FLEURIEU FORAGER
WILLUNGA FARMERS MARKET NEWSLETTER | SUMMER 2015
producer
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Richard Casley-Smith, Bull Creek Organic Garlic pg.7
Hot food highlights
e p i c e R
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pg.8
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CHARRED PEACHES WITH ORANGE BLOSSOM HONEY GOAT CURD
@smallerapples
Phone: 08 8556 4297 • Fax: 08 8556 4293 • PO Box 652 Willunga, SA 5172 Email: info@willungafarmersmarket.com • www.willungafarmersmarket.com WILLUNGA FARMERS MARKET fresh, healthy, local produce every Saturday 8am - 12.30pm, Willunga Town Square
MARKETNEWS A message from the chair... Hello fellow market shoppers. Isn’t this a wonderful time of the year? The Market is beginning to fill up with spring and summer produce: strawberries, cherries and avocados. The full array of summer greens is also spectacular. Those of you that have visited the Market recently, will have noticed the gradual introduction of some additional options for a snack or breakfast as you move around. We have a burger, farmhouse crepes, toasties and a breakfast egg dish. These small stalls are additions to the excellent breakfast stall that has served us for years. You’ll find the new offerings around the Market with small shaded seating areas to give us all the opportunity to relax with friends and family as part of our market excursions. It’s another reason to visit. Read more about our hot food stalls on pg 5 . As the summer produce has begun to come in, we are at capacity in our main site and are soon to expand to the Library Car Park section of the Market. So, don’t forget to cross the road to find some of your old and new favourite stalls.
COMING EVENTS This summer is already shaping up to be sensational with not 1, but 2 Twilight Markets!
Twilight Markets
The third round of the Young Farmers Scholarship has now closed and three outstanding applicants have been interviewed. We are very excited about the quality of applicants that this scholarship attracts and the resultant variety they will bring to our Market. A more detailed update on our Young Farmers Scholarship recipients can be found on pg 6 .
Christmas Twilight market on Wednesday 23rd December is going to end the year with a bang. Come
Our
and join us to stock up for Christmas, see Santa, hear the Choir and enjoy some of the snacks, beer and wine that will be on offer. If you miss it or love it, you can enjoy another Twilight Market on Friday, 22nd January, 2016 just before the Tour Down Under hits the streets of Willunga township. Last year, there was quite a buzz in the Market Square at this market. Catch up on all of our coming events and summer opening hours below. I’m sorry to say that the Christmas Twilight Market also marks the end of an era for all of us from a staff perspective. Billy Doecke, our Assistant Manager, is leaving us for new pastures after five and a half years of exemplary service to the Market. We wish her very well and we’re sure she won’t be able to resist a visit to the Market – and to us, as well. We are also losing Alex Merrick, our Administration Assistant for a year. Yes, Alex is going to have a baby. She leaves us in February and, hopefully, she will be back in 2017. Best wishes to every one of you for a very Merry Christmas enjoying lots of Market produce.
See you at the Market. Pip Forrester Willunga Farmers Market Chairperson
Special Summer Opening Hours With so much excitement going on, we’ve altered some of our regular Saturdays. Please pop these dates in your diary to make sure you don’t miss out!
Christmas Twilight Market Wed 23 Dec, 5:30 to 8:30pm Willunga Town Square
NB: We are CLOSED Sat 26 Dec, Boxing Day Sat 23 Jan to make way for Stage 5 of the Tour Down Under
Tour Down Under Twilight Market Fri 22 Jan, 5:30 to 8:30pm Willunga Rec Park, Main Rd, Willunga
OPEN 8am til 12:30pm Saturday Jan 2, 9, 16 and will resume our regular weekly trade in the Willunga Town Square on Saturday 30 Jan.
Please note that we are relocating for this very special market as we allow for set up of the Tour Down Under race day to continue.
Happy Birthday To Us
We turn 14 years old on Saturday 20th Feb! Come on down and share our birthday with us.
