St. Jacobs Market District

Canada’s Largest Farmers’ Market

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Cooking with Kipfer’s Heritage Farms

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From the Market Booth to the Plate……

 

One cannot think well, love well, sleep well if one has not dined well!  How true this quote can be, as someone who loves food I can vouch for this fact.  I grew up in a large family, the dinner table was crowded and leftovers few.  My cooking style is a pinch of this, a cup of that, simple wholesome food without too much fuss – presentation does matter however!

The St. Jacobs Market is a great place for any foodie, there is a huge variety, great displays, all kinds of things going on.  At our booth we focus on small farm products, free range, pastured – nothing but simple traditional food. 

When asked to participate in this recipe blog we thought why write when photos are so much more fun??  And so we decided to do a Sunday morning brunch and get the whole family involved!!

Breakfast Haystack

If you happen to have twelve kids this is the dish for you!!  Only one, that works too!!  For the best results follow these instructions step by step:

The Shopping Experience ~   Main Market Building, St. Jacobs Market

  • Kipfers Heritage Farms: Just inside the main doors, pick up your free range eggs, yummy breakfast sausage and perfectly smoked back bacon.
  • Mickey McGuires Cheese: Paul recommends their delicious two year cheddar, ask for sample!
  • Produce Express: Here you will find your veggies, we used a purple onion, colourful peppers, cherry tomatoes, mushrooms and red skinned potatoes.

As you shop and chat with vendors, ask your questions, you’ll learn so much!

The Setting

  • A large country kitchen over run with kids, family and friends, complete with a wood burning stove is ideal, however any kitchen will do!!! Set a cheery table, add a bouquet from the Floral Express to add cheer! 

 

The Cooking Process

  • Scrub your potatoes clean, cube and spread onto a greased cookie sheet, sprinkle with salt & pepper – we added garlic salt and parsley flakes as well – bake @ 350°F
  • Begin frying breakfast sausages on a low heat
  • Chop back bacon in small pieces, fry slowly on low heat
  • Beat your eggs – (note the lovely orange yolks!) Add salt & pepper and any other spices you wish, also parsley flakes then set aside.
  • Chop all your veggies and grate cheese – shoo away the kids and keep an eye on your frying pans, flip as needed.
  • When sausage is done set aside to cool
  • Return to eggs, sauté chopped onions with a few tablespoons of butter, add your beaten eggs (note the purple onion may cause your eggs to turn colour slightly).
  • Cube breakfast sausage, return to frying pan and re-heat

Cheese Sauce

Melt 4 tbsp butter, stir in 4 tbsp flour, cook until thickened.  Add 2 cups milk, 1 cup of grated cheese (or cheese whiz) and one tin of mushroom or cheddar cream soup (Campbell’s), stir constantly until hot and a thick consistency.

I find the biggest challenge when cooking this meal is having all of your hot food done at precisely the same time.  It is possible, it just takes a little practice.

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And now the Best Part!!!!!

Building the Plate

  • Begin with a layer of potatoes
  • Add a layer of scrambled eggs
  • Dribble on cheese sauce
  • Sprinkle with bacon bits
  • Sprinkle with breakfast sausage
  • Add veggies and grated cheese
  • A little more cheese sauce

And you did it!  Enjoy your plate to the fullest, thanks so much for participating in an authentic market experience!

Joanna Kipfer

www.kipfersheritagefarms.com 

 

What’s Cooking with Chef Adam Brenner

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The next stop in our kitchen tour is with Chef Adam Brenner of the Garden Stand who is cooking up something sinfully sweet (albeit healthy) for Valentine’s Day! 

Chef Brenner’s store The Garden Stand (part 2) has been in Peddler’s Village at the St Jacob’s Market since September 2020. While they haven’t been here long, they are absolutely amazed by all the love and support of both vendors and customers alike. The best thing about St Jacob’s market is how much of a family it is, everyone is so welcoming and friendly, eager to learn about what they have to offer.

The recipe they have chosen is for their Keto brownie truffles. This recipe is great for chocoholics and really healthy with no sugar and low carbs.

Super easy to make but can also be picked up for your sweetheart at the Market Thursday and Saturday 8am to 2pm!!

