St. Jacob's Farmers' Market

Firstly, I would like to apologize for not posting any deliciousness in a few weeks: I have been away travelling.. but that will be a whole new post coming up! 

 One of my favourite things to do around this time of year ( Late summer/early fall) is visit local farms and markets. The fresh, organic and locally grown ingredients really make a difference in any meal. My family has always been very aware of this and we've always grown vegetables in our garden in the summer and enjoyed home made jams and other preserves in the winter. But, for those of you less garden savvy cooks, there's always the farmers market!
The largest market in the GTA, and all-year round, is the St. Jacobs Farmers' Market which is located around the city of Waterloo.

They are open 3 days a week in the summer: 

Thursday and Saturday 7 am - 3:30 pm all year
Tuesdays 8 am- 3 pm for the summer only

Here is a snapshot of some of the yummy items I picked up on my last trip: 
Mini sweet red peppers, baby potatoes, fresh cucumbers, eggplants, pell peppers, pork and beef summer sausage, strawberries and my all time favourites: cinammon and hazlenut butters. I LOVE these home made butters on french toast and crepes! So delicious...

The indoor market space is two storeys high: the upstairs shops mainly sell clothes, gifts and other crafts and antiques and the lower level sells specialty foods, meats, baked goods and have a couple of cafes and food kiosks. 

Outside you will find a picnic area with tables and chairs for those having lunch from one of the kiosks. May I suggest Apple fritters?












Around the main building you will also find all the produce vendors selling fresh fruits and veggies straight from the farm.  If you go towards the end of the day (2pm-3pm) you will notice that the vendors start to lower their prices to sell off the remaining goods. 


Of course, that's when I stock up on everything! although, you have to be quick. 
I managed to grab 6 boxes of strawberries for $5 and a bushel of peppers for $3. 

After you grabbed some lunch and had enough bargaining for the day- you can visit the petting zoo on site or take a tour of the nearby Mennonite Farm by horse and carriage. It's a fully narrated hour-long tour and is very informative.

For those of you who don't know this, most of the surrounding farmers and vendors in the St. Jacob's county are Old Order Mennonites. There is a community of about 4,000 of them and the above mentioned tour is a great way to learn more about their way of life, their beliefs and just ask any questions you may have.