Thank You

Thanks so much to everyone for a fantastic season - we're already looking forward to 2010.

Closing Time

The last 27 weeks have flown by and now we find ourselves at the end of the outdoor Market season - with, of course, the nicest weather we've seen in weeks on deck for this Saturday. We hope to see thousands - yes, thousands! - of people out and about for the last Market at the Square on November 7, soaking up the sun and buying lots of food.

The Market will be small this week - we can now fit everyone into three rows. Small is beautiful, though, and the vast majority of our produce vendors will be out in force to offer you the goods:

apples, cilantro, celeriac, leeks, onions, heirloom potatoes, tomatoes (?), fresh carrots, chard, cabbages, lettuces and salad mixes, spinach, green onions, green beans, okra, eggplant, hot & sweet peppers, broccoli, kohlrabi, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, squashes (including pumpkins) — also, locally-raised meat and eggs, award-winning goat cheese, honey, and much more

You can also get a head start on some of your holiday shopping by patronizing the booths of our artisans out at the Market this weekend. If there's a Market geek in your midst, consider swinging by the City tent and picking up a limited edition Market poster for the low, low price of two bucks! They frame nicely and make wonderful gifts.

We'll be posting once a week during the off-season, so don't take us off your list.

Well, not until May 1, 2010 at 7 AM, that is.

****REMINDER: Many of the Market's vendors will be selling indoors at the Urbana Business Association's Holiday Market, which gets underway Saturday, November 14 at 8 AM inside Lincoln Square Mall. The Holiday Market will run through Saturday, December 19.
Yep - after this weekend, there will be no more tents in Lot 10X at Lincoln Square. ****

Week 27: Spooky Halloween!

Halloween just so happens to fall directly on a Market day this season, so... take your costumes out on a test run this weekend at Market at the Scare!! We'll have treats baked by Common Ground Food Co-op, some chocolate loveliness, apple cider, and maybe some trick-or-treat action at some of the vendor booths - all while supplies last, starting at 9 AM.

There's still plenty of food at the Market. To wit:

apples, arugula, fennel, fresh herbs, leeks, onions, heirloom potatoes, tomatoes, cabbages, carrots, lettuces and salad mixes, spinach, green onions, green beans, okra, eggplant, sweet potatoes, hot & sweet peppers, broccoli, radishes, kohlrabi, turnips, kale, squashes (including pumpkins) - also, locally-raised meat and eggs, award-winning goat cheese, honey, and much more

Next week's Market is our last for the 2009 season. The Urbana Business Association's Holiday Market, featuring many of the same vendors and several new ones, too, gets underway inside Lincoln Square on November 14 at 8 AM.

Market at the Square, Week 26: Pumpkins & Sprouts

First, let us gaze upom the awesome weirdness that is CELERIAC, also known as CELERY ROOT (and known to me as "that vegetable that looks like it's something from the Herbology classes in Harry Potter"):


Celeriac, besides being visually fascinating, is a wonderfully-flavored root vegetable that can be totally delicious raw or (my fave) roasted with other roots. These fine specimens were spotted at Tomahnous Farm's booth, at the south end of the Market's row 2.

OF NOTE THIS WEEKEND:

Sprouts at the Market - final event for 2009 is a healthy trick-or-treat!

Yep - one last Sprouts event before we close Market at the Square for the season on November 7, and this one is always fun:

1. Sprout arrives and checks in at one of the Sprouts stations throughout the Market (or at Sprouts HQ at the NW Market entrance).
2. Sprout receives free tote bag for treat-hauling purposes.
3. Sprout goes to other Sprouts stations to learn about fall/winter foods, sample them (or food made from them). '
4. Sprout takes away a few souvenirs and gets a Certificate of Participation.
5. Sprout's grown-up takes a short survey.

Sprouts gets started at 9 AM and runs through 11 AM. Please call 217-384-2319 for more information.

Pumpkins:

Bob Kleiss is having a pumpkin sale this weekend - if you haven't yet gotten your jack-o'lantern for this year's Halloween, this weekend's the perfect time. Bob will have a huge selection of pumpkins large and small to choose from at really excellent prices. Don't miss it - their pumpkin truck is right at the NW entrance to the Market, in row 1.

Pie:

Trisha Rux and her Red Oak pies & casseroles will be back for one last time this Market season. Find her this Saturday in row 4 - she's got those pink boxes full of pie!

See you out there!

Market at the Square, Week 25: Local, Seasonal

Here are a few highlights from last weekend's Market - many thanks to those who came out and got some grocery shopping done on what turned out to be a terrific day:

Romanesco broccoli and cauliflower from the Moores

Beeswax from Blue Ribbon Apiary

Kleiss' pumpkin truck

REMINDER: Market at the Square runs through November 7 in its usual spot, no matter what the weather. Starting November 14, the Urbana Business Association will be bringing their Holiday Market to Lincoln Square. While the two markets are run by different organizations and have different emphases, they share many of the same vendors, including farmers. The Holiday Market gets underway a little later in the morning, too, starting at 8 and going until 1 PM. If you have questions, check out the link above or call their office at 344-3872.