IN Season SUM M E R
Charred Peaches with Orange Blossom Honey goat curd From Willunga Farmers Market
Sweet, luscious, juicy, sun kissed.
Summer brings with it mouth watering fruit and veg that only taste at their best at the height of the season.
Cherries: Pop them in your mouth, quick! The season only lasts a few weeks.
Peaches • Plums • Apricots Nectarines • Watermelon • Rockmelon Honeydew Melon • Tomatoes • Avocado Basil • Cucumbers • Eggplant Zucchini • Garlic
• • • •
8 peaches; quartered, seed discarded 1 tub Kangarilla Creamery goat curd ½ cup fresh Do Bee Honey orange blossom honey 2 sprigs thyme, leaves removed and stalks discarded
From the Pantry • 1 Tbsp caster sugar
Method 1. Bring goat curd and honey to room temperature. In a bowl combine both and add thyme leaves. Mix well and place in fridge until ready to serve 2. Toss peach pieces in sugar. 3. Heat a char-grill pan over high heat. 4. Grill peach pieces on each side until slightly charred. 5. Serve peaches hot, with a dollop of honey and thyme infused goat curd. NB. Don’t have a chargrill pan? Try a dry frying pan instead.
2015 WRAP UP
Steve Scown, Fat Goose Fruits, shares a laugh with Lina Frada, Warrakilla Fine Foods
@WillungaWino shows off her market haul in preparation for the big night
Lina Frada from Warrakilla Fine Foods gets together with Wayne Flew, winner Best Shopper pic C/- My Seasonal Kitchen
The 2015 annual Wilmark Awards were sold out for the 3rd year running, and with such a dedicated crowd of shoppers and stallholders fun was sure to ensue.
Wayne Flew, winner Best Shopper, has the honour of ringing the opening market bell after the awards night
Sarah and Wayne Flew, proud winners of the Best Shopper award show off their winnings pic C/- My Seasonal Kitchen
Held at Fino Willunga, the annual awards are an opportunity for shoppers and stallholders to gather to celebrate the end of winter and break bread together. In addition, this is the perfect opportunity for shoppers to show their appreciation to our stallholders by voting for their favourite producers across a range of fields. In return WFM producers also vote for their favourite shopper as a way to say thank you for being strong supporters of the market. Congratulations to all the winners, each of which excel in their field and are deserving of these awards:
Winners Unite! Sarah Flew, Best Shopper; Rob Negerman, From Humble Grounds, Favourite Stall; Jill Trewartha, Do Bee Honey, Best Service pic C/- @willungawino
Favourite stall: From Humble Grounds Best service: Do Bee Honey Best dressed stall: Bull Creek Garlic Favourite product: Small World Bakery sourdough bread Best Shopper: Sarah and Wayne Flew We would like to thank everyone who attended our night of nights. It was a fabulous evening with mounds of delicious food, wine and beer donated from local wineries and above all else, fantastic friends.
Pip Forrester, WFM Chairperson, kicks off proceedings pic C/- @alexcheeseco
@FromHumbleGrounds show off their hamper for the prize Favourite Stall
Hot food highlights
This spring marked a turning point for the Willunga Farmers Market with the experimental addition of extra hot food stalls. The changes were implemented slowly at the start of October, so grab a quick taste of their menu offerings below! Chicken, bacon and leeks in a béchamel sauce
Little Acre Foods Soft egg with seasonal additions (some of the recent options have included sous vide egg on Brioche, Kangaroo Island Gin cured Hiramasa kingfish, pickled breakfast radish and avo with a smattering of 4.30am hollandaise), and 12 hour brisket toastie with Indian pickle
Small Town Huckster Gourmet Burgers with : Wistow Springs pork schnitzel with creamy Ashbourne Valley Orchards apple slaw Inman Valley chicken fillet with Woodside Cheese goat curd and beetroot hummus Vegan chickpea burger with smoked onion jam, mixed greens, carrot and whole mustard seed salad and vegan mayo
Farm House Crepes Crepes crumbed and stuffed with : Slow cooked beef, mushroom caramelised onion
and
Spinach and 3 cheese mornay Ham, cheese, tomato and chive
Bush Pepper Catering continue
with their farmers market breakfast offerings including bircher muesli with seasonal fruit and local yoghurt and honey and omelettes with fresh veg bought from market traders early Saturday morning.
