Coastal Alabama Farmers & Fishermens Market

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Located in Foley, Alabama


Fourth of July Brunswick Stew

Overwhelming Information and a 4th of July Recipe

Do you feel overwhelmed with information about “healthy eating?”  In spite of all the advice we receive about healthy eating, Americans still suffer from higher rates of obesity and chronic diseases caused by poor eating habits more so than ever before.  One major problem, in my opinion, is that over the years we have received so much contradictory information that we tend to quit listening.  Fats are bad.  No, wait, we need good fats.  We need high carbohydrate diets.  No, wait, carbs are bad.  High protein diets.  No, wait, meat is bad.  Lots of seafood.  No, wait, heavy metals in fish are bad.  So, we give up and go through the fast food drive-in.

What we really should be doing is following relatively simple advice: eat a variety of foods, especially fresh fruits and vegetables; whole grains; and farm fresh eggs and meats.  Get more exercise.  And watch how much we eat (guilty).  Stripping away some of the advice that I find difficult to believe, I have found some advice along the way that makes sense.  Sorry, I don’t remember all the sources or I would properly give references.

 

  • If your grandparents wouldn’t recognize something as being food, don’t eat it.
  • Don’t eat anything you can’t pronounce.  (Similar to the grandparent advice)
  • Eat plenty of seasonal foods.  (Sounds like an invitation to a farmers’ market)
  • Add a variety of plant-based foods to your diet. (ditto above)
  • Eat your vegetables colorfully.  (I like this plain, simple advice.  Of course, following this advice would result in eating foods that provide a variety of vitamins and nutrients.)
  • Never eat an amount of meat or seafood larger than the palm of your hand.  (This one is the hardest for me, but it’s a good way to ration proportionally the amount I need … and no more.)

 

Obviously, the best place for us to find the foods we need is at Coastal Alabama Farmers and Fishermens Market and Forland Family Market.  Nothing makes me feel healthier than a plate full of vegetables on Saturday night after having selected foods at the Market based on the advice above.  Just not too much, I keep reminding myself.  Plus, there are a variety of farm raised meats available in unique sizes (like the size of my palm) other than the factory produced versions in grocery stores and a variety of seafood caught in the Gulf.

 

Another thing I love to do at the market is talk with the farmers and vendors about how they prepare foods.  They have lots of ideas and are willing to spend time telling you.  (Okay, when customers are stacked up waiting, I just come back later when they’re not busy.) Baking, stir frying, lots of ways other than, as my mother always put it, “drowning your vegetables and cooking the nutrients out.”  By the way, another thing my mother always said that I thought was good advice that she gave me, “You weren’t born loving fried chicken.  Bake it.”  But, that’s another blog.

In other matters, in my family we have our traditional foods for holidays and most of the time, the foods are not what others might consider to be traditional.  For instance, for Thanksgiving, we have gumbo or some other seafood dish.  For New Years’ Day, we have red beans and rice for good luck.   Here’s recipe for our Fourth of July meal tradition, including ingredients that can be found at the Market.  Normally, I share recipes based on foods I found that day at the Market, but this is a special holiday recipe that will take a little planning ahead and I offer to you my recipe for Brunswick Stew utilizing ingredients from the Market.

 

Fourth of July Brunswick Stew

“Life without liberty is like a body without spirit.”  ~ Kahlil Gibran

 

Ingredients:

 

Whole chicken (NatureNine Farms)

2 cups of thinly sliced onions (from various vendors)

2 cups of diced celery (Forland Family Market)

1 ham hock (George Family Farm or NatureNine Farms)

1 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes (I prefer Muir Glen)

¼ cup chopped parsley (plants available at the Market)

1 diced jalapeno pepper (various vendors)

1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce

1 pound potatoes (from various vendors) (Any type will do, but I like red potatoes quartered)

3 cups lima beans (from various vendors, but if not available then frozen will have to do)

3 cups corn (from various vendors, but if not available then frozen will have to do)

Sea salt

Ground pepper

Hot sauce

 

Directions:

 

1.Cook a whole chicken in a large pot with water.  Slow, rolling boil about 4 hours.  Add water as needed to keep covered, but just barely. 

2.Let cool.  Pull meat, tearing into small pieces, and set aside.  Discard bones and chicken skin.