Keto Brownie Truffles

1¼ cup almond flour

½ cup powdered monkfruit erythritol blend

⅓ cup cocoa powder

pinch salt

1 tbsp vanilla 

½ cup butter, melted 

3oz keto friendly chocolate, melted 

1tbsp coconut oil 

Combine dry ingredients, add butter and vanilla. Roll into balls, freeze until solid.

Melt chocolate, dip balls in chocolate using a fork and refrigerate for 1 hour.  

What’s Cooking with KW Craft Cider

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Just in time for the Superbowl, we are at the table of one of the newest members of the Market community.  KW Craft Cider has been open in the Market Building since January 2021 and loves the feeling of community at the St. Jacobs Market.  From the entire Market staff to the other vendors in the building, everyone is like a big family who is always willing to lend their help and support!  They love how the visitors to the Market always bring a smile and sometimes a great story to go with it.  They are excited to a part of this warm and inviting community and are looking forward to many years ahead sharing their locally made hard dry cider with all the visitors to the Market. 

The team at KW Craft Cider will be complementing their Superbowl feast with their Apple Pie Martini made with their signature Sparkling Dry Cider!   KW Craft Ciders Sparkling Dry Cider can be enjoyed with a meal, on its own, or in a fun cocktail! Their premium hard dry cider is prepared from carefully selected fresh-pressed apples cultivated from within 150km of the cidery. One orchard is located minutes from the market and the apples are grown by the wonderful team at Martin’s Family Fruit Farm. The Apple Pie Martini not only features the delicious hard cider, but also the beloved Martin’s Sweet Apple Cider that can be purchased at various vendors throughout the market. This is one of the many reasons they love this cocktail – like many marketgoers they understand the importance of supporting fellow small & local businesses.

Enjoy a little slice of heaven in a glass with the Apple Pie Martini!

Apple Pie Martini

 4 oz KW Craft Cider Sparkling Dry

0.5 oz Vodka

0.5 oz Butterscotch Schnapps 

5+ oz of Martin’s Sweet Apple Cider

*Enjoy plain or garnish with apple slices, whipped cream, and/or caramel sauce.

In a chilled glass add 0.5 oz of Vodka and 0.5 oz of Butterscotch Schnapps. Top with 4 oz KW Craft Cider Sparkling Dry and at least 5 oz of your favourite local sweet cider. 

Stir. Garnish how you wish & serve! 


What’s Cooking at Caudle’s Catch Seafood

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This week in “What’s Cooking at the Market” we are making a stop in the kitchen of one of the longest serving members of the St. Jacobs Market community.

Ron “The Cod-Father” Caudle has been a vendor at the St. Jacobs Farmers’ Market since the mid-1980’s and has been a pillar at both the Market as well as within the greater K-W area. The whole Caudle family, including Ron’s parents, have worked at the Market at one time or another. They all love connecting with the community and feel that there aren’t many places out there as wholesome and welcoming as the St. Jacobs Farmers’ Market.

Ron is sharing his recipe for quick and easy Pan-Fried Trout.  This recipe can be ready within 10 minutes and doesn’t require anything you don’t already have at home. A trout dinner is also a great way to support a sustainable Ontario business and proves that supporting your neighbours can be both fulfilling and delicious.

Make sure to stop by Caudles Catch next time you are at the Market to say hello and pick up some of the best seafood around!


What’s Cooking at the Market

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As the cold air of January sets in and the businesses at the Market work through yet another COVID 19 lockdown, we wanted to take the time to introduce our guests to some of our valued partners who continue to serve the Kitchener-Waterloo area with fresh meats, cheeses, produce and other local delights every Thursday and Saturday. 

We will be running an ongoing segment for the next 6 weeks that will take you inside the kitchens of many of our vendors to find out what they are cooking with items that you will find every week at the Market.

Our first recipe is being brought to you by Produce Express.  Produce Express has been bringing fresh fruits and vegetables to the St. Jacobs Market year-round since 2000.  They can be found inside the Market Building or in our Outdoor Market in the warmer weather with a variety of fresh produce from around the world each week.  Their energetic and enthusiastic team loves interacting with both their regular and new customers and pride themselves on satisfying everyone with quality product, the best customer service and great deals every day!

