinks those are “antiques”.) From my car window each week I can spot lettuce, spinach, cabbage, and more lettuce. Illinois won’t have much else for another month or two. There are 5 booths so far; there will be about 10 when sweet corn season hits. The nice older lady in the middle there sells beer mustard, and the booth on the far right is non-vegan baked goods, so technically there are 3 booths of produce. I hope this explains my fascination with REAL farmer’s markets now!
Moo-ving on, here are some smoothies made from aging berries I would not allow to go to waste. Really though, this is just an excuse to show off my new glasses. The animals all have butts on the other side, heh.
In actual food this week, I made a double batch of Jessy’s Mom’s Magnificent Tuna-Free Tuna Casserole. Rule of thumb in my house is to double any casserole recipe to save more for later. That would have worked well if we didn’t eat the entire damn thing over the course of the week. A word of advice if you double this recipe - immediately freeze half of it because self control is powerless here.
And to round things off nicely - Apricot Cranberry Nut Pie from The Garden of Vegan. It’s so pretty one can almost overlook the pre-made crust, I hope.
But wait, there’s more! Despite being labeled a weirdo for making soup in July, we made a batch of V’con Roasted Garlic Tomato Soup with Beans and Rice. July or not, it was delicious…
…especially when paired with Bryanna’s Focaccia Bread - a tomato basil variety, of course. Both the soup and the focaccia recipes make enough to feed an army, so I have all these delightful leftovers to look forward to this weekend, yay!
Cakespy says:
OMG, the casserole and the bread look soooo good! It all does of course (and I love the glasses!!!) but those two in particular look carb-tastic! Yum.
July 11th, 2008 at 10:27 am
Shellyfish says:
Your little farmer’s market is so cute! That’s what the FM looked like in my town growing up- from about June to September, maybe 5 or 6 folks there to sell, but my dad always brought us when we were kids & we thought it was so cool!
Speaking of cool, how about those glasses?! And all that good food! I haven’t tried Jessy’s Mom’s casserole yet, but I’m totally planning on it!
July 11th, 2008 at 10:29 am
celine says:
the food looks ace, but the glasses have stolen my fart. I mean, my heart.
July 11th, 2008 at 10:40 am
Vegyogini says:
Hey, I made soup in July, too! In 100 degree heat, no less.
You need to visit all of us L.A. vegan bloggers so we can show you our farmers’ markets!
July 11th, 2008 at 11:09 am
Tori says:
That focaccia bread looks great. This is probably a crime, but I have never made any of Bryanna’s recipes!
My farmers market is similar to yours, but instead of lovely trains in the background, we get churches.
The tofuttis cheddar cream cheese is just like there regular stuff only it tastes like cheddar!!
July 11th, 2008 at 11:36 am
Jennifer says:
Aw, that farmer’s market is so small.
I had my eye on Jessy’s recipe too, in fact, most of her recipes, they all just look so good.
And there is nothing wrong with having soup in the summer!
July 11th, 2008 at 1:17 pm
Animal-Friendly says:
I love your new cups- they’re so cute!
Mmmmmm…..- focaccia with tomato soup. That sounds like one amazing meal to me!
July 11th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
Veggie says:
Now you’ve got me wanting to make focaccia bread.
Those glasses are so cute!!
July 11th, 2008 at 3:45 pm
VeggieGirl says:
The smoothies, foccacia, and especially that Apricot-Cranberry-Nut pie look PHENOMENAL.
July 11th, 2008 at 4:09 pm
Chocolatecoveredvegan says:
Those cups are too cute! (I’m glad you didn’t show the other side, though hehe)
Thank you so much for your kind comments on my blo post. I am so lucky to “know” you, even if it’s just through the blogging world.
Oh, and to answer your question about the smoked tofu, I thought it was delicious! And I made my dad and sister try some, and they said it tasted like smoked cheese… whatever that tastes like!
July 12th, 2008 at 8:03 am
Charlotte says:
I make soup in the summer, too, and everyone always thinks it’s weird. I don’t get it, people eat other hot food, why not soup?
July 12th, 2008 at 9:02 am
saffron flat bread « Radical Muffin says:
[...] this sit for 45 minutes to an hour. Bread likes to rise in a draft free, warm place, so find a cozy spot for your bowl like the back of the stove. My mom used to put rising things on [...]