3.Add onions, celery, and green peppers to the broth.  Add sea salt and ground pepper.  Cook on medium heat until vegetables are wilted.

4.Add ham hock, tomatoes, parsley, jalapeno, and Worcestershire.  Cook on low for 90 minutes.  At this point until the end you want to let the water evaporate and make a thick stew.  Go easy on adding water as you will want a thick stew unless you are expecting a lot of company and then do as they say in Louisiana, “Baptize it.”

5.In another pot, cook diced potatoes under tender.  Drain.  Let cool.  Mash coarsely and reserve.  (Note:  I save potato water for soups and stews.  You can add this water to the stew if you need more water)

6.Add lima beans and cook for 20 minutes. 

7.Cut off any meat from the ham hock and return to the stew pot. Add chicken back to the stew.      

8.Add corn and cook 10 minutes.

9.Add potatoes and cook 10 minutes.

10.Turn off heat and let sit covered for 1 hour.  (If still watery, let sit uncovered)

11.Warm the stew to serving temperature when ready to eat.

 

I serve this stew with cornbread and a selection of pilsner beer and red and white wine.  Set the table with sea salt and a bottle of hot sauce for individual tastes.

 

I hope you enjoy.  Happy 4th of July!

 

See you at the Market. 


Saturday Night Farmers’ Market Pizza

Why a Farmers’ Market?

Farmers' markets are one of the oldest forms of direct marketing by small farmers. From the traditional "mercados" in the Peruvian Andes to the unique street markets in Asia, growers all over the world gather weekly to sell their produce directly to the public. In the last decade farmers’ markets have become a favorite method for many farmers throughout the United States, and a weekly ritual for many shoppers.  Shopping at a farmers' market is a great way to meet local farmers and get fresh, flavorful produce. [Paraphrased from Wikipedia]

While the reasons to shop at a farmers’ market are numerous, one of the most important is what happens to our local economy.  When you purchase from a local farmer at a farmers’ market, approximately 90% of the money stays in the community.  By contrast, when you shop at a well-known chain box store, approximately 7% stays in the community.  That is not a typo, only 7¢ out of every dollar remains in the South Baldwin County communities when you shop at that big, impersonal store that shall not be named.  However, when spend your money at Coastal Alabama Farmers and Fishermens Market, 90¢ out of every dollar stays here.  Ninety cents versus seven cents.  Hmm, that’s a no-brainer for me to decide where I want to shop for my food.

Further, research by Farmers Markets of America found that food prices at farmers’ markets are lower than supermarkets 91% of the time. In surveying consumers who favor farmers’ markets, the following were listed as the top reasons for shopping:

  • Fresher foods
  • Seasonal foods
  • Healthier foods
  • Better variety of foods (Examples: organic food; pasture-raised meats; free-range eggs and poultry; handmade cheeses, jams, and breads; foods that cannot be transported and therefore disfavored by grocery store chains)
  • A place to meet neighbors and chat
  • A place to enjoy an outside walk while getting groceries
  • A way to contribute personally to the community

Food quality, better prices, and a great social atmosphere!  Is it any wonder that people become regulars!  See you at the Market.

 

Saturday Night Farmers’ Market Pizza

This is one of my favorite foods for which to shop when I’m at the Market.  I buy lots of veggies that go great on a pizza – mushrooms, onions, carrots, zucchini, squash, peppers, cherry tomatoes, and anything else that fits my imagination as I shop around the market.  If you must have meat on your pizza, see the note at the end.

Crust

1 cup of all-purpose flour

½ cup of whole wheat flour

½ teaspoon of sea salt

4 tablespoons of olive oil

3 teaspoons of powdered yeast

½ cup of warm water

 

Dissolve yeast in warm water and let stand for 10-15 minutes.  In a mixing bowl, combine the dissolved year with the other ingredients.  Knead dough for 15 minutes adding flour or water to achieve a smooth, elastic, and not sticky dough ball.  Put the dough ball in an oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth and place in a warm place.  Allow 1 hour to rise.

