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.