Tonight, Live, At The Market!

Tonight, in the lobby of the YMCA, during market pick-up, we will be featuring our newest producer, Dialton Farms!!

They will be set up with produce to sell, and they will be on hand to introduce themselves, talk about their farm, and what they grow!!

Don’t forget that you will be paying them, directly, so bring a bit of extra money for shopping!!

I can tell you that their peppers from last week were AMAZING!

Also, show Charlene some LOVE, tonight…she will be working the market all by her lonesome…

Peace, Love, Good Vibes…
Cosmic Pam

We Know!

We know it’s fair time!! We know it’s back to school time!! Let us help!!

Place your orders for the week so you have no worries!

Let us take the stress out of your week!

Peace, Love, Good Vibes…
Cosmic Pam

Do The Salsa!

Well, not the actual dance BUT this salsa recipe looks so good that you may feel like doing a bit of salsa dancing after you try it!

Right now, on the market, we have tomatillos, from Anchor Acres! Laurie wanted to share this recipe so that you could see how simple using the tomatillos can be!

Salsa making (2)
People

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Laurie Cuddington

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Pamela Bowshier

Here’s my attempt at a salsa “recipe” based on how I make salsa, based on how I learned from my Mexican friend in San Diego. I will try to be thorough, but don’t let that make you think that it’s difficult to prepare, because it’s NOT, it’s super simple. :-) Read through before starting! lol

Start with about 1-2 pounds of tomatillos. Remove the husks and stems – this is very easy. I slide the husks up from the bottom (where they are starting to open anyway) and then kind of grab the stem with the inverted husk and give a little twist and the stem comes right off with the husk. (The description is WAY more complicated than the doing.) Now wash the tomatillos – they have a slightly sticky coating that will not completely wash away but that’s okay, just gently rub off what comes off. Now put the tomatillos in a pot of water with enough water for them to move around and float or sink – whatever they choose to do. Because once they are ready one of the signals is that they will float, but if they float a bit at first, that doesn’t count. Anyway, bring that pot to a boil and also put in your choice of hot pepper – if you want a mild salsa, you only need one small slightly hot variety of pepper, but if you want the salsa more spicy, then put a second and/or hotter pepper. The pepper(s) should just be washed but that’s all. Now if you have room in your pot, as the pepper(s) and tomatillos get a head start, you could add your tomatoes (maybe half the amount of tomatillos that you are using). If you don’t have room, just wait til the first set of veggies is done and you can do the tomatoes after (same water). So you are watching for when the tomatillos float and look sort of lightly cooked, softened up a bit. Same for the pepper(s). As they are to that point, fish out the ones that are done and put them in your blender (if it is not very big, you will have to do separate batches). But with the pepper(s), set them out onto a plate or cutting board and cut out the stem. You can also remove some of the seeds if you need to lower the heat. Smell the pepper if you want to get an idea of how spicy it is. Put maybe only a half pepper in the blender to start – you can always add more but you can’t take any out! Tomatoes will also need stems removed when they are ready for the blender. They need much smaller cooking time than the tomatillos and peppers (or even uncooked completely if you want). Now what you also want to put in the blender are an onion or two (quartered is fine) and garlic. I like a whole bulb of garlic but you can decide how much garlic you like – remove the husks from the cloves and just drop the cloves in the blender with those hot veggies. You also need to add salt (maybe a tablespoon?) and sugar (also tablespoon?). Oh and cilantro! Put some leaves of fresh cilantro if you have it. Of course there are other things you could put, too, but this is what I do. :-) There is plenty of liquid in the veggies themselves that you probably do not need to add any. (This does make a “runnier”-style salsa which I like, so I don’t make any effort to drain the normal veggie juices.) (However if you actually did need to add more liquid, ladle some out of the veggie cooking water – only add a teeny bit at a time til you see how it is.) So what is VERY IMPORTANT is that you blend up what you have put in the blender and then TASTE it!!! You can taste it plain and you can taste it on a tortilla chip or whatever you’re wanting to serve it on, because you want to see how it is! Then, you adjust – more garlic, more hot pepper, more salt, more sugar, more onion, ETC – little bits at a time and re-blend and re-taste until it is perfect. Tasting is part of the fun. :-) But, if you are saving for freezing (this salsa freezes very well) or serving to guests, I don’t recommend double-dipping, haha

59th Street Bridge Song

Slow down, you move too fast…
You got to make the morning last…
Just kicking down the cobble stones…
Looking for fun and feelin’ groovy…

(Simon And Garfunkel – The 59th Street Bridge Song (feelin’ Groovy))

So, I have always been told to slow down…take it easy…let yourself rest…

Ummmm…I don’t know how? I am not kidding. I have been a busy queen bee since I was able to walk. Everyone wanted to calm me, constrict me, make me relax. It’s still like that. I run into people who ask me why I do so much? Why am I always busy? I should take time off. I should go on a nice long vacation. I should, I should, I should.

It’s enough to drive a girl insane. Very few people know what drives your market manager. Very few people know what makes me tick. Very few people know that I cannot relax until every little detail is finely tuned.

I get bored, I like to push the boundaries, I hated coloring inside the lines, and I abhorred being ordinary.