They have chosen to share their recipe for Berry Cream Bars as it is one of their favourites and know it will soon become one of yours.  The recipe incorporates tart yet sweet raspberries and blackberries with delicious honey, coconut and dates and is super easy to make – 20 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to make!  They hope you enjoy it as much as they do and they look forward to seeing you at the Market soon.


Berry Cream Bars
Prep: 20 mins Cook: 20 mins
Serves: 8

5 whole Dates (Medjool), pitted (for the crust)

1 cup Almond Butter, (for the crust)

3/4 cup Coconut, shredded, sweetened (for the crust)

1 Tbsp Honey, Raw, (for 2nd topping)

1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract, (for 2nd topping)

1 pinch Salt, (for the crust)

2 tsp Coconut Water, or coconut milk (for 1st topping)

1/2 cup Fresh Raspberries,  (for 1st topping)

1/2 cup Fresh  Blackberries, (for 1st topping)

1 tsp Lemon Juice, (for 1st topping)

14 oz Coconut Milk, placed in refrigerator overnight, only use the cream on top, leave behind the coconut water (for 2nd topping)

Process

Place dates in food processor and pulse to break down into pieces.

Then add almond butter, coconut, honey, vanilla extract and salt and pulse turn on to blend until ingredients are well combined.

Line a bread pan with parchment paper, add ingredients from the food processor and press down until even throughout. Place in freezer while finishing the rest of the ingredients.

Scoop out the coconut cream that has settled at the top of your canned coconut milk and place in the bowl and back in the fridge.

Place 2 teaspoons of coconut milk/water that is at the bottom of the can, into a small saucepan over medium heat.

Add raspberries, blackberries, honey and lemon juice in the pan and mix together. Let simmer for less than 5 minutes or until the berries become just slightly soft. You don’t want a soup. Let cool.

Now mix together the coconut cream, honey, and vanilla extract in the bowl that you placed in the fridge.

Once the berries have cooled, finishing the layers. Add the coconut milk mixture on top of the crust, spread out evenly, then pour the berries on top, once again evenly.

Place in the freezer for 1+ hours to harden a bit. And serve.

*To store these, store them in the fridge. The coconut milk will melt fast.

Taken from https://www.primalpalate.com/paleo-recipe/berry-cream-bars/

Market Road Antique Treasures: Shuqslak

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Joseph Shuqslak Soapstone

Joseph Shuqslak was born September 4, 1958 and resides in Gjoa Haven, an Inuit hamlet and the only settlement on King William Island in Nunavut. Joseph comes from a family of carvers. He is the son of Joata Shuqslak, a late Gjoa carver, and Lana Qiyuk Shuqslak, a carver and crafts artist. Joseph’s Grandfather and uncles where also carvers as is his brother Moses Pameogarrak.

“I do mostly soapstone. Some whalebone, not too much. That’s about it, except when I go down south to try other types of stone, like marble. About two years ago I was awarded a scholarship by the Inuit Art Foundation to go to Vermont where I did some work with pneumatic tools. I’ve never used them before; it was good.”

“I’ve been an artist for more than 20 years. When I was 15 or 16 years old I had a job but noticed that people were making money from carving. I tried it and found that just about anything I carved I could sell. So I just kept on doing it. Not seriously at first. It was only about eight years ago that I started really carving.”

“My grandfather and my uncle carved. My grandfather’s brothers used to carve. I watched and learned. Also, when I was very young, maybe six or seven years old, I found a piece of soapstone out on the land in a tent. I filed it down to a fine finish and when I showed it to my grandfather he told me I was a very good carver. He paid me for all the hard work I did. I thought it was pretty good, so I just kept on going.”

 “Our main problem now is getting soapstone. We used to be able to just go to the quarry and pick stone up off the ground. The stone was all on top. For many years now, the loose stone has been gone and we dig out of the ground and you can’t really do that until summer time. We can’t reach it by boat or by anything else in summer. The only time we can reach it at all is in the winter time, by skidoo and sleds. Our main problem is getting an airplane to fly up there and dig it out for the winter. We can’t even get it back to the community when we dig out in the summer because it’s too heavy. We need some money to get a quarry so we can dig stone out in the summer with a few guys. We’d leave them out there for a while to dig it out like they did two years ago. That soapstone lasted for about two seasons but this spring it’s all gone.”