July 12th, 2008 at 11:51 am
Lisa (Show Me Vegan) says:
So much good food I don’t know where to start! I can’t stop eating soup in the summer either. LOVE the glasses!!
July 13th, 2008 at 12:54 pm
Destiny says:
I don’t think I could have restrained myself from that casserole either!
Those glasses are cute too. I’m imagining their little cartoon butts!
July 13th, 2008 at 6:03 pm
eatavegan says:
Oh my gosh, next time you’re in Chicago, definitely try Ja’Grill — I want to go back at night for the awesome retro bar atmosphere! And that area is one of my faves to visit for window shopping and such.
I know how you feel about your farmers’ market — ours are about the same size, with half of the four booths dedicated to homemade soaps and birdhouses. When I look at pics from coastal markets, I die of jealousy! One of these days I will hit up one in Chicago, but I just can’t rationalize the driving and gas unless I’m already in the city for something…
July 14th, 2008 at 7:41 am
jessy says:
aw - your farmer’s market is indeed a wee one right now. i super love the new glasses - they’re most awesome! dan & i keep breaking our pint glasses - where did you get those from?! i think a set for us would be fun - and have us smiling a lot!
hoooooooray for my mom’s tuna-free tuna casserole! yours looks divine! i’m sooooo glad you liked it! i must admit, i was kinda nervous posting that recipe because i thought “maybe i love it so much because it’s my mom’s - maybe other people will think it’s ewy!” but i’m glad you enjoyed it - and yes, it goes FAST! we ate ours in less than 24 hours! mmmmmmmm!
i think the apricot cranberry nut pie is gorgeous & yummy looking! nothing wrong with a store bought pie crust. personally, i kinda suck at making pie crusts. and the soup & focaccia look freak’n goooooood! i would eat them both in july as well. hot damn they look tasty!
hooray for all of your yummy foods, Monica! superw00t!
July 14th, 2008 at 8:49 am
Mad About Udon says:
I love those glasses! Where can I get a pair?
July 14th, 2008 at 10:23 am
Erin says:
Lots of good food, despite the lacking farmers market. The casserole and pie look delicious, and I love the animal-butt glasses!
July 14th, 2008 at 2:19 pm
Kumudha says:
So many delicious vegan dishes!
July 15th, 2008 at 1:04 pm
Vegan on stage says:
that pie is beautiful!!
i dont think theres anything better than fresh veggies from the farmers market!!
July 15th, 2008 at 2:25 pm
Jackie says:
Just love your new glasses.
Wish we had a Farmers Market here as it must be wonderful to get freshly picked veggies from them.
The soup with Bryanna’s focaccia looks just what I need being mid-winter here.
July 16th, 2008 at 6:28 am
Vivacious Vegan says:
Wow, and I thought my FM was bad. I’ve been going to this produce stand lately instead of the FM and it was recently robbed and burned down. Can you believe it? Luckily, it didn’t ruin their spirits. They’re still selling only now it’s under a tarp.
July 20th, 2008 at 7:40 pm
Tori says:
I was just reading your comment about waterfalls in the grand canyon - I didn’t realize it either until my mom told me. I didn’t know that people lived down there either!
It was so amazing because it was 8 miles of hot dessert and then everything was green and there was tons of water. So cool.
July 22nd, 2008 at 8:06 am
Shellyfish says:
Hi Monica, I just nominated you for a Brillante Blog Award…come on over to claim your prize!
July 24th, 2008 at 7:43 am
Victoria says:
Just recently found your blog and I love it. Those glasses are so funny, and that foccacia looks amazing!
July 25th, 2008 at 1:28 pm
bazu says:
Woah my god- that foccacia looks so good! I can’t stop staring at it… I have to make it. WOWOWOW.
Oh, and I love the chicken and pig glasses- so cute!
August 1st, 2008 at 2:09 pm
Veggie says:
I nominated you for a blogging award; check out my blog for the details!
August 1st, 2008 at 3:27 pm
lori- pleasantly plump vegan says:
cute glasses!
August 3rd, 2008 at 8:57 am
Jess - The Domestic Vegan says:
Those glasses are so awesome!! I want to see the butts! That farmers market is a hoot.
And your food all looks awesome! Yum!
August 3rd, 2008 at 8:40 pm
mmg says:
Come cook for ME!! PLEASE??
August 6th, 2008 at 11:22 am