By Lois Baxter
Special to The Weekly
Welcome to the Farmers Market Corner. This is a great time of year for enjoying fresh, local produce, baked goods, dairy, meat and more at local farmers markets. During the 2014 growing season, we wanted to share information with readers of The Weekly about the many farmers markets in this area. Each week, vendors or customers from local farmers markets will share tips about unfamiliar foods you can find at your local markets, fun recipes to try with seasonally available produce, and highlights about specific farms you can learn about at the markets.
Did you know there are 12 farmers markets in Penobscot County? Find out which ones they are at the Maine Federation of Farmers Markets at mainefarmersmarkets.org/shoppers/.
Three of those local markets offer a 25 percent matching discount for customers paying with SNAP/EBT (sponsored by Food AND Medicine). They are Bangor Farmers Market, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Sundays at Harlow Street parking lot across from the library; Ohio Street Farmers Market, 2-6 p.m. Wednesdays at the Bangor Grange across from Finson Road; and Brewer Farmers Market, 8:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturdays at the Brewer Auditorium parking lot, Wilson Street.
The vegetable of the week is potatoes. Potatoes are one of nature’s best kept secrets. With
only 110 calories potatoes, with skin are high in Vitamin C, have more potassium than
bananas. Potatoes come in all shapes and sizes from small long fingerlings to big meaty russets in colors from white to yellow, red or purple. There are as many ways to prepare and cook potatoes as there are days of the month. You can boil, mash, roast, saute, shred, fry or bake.
Potatoes, whether nicely baked with a steak or as hash browns for breakfast, are an extremely nutritious and versatile vegetable. Try them a different way at every meal.
This week’s recipe came from a friend who serves it regularly with Sunday dinners:
Roasted Parmesan Rosemary Potatoes
1½ pounds new potatoes, cut into 1 inch pieces.
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary or 1½ teaspoon dried rosemary
Salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil. Mix together the first 4 ingredients. Season with salt and pepper. Spread over prepared baking sheet. Bake until potatoes are golden brown, stirring once, about 40 minutes. 4 servings.
Lois Baxter volunteers at Food AND Medicine, a nonprofit organization at 20 Ivers St. in Brewer. For information, contact fam@foodandmedicine.org or 989-5860, or visit foodandmedicine.org.