And so…enter this little local market of love, it’s own built in eccentricities that I love, and a whole lot of go power!

Go power gets things done, makes people aware, and makes them want to see more of what this market continues to say…Love, Be The Local Love, Be The Local Light…I cannot be still until I know everyone is vibing, grooving, dancing to the local beat.

Get ready to groove your orders. We know that our county fair starts, tomorrow, but there is no reason to not take time out from the busy week to order. Once you order, you can just rest. We do all the work. Slow down, you move too fast…we want your orders, any way that you feel like giving them to us!

With much love in the air…I open up this week’s market to the mellow tunes of Simon and Garfunkel AND of the silent little local song of love that comes from our hearts…

Peace, Love, Good Vibes…
Cosmic Pam

Hey, Now!

It’s that time, again! It’s a Tuesday evening, we are approaching the close of another market, and just so you can STILL get your orders in, I am extending the market an extra 15 minutes, tonight!

I know a lot of you are busy with fair prep., life, vacations, etc…but don’t be so busy that you forget to order!

Go, order, be happy, your life will be so easy on Thursday at order pick up!

I am off to do a bit of marketing, myself…see you in a bit, after we all finish up our market lists!

Peace, Love, Good Vibes…
Cosmic Pam

Essential Oils...Pack Them For The Fair!

Just a quick note about essential oils, their uses, and how they can help out with fair week…

Thanks, Joe and Charlene!

In anticipation of Champaign County Fair Week! Swisher Hill Herbs… Feature Essential oils this week in the Virtual Market that can be used to deter mosquitos, spiders, ants and other nuisance insects. Oils that are good insect repellents are; Citronella and Lavender oils helps repel flies and mosquitos by putting a few drops of oil on a cotton ball, smear on door or window screens. Put a few drops on the brim of your garden hat, outside collar and cuffs of your blouse or shirt and hems of slacks and shorts. Peppermint Oil works on ridding the dwellings of spiders and ants. Make a simple concoction by filling an 8 oz. spray bottle ½ full of distilled water or boiled water, fill rest of jar to almost to the top with witch hazel or rubbing alcohol add about 20 to 30 drops of peppermint oil. Spray in corners around areas ants and spiders can be found. Patchouli oil works well on gnats and aphids. Lavender oil also works well of fleas and moths. The above recipe can be used as a guide for all of your insect problems just substitute one or a combination of the above essential oils. Let us know if you have a favorite remedy that you would like to share with others. Take Thyme, Joe and Charlene Stapleton Swisher Hill Herbs

Come Together

Just a short and sweet opening market Weblog for this evening!

Tonight, at the market, I was reminded of how special our little community is, how special this little market of love is, and how it all just works when we all…vendors, customers, YMCA, community, all come together in this little local adventure!

Much love and many thanks!

The market is now opening for the week! Over the next few weeks, you will see vendors coming and going in this busy season, and you will see returning seasonal vendors AND additions of new vendors!

Thanks so much for coming together and helping us grow!

A big shout out to Herr Family Farm! It was a peachy kind of night for them! If you missed out on peaches, tonight, you can find them at The Champaign County Farmers Market, on Saturday, or at Tuesday’s Mechanicsburg Farmers and Artisans Market!

Happy Ordering!

Peace, Love, Good Vibes…
Cosmic Pam

A New Product From A Familiar Vendor

You all know Lee Ruff from End Of The Road Farms, and his amazing products, family, and farm tour, last year!

Now, he has added beautiful, hand crafted rolling pins to our farm crafts section!

Take a look…think about gift ideas…

Peace, Love, Good Vibes…
Cosmic Pam

Introductions!

We have a brand new vendor with us with really amazing soy candles!! She is new to the farmer’s market circuit, and she has a cool little story behind her candles…

Here is Cathy Ream…

I have been a resident of Champaign County my entire life(50+ years). I established Old Homefarm Candles because I like candles and wanted to have a hobby/business for my future retirement. The name Old Homefarm Candles was chosen, because after attending college and getting married and starting a family, my husband and I returned to my parents’ farm where I was raised and built a house where we now live.

Old Homefarm Candles has been making and selling homemade scented and decorative soy wax candles since 2013. They are sold at the monthly Champaign County Flea and Antique Show, The Depot in Lakeview, Ohio and at several area craft shows or festivals. The homemade scented 16 oz. mason jar candles are richly scented,and long and clean burning, poured with 100% natural soy wax from soybeans. Also sold are 6 piece clamshell wax melts for electric, battery and tea-light burners. These are poured with a 100% soy wax also, specially formulated for melts. Some decorative candles include pies, and drinks and may be poured with gel wax. All are scented with the maximum amount of scents recommended by the scents manufacturer.

Peaches, Part 2

Last night, I sent the market Weblog announcing that the Herrs would be bringing their fresh peaches to the lobby, this evening, at market pick up, for any customers who want to purchase.

I forgot to mention that they will also be at this Saturday’s Champaign County Farmer’s Market with peaches…

You can get them from tonight’s market pickup, you can go to the Champaign County Farmer’s Market, on Saturday, or you can come to the Mechanicsburg Farmers and Artisans market, as usual, to get their peaches and produce, on Tuesday evenings.

Peace, Love, Good Vibes…
Cosmic Pam