Still Selling!

We've had a few customers ask if the market was over this month. Not at all! We will be selling Saturdays at the west side of the Courthouse through Halloween. The fall veggies are looking good, so make our Market part of your weekend routine.

6 days 'til Salsa Competition

Thanks to more support from Farm Bureau and a USDA Specialty Crops grants, our Farmers Market vendors are hosting another competition. And this one is open to everyone!

This Saturday at 9:30-11 a.m. we will be having a Salsa Competition. Bring your tastiest fresh salsa or pico de gallo -- no canned salsa allowed -- and enter to win a $20 gift certificate. Or, just come down to the Courthouse Square hungry and be one of our many judges. We are asking for a $5 donation to compete and $1 donation to judge, with all money raised going to the Dexter Park Playground Fund.

You certainly aren't limited to tomato salsa, either. Corn-bean salsa, watermelon salsa, mango salsa... whatever flavor you fancy, feel free to enter. We will award the hottest, Best of Show, and most unique.

Feel free to post any questions in the comments below. I hope to see you on Saturday.

Best part of tonight's meal

Tonight, we supplemented our supper with delicious Tomato Italian Season Bread toasted, with Jalapeno Cheddar Cheese melted on top. It was so delicious that I had to post it on here, before I even tackled the dishes. The bread is from Cherilynne Churchill; the cheese from Jason Wiebe Dairy. Thankfully, both are available at Saturday's Clay Center Farmers Market. Unfortunately, it's 5 days until the next Saturday market.

On the bright side, Cherilynne and her baked goods will be at Wednesday's market at Dexter Park. Joining her will be a handful of vendors with a delicious assortment of fresh veggies, so come on down.

Master Gardener's Recipe: Gazpacho

We are lucky and grateful to have our area Master Gardeners attend every Clay Center Farmers Market, to share their knowledge, their plants, and their recipes. And, oh, the recipes!

This past week, Reva C. brought Gazpacho to the market to sample. I've never had gazpacho, but it was absolutely delicious. And, it uses all the veggies that are currently in season. It was so delicious, I had to share it here. Thanks, Reva!

Gazpacho

2 1/2 pounds tomatoes, peeled

1/2 medium onion
1 large cucumber, peeled
1 red bell pepper
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup olive oil
2 to 4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin

Chop vegetables roughly, and this process in blender until liquified. Refrigerate overnight. Serve cold,  garnished with sour cream or chopped cucumbers and tomatoes.

Other variations I found add tabasco sauce or worchestershire sauce. Flavor it to match your family's preference.

Heat won't stop us!

The Wednesday market is on for tonight, even though the city band concert in Clay Center is cancelled because of the heat.  The market vendors will be there at 5, to sell our produce and products. I assume the other vendors plan to stay until 7; personally, it'll be too hot for my girls, so we'll be leaving around 6. So come early and get your goodies!

Congratulations, Mayberry's!

Congratulations to Rick Nye, owner of the soon-to-reopen Mayberry's in Washington, for winning the 2010 Clay Center Grill-Off! Thank you to Danny's, Tailgaters, and Ashlee Baker for participating and making the judges job so very difficult.  The food smelled DELICIOUS!

Thank you to our judges, too: Vern Swanson, Sharolyn Fleming-Jackson, Grace Oetinger, and Karra James.

And while we are listing our thanks:

• Thanks Phil Kasper and KCLY for covering the event
• Thanks Twin Valley for videoing it and posting it on Video On Demand
• Thanks Ray's Applemarket for the pantry items
• Thanks Clay Gourmet for the spices
• Thanks Wall's True Value for the water
• Thanks Common Ground for the kitchen space and tables
• Thanks Girtons for the grill and propane
• Thanks Pamida for the plates and other supplies
• Thanks Distinctive Images for the plaque
• Thanks Leaving Signs Behind for the banner
• Thanks Clay County National Bank for the citywide gift certificates
• Thanks Master Gardeners for all your help with setup and tear down
• Thanks to our 20 market vendors, and
• Thanks to our spectators and customers!

We hope you all enjoyed today as much as we did!

Grill-Off TOMORROW!!!!

Tomorrow is our first Clay Center Grill-Off!

Starring:

• Tailgaters
• Danny's Grill and Catering,
• Mayberry's

Featuring:

• Four mystery ingredients. No, I'm not going to be so foolish as to post them here!

Come join in the fun, root for your favorite chef, pick up some produce, and enter to win door prizes! We hope to see you there!

Two days to Grill-Off

Two more days! So much to do!

