In the winter...
Farmers still farm.
Chickens still lay eggs.
Cows still make milk.
Bakers still bake.
Cheese makers still make cheese...
and we still eat!
I arrived in Washington DC and met up with my mother. "So what do you want to do?" she asked. "World War II Memorial, Smithsonian Museums, Arlington Cemetery?"
"Well, actually, I was hoping to check out a farmer's market," I replied.
I think I saw her laugh to herself ... here we are in the Nation's Capital, and I want to go check out some little farmstands in the middle of the city. Navigating to the Fresh Farm website, I was pleased to find out that Washington DC has one year-round market. I was always led to believe that all the farmer's markets on the East Coast close down during the winter.
Sunday morning, we left our hotel room and headed out for Dupont Circle. A fairly neighborhoody area, the circle was bustling with people at coffee shops and walkers. Arriving at the market we observed approximately 15 stands. The farmers were selling winter veggies, eggs, meats, cheeses, oysters (jarred), sauces, apples, tomatoes (!), mushrooms, and other items - plenty to do all the shopping you need for a meal or two.
I picked up some delicious organic fruit roll-up type of snacks to munch on -- turns out that they are fairly easy to make using a dehydrator or this method.
In speaking with the market manager (who lived in SF for 15 years, and sold product at the Sonoma market), he mentioned that the market swells to over double the size during the summertime. If I lived in the area, I would definitely attend this market. It's encouraging to see that wintertime markets are not something that are saved for only the warmer climates, and that there is enough of a demand for local foods in other parts of the country as well.
* opening quote from the fresh farm website
