Shaker Square Farmer's Market

Today we had such a fun family outing! We went, for the first time (that is tragic since we've been here 5 years!), to Shaker Square Farmer's Market. It was everything I had hoped and more! It is from 8:00am-12:00pm every Saturday. They even go indoors in the winter and sell meat (that has been free-range and humanely grown) and eggs, syrup, honey, bread, and whatever produce they have available.

Photo by Patrick Shepard http://www.northunionfarmersmarket.org/markets/shaker.html

We bought tomatoes (ours aren't ripe yet because we planted late), romaine, green and red lettuce, a leek, 2 beautiful bunches of kale, cauliflower, cucumber (ours will be ready in a week though! I'm excited!), corn, green beans, whole wheat pita bread, and apples. All food we normally buy that is over priced and not very flavorful. I loved it!
-And it's great that you can buy small amounts or large amounts of whatever you want.
-And it's fun to see all the people there doing their part to help their bodies, local farming and the earth in general.
-Going to the farmer's market helped me feel less pressure to grow more things in my already overwhelming garden this year, because they have it all there!
I was so sad we bought a whole bunch of onions at Dave's last week...not next time! The onions were gorgeous at the farmer's market.
-And I'm not the best organic gardener yet. These people are experts!
-And the produce hasn't been covered in nasty wax (to preserve it for shipping and sitting in the grocery store) that we have to work so hard to get off.
-We used to do City Fresh - a co-op where you pay the week before and go pick up the produce they have available once a week. The problem is, we would always get so much kohl-rabi, bok-choy, and banana peppers. I did not know what on earth to do with these things! I have since learned that City Fresh gets their produce from what the Farmer's Market on Saturday couldn't sell. No wonder! I prefer choosing my own that the farmer's market. Yay! (But City Fresh is still better than eating romaine lettuce from LA, California that has come all the way across the country and is already turning bad...)

Here are the links to find out more about our Market.
Shaker Square Farmer's Market
What's In Season in Ohio
Farmer's Market Recipes
10 Reasons to Eat Local

1. Fresh Flavors and Taste - the produce is even better than whole foods! We at some lettuce, tomato and leeks that we bought today, and it was like I had never tasted these delicious foods before!
2. Healthy Lifestyle
3. "Just Picked" Nutrient-Dense Produce - this food has not been shipped all the way across the country, or the world!, to get to us. It was grown right here near us. And so much of it is organic! And it's less money than whole foods even! We filled our fridge, and only spent $40.
4. Local bakers, food purveyors, and artists
5. Support small farms - I would much rather put money in their pockets than the huge companies that are promoting the ruin the environment.
6. Fresh pesticide-free flowers
7. Seasonal eating* - One of my goals is to eat more food in season. It is much more natural and healthy.
8. Connecting with your farmer, the source of your food - it was cool to see the people who grew these things, and to see the pride they take in their product. 
9. Local acclimatized nursery plants
10. Pasture-raised eggs and meat - If we do eat meat, I would much rather buy it from these people who care for their animals. And you know that it's fresh and healthy, and didn't sit on a truck for days, or in a fridge for weeks or months.

Photo by Patrick Shepard http://www.northunionfarmersmarket.org/markets/shaker.html

As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we have a health code called, The Word of Wisdom in one of our scriptures called the Doctrine and Covenants. It helps us know what we should not put in our bodies, and I've found that people usually emphasize that part. But there is so much more to be learned from the Word of Wisdom about what we should put in our bodies.

10 And again, verily I say unto you, all wholesome ^aherbs God hath ordained for the constitution, nature, and use of man—

 11 Every herb in the season thereof*, and every fruit in the season thereof*; all these to be used with ^aprudence and ^bthanksgiving.

 12 Yea, ^aflesh also of ^bbeasts and of the fowls of the air, I, the Lord, have ordained for the use of man with thanksgiving; nevertheless they are to be used ^csparingly;

 13 And it is pleasing unto me that they should not be ^aused, only in times of winter, or of cold, or ^bfamine.

 14 All ^agrain is ordained for the use of man and of beasts, to be the staff of life, not only for man but for the beasts of the field, and the fowls of heaven, and all wild animals that run or creep on the earth;

 15 And ^athese hath God made for the use of man only in times of famine and excess of hunger.

 16 All grain is good for the ^afood of man; as also the ^bfruit of the vine; that which yieldeth fruit, whether in the ground or above the ground—

And if we do all these things, the Lord gives us marvelous promises: 

 18 And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, ^ashall receive ^bhealth in their navel and marrow to their bones;

 19 And shall ^afind ^bwisdom and great ^ctreasures of ^dknowledge, even hidden treasures;

 20 And shall ^arun and not be ^bweary, and shall walk and not faint.

 21 And I, the Lord, give unto them a promise, that the ^adestroying angel shall ^bpass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them. Amen.

And I could sure use these blessings! Couldn't we all? 

I believe in farmer's markets. And this awesome farmer's market at Shaker Square is going to become part of our Saturday Routine. We will buy whatever we can that we need there, and only buy the rest at other stores. 

Find a farmer's market near you!

http://www.localharvest.org/farmers-markets/