Start Shopping Again – Local Calendar – Updated
Maybe as a New Year’s Resolution, we’ll never complain about the paucity of local produce at area winter markets. Instead, we will just celebrate our growing abundance of cold weather shopping. Start shopping again with our full list of options below.
Also, fight the cold with the return of Soup and Bread at the Hideout, starting tonight, January 6. Soup’s on starting at 530 PM.
Also, also, no details yet, but Chef Mendez has been continuing his farm lunches at Carnivale. Three course for $19. Last week’s lunch featured local cabbage and Becker Lane pork. Temptation is only an email away.
Cannot find anything exciting below, hit the road. We have put together a long list of Midwestern winter markets.
Your Local Calendar is below.
WHAT TO BUY NOW
Winter market fare is mostly indoor crops, with a smattering of storage crops. Growers like Windy City Harvest, Heritage Prairie and Growing Power may have rocket (a/k/a arugula), collards, spinach, lettuces and micro-greens/sprouts. In addition, there are cultivated mushrooms from River Valley Ranch.
And do you want to something red to match your holiday green? Produce Express at the Chicago French Market has Illinois grown, indoor tomatoes. Now, before you poo-pah these, think about the fact that at the conventional stores they are mostly selling indoor grown tomatoes too. Do you want your hot-house tomatoes to come from Mexico or come from local?
Local apples and potatoes are prevalent, look especially for great prices on Wisconsin potatoes at places like Caputo’s. Slightly harder to find, but out there should be onions and garlic. You may also run across root crops (including turnips, beets, celery root and assorted radishes), cabbages, sunchokes and hard squash.
Instead of bemoaning the scarcity of fresh produce, look for high quality preserved products. There has been dried and frozen fruits at the Logan Square Market. Both Tomato Mountain and River Valley Ranch bring their tasty stuff to the markets they attend.
WHERE TO FIND LOCAL FOODS
These stores specialize in local foods:
Local apples and potatoes are widely available in the Chicago area. Look for the local where ever you shop.
The new French Market at Metra Market offers local food.
C&D Pastured Pork’s sales around town
WHAT TO DO
MARKETS AND EVENTS THIS WEEK
Saturday - January 9
Geneva Community Market – Inglenook Pantry – 11 N. 5th Street, Geneva – 9 AM – 1 PM
Wettstein’s organic, pastured meat and eggs, including certain lamb cuts at 1/2 price - Buzz Cafe – 905 S. Lombard, Oak Park, IL 12 – 3 PM
Sunday – January 10
Winter Market, Deerfield – North Shore Unitarian Church – 2100 Half Day Rd. (Rt. 22), Deerfield – 10 AM – 2PM
Logan Square Farmers Market – 2135 N. Milwaukee – 10 – 2 PM
Tuesday - January 12
City Provisions Supper Club at Architectural Artifacts, Inc. celebrating the new year cocktail party style with Death’s Door spirits with special guests Floriole Bakery
MARKETS AND EVENTS COMING
Saturday – January 16
Chicago Green City Market at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, 8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m (Directions) – The theme is “Are You Game”
Geneva Community Market – Inglenook Pantry – 11 N. 5th Street, Geneva – 9 AM – 1 PM
Empty Bottle – 1035 N. Western, Chicago – 11 – 5PM
Sunday – January 17
Logan Square Farmers Market – 2135 N. Milwaukee, Chicago – 10 – 2 PM
Mado Pig Butchering Demo - patés and terrines – Noon – Rob will be demonstrating how to break down a pork shoulder for grinding and how to turn that into various patés, terrines and potted meats. $50/pp
Saturday – January 23
Portage Park – Irving Park and Central, Chicago - 10 – 2 PM
Sunday – January 24
Winter Market, Chicago – Irving Park Luthern Church – 3938 W. Belle Plaine, Chicago – 12 – 3PM
Mado Pig Butchering Demo – fresh sausages – Noon – Rob will be demonstrating how to break down a pork shoulder for grinding, sharing his basic formula for fresh sausages and discussing variations. $50/pp
Thursday – January 28
Farm Dinner – Vie – Featuring 28 day dry aged beef from Dietzler Farm. The dinner begins at 6:30 p.m. Reservations are required and can be made by calling (708) 246-2082.
