Greetings from the Farm and the Market!
Happy Independence Day! This past week through July 4th AZ Local First has been promoting Independents Week which encourages you to "go local" by supporting as many locally owned businesses as possible. This is a statewide celebration of the local and independent businesses that are the backbone of the Arizona economy.
Did you know that for every $100 spent at a local business $73 stays in the community vs. only $43 when it is a non-local business? In addition, independent businesses raise the standard of living in our communities because they take their profits and buy products and services from other local businesses, thus creating more and more tax revenues needed for the community to thrive.
When we think in terms of our grocery shopping, Farmers' Markets are one of the most important outlets where we can support local food sources. Anymore, it is rare to find that corner neighborhood market for they have all been replaced by large grocery stores that for the most part are not locally owned businesses...therefore, taking a chunk of the money you spend out of your community and state. We all know we cannot grow everything, everywhere, all the time therefore, we do depend on other regions to supply us with certain goods. But, we can begin shifting some of our purchasing power to directly impact where we live. Think of the Farmers' Markets as your first source for your weekly grocery shopping and then fill in from there at your grocery store. Many grocery stores are beginning to source local products and will label them as such...seek these out and add them to your basket first. If we think of our purchases as concentric circles and put most of our money in those circles closet to where we live, collectively we can shift how our money works for us.
Local First Arizona states on their website:
The Power of Choice:
Every time you make a purchase, you're exercising power of choice.
The choice is yours. You have the power to strengthen & enrich your community.
If each one of us can shift our dollars more and more to local businesses we will experience a significant economic impact and see thriving, vibrant communitities rise up around us. Now that is what we call celebrating Independence!
See you at Market!
Duncan Family Farms and the Wigwam Farmers Market Team |
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Wigwam Farmers Market |  The Wigwam Farmers Market Summer Hours are now in effect...we will be here every Sunday from 7am - 11am. We would like to introduce a new vendor to our lawn. We would like to welcome Cindy Dilla of Paradise Melts. Cindy has some great grilled sandwiches that will keep you coming back every Sunday to try them all! Creations include the Veggie (provolone, tomato, basil, arugula, roasted red pepper, and balsamic on sourdough) and the Ruben (pastrami, swiss, cole slaw, and 1000 island on marble rye).
Other menu items include a Build-Your-Melt option and sides that change up often. But one of the most surprisingly things off the truck is the spicy-sweet homemade iced chai tea that Cindy mixes up fresh every day. You cannot not miss her booth...it is a bright blue, "cheesy" Food Truck...she may not need to use her grill this weekend...YIKES, it will be hot but our vendors are dedicated and will brave the heat to bring you the best of locally grown and produced items. Eric and Julia Ireland of Torched Goodness continue to have their seasonally prepared foods made from ingredients they purchase from local producers and growers. Claudine's will be bringing a chilled yogurt soup with cucumber and mint...just the cure for a hot day!! The Wigwam has some great 4th of July events in store that you will not want to miss.
7:00am-11:00am Wigwam Farmer's Market: Front Lawn
Activities starting at 8am:
-Sign of Pride for our Troops with Blue Star Moms (sign your message on a hand-printed flag sheet and it will be sent to our local troops)
-Patriotic T-shirts: create your own
design ($10 for Children & $15 for
Adults)*
-Letters for our Troops
8am-10am Live Entertainment at Farmer's Market by AZ
Chicks with Picks: Front Lawn
8am-11am Luke Air Force Base Display
10am Wildlife World Zoo & Aquarium
Front Lawn
Each animal has a story. We tell you where they come from and how they like to live from the creepy critters to our furry friends. Zoo educators bring out 5-6 animals for a 30-40 presentation. |
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What's Happening on the Farm | |
Yes folks, those are grapes and they are growing on the farm in Goodyear...along with apples and plums, too! Many of these items were planted when we had our U-pick fields, agri-education tours and festivals. Arnott has quite the green thumb...we sure hope so since he IS a farmer! As many of you know we have been bringing lots of little different items to the market...maybe not in large quantities, but diverse in offerings. We are playing in our fields this summer to find what we want to focus on next year for our summer crop production. So please stop by and let us know what you think of the heirloom squash, cucumbers, and watermelons. We are especially interested in hearing which ones you enjoy most and why.
Follow us on Facebook, post comments and pictures and cooking ideas of what you are creating in your kitchens at home (we can be found under Duncan Family Farms AZ).
Here at the farm, we have really had fun cooking the baby round
French Squash. Stuffing them makes a beautiful main dish for a summer
dinner and was a fairly easy preparation:
First, hollow out the squash and save some of the flesh to chop and saute for the filling and the remainder can be used to make a chilled squash soup.