FOOD THIS WEEK: apples, arugula, fennel, fresh herbs, leeks, onions, heirloom potatoes, tomatoes, cabbages (including Napa - my fave), carrots, lettuces and salad mixes, spinach, green onions, green beans, okra, eggplant, sweet potatoes, hot & sweet peppers, broccoli, radishes, fennel, kohlrabi, kale, squashes (including pumpkins) - also, locally-raised meat and eggs, award-winning goat cheese, honey, and much more.

SPECIAL GUESTS: This weekend, we'll have the Mahomet Aquifer Project back for an encore performance (see last week's entry for more information). Also, U-Cycle will be back - this time with folks from the Landscape Recycling Center, who'll be around to answer any and all of your compost, yard waste, and other questions about ways the center can help improve your gardens and lawns.

See you out there!

Market at the Square, Week 24: True Autumn

It was a bit dreary at last week's Market, as occasionally happens this time of year, so I took no photos. It's also a bit dreary as I type this. How about a Market photo from a couple of weeks ago to cheer everyone up?

Sweet peppers from Blue Moon Farm - Urbana, IL

That's better.

My meteorologist pals Ed & Mike tell me that the rain will be long gone by the time we get rolling this Saturday morning; the sun will shine down on the fruits, vegetables, food, and art, and all will be well. You'll probably require a jacket when you come out, but no raingear.

The locally-grown produce we have this time of year is so colorful and gorgeous and plentiful and tasty and... well, LOCAL! Chances are, the person who had a serious hand in growing it is right across the table from you when you buy it at the Market, too. Our growers and other producers are a tremendous local resource on several levels; they're growing food nearby and providing our community a local food option... AND they can tell you about several tasty things to do with that incredible-looking rainbow chard if you're stumped. That's part of what makes the Market so awesome and different, and it's one of the many reasons why we hope the Market has a weekly spot on your grocery-shopping roster.

Food this week:

apples, sweet corn, fennel, fresh herbs, leeks, onions, heirloom potatoes, tomatoes, chard, cabbages (including Napa - my fave), carrots, lettuces and salad mixes, spinach, green onions, green beans, okra, eggplant, hot & sweet peppers, broccoli, kohlrabi, squashes (including pumpkins) - also, locally-raised meat and eggs, award-winning goat cheese, honey, and much more

Special events this week include:

- The final installment of Urbana's Public Arts Program's Art At the Market series. This weekend's workshop will be a "Water Creature" mask-making workshop helmed by local artist and educator Lori Caterini. This continuous workshop is happening from 8 AM - noon, is completely free and open to the public, and requires no registration. Art at the Market will return to the Market in 2010!

- University of Illinois Dance professor Jennifer Monson brings her Mahomet Aquifer Dance Project to the Market this weekend and next (the Mahomet Aquifer, in case you're unfamiliar, is an enormous water system that provides water for Urbana-Champaign and many other communities in Central Illinois). Come check out what's sure to be a compelling performance! The troupe will be performing on Walnut Street, just west of the Market site, from 9 AM - noon.

See you out there!

Market at the Square - Week 23

Fall and all of its fabulous flavors and colors are really upon us now. Last weekend's Market started off foggy (check out this photo of our early morning setup, taken at 6 AM - is that the mothership from Close Encounters coming up over Illinois Street?) but ended up being lovely. We're hoping for more of the same this weekend. It won't be overly warm - it's definitely hoodie weather at the Market - but then again, it IS October...

This week's food:

apples, peaches (final week, for real this time), sweet corn, fennel, fresh herbs, leeks, onions, heirloom potatoes, tomatoes, chard, cabbages (including Napa - my fave), lettuces and salad mixes, spinach, green onions, green beans, okra, eggplant, hot & sweet peppers, broccoli, kohlrabi, squashes (including pumpkins) - also, locally-raised meat and eggs, award-winning goat cheese, honey, and much more

I'd like to encourage all patrons to not only come to the Market as we get into its last weeks, but to also bring a friend with you - someone who doesn't get to the Market that often or - gasp! - has never been. Jason of Clever Food stopped by with a friend last weekend, and I like to think there were lots of other new faces mixed in with the familiar ones.

This weekend, Urbana Fire Rescue's Fire Truck Parade and Muster will set up shop on Illinois Street, just south of the Market. The westbound lane of Illinois Street will be blocked off entirely to accomodate the Fire Department's vehicles, but the eastbound lane will hopefully be open two ways, single lane, to accomodate patrons who wish to use the parking lot on Illinois Street. (I'll post a correction if, for some reason, the lot is not accessible). Come check out some fire trucks before you head into the Market - and swing the kids by The Urbana Free Library's booth, since they'll be reading books about fire safety, fire trucks, etc to all kids.


We hope to see you out there!