The best thing about winter--indeed, perhaps the only good thing about winter--may be that it makes us appreciate spring. This morning I am thankful that March has arrived and that it is supposed to warm up to a wopping 39 degrees today. It is sunny, to boot! And, when I think about sun, I think about all of the spring vegetables that will turn that beautiful sunlight into food and that are soon going to fill my plate:
Crisp green asparagus, steamed and doused in extra virgin olive oil and salt, tender artichoke leaves dipped in lemony mayonnaise, spring onions and leeks swirled into potato soup and sliced into salads, and fresh spring peas sauteed in butter and mint. These are the things I think about as I gear up for the Collinsville Farmers' Market, whose planning has been in the works now since December.
I think about Tom, from Hard Rain Farm, who purchased several hundred dollars' worth of seeds last month that will soon become our food for the next six months and about Mark from Wild Carrot Farm, whose sign has been promising for too long now to see me next year. Well, it is next year! The market farmers and other vendors meet on March 10 to gear up for the market, which opens on June 12.
In the meantime, if you would like to get involved yourself and volunteer at the market, you can email collinsvillefarmersmarket@gmail.com and write "Volunteer" in the subject line. Volunteers get to help set up the market booth, sell aprons, t-shirts, and sweatshirts, and field questions from market goers. Plus, volunteers have time to do their own shopping, chat with the farmers and other vendors, and swap recipes for all of the luscious vegetables and fruits. The market is open to the public from 10:00-1:00 every Sunday from mid-June through mid-October. Volunteers help out from 9:30-1:30 on whichever Sundays they choose.
So, I know there are several things to look forward to today as the March sun melts the winter snow. Spring vegetables, and farmers' markets, and good conversations and swapped food stories that come from volunteering. Winter is good, indeed.
