Bloomington may be covered in snow and ice, but that doesn’t mean there’s no fresh, local produce available. The Bloomington Winter Farmers’ Market offers a variety of local foods from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturdays during November through March at the Switchyard Park Pavilion.
Right now, offerings include cruciferous vegetables such as arugula, kale and chard from vendors including Meadowlark Farm, and daikon radishes from stands such as Wilderlove Farm. Root vegetables available now from market sellers like Meadowlark and Wilderlove are garlic, various types of potatoes, purple beets and celery root.
Furthermore, leafy greens and herbs such as lettuce, spinach, multiple kinds of microgreens, cilantro and parsley can be found on tables in the market.
Barnhouse Farms is one of the stands selling microgreens, and vendor Sean McKinney said that different kinds have different flavors. Microgreens are the young seedlings of vegetables and herbs.
“So, the radish (microgreens)]is really spicy — peppery, like a radish,” McKinney said. “Broccoli has got that brassica flavor, but it's insanely healthy. It's like 40 times the nutrient density of actual broccoli. The pea shoots are kind of sweet and crunchy, like a peapod.”
FirstLite Farms sells mushroom varieties such as blue oyster, lion’s mane and shiitake. Mushrooms can be sauteed, added to soups and pastas or used as a vegan meat substitute.
Winter produce can be incorporated into a variety of dishes, such as salads, soups and sides.
“Personally, I love putting the radish (microgreens) on my tacos or eggs — anywhere you put a green thing,” McKinney said. “So like, sandwiches, wraps. We like the pea shoots in our ramen; (we) make a lot of ramen. My kids just eat them by the handful. They love them.”
Prepared foods can also be found on many market tables. Metta Gardens sells seven kinds of sauerkraut, five types of kimchi as well as sourdough bread and fermented pickles, according to vendor Kathy Shrum.
The team at Segovia, Jose Escaobar and Samia Mancheno, offer Ecuadorian and Spanish foods, including ceviche, paella and a gluten-free cake called “tarta Santiago.” Other goods could be called Spanish-American fusion, like their scones.
“We have a different (style) of scones,” Escaobar said. “One with Manchego cheese and the other one with figs. We like to call them Spanish-style scones, because we try to keep the same recipe as a normal American scone but (also) try to give it like a little twist.”
Seasonal offerings at the Winter Farmers’ Market extend beyond food. Winter Blooms grows flowers in a greenhouse from December until May, meaning blossoms such as tulips, anemone and ranunculus are available even in January.
“It took about a year of research on my end (to grow flowers in winter),” Emily Winter, owner of Winter Blooms, said. She grows her flowers in a structure called a high tunnel, which is a covered half-cylinder that helps to protect crops. Winter’s solution was to put a heater in her high tunnel that turns on when the temperature falls below 40 degrees.
Year-round products at the market, such as honey, yogurt and eggs, can be used to augment winter produce. Vegetables can be roasted in honey and glazed with vinegar, or leafy greens mixed in a salad with yogurt dressing.
For more details on the Bloomington Winter Farmers’ Market and a complete list of vendors, visit its website here.
