Hello everyone!
If April showers bring May flowers, what do March showers bring? Well, if you live on a dirt road or happen to be a farmer, they bring MUD, but they also take away SNOW! So the grass was indeed hiding under there this whole time! When did we last see the ground? It's been a while, to put it mildly. And it looks like the rains might hold off for the weekend to give us what feels like a very rare gift - dare I say it? - a warm weekend with some sun, to boot. (Yes, I'm now knocking on wood.)
Just to top off this early Spring weekend, we have another Amenia Winter Market to look forward to! Tomorrow, Saturday, 10:00 to 2:00, at the Amenia Town Hall. To this market, March showers actually are bringing flowers - the long-awaited ORCHIDS will finally be brightening the gymnasium. What a welcome sight they will be... We are also thrilled to welcome Rouben Madikians of the Amenia Yoga Studio. Rouben will be offering CHAIR MASSAGES and will be selling his handmade soy candles. Moonbeam Farm will be selling a fresh batch of 2011 MAPLE SYRUP (8 oz and 12 oz bottles), as well as maple cupcakes and maple-walnut sauce. Dashing Star Farm now has three types of LAMB SAUSAGE (merquez, garlic-rosemary and feta-sundried tomato). Vicki at Perry Hill Farm has been busy making shamrock shaped soaps scented with peppermint, comfrey, lavender and parsley, and new rosemary and peppermint oil body/shampoo bars. Farm Country Soup will have the usual soups, quiche and frittatas as well as a meatloaf made with Meili Farm ground beef, garlic mashed potatoes and a gorgonzola white lasagna with butternut squash and swiss chard. Delicious!
At tomorrow's market, you will find the following Food & Farm vendors:
- Berkshire Mountain Bakery, Housatonic, MA (breads, croissants, rolls, baguettes, loaves)
- Best Creations Bakery, Millbrook, NY (cookies, small cakes, hand pies, tarts)
- Cedar Hill Farm, Amenia, NY (beef, pork)
- Clear Water Aqua Farm, Wassaic, NY (aquaponic salad greens and herbs, assorted veggies)
- Cream Hill Veal, Cornwall, CT (pastured veal)
- Dashing Star Farm, Millerton, NY (lamb, eggs, baked goods, wool, roving, sheepskins)
- EB's Golden Harvest (honey, herbal tinctures, candles, various honey & beeswax products)
- Farm Country Soup, Southfield, MA (soups, quiche & frittata, pies, tarts, scones, muffins, meatloaf, pasta dishes)
- Glen Golovin, Amenia, NY (a wide array of cheeses from the local area - goat-, sheep- and cow-milk varieties represented)
- Krazy for Kazu's, Falls Village, CT (Japanese marinades, dressings & sauces, also prepared Japanese foods)
- Marilyn's Food Co., Pine Plains, NY (pickles - many varieties, sauces, marinara sauce, jams, compotes, relish)
- Meili Farm, Amenia, NY (beef, pork, eggs)
- Moonbeam Farm, Wingdale, NY (jams, chutneys, baked goods, sauces, handpainted woodenware)
- Perry Hill Farm, Amenia, NY (handmade herbal-based soaps, creams, tinctures, lotions, also farm photo cards)
- WholeyOats Granola, Amenia, NY (formerly Berkshire Mountain Foods, handmade granolas by the bag and bar)
And the following Local Artisans:
- Baskets at Home, Millbrook, NY (Shaker-style baskets, felted bowls and garlands)
- CrippenWorks, Millerton, NY (hand-sewn knitting needle & crochet cases, notions bags, totes, diaper cases
- Donna Durbridge, Amenia, NY (hand-sewn pillows and handbags made with exquisite fabrics and leathers)
- Randi Foreman, Millbrook, NY (upcycled cashmere bunnies and other lovable friends, totes, napkins)
- Tim Liefer, Rhinebeck, NY (classic to whimsical birdhouses of all shapes and sizes)
Introducing this week:
- Rouben Madikians, Amenia Yoga Studio, Amenia, NY (chair massages, handmade soy candles)
- Berkshire Orchids, Lakeville, CT (in the grower's own words, HUGE GORGEOUS CYMBIDIUM ORCHIDS, DENDROBIUM ORCHIDS, PHALAENOPSIS AND ZYGOPETALUM ORCHIDS..DENDROBIUM NOBILE..VANDAS)
We look forward to seeing you tomorrow from 10:00 to 2:00 in the gymnasium of the Amenia Town Hall (former Amenia Elementary School) on Route 22. Be sure to pass this email along - telling a friend how much you enjoy the Amenia Winter Market is the best compliment of all!