 

Pizza topping ingredients

 

Small can of tomato sauce (I prefer Muir Glen)

~ 1 cup of shredded soft cheeses such as Farmers Cheese (Forland) or mozzarella (AA Farms)

~ ¼ cup of shredded hard cheese such as Montasio (AA Farms)

Combination of diced vegetables all of which are available from numerous vendors:  zucchini, squash, onions, carrots, peppers, cherry tomatoes

Diced shitake mushrooms (Terry Underwood)

Fresh basil leaves (available from several vendors)

 

Directions

1.On an oiled pizza pan, stretch the dough to cover the pan.

2.Spread tomato sauce over the dough

3.Add combination of toppings

4.Add basil leaves

5.Add cheeses

6.Cook in preheated oven at 500°for 25-30 minutes.

7.Let sit for 2 minutes before slicing.

8.Enjoy!

 

NOTE:  For those who must have meat on their pizza, purchase Italian Sausage from George Family Farm.  Remove the skin, break into pieces, and brown in a pan.  Remove the excess fat.  Use the sausage as a topping along with whatever vegetables you select.


Egg – Crab Cake – Grits Stack

Farmers’ Market Nerd

One Saturday morning recently when the weather was pleasant, I ate breakfast on my front porch.  During the week, I usually have oatmeal and eggs for breakfast fulfilling nutritional needs and doctor’s suggestions, but weekends are spent being more adventurous with my breakfast – still nutritious, but a little more variety.  On this particular morning as I was eating breakfast and making out a grocery list for purchases at the Coastal Alabama Farmers and Fishermens Market and at Forland Family Farm, I stopped making notes and looked at my breakfast – two eggs (Farmers’ Market), a roasted new potato (Farmers’ Market) with rosemary (from a plant purchased at the Farmers’ Market), grilled zucchini (Farmers’ Market), and banana nut bread (Forland).  I thought, You’ve become a Farmers’ Market Nerd!  Of course, I can’t think of a downside to being such a nerd.

My oldest son lives in Memphis and when I go visit, one of our regular stops is the Memphis Farmers’ Market.  My youngest son lived in Denver for three years and I visited him three times and that meant three visits to the Denver Farmers’ Market.  Before that time, he was in graduate school at The University of Texas in Austin and we made a couple of trips to the Austin Farmers’ Market.  He moved to Dallas a year ago and is currently looking for a new apartment and is considering one particular apartment based on the fact that it’s close to the Dallas Farmers’ Market.  During a recent visit to see him, we went to the Dallas Farmers’ Market.  In addition, my mother lives in Tuscaloosa and whenever I visit her, we go to one of the Farmers’ Markets there. 

Healthy, locally produced food, nice people. Pretty good combination. If I’m a Farmers’ Market Nerd, so be it.

Recently, as I was telling Heather Pritchard about visiting the Dallas Farmers’ Market as well as the others I have visited she asked me, “What do they have that we don’t have?”  Good question from someone obviously devoted to her job and wanting to ever improve the quality of the Farmers’ Market experience for customers. 

I thought a moment and came up the fact that Austin, Texas being Austin, Texas, the Farmers’ Market had a stage with a music group entertaining the customers.  Memphis Farmers’ Market had food trucks – one for tacos and one for gyros – the times I’ve visited.  Those are the only two things I saw that Coastal Alabama Farmers and Fishermens Market does not have.  Of course, three of these markets are in huge urban areas and our Market matches theirs. 

However, the one question Heather did not ask me was, “What do we have that they don’t have?”  I would have answered, “The nicest people you’ll meet anywhere.  The fairest prices you’ll find anywhere. Seafood.  Fresh brewed coffee.  And, a fantastic Market Director!”  Of course, having Forland’s nearby increases the options that other markets do not have.  Amazing for Coastal Alabama.

Recipe for this week is not really a recipe as it is something I like to put together for a weekend breakfast.  You’ll note that everything is from either the Coastal Alabama Farmers and Fishermens Market or from Forland Family Farms.