Warrakilla Fine Foods and Bull Creek Bakery will both be
taking it in turns to offer a selection of hot pies.
We’re looking forward to the added vibrancy and diversity that these additions will bring to the market.
Are you enjoying the new hot food options? Please send us an email at info@willungafarmersmarket.com to give us your feedback.
SUMMER SCORCHER! 3 Easy steps to help protect your garden
This summer is already looking to be a hot one, with drying winds and temperatures exceeding the average forecast. Following these simple steps can help protect your cherished garden this summer: •
•
Mulch. Mulch and compost is your friend, with the extra layers not only adding much needed nutrients to the soil, but also protecting it and your plants roots from the harsh summer sun. Shade. Most veggie patches are designed to get as much sun exposure as possible, but once the summer sun comes into full effect instead of relishing the rays your veggies are most likely wilting under the suns hard gaze. Rig up a temporary shade to spare your
veg from sunburn, which can be removed at a whim. This can be easy and kept simple, even a few umbrellas can look amazing while giving your plants temporary respite. •
Water. Each of your plants will require a different watering regimen, but a great rule of thumb is to water deeply every other day. This will encourage plants to set deeper roots in search of the water, making them stronger and also providing more protection than plants with shallow roots.
Every backyard gardener worth their salt has their own hard and fast rules about watering in the morning or at night over summer, so wading into treacherous territory, there are compelling arguments for each. Watering in the morning can help reduce the risk of downy mildew and provides a less appealing environment for slugs. Watering at night can give your plants a better opportunity to get a drink before the water evaporates and reduces the risk of water droplets burning your plants once the sun touches them.
YOUNG FARMERS scholarship
In this edition of the Fleurieu Forager we are excited to update you on both our second and third round of Young Farmers Scholarship recipients! Kate Washington, 2nd round recipient, officially debuts her vegetables at the Willunga Farmers Market Sat 12 Dec! Using organic and permaculture practices, Kate had a rough start battling red legged spider mite, frost and downy mildew amongst other hurdles. She’s worked hard to master the art of succession planting, ensuring her crops will be ready to harvest weekly, with no gaps at the change of seasons. It’s been a big learning curve and a lot of hard work, but Kate’s small patch on Sand Rd is now regularly producing a range of delicious vegetables. Sharing a stall with Jay Kimber, recipient of the very first Young Farmers Scholarship, Kate used the opportunity to sell the small amount of winter crops she had and also use the experience as a test to see which varieties were in demand with you, our market shoppers.
With the change in seasons, so comes the change in produce and Kate will have the following available from her stall throughout Summer: Cos lettuce Banana capsicum Bush and climbing beans Baby watermelons Small blue pumpkins 3 varieties of carrots French breakfast radishes Finger eggplant Baby beetroot and golden beetroot Turnips Potatoes (dutch cream and kipfler) Sweet corn Garlic, leeks and onions.
Huge congratulations to Heirloom Harvest on their receipt of the 2016 Young Farmers Scholarship! This year the applicants were all of extremely high quality with very different and innovative proposals. Just like Kate, Tara and John Butler applied for the previous scholarship and spent the last 12 months refining their business plan. Their business, Heirloom Harvest, will be growing and selling open-pollinated vegetable and herb seeds to home growers and small scale fresh produce
producers. Both Tara and John have extensive knowledge and experience in the science of seed selection and germination, and presented a well researched proposal. We are looking forward to helping them on their journey and having them join us as part of the WFM family!
A range of tomatoes including cherry tomato varieties yellow pear and black cherry and large tomato varieties Oxheart, Grosse Lisse and Black Russian will round out what’s on offer.
