POP Club Kids make Jam!
This week is the Power of Produce (POP) Club jam-making! Lead by the amazing women of OSU Extension Master Food Preservers, this annual event helps kids (ages 5-12yrs) to delight in the joys of making something they all love and taking it home to share with the family. Using the local farmers berries, cane sugar and a little pectin , they get to smash the fruit, add the rest and pour it into a glass jar they label. Each year over 100 kids come through the Market Kitchen on this day and to date not ONE Jar has been dropped! A big thanks to OSU Extension and our volunteers for making this happen:) The Kitchen will be open from 9.15am for the jam-making and run until supplies run out, approx. noon.
The “slow’ flowers grown locally by our growers are the best!
Jam is not risky due to the acidity of the sugar and fruits but as canning season is upon us and all those delicious products are in the market you may well be tempted to put some up for the fall and winter. If you are canning low-acid foods and especially if you are new to this make sure to follow verified recipes, not a recipe card from the next door neighbor from 1945! The National Center for Home Preserving (University of Georgia) is a verified source of scientifically-proven recipes: https://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can7_jam_jelly.htmlSo is Ball and OSU Extension has some excellent information too. Their hot-line is open 9am-4pm Mon. through Fri. https://extension.oregonstate.edu/mfp/announcements/food-safety-preservation-hotline
Pie cherries, plus dark sweets and Rainier coming from Kiyokawa Orchards this Saturday! They are back for the season:)
Kiyokawa Orchards (Parkdale) are back now through the Fall and Winter!! They will start out with dark sweet cherries, Rainier cherries and the hard to find Pie Cherries. This recipe is great for pies, but also sauce to pour over vanilla ice-cream or even to use in a cocktail or sparking wine! It keeps in the fridge well and you can freeze it too. https://www.artandthekitchen.com/easy-sour-cherry-sauce/Tart cherries give you a powerful dose of great nutrition. They are full of Vit A (more than sweet cherries) and have lots of antioxidants, and boost melatonin levels. The health benefits are many. Squirrelly Jane will have more certified Organic peaches, and this week they will be Red Havens. These are an excellent freestone peach with red-blushed, yellow skin and firm, sweet, yellow flesh. Ideal for fresh eating, canning and freezing. Profarm Orchards will have apricots and peaches too. Treat yourself to some sliced (pour boiling water over to loosen the skin) and warmed slightly, poured over Diana’s Delights scones with whipped cream…yum. Out this week is Grano, Thrive Sauces, both back next week. Stillweather Spirits will make you a mini cocktail, Stone Circle Cider is back and Lavish Lavender will have fresh bunches and more!
Market sponsor Thrive Yoga joins us this week!
Thrive Yoga & Wellness (a sponsor of our market) is setting up this week to meet you and share their amazing community they have built. Apart from a stellar line-up of classes, the wellness center also houses a nutritionist, massage therapists, a meditation center and more. This week, they will be doing a pop-up class yoga class at 11:00 am (super easy and all-ages) and a raffle for a free two-week yoga trial! Come meet some of the Thrive team! Thrive recently moved to a beautiful new studio space on 7th St. and have developed an amazing supportive community there. Come and find out Saturday what’s going on and how you can join in and improve your well-being.
68 canopies are going up this week. Manual ‘Silky’ Mayer is bringing breezy R&B and soul music to the market. Bring your coolers, bags and stay for some hot food and cool tunes. Across on the County’s Plaza (between the 2 big buidings opposite the market)you can enjoy the 8th annual Community Festival, put on by the County’s employee-based Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Council. They’ll be celebrating our rich regional culture and heritage. Find more live music, hot food and information on Saturday just over the road from the market!