We are excited to have KCLY at our Grill-Off this Saturday. They will be doing a sort of play-by-play of the event and helping us get the word out about the specialty crops and other offerings at our Farmers Market.

While a bulk of our funding has come from Farm Bureau, we have been blessed to receive support from many businesses in the community:

• Ray's Apple Market has donated the basic pantry ingredients for the chefs
• Clay Gourmet has donated all the spices for the pantry
• Wall's True Value has donated reverse-osmosis water for the chefs to use
• Common Ground is giving us access to their kitchen, as well as tables
• Leaving Signs Behind is printing our signage
• Distinctive Images is creating our awards
• Chamber of Commerce is the source of the Clay Bucks and is helping promote the event
• Twin Valley is planning to film the event and put it on their video-on-demand
• Clay Center Dispatch is also helping get the word out

You can't do a community event without community support. Clay Center, thankfully, is loaded with community support. Thank you all!

Three Days to Grill-Off

Just three more days until the first Clay Center Grill-Off. We are very grateful to Kansas Farm Bureau and Clay County Farm Bureau. They not only are supporting this event financially, but also have given time and effort to make it happen. Thanks to the USDA Specialty Crop Grant Program through a sub-grant from the Kansas Department of Agriculture, we have been able to promote specialty crops in Kansas. So, thank you, Farm Bureau!

What are specialty crops? Honey, vegetables, nuts, fruits... that sort of thing, the very foods that make up our Farmers Market. This Saturday, we expect to have sweet corn (first of the season!), onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, potatoes, squash, beets, bell peppers, eggs, buffalo, baked goods, jams, jellies, and much more.



Saturday, July 10
8 a.m. to 10 a.m.
Westside of Courthouse Square
Clay Center, Kansas

Four Days to Grill-Off

Four days to the first ever Clay Center Grill-Off!

So, you know which team you want to cheer on. (Is it Danny's, Mayberry's, Tailgaters, or The Blue Herron?) But why else should you come down Saturday morning? Well, here are five great reasons:

1. Pick up a bag of fresh, locally grown produce
2. Sample the flavorful foods available at our Farmers Market
3. Sign up to win one of our many door prizes
4. Learn more about the nutritional aspect of the featured foods
5. Get new ideas on how to create your own culinary masterpiece
   

Five Days to Grill-Off

Five days until the 2010 Clay Center Grill-Off! We are excited to have four fabulous chefs competing in the first year of this event:

• Danny's
• The Blue Herron
• Mayberry's
• Tailgater's

These restauranteers will not know which Farmers Market products are on the menu until Saturday morning. Mark your calendar and come on down to cheer on your favorite chef.

Saturday, July 10
8 a.m. to 10 a.m.
Westside of Courthouse Square
Clay Center, Kansas

This project is supported in part by the USDA Specialty Crop Grant Program through a sub-grant from the Kansas Department of Agriculture. Funding assistance is also provided by the Kansas Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture and Clay County Farm Bureau Association.

Happy July 4th!

We hope you all have a safe, fun Independence Day weekend! Hopefully the rain won't put a damper on your plans.

July 3 Market News

Tomorrow's Saturday market will be a bit different, but will still offer the great produce and products you expect.

Because of the Third of July celebration downtown, we will "part the sea" for the pancake feed. Our vendors will be set up on both ends of the block, with the pancake breakfast in the middle. So, you might have to walk a bit more for your goodies. But, on the bright side, we'll have extended hours. We have been asked to be set up by 7 a.m., and will sell until 11 a.m. So, come on down for the pancake breakfast, pick up goodies for your July 4th celebrations, enjoy the games and activities, and make it a day in downtown Clay Center.

What's at tomorrow's market? Red, white, and blue potatoes; cherry and big tomatoes; cucumbers; zucchini; onions; green beans; beets; homemade breads; donuts; buffalo meat; squash; jams and jellies; and much more! We hope you will stop by and make us a part of your Independence Day weekend.

Wednesday Market Tomorrow

Don't forget to visit the Farmers Market on Wednesday from 5-8 p.m. at Dexter Park. Officially, the market is done at 7 but most of us vendors will stick around until the band concert starts at 8. And, speaking of vendors, we had a few new faces last week, bringing new goodies to the market. Not only can you get fresh produce and hair doo-dads, fresh baked bread and jams, but now you can also get funnel cake and donuts! Now, that's what I call one-stop shopping!

Wow we have been busy

It has been a busy time at the market and with everything that summer break has to offer. I keep hearing on KCLY mention our blog website and it reminds me to update the blog. Well I remembered to do it today, finally.

