I absolutely adore farmer’s markets. Some of my earliest memories of the farmer’s market is with my mother, on early Sunday mornings. The farmer’s market where I grew up was in a freeway underpass, so I mostly remember the feeling of being under the giant freeways in the early morning, with people (mostly old ladies) pushing the wire carts, bargaining for the best price for produce.

Now I just love walking through them, taking a look at what’s in season, what people are growing. I love chatting with the vendors, talking about the best way to cook something and how you should eat it. When the farmer’s market in my neighborhood just opened up, I was ecstatic – I would go every week. I became a regular – the fish guys would chat with me about the best way to cook the fish, and the almond guys would smile in recognition. I would get talked into buying pickled garlic (which is GOOD especially if you love garlic like me) and the most delicious cured meats. The flower vendor that was in the back of the market was the sweetest man – he once complimented my boots, and gave me a free small bunch of flowers every time I would buy from him. And he would smile so happily. It was for this reason that I would only buy flowers from him in the whole market.

I just loved being able to connect with where my food comes from – seeing the faces that grew the food. You can tell just how much they care about it. And of course, it’s good for the environment to buy locally. :)

Next time you need to buy some produce, give your local farmer’s markets a try. Maybe you’ll love it just as much as I do :)