Grocery shopping without a list can be risky business, but those who visit the Uptown Westerville Farmers’ Market without a plan can make one quickly with the help of the Westerville Public Library.
For the last four years, the library has been using its collection of cookbooks to make recipe cards that use ingredients available at the farmers’ market.
“These … cookbooks (are) part of the library collection that people can check out,” says Linda Wilkins, library marketing coordinator. “We just go through and select the ones that we think the shoppers will enjoy seeing and looking through (to get) ideas … when they’re shopping.”
Recipes are carefully selected to cater to the availability of the ingredients at the market. Emphasized ingre
dients may range from spring vegetables and fall fruits to cheeses and meats for grilling.
The recipe cards are created monthly and are based on the weekly newsletter sent out by Linda Foor, manager of the farmers’ market, to participating vendors and partners, listing businesses and organizations that will be present that week.
“The vendors really like it because if someone picks up a recipe card, they move to buy the ingredients from the recipe card in the farmers’ market,” Foor says. “There’s a definite interaction.”
The library brings books to the farmers’ market, too.
“They bring information and books to the market that reach everybody there,” Foor says. “We actually have had people check books out via smartphone that the library brings to the market.”
Julie George of Bellefontaine-based Blue Jacket Dairy, a regular market vendor, has yet to see the library’s display; she’s too busy managing her own stall. But there’s a definite benefit for vendors when their names are printed on the recipe cards handed out by the library, she says.
“It’s a good idea,” says George. “I just think they would have to say, ‘You need greens from (here), milk from (here), cheese from (here).’”
Dick Jensen – owner of Johnstown-based Flying J Farm, which specializes in grass-fed beef and milled flour – also thinks highly of the library’s undertaking.
“I think it’s a great idea, particularly if they have books like The Grassfed Gourmet Cookbook and Why Grassfed is Best,” says Jensen.
The library is at the market the fourth Wednesday of each month in the Community Partners section, which is set aside for local organizations that aren’t there to sell. When the section was launched in 2010, organizers weren’t sure how shoppers would receive the new section of the market, but they now view it as a big success, Foor says.
Other community organizations involved include the Westerville Senior Center, Westerville Division of Police and Westerville Electric Division.
“In 2010, we were two years out of the economical difficulties that stemmed from 2008, and it just seemed like a good idea to reach out to (the library) as our first community partner,” says Foor. “They have thousands and thousands of cookbooks and books on food. Aside from being a wonderful place, everything just seems like a wonderful resource.”
“There’s tremendous benefit for everyone by everything that’s there,” says Foor.
In addition to recipes, the library also offers basic activities for children during the farmers’ market.
The market’s ninth season opens May 7 and runs 3-6 p.m. each Wednesday through Oct. 29 at North State and East Home streets.
Nen Lin Soo is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at gbishop@cityscenemediagroup.com.
Farmers’ market vendor Bildsten Landscape supplies the hanging flower baskets in Uptown Westerville.
