Hilliard Farmer’s Market Kicks Off

Hilliard has started its very own weekly Farmer’s Market.  This is great news to residents and near-by locals who will now have access to farm fresh products that they might not have been able to get before.  The market will be a weekly market held on Tuesdays from 4pm to 7pm and will feature local farmers and vendors.  Yesterday was the start of the market and thankfully the rain held off although it was still very hot!

The market is held in downtown Hilliard, the area referred to as “Old Hilliard” on the corner of Main Street and Center Street.  There is a parking lot there for the market and customer parking.  For those familiar with the area, it is located near the entrance to the Rails to Trails path.  Scott and I were out running errands yesterday and had a chance to stop by to check out the goods.  I was so excited to finally be able to get to a Farmer’s Market!  This was my first market trip so far this season and I have to say that the Hilliard Market didn’t disappoint!

The market is small compared to other markets I’m sure but for a market that just started this year they are off to a great beginning!  There were vendors there selling everything from homemade doggie treats to honey to sausage and everything in between!

I took a walk around checking out the vendors and the produce first before making my way back and purchasing a few items.  I loved seeing all of the produce available and the market was teeming with loads of berries!  Strawberries and raspberries being super popular.  One vendor even had some black raspberries!

This is a picture of some of my goods that I bought.  Add in loads more squash to the mix because I stocked up and actually would like some more!

My favorite thing is the lettuce, red and romaine.  To be honest, finding greens and lettuce was my big concern with Farmer’s Markets.  Maybe that seems odd, but when I read market reports no one ever talks about greens or lettuce.  To me, someone who is new to the local scene and just starting to learn about farmer’s markets, I assumed that no one grew lettuces and only focused on other produce based on other’s purchases.  The fact that I found some lettuce, and huge bunches of it, made me extremely excited!  The tomatoes were greenhouse tomatoes and totally organic and chemical free.  They smelled amazing and I just had to get some!

The lettuce, zucchinis, and tomatoes came from Wishwell Farms.  The crook-neck squash was purchased from Rhoads Farm.

I also purchase some raw local honey from Honey Health Farms.  And some ground turkey, and some chicken sausage patties from Carousel Watergardens Farm.  Pretty nice haul for the start of the season!

The first thing I did last night was cook up some of the squash!

It was late so I didn’t do anything fancy, just roasted it in the oven at 425 for about 15 minutes.  I let it sit in a marinade of:

  • Olive Oil
  • Toasted Sesame Oil
  • Soy Sauce
  • Rice Vinegar
  • Salt, pepper, and garlic powder

Delicious!

Today I made a great salad with the lettuce and one of the tomatoes!

I could not wait to dig into this bowl of goodness!  It had:

  • Red Romain
  • Red onion
  • Carrot
  • Cucumber
  • Chopped tomato
  • Pumpkin seeds
  • Walnuts
  • Feta

Topped with balsamic, some of the raw honey, and olive oil.  YUM!  The tomatoes tasted exactly like summer!

Rhoads  said that next week they would have corn and green beans so make sure you stop by if you are looking for the first batch of summer sweet corn!  They also said in about 2-3 weeks they should start having some peaches available as well!

Participating and purchasing from your local farmer’s market helps support your local community.  You will get a chance to meet the farmers and know where the food you are eating comes from.  Everybody benefits from farmer’s markets!

Follow the Hilliard Farmer’s Market online at their website and their Twitter Account.  Looking forward to next week! :D

9 thoughts on “Hilliard Farmer’s Market Kicks Off

  1. Heidi says:

    Tip for readers: if you go to the Hilliard Farm Market, go early! I got there around 6 pm and a lot of vendors were sold out. I was able to get some red raspberries from Rhoads Farm and raw honey from Honey Health Farm.

    I’m excited that Hilliard started a farmer’s market and I look forward to what they’ll have in the coming weeks! (And hopefully the vendors will be able to bring more so they don’t sell out so soon.) I love having the opportunity to support local farms, and having the Hilliard farmer’s market makes that super convenient!

  2. I’m so glad you were able to go, Andrea! Most of our central Ohio markets do have greens year round but they aren’t as sexy to most customers, so few of us bloggers take note. I don’t know about Hilliard, but Clintonville and North Market both send out reports ahead of the weekly market about what to expect that week.

    Heidi, as this was the first week of the market, I’m guessing vendors didn’t bring a full load. I would expect them to bring more as the market season goes on and the can better gauge the consumer interest.

  3. Grove City farm market doesn’t start up until July, BAH! Pickaway county is starting up a new this year farm market in Circleville, but the winds and rains were so bad last weekend that it shut down before we got there. Love to get the local stuff. North Market has a nice farm market on Saturdays, we picked up a bunch of strawberries. I was going to make jam but the kids kept eating them out of the box. I need to get more now.

  4. Libby Gierach says:

    The Hilliard Market is the class project of the Leadership Hilliard Class of 2009-10! They did an excellent job in bringing this wonderful event to our community! I was impressed with the vendors and the crowds. We are encouraged that the first time was such a success. Looking forward to seeing more people as the summer progresses! Great post about the market that you did!

  5. I stumbled upon your blog through Facebook. I have so often wished that Hilliard had a farm market. I’m so glad to find out that they do. I know where I’ll be on Tuesday! :) Thanks for sharing.

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