Lexington Farmer's Market finds

Last weekend, I got up early enough to go to the Farmer's Market.  I wish I would get up every Saturday morning and go but usually I am sleeping, out of town, or just busy.  I made my wish list and Matt and I headed to the Cheapside Pavilion to see what we could find.

Wish List:

tomatoes

honey

eggs

fruit

I kept my list simple but with an idea of what I wanted.  I have to have a few meals in mind otherwise I buy a bunch of random items and then can’t figure out how to incorporate them into a meal.  I end up eating everything separately and randomly.  When we arrive, I always take one trip around to see what is available that day.  Some booths are the same, others have some specialty items and I also like to price compare.  The farmers usually stick close to each other's prices but you can still find a variance of 50 cents or so.  I will definitely try to save 50 cents especially since food is the one thing in my budget that I spend the most money on.

I had to walk fast past the crepe stand.  I haven’t tried them yet but I will one day when I haven’t eaten breakfast yet.  The sun was blaring down that day.  It was so hot, so I tried to make my purchases as quick as possible.  Matt isn’t too keen on heat but of course I love to pretend I’m still in Fiji when the sun is blazing down my neck and making my back sweat.  I miss being dirty at 830am already.  Anyway, I found some great looking tomatoes, pickling cucumbers, and okra.  Then I bought some local honey, peaches and cream corn, Gala apples, and peaches.  My last purchase was fresh pasta from the Lexington Pasta Company. I have heard about this place but finally bought some.  The selection wasn’t too good when I finally got to them but I settled on basil and herb fettuccine.  I didn’t buy any eggs, they were $5.75 a dozen and I couldn’t drop that kind of money on eggs. 

A few days later, I cooked up most of my purchases.  Then I added in some southern cornbread to top it off.  I loved fried okra, so I breaded the cut okra in some egg, then cornmeal and fried it in small batches on the stove.  The corn was steamed, the cornbread was baked, and then I made some of Trader’s Joe mac and cheese.  The meal was delicious and I had just as much fun cooking it than I did eating it.