Egg – Crab Cake – Grits Stack

 

Ingredients:

Bayou Cora Farms Heirloom Grits (vendor at the Market)

Crab Cake (J&K Farms)

Tejas salsa (if not a vendor at the Market, available from Forland)

Egg (available from several vendors)

Parsley (from a plant I purchased at the Market)

Butter (Forland)

 

Directions:

 

  1. Heat a frozen crab cake at 375° for 40 minutes.  (This is almost the exact length of time it takes me to walk my dog in the morning, which I do while the crab cake cooks in the toaster oven.) 
  2. Prepare grits according to package directions.  Add butter (optional).
  3. Cook an egg according to preference – poached, over easy, or sunny side up work best.
  4. Assemble on a plate:
    1. Ladle grits, flattening slightly
    2. Place a crab cake on top of the grits
    3. Place a cooked egg on top of the crab cake
    4. Dollop of salsa on top of the egg
    5. Sprinkle with parsley
    6. Enjoy

 

This recipe can be expanded, of course, to fit the number of people eating breakfast. 

 

See you at the Market.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Cooking Fresh Peas

You toilers of the sea and fields and vineyards

meet the weavers and the potters and gatherers of spices

 

Back in my college days, more years ago than I care to think about, like so many others of my generation, I became enamored with the writings of Kalhil Gibran and I still have several of his books and read them occasionally, particularly when I want a good quote or I want to find solace and quiet in the evening.  The Prophet, which was first published in 1923, is considered his masterpiece, translated into more than twenty languages, and has sold more than five million copies in the United States.  The Chicago Post wrote of The Prophet, “Cadenced and vibrant with feeling, the words of Kahlil Gibran bring to one’s ears (a) majestic rhythm.” 

Relating to a Farmers’ Market, Gibran wrote,

“To you the earth yields her fruit, and you shall not want if you but know how to fill your hands. 

It is in exchanging the gifts of the earth that you shall find abundance and be satisfied.

When in the market place you toilers of the sea and fields and vineyards meet the weavers and the potters and gatherers of spices.”

Such a poetic expression of the work of vendors who come to Coastal Alabama Farmers and Fishermens Market and to Forland’s Family Farm.  Speaking of weavers and potters, one aspect of the Market that I enjoy each week is the variety of vendors, not just food vendors.  Alice Noyes of Handwoven by Design fits the words of Kalhil Gibran and I enjoy looking at her baskets and pottery and have purchased several pieces of pottery and baskets from her.  Of course, there are several other such vendors – painters, jewelry makers, candle makers.  We are incredibly fortune to have such diversity in a single place. 

Recipe of the Week: 

Recently, fresh peas started showing up at the Market and I purchased a bag of already shelled pink-eyes.  By the way, many of my childhood memories are filled with summers spent in rural West Alabama, picking peas in the morning, shelling peas all afternoon, and then having been excused from chores, being too exhausted to play while my mother, grandmother, and aunts blanched and prepared the peas for freezing.  But, that’s another blog. 

Here’s what I did with the first bag of peas I bought at the Market.

 

Cooking Fresh Peas

Ingredients

1 slice of bacon, diced (George Family Farm)

1 cup, unsalted chicken broth

1 small onion, diced (available from numerous vendors)

1 bag of shelled peas (Forland’s or other vendors)

Filtered water

Thyme (from plant purchased from Lilly)

Sea salt

Hot sauce, pepper sauce, or Tony’s Tejas Salsa

 

Directions

 

1, In a pot, cook bacon over medium heat.

2. As the bacon starts getting wilted, add onions.  Stir often

3. After the bacon and onions are cooked thoroughly, turn the heat to high.

4. Watch carefully to prevent burning, but you want the bottom of the pan to have debris turning brown.

5. Pour in chicken broth and deglaze the pan with the bacon and onions still in the pan.

6. Turn the heat to low. 

7. Add water to even with the top of the peas.

8. Sprinkle with sea salt and add 2-3 sprigs of thyme.

9.  Cook slowly until peas are tender.  ~ 20 minutes.

10.Adjust salt to taste and serve with hot sauce, pepper sauce, or Tony’s Tejas Salsa.

 

I like eat fresh peas with mixed grain rice as a meal and enjoy with a glass of red wine.

 

Enjoy.  See you at the Market.

 

Bob Zeanah

Author of No Anchor (published November 2015)

Available online from Amazon or Barnes and Noble or Books a Million

Author of Work to Do (published July 2014)

Available online from Amazon or Barnes & Noble or Books a Million

14410 Oak Street

Magnolia Springs AL  36555

251-752-5174 mobile device

bobzeanah@gmail.com

www.bobzeanah.com 

 

 

 


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