For the filling think creatively and use what you have on hand. In this photo we used a mixture of brown rice, wild rice, quinoa, barley, garlic, onion, chopped squash blossoms, chopped baby zucchini which was attached to the blossoms, oven roasted cherry tomatoes, fresh chopped basil and italian parsley, salt and pepper. Each shell was stuffed half full and then layered with Crow's Dairy Goat Cheese and topped with remaining filling and baked in a 350 degree oven covered for approximately 25 minutes and finished off uncovered for an additional 15 minutes. It was REALLY good!!
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| Meet Our Market Vendors | |
PLEASE WELCOME LISA HOWE STONEWARE
Please join us in welcoming Lisa Howe Pottery to the Wigwam Farmers' Market. Lisa uses only the finest quality clays and glazes to produce unique pottery design. Under normal use, all of her pieces are dishwasher, microwave, and oven safe. She uses only "lead-free" clays and glazes.
Lisa develops all of her unique pottery designs and custom mixes her glazes to create the unique look and feel of the Lisa Howe Stoneware Collection. Each piece is hand thrown by either Lisa or one of her highly talented potters, and then expertly glazed and kiln-fired to produce the beautiful colors and designs that you will see on all her pieces. For a full viewing of Lisa's product line visit her website.
The great thing about Lisa is that you are not limited by what you see at the market or online. She specializes in custom designs and is happy to work with you to find that perfect shape, size and glaze! A little inside piece of knowledge....Lisa's work is in all the rooms on the resort property! Please stop by and give her a warm welcome, we know you will not be able to walk away without a piece of her beautiful pottery in hand.
Thank you Lisa for joining our Market!
A perfect vessel to fill with ice cold lemonade for your 4th of July barbecue or use as a vase to showcase some red and white flowers.
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This Week's Shopping List |
 Enjoy the seasonal produce at the market this week.
1. Tomatoes
2. Kale
3. Eggplant
4. Cucumbers
5. Green Beans
6. Leaf Lettuce
7. Green Onions
8. Pearl Onions
9. Baby Red Potatoes
10 Green Onions
11. Assorted Heirloom Squash
12. Assorted Heirloom Cucumbers
13. Watermelons
14. Cantaloupe
15. Delicious Apples
16. Okra
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| Market Recipe |
BLT Deviled Eggs
A great addition to your 4th of July barbecue and be sure to pick up your Heirloom Eggs at the Farmers' Market - Chili Acres has them every Sunday.
Ingredients
6 large eggs , hard-boiled and peeled
1/4 cup mayonnaise
3 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled plus more for garnish, if desired
2 cherry tomatoes, seeded and finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
Halve the eggs lengthwise. Remove the yolks and add them to a medium bowl. Mash the yolks with a fork and stir in the mayonnaise, bacon, tomatoes, and parsley. Add salt and pepper, to taste, and blend well.
Fill the egg whites evenly with the yolk mixture and garnish with bacon, if desired. Arrange them in a container and store, covered, in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Recipe and photo from Food Network/Paula Deen
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Wigwam Farmers Market | |
NEW SUMMER HOURS
7AM - 11AM
Every Sunday Morning from 7am to 11am on the front lawn of the Wigwam Resort located at 300 E. Wigwam Blvd, Litchfield Park, AZ
Current Market Vendors
Chile Acres
Claudine's Kitchen
Cotton Country Jams (off the floor for summer season-returning in the Fall)
Coyote Oaties
Crow's Dairy
DD's Desert Delights
(off the floor for summer season-returning in the Fall)
DiCio Pasta
Dirty Birdy Soaps
Double Check Ranch
Duncan Family Farms
Dust Seasonings (off the floor for summer season-returning in the Fall)
Golo Family Organic Farm
Health Foodie
Jan's Baked Goods (off the floor for summer season-returning in the Fall)
Lisa Howe Pottery
Mi Salsa
Mom's Gone Nuts
Paradise Melts
Poppa Maize
Pork on a Fork
Relish This n That
R Sauce
SkinSense Organic
Sunizona Family Farms
Torched Goodness
Vendors on vacation this week will be Mi Salsa, R Sauce and Pork on a Fork. They will be returning next weekend.
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| Favorite Food Quotes |
"Summer Bounty Is a Transitory Treasure: To truly appreciate the flavors, you must savor the moment."
~Whole Living Magazine August 2011
"Cooking is not about being the best or most perfect cook, but rather it is about sharing the table with family and friends."
~ Skye Gyngell
"Shake the hand that feeds you."
-Michael Pollan
"One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating."
-Luciano Pavarotti
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