Belmont Farmers' Market Weekly Email newsletter for July 24th, 2008
*Don't miss another great recipe at the end of this message, this
time with an international flavor!

Website: Check our www.belmontfarmersmarket.org site for updates and
links to vendors, our calendar of events, and new photos. Plus you can
download a copy of the Summer edition of our print publication Roots
and Sprouts.

Weather: There is a strong chance of rain, though sun is expected to
peak through in the afternoon. Bring an umbrella, and don't forget
your water! Highs in the upper 70s.

Market Managers: This week will be Vicky and Suzanne. You can find
them at the blue information tent. We'd like to extend our
appreciation for all the market managers, and to invite any of you who
may be interested to ask at the tent or write back to this message for
further information about how you too can volunteer!

Performers: We will be privileged to hear Karen Allendoerfer,
Philharmonic Society of
Arlington member and Belmont resident, perform a viola and fiddle
solo. As a special addition, we will also enjoy hearing Karen's
daughter Helena W., a rising 4th grader at the Wellington school
perform on violin both as a duet and solo.

Press!
The Belmont Farmers' Market has been favorably reviewed in the Boston
Magazine in an article highlighting the best of the Farmers' Markets
in the greater Boston area. See the article here
http://www.bostonmagazine.com/dining_food_wine/articles/market_forces/
We've also been mentioned on the front page of the Globe.
www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/07/19/bushels_of_bargains
It's really a story about Haymarket in Boston, and our market is
mentioned in comparison. While we appreciate the publicity, it is
valuable to consider the differences in the shopping experience of
meeting the actual producers as you will at the Belmont Farmers'
Market, versus interacting with a cigarette smoking reseller of
sometimes nearly expired produce. Both are interesting experiences,
but not at all the same!

Vendor news: A favorite vendor from seasons past, the Nicewicz Family
Farm will be starting at the market this Thursday and for the
remainder of the season.

We are excited to welcome the local Ooh La La Fudge company to the
market this week. We look forward to the owners offering both their
locally made fudge and also fresh lemonade at our Thursday market. The
Ooh La La Fudge Company is located on Trapelo Road in Belmont and you
can learn more about them here: www.oohlalafudge.com.

July is Wheels Month and Belmont Farmers' Market!
One of the best features of the Belmont market is its accessibility to
those who come on wheels!

If you come to the market on bike, with the help of a wheelchair or
walker, or if you walk pushing a stroller, you are eligible to enter
the BFM raffle for a fifty dollar gift certificate for the market.
Get your raffle ticket at the BFM blue information tent near the Cross
Street exit, and drop your contact information ticket (one per visit)
into the tomato on the table. You need not be present for the drawing
at the end of the day on July 31, but if you are the lucky winner, you
must redeem your certificate during the 2008 market season.

Looking Ahead: Win our August Drawing!
August is the first month of the year to contain the letter T. Clearly
a cause for celebration!

The T in August stands for T-shirt and Tote Bag at the Farmers'
Market. If you come to the market wearing a Belmont Farmers' Market
T-shirt or carrying our famous Tomato logo-ed Tote bag, you are
eligible to win our August Drawing.
As with the July drawing you can get your raffle ticket at the BFM
blue information tent near the Cross Street exit, and drop your
contact information ticket (one per visit) into the tomato on the
table. You need not be present for the drawing at the end of the day
on August 31, but if you are the lucky winner, you must redeem your
certificate during the 2008 market season.

FARM AID 2008 COMING TO MASSACHUSETTS SEPTEMBER 20TH, 2008
It's official! Featuring John Mellencamp, Willie Nelson, Neil Young
and Dave Matthews, Farm Aid 2008 is coming to the Comcast Center in
Mansfield Massachusetts on September 20th. This marks the first time
ever it has come to this region.
Since its inception, Farm Aid has toured the country, staging annual
concerts in support of local agriculture. The concert event will again
feature family-farm identified, local and organic foots at
concessions. Tickets for Farm Aid 2008 will go on sale July 28 at 10
a.m. EDT and are available at all Ticketmaster outlets,
www.ticketmaster.com, or by calling (866) 448.7849. Farm Aid will
offer special advance sale tickets to its FarmYard members. To become
a member of Farm Aid's FarmYard, visit www.farmaid.org.

