Farmers Market July 17 2010 - Lakeline!

This was the first weekend that our wonderful Farmers Market moved within blocks to us at Lakeline Mall! It was easy to get to - looked larger with more room to move - and parking was everywhere! And unlike our last shopping area - Lakeline Mall seems to be embracing the large crowd - I was offered 2 coupons while there for stores in the Mall. That's awesome!

Our Grocery list this week: Dragon Carrots, Squash, Bell Peppers, Creamy Cilantro Salsa, a homemade Sticky Bun, Greek Olive Hummus, Green Bean - Penne - Blue Cheese Salad, Red and Yellow Tomatoes, Butter, Goats Milk and Cheese, Grass fed Beef, Sourdough Bread, Mango/Strawberry Sweet Bread, and homemade Chips.

We found a new love this week! We stopped by the Kelli Jo Salsa tent for the 1st time this week. I had been on their website last week and thought the "Standard" Salsa that had bits of avocado in it was something we should try this time. It was!! Then they broke out the Creamy Cilantro Salsa that is made with Serrano Peppers. It was super spicy and creamy so we had to get the big tub! I can envision this great find on any Mexican meal as well as eggs and of course our tasty homemade chips we picked up! There are many salsa vendors there but you GOTTA get your hands on this stuff! A bonus: when you pay for your salsa - the fella pulls your change from his wallet thats stuffed 4 inches thick with bills - who needs a cash box - this is the fancy way to give change. :)

We also made a pairing of our Olive Hummus from Aunt Nita and our Goats Milk Cheese! The hummus is of course amazing per usual and the cheese is very fresh and a bit crumbly. Aunt Nita also made this very different pasta salad - it contains: Penne pasta, green beans, white onion, blue cheese, pecans, mayo, peanut oil, cider vinegar, and salt! This is some tangy stuff! Mike really loves it and he doesn't usually like blue cheese. Oh so good!! We always have a hard time deciding what to get at this tent b/c its all so fresh. If we weren't on a budget we would get 5 tubs a week!

Our meat purchases were lite this week as we still have a chicken and yak in the freezer. 6J Ranch doubled their booth size and it looked great! They recognized us from our blog which was an unexpected delight! We have only bought our meat from their farm for the past 2 months so its nice to have a connection.

Overall - a great trip to the market - I love the new location and many friends say its close enough now from Central and North Austin to make the trip! Its also still very exciting to keep finding new foods week to week even after going for months. I cant wait to watch the market change as the seasons change and I'm hoping by only eating whats in season, it will bring me that much more connected with the earth. This is really getting fun!