At last! A food that didn’t begin life in Asia’s Fertile Crescent. Nope…the little round blueberry began right here in North America about 13,000 years ago. The early Native Americans called them “star berries”…next chance, before popping one into your mouth, just take a look at the shape of the calyx to see why. In times of famine, they were indeed Heaven-sent to keep the children of the tribe alive.
Blueberries didn’t go mainstream until some lady in NJ found a way to cultivate them for bigger and more bountiful payloads…But wild blueberries are still one of the reasons people travel to Maine, enduring mosquitoes and no-see-ums to fill tin buckets with them.
Here at the market, compared to the siren red of the strawberries or the marble-sized globes of the cherries, or the razzle-dazzle raspberries, the quiet little blueberry is easy to overlook. But don’t. Because it’s the power behind the throne, that’s why. Chock full of antioxidants that lower your blood pressure, raise your immunity, and come in at a sweet 80 calories a handful.
The fact that they’re delicious is just the icing on the cake.
Speaking of cake…You have been thinking about the great LFM BakeOff coming in October, right? Because they’re so round, firm, and fully packed, blueberries are the berry of choice in so many desserts, holding their shape as they float through a batter, stud a stack of pancakes, decorate the aforementioned cake or cook down into jellies and jams that hold the layers together. I myself love to add some spice to the holiday …any holiday…with blueberry gingerbread.
I hope you’re getting the idea here…the mantra for the week is buy ‘em, freeze ‘em, BAKE ‘EM and, come October, get back to us with a contest entry-worthy sample. You could walk off with the prize. Um…We haven’t quite worked that prize part out yet, but I promise it will be one worth turning on the oven for. So stay tuned for more details.
And, starting NOW, to sweeten the pot and to build the excitement to unendurable levels!!! …for the rest of the season, anyone coming to the Market tent to throw their chef’s toque in the ring, will be awarded one Market Buck, which of course can, indeed should be, used to buy your main ingredient. There’ll be a sign-up sheet on the table starting this week.
Of course, if you miss out on the blueberries, the season has more in store before we get to the finish line…from peaches and pears to apples and pumpkins. It’s good to have choices.
On to a new old topic…Last week I was talking to a former LFM and local community volunteer. He remembers our Farmers Market as being the incubator for so many casual social gatherings…The Landing and pot lucks, parties, and music nights. New friends that he might never have met. All brought to life and to you by volunteers. So…if you’d like that sort of thing to continue…well, you know what to do. Any questions? Stop by the Market tent. See if we aren’t as nice as I’ve said.
In the Music Tent: Newcomer to the LFM, Lauren Mendelsohn. Let’s make her feel welcome.
BTW: Thanks to our favorite Music Man, Joe Todaro, for helping with our sound equipment issue. It’s good to have friends in the business.
Artist of the Week: Gillian Lancaster & her Jolly Junk Journals
Don’t forget to read all of this and every issue of The Lansdowne Link to see what’s going up, down and around in our town, because there’s way too much for me to try to boil it all down for you. But here’s a heads-up: a few long-range plans are finally moving forward. The next couple of years are going to see some real changes in how we look and how we play in ‘downe town. You don’t want to miss any of it.
Now…please scroll down another inch and leave me a comment, just to let me know you’ve read to the end. If I can’t prove that people are reading this stuff, they’re going to take away my keyboard!
Go ahead…scroll. I’ll wait here.
Terry Baraldi