Follow Kate’s progress with VIVE (Vine + Veg) on facebook at www.facebook.com/sandroadfarm PHOTO CAPTION: Kate Washington, VIVE and Jay Kimber, Garden Farmers, show off their range of heirloom and chemical free veg
We Want You We are currently looking for people who are keen to volunteer with Willunga Farmers Market. You don’t need to be a weight lifter, but we are looking for people with great customer service skills and a happy disposition. If this sounds like you and you’re keen to get involved with your market, send us an email at info@willungafarmersmarket.com
We recently had a chat with Richard Casley-Smith, winner of Best Dressed Stall at the 2015 Wilmark Awards and dapper owner/ farmer at Bull Creek Organic Garlic. You may know him as ‘the garlic man’, and with up to 15 different varieties of garlic that’s a pretty good descriptor but there’s definitely more to the man than meets the eye. When asked about how he started farming a fascinating story starts tumbling out. ‘My great great grandfathers have all been farmers and I grew up on a farm and when the State Bank went bankrupt the farm went too.’ Says Richard. ‘Then I worked in theatre for 30 years, but I always had a little farm - then I made that farm more productive and went back to farming full time, maybe in 2005.’ Grower and purveyor of organic garlic and vegetables, Richard also has a rich history in the world of theatre.
producer profile
Richard Casley-Smith, Bull Creek Organic Garlic
A Quick Q&A with Richard Casley-Smith, Bull Creek Organic Garlic What do you grow? Garlic, a few different types (up to 15 varieties) and some vegetables and I’ve got some cattle, but mainly garlic. It’s all organic, certified with NASAA and the property has been certified organic for about a decade. How long have you been at the market? About 2 years, but we’re seasonal so only arrive in late spring and stay for the summer. Why do you love what you do? Because it’s nice and quiet and I like growing things and it keeps me outside and I’m my own boss. What’s your favourite stall at the market? (aside from your own!): I’ve got a range, I’m quite keen on honey, bread and coffee. And yoghurt. And pate. And strawberries. I like most stalls actually.
‘I’ve only acted in ads,’ Richard notes quietly. ‘But I’ve learnt a lot about staging and rigging, pulling curtains in and out and flying people around the stage. I worked on The Ring Cycle. I’ve worked staging and rigging for ballets, operas, and Australian Dance Theatre. I used to tour Europe, America and Japan with the Australian Dance Theatre. I used to like doing that. I worked at the Festival Theatre for years, that’s where I’ve done lots of work basically.’
What’s the best way to enjoy your produce? The garlic, just, in cooking and raw all the time, and the vegies are good in salads.
When asked why he decided to specialise in farming garlic Richard is candid. ‘I’ve always liked garlic and then 30 years ago I read a little book on 10 ways to run a small farm and garlic growing was in it. Then I couldn’t find any to buy, so I just started growing it and then it started to sell, and I discovered I’m quite good at it and it just keeps getting bigger and bigger.’
Any food you don’t like? Yeah, onions. And Jack Cheese.
Talking to Richard you soon discover that a simple clove of garlic to pop into your dinner is far more nuanced than you initially think. ‘It’s interesting. I like that some varieties are sweet and some are really strong and some harvest at different times. My favourite varieties do change a bit. I probably prefer the big red one because it’s got really nice colours and it’s really sweet and not too strong, it’s a sort of medium flavoured one.’ ‘Later in the year I go for another style when I get sick of the red one. Then I go for this other one that I prefer in winter, it’s a later variety, so the early ones are better early and the later picked ones often store later as well, so they’re juicier later.’ He says. Richard and his family farm on their NASAA certified organic property year round, but are busy with the garlic from March to January. Bull Creek Organic Garlic can be found at the market weekly.
What would your dream picnic be? Just some little island, some little island with Megan (Richards’ partner) and seafood and champagne. Favourite dish? Probably snapper, filled with ginger and garlic and chilli.
Favourite place to visit in the Southern Vales area? KI. I go to the Coorong quite often.
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