Westerville Farmers Market supports diverse vendors

Real Food, Real Stories

April 26, 2024

12:00 AM

Every Saturday from May 20, 2024, to Sept. 30, 2024, Uptown Westerville Inc. hosts the Westerville Saturday Farmers Market where vendors set up shop to share their unique goods with the Westerville community.

This year, more than 70 vendors are participating in the market, each offering memorable products to make your shopping experience worthwhile.

The market is especially unique because of the support it provides to vendors and visitors alike, and Uptown Westerville Inc. believes the diverse Westerville community deserves a diverse base of vendors and organizers.

Lynn Aventino, executive director for Uptown Westerville Inc., organizes the market and is proud of the variety of merchants and products it offers.

“Diversity makes the market special. It gives the community a taste of a variety of cultures,” Aventino says. “It also makes the market very much like an incubator where vendors can expand their businesses. The market gives them exposure and connects them to other businesses.”

One such vendor with a personal story to tell is Bake A Difference, a sweet-treat hotspot specializing in filled cupcakes. Bake A Difference’s Owner and Head Baker, Dean Vickers, turns his personal experiences as a veteran and a member of the LGBTQ+ community, into shareable, tangible expressions of love and perseverance.

“I see all the younger LGBT people who don’t understand what it took to get where we are today, so I’ll make cupcakes based on those stories,” he says. “We do a Stonewall cupcake with a Lego brick or we’ll do a Marsha P. Johnson cupcake with flowers because that’s who they were.”

Vickers has a personal story of struggles that compels him to spread awareness with his patrons and the Westerville community.

“I was diagnosed with cancer in early 2019, and so I thought, ‘I want something different, I want to give back, I want to do something that matters,” he says. “So we started the company, and we give back 10 percent of the sales to organizations around central Ohio. I don’t have any formal training in this. It comes from passion, and I enjoy it. We don’t hide who we are. For us, it’s about accepting people for who they are and giving back to the community.”

In addition to supporting a diverse range of vendors, the market also supports the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and is also partnered with Nationwide Children’s Hospital to develop a holistic market experience.

“Our partnership is about educating everyone about a healthy lifestyle starting early on,” Kris Thompson, market manager for Uptown Westerville Inc. says. “Now we see a steady stream of people, and programs like this have really caught on.”

Ria Akhilesh is an editorial assistant at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.

Bake A Difference’s Hound Dog Cupcakes

Photo courtesy of Bake A Difference

This is an Elvis-inspired original recipe. Dean Vickers, owner and head baker, experimented with a pack of Brew Dog’s Elvis Juice and created a multi-dimensional, flavorful cupcake. There are three parts to the recipe: the cupcakes, the lime curd filling and the cream cheese frosting.

Ingredients:

For the cupcakes:

1 1/2 cups cake flour

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, cubed and at room temperature

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 cup Brew Dog’s Elvis Juice, room temperature and divided in half

3 Tbs. sour cream, room temperature

1 egg, room temperature

1 egg white, room temperature

For the Lime Curd Filling:

1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup lime juice

1 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

3 large egg yolks

1 Tbs. lime zest

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:

8 oz. full-fat brick cream cheese, softened to room temperature

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature.

3 cups confectioners’ sugar, plus an extra 1/4 cup if needed.

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1/8 tsp. salt

Instructions:

Make the Cupcakes:

Preheat the oven to 350 F and line a muffin pan with paper cupcake liners.
Sift the cake flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large mixing bowl.
In a medium bowl, whisk together 1/4 cup Elvis Juice, sour cream, egg, and egg white then set aside.
Mix the dry ingredients on low speed for 15 seconds.
Add the butter, vanilla, and remaining 1/4 cup of the Elvis Juice. Mix on medium speed until the dry ingredients are moistened, about a minute.
With the mixer on medium speed, split the combined wet ingredients into three and add one-by-one, beating for 15 seconds after each addition. Beat for an additional 15 seconds.
Divide the batter evenly between muffin cups. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack.

Make the Lime Curd Filling:

Zest the limes until you have approximately 1 Tbsp. of zest; set aside.
Juice enough limes for 3/4 cup of juice.
Whisk the eggs and egg yolks until smooth. Set aside.
Add the butter, sugar and lime juice to a medium-size, non-reactive pot. Heat on medium-low heat just until the butter is melted, and the sugar is dissolved.
Pour the warmed lime mixture in a slow, steady stream into the eggs while whisking continuously, until the mixture and eggs are fully combined. Then return the combined mixture to the pot.
Heat the lime curd over medium-low heat while continuing to stir slowly until the mixture has thickened and coats the back of a spoon. This can take 10-15 minutes (160 F and 170 F). Do not let the curd boil.
Remove the lime curd from the heat and stir in the lime zest.
Pour the curd into heat-safe jars or containers and refrigerate until fully cooled and set. 6-8 hours or overnight.

Make the Cream Cheese Frosting:

Beat the cream cheese and butter together on high speed until smooth and creamy.
Add 3 cups of confectioners' sugar, vanilla and salt. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then switch to high speed and beat for 2 minutes. Add extra sugar for a thicker consistency (I add it).