BELMONT MUNICPAL LIGHT DEPARTMENT A frequent BFM visitor, BMLD has
provided shoppers low energy light bulbs and information about
becoming "greener" at home. These light bulbs contain mercury, so
don't just throw them in the trash. You will find BMLD at BFM every
other week for the rest of the season.

Recipe: This recipe was suggested by our market coordinator Heli, and comes from
kitchenparade.com. From their website: "Kitchen Parade is written by
second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal
dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences."

This soup is a classic Finnish classic recipe. It is called 'summer
soup' (kaesa = summer, soup = keitto, pronounced [keh-sa-kay-toe])
because it uses the very first baby vegetables from the garden, the
smallest, the newest, the freshest. It uses so few ingredients, it's
hard to believe that the result can be anything special. But trust me,
this soup celebrates summer -- it's glorious.

Wendy from the food blog A Wee Bit of Cooking also lived in Finland as
an exchange student and calls kasakeitto 'sunshine in a bowl'. Deinin,
a Finnish food blogger who is much missed, says that k�sakeitto is
controversial: although why, to my taste, there's no understanding.
This was a perfect dish for Midsummer, the longest day of the year in
the northern hemisphere and one that the Finns and other Nordic souls
celebrate with great abandon. But really, it's all about the
vegetables and thus is a soup that all of us, no matter where we live,
can enjoy, again and again, all summer long.

FINNISH SUMMER SOUP - KAESAKEITTO
Milky broth with the freshest, newest vegetables from the garden
Hands-on time: 50 minutes
Time-to-table: 50 minutes
Makes 8 cups
MILK BROTH
1 tablespoon sugar (don't skip)
2 tablespoons flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
4 cups skim milk
Cream to taste - I used 1 cup
VEGETABLES
Water to cover
1 tablespoon kosher salt (or salt to taste)
8 cups of tiny, fresh vegetables - I used broccoli, new potatoes,
zucchini, carrot, onion, asparagus tips, kohlrabi but also think
turnips, fennel, radishes and especially peas
Fresh dill, chopped

In a pot large enough to eventually hold everything, stir together the
sugar, flour and salt. A tablespoon at a time at first, slowly stir
the milk until mixture is smooth and liquid; add remaining milk.
Gently heat the milk but don't allow to boil.
In a separate large pot, bring the water and salt to a boil.
Prep the vegetables, cutting into small pieces of roughly equivalent
size -- keep separate those that will take longer to cook (in my case,
the potatoes, carrot and kohlrabi). When the water boils, drop these
first vegetables into the pot and cook until nearly done. Add the
remaining vegetables and cook until just done. Drain and add
vegetables to the hot milk and cook -- but again, do not boil -- for a
minute or two. Stir in cream to taste and warm through. Adjust seasonings.
To serve, scoop a few vegetables into a bowl, then top with broth and
a sprinkling of fresh dill. Savor slowly, tasting that summer sunshine.
NUTRITION ESTIMATE Per Cup: 153 Cal; 7g Protein; 6g Tot Fat; 4 Sat
Fat; 19g Carb; 2g Fiber; NetCarb17; 616mg Sodium; 23mg Cholesterol;
Weight Watchers 3 points
Adapted from The Finnish Cookbook. For all who'd like to know more
about Finnish cooking, this is a lovely cookbook by Beatrice
Ojakangas. The recipes are classics but are written for American
ingredients.
ALANNA's TIPS
* Recipes for kaesakeitto often call for cream - and if ever a soup
deserves the indulgence of cream, this is it. But it occurred to me
that if one starts with skim milk, then enriches with cream stirred
in, that we'll use 'just enough' cream.
* Be sure to include some onion, even if it's a small amount of
chopped onion.
* In winter, this is actually a decent soup made with frozen
vegetables, the bags of 'mixed' vegetables that are all small in size.
* Believe it or not, this soup is actually good cold, too. Like many
soups, its flavors develop if made one day and then served the next.