It has been a really good season to date. We are seeing many new vendors and that makes our market grow. We really appreciate all the customers who come out and support our market. Without you, none of this would happen. I hope we continue to grow with more vendors and customers. Someday I would love it if we had so many vendors and customers we could close the street and really make it like a street fair.

Upcoming events:

July 3rd, Pancake feed in downtown. We will be at the ends of the street, but we still will be having a market.

July 10th, Grill off This will be a new event this year. We are really excited for it. We have four area restaurants that are going to prepare a entree to be judged and the winner will be determined. There is one catch, their meal must include all four of the ingredients that will be in their basket. More to come.

June 5 Market Update

It should be a beautiful morning to come to the Farmers Market, from 8-11 a.m. on the west side of the Courthouse square. We have a lot of veggies making their season debut about now, including potatoes, zucchini, and cucumbers. Others -- the cool season crops -- are nearing the end of their season, meaning this may be the last week to get your fill of fresh lettuce, spinach, asparagus, and radishes.

Did you know the Master Gardeners have something special planned for every Farmers Market? Your guess is as good as mine, as to what they have up their sleeves for tomorrow. Bring the kids down and see what fun activity or yummy treat the Master Gardeners create.

Hope to see you tomorrow!

Wednesday Market Starts Tonight

Ask and you shall receive! For the area residents who can't make it on Saturday mornings but still want the locally grown produce and products, tonight starts the Wednesday market in Clay Center.  Our vendors are anxious to see how it is received, to see if there is as much attendance as there is interest.

Not only customers, but we hope to see vendors too! If you are interested in selling produce or products, join us tonight. There is no charge to sell at the Wednesday market, and we love to see the wide variety offered. Our only rule: no resale allowed, so only sell your own stuff.

I hope you will join us tonight from 5-7 p.m. on the east side of Dexter Park.

What You'll Find on May 29

First, to answer the question we keep getting asked: yes, we will have a Farmers Market tomorrow. Why not stop by on your way to the lake or picnic or whatever you have planned and pick up some fresh produce or local products? You could even take a moment or two and visit the Veterans Memorial at the Courthouse Square, just as a reminder of why we celebrate Memorial weekend.

Have you tried the breads and rolls that are sold each week at the market? They are absolutely delicious. How about the flavored vinegar? I picked up some Basil Peppercorn vinegar last week and enjoyed it as a marinade and as a vinagrette this week. The scent alone is worth the trip downtown.

What you will find at the Clay Center Farmers Market this week: baked goods, asparagus, lettuce, spinach, Swiss chard, onions, radishes, hanging baskets, flavored vinegars, seedlings, broccoli, squash blossoms, the first zucchini and potatoes of the season, and much more!

Cold Start to the Season

Thank you to those who braved the cool spring temperatures to come to this past weekend's Farmers Market. There was a nice selection of products, including delicious homemade breads, flavored oils, plants, rhubarb, spinach, lettuce, turnips, radishes... I'm sure I'm forgetting something, but you get the general idea.

The Farmer's Almanac was certainly accurate about the early-May freeze. I think we are all hoping that is the last cold spell for the season. Thankfully, next Saturday is looking to be much warmer. Hope to see you then!

First Market: This Saturday!

I hope you can join us this Saturday at 8 a.m. on the west side of the Courthouse square in Clay Center. I know many of the vendors are just chomping at the bit for the market to start.

What will we have to offer? We hope to have:

• Radishes
• Green Onions
  
• Rhubarb
• Spinach
• Asparagus
• Tomato, pepper, squash, and cucumber seedlings
• Hanging baskets of tomatoes
• Jellies and jams
• Baked goods
• Buffalo meat

...and much more! We look forward to seeing you on Saturday.

CC Farmers Market 2010

It's just a matter of weeks until the Clay Center Farmers Markets begin for the 2010 season. Our Saturday market will start up Saturday, May 8, and run every Saturday until October 31. The Saturday market takes place from 8-11 a.m. on the west side of the Courthouse Square.

We had so many customers request an evening market that we decide to give it a try this year. Starting in June, we will be hosting a Wednesday Farmers Market on the nights the Clay Center City Band plays. The Wednesday Market will be from 5-7 p.m. on the east side of Dexter Park, along 7th Street.

Both markets will provide the same great quality and selection of local produce and products, and now hopefully will include a time and location that is most convenient for you.

We are looking forward to the start of the Markets and seeing everyone again. It truly has become a community event. We hope you'll join us on May 8!