Sunday – January 31
Slow Food Chicago Annual Meeting – Kendall College – 900 N North Branch St, Chicago – 130 – 4 PM – Details and registration here.
Logan Square Farmers Market – 2135 N. Milwaukee, Chicago – 10 – 2 PM
Mado Pig Butchering Demo – Dueling testas – Noon – Rob will be demonstrating his methods for making mado’s two different styles of testa. Our rolled testa is made with braised and shredded pig’s head, while “porchetta di testa” involves boning out the pig’s head, curing, rolling and slowly simmering. $50/pp
Saturday – February 6
City of Chicago and Green City Market host a Farmer’s Forum. This event promotes local food and farms by helping farmers, market managers, and chefs connect. In addition, farmers can learn how to become part of the City of Chicago’s Farmers market program as well as improve their direct sales and learn how to better market their products and services. Kendall College – 9 AM – 2 PM
Slow Food lunch in Michigan City, IN – Brother and sister farmers and Slow Food members Alex and Patty Panozzo are set to host a sustainable harvest lunch in recognition of Terra Madre, a biannual celebration of Slow Food chapters across the globe. With 2010 being a Terra Madre year, Patty Panozzo is opening her Michigan City, Indiana home to supporters and heralding the day with a festive luncheon. The sustainable harvest lunch will take place from 1 p.m. until 3 p.m. cst and will feature a lavish spread of homegrown food from the Panozzo’s “Victory Garden.” While guests dine, they’ll be treated to a slide show presentation of that very garden. Attendance is free, though donations to Slow Food are appreciated. RSVP is required by February 1.
Saturday – February 13
Winter Market, Oak Park – Euclid Avenue United Methodist Church – 405 S. Euclid, Oak Park – 9 AM – 1PM
Chicago Green City Market at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, 8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m (Directions) – The theme is “Meat and Potatoes”
Saturday – February 20
Winter Market, United Church of Rogers Park – 1545 W. Morse, Chicago - 9 AM – 1 PM
Tuesday - February 23
City Provisions Supper Club with North Shore Distillery (venue TBD)
Saturday – February 27
Chicago Green City Market at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, 8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m (Directions) – The theme is “Meat and Potatoes”
Portage Park – Irving Park and Central, Chicago - 10 – 2 PM
Sunday – March 7
Winter Market, St. Giles Church – 1025 Colombian, Oak Park – Times not posted
Thursday - March 11
Family Farmed Expo – Financing Farm to Fork Conference - UIC Forum, Chicago
Friday - March 12
Family Farmed Expo – Trade Conference – UIC Forum, Chicago
Chicago Food Policy Summit - UIC Forum, Chicago
Saturday – March 13
Chicago Green City Market at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, 8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m (Directions) – The theme is “Greens, Eggs and Ham”
Family Farmed Expo – Consumer Day – UIC Forum, ChicagoSunday – March 14Winter Market, Park Ridge Community Church, 100 Courtland, Park Ridge – 930 AM - 130 PM
Saturday – March 20
Evenezer Luthern Church – 1650, W. Foster, Chicago – 9 AM – 1 PM
Sunday – March 20
Unitarian Universalist Church of Elgin – 39W830 Highland, Elgin – 1 – 3 PM
Saturday – March 27
Chicago Green City Market at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, 8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m (Directions) – The theme is still Greens, Eggs, and Ham (we think).
Portage Park – Irving Park and Central, Chicago - 10 – 2 PM
Saturday - April 10
Chicago Green City Market at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, 8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m (Directions) – The theme is Cheese
Saturday – April 24
Chicago Green City Market at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, 8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m (Directions) – The theme is Cheese.
Portage Park – Irving Park and Central, Chicago - 10 – 2 PM
NO DATES ANNOUNCED
St. Benedict Parish-Northcenter
First Evangelical Free Church-Andersonville
Keep you eye on Local Beet as we have all your winter needs covered.
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