http://www.yelp.com/biz/french-market-wheaton (Contains helpful reviews from patrons)

http://www.wheaton.il.us/news/announcements/detail.aspx?id=6223 (more detailed time/date info)

We have blogged before of our affinity for this market, so if you haven’t dropped by there yet, put it on the calendar for next weekend. The time clock is ticking as November 2 is the last day for the season. What better way to spend a beautiful, fall Saturday morning than shopping the various vendors at an outdoor market?

One tip: enjoy yourself and don’t walk at a marathon runner’s pace. I was shocked (!) at the number of ill-mannered visitors today.  I realize we all have places to be….people to see….but, don’t let that detract from the privilege of having this beautiful market and the social opportunities to visit with the vendors and looking over all they each have to offer before making your selection. It’s also a great teaching moment to demonstrate MANNERS for others, as well as your children, so they will not repeat these same rude behaviors when they are all grown up. As I’ve mentioned in earlier posts, it’s a rich opportunity to teach our young ones where food comes from and why it’s important to buy local. And, I remember a very recent past when Farmers Markets weren’t common and I had never even heard of one. Let’s treasure these resources and the lovely people who transport their wares, with SMILES on their faces, to these markets to make a living. {stepping off my soapbox} I know I had a bit to say about that, but it sort of shatters your “Snow White-birds singing in the air” moment when you have people acting like they are elephants clearing a crowded street instead of taking their time too look at all the lovely items being sold. I have been in a hurry before, but there is still a polite way to go about such things.

Hope to see you next Saturday at the market! Please post about what goodies you found—we’d love to hear from you.

One way to help ensure you DO utilize all that you spend your hard-earned pennies on is to shop, prep, store. Not EVERY fruit does well with this method (strawberries in particular), but most will do just fine. When you get everything put away from your shopping trip, take about 30 minutes to clean/chop/dice/bag the produce so it will be ready to go when you are all set to cook your meal. You will be like your own futuristic prep chef. This can cut out an amazing amount of time when you are cooking-against-the-clock and enable you to prepare fresh, delicious, healthy food in no time at all. Many veggies will withstand being prepped and frozen, but if I can use fresh, I prefer that. I don’t do this EVERY shopping trip, but when I do, I am SO glad I did.

We hope this tip is useful and enables you to be creative, yet frugal, in the kitchen. Enjoy!

This “nose test” holds true for many fruits: pineapple (smell anywhere, excluding the prickly green part), cantaloupe (smell on the end, where it is indented), and peaches. If your nose detects wonderful aromas of the fruit you are holding, chances are you have a good specimen. Also, picking a fruit that is heavy for it’s size usually indicates a juicy piece of fruit. Unfortunately, fruits like apples and bananas are more of a “sight” ‘thing…look for those without bruises or mushy, dark spots on them.

However you choose your fruits and veggies, be aware of other shoppers—don’t squeeze or bang on the produce as this will manifest as bruised, undesirable fruit in a short time.

You may have your own test for picking out fresh fruit…please share with us!

One absolute must is refrigeration after opening. I recently had to throw away a freshly opened bottle due to finding it in the pantry as opposed to the fridge. I initially talked to the “obvious” culprits…my 3 older children. They said they hadn’t placed it in the pantry. I couldn’t figure out what happened…maybe I had a “vacant moment” and put it in the pantry…however, a new action plan was developed. I now tape a brightly colored post-it note to the front to clearly remind everyone to “refrigerate” (be sure to do this BEFORE you chill it as it won’t stick when the bottle is cold due to the condensation). This method has worked beautifully.

Funny side note—my mother recently visited and noticed said post-it note and commented on it. So, I told her what happened. She smiled sheepishly and said “I think I was the one who put the other syrup in the pantry during my last visit here”. Moms…what are ya gonna do with them?! Well, at least that mystery was solved. We had a good laugh and I can now sleep at night knowing my precious, pure maple syrup is safe in the “chill chest”, as Alton Brown (my FAV guy on FN) puts it. Enjoy!

Trader Joe’s Nutritional Info:

Calories: 320 g

Fat: 15 g

Trans fat: 0 g

Sat. Fat: 6 g

Cholesterol: 40 mg

Sodium: 270 mg

Carbs: 42 g

Fiber: 2 g

Protein: 4 g

Ingredient list: Enriched Flour, Unsalted Butter, Water, Brown Sugar, Sugar, Nonfat Dry Milk, Cinnamon, Yeast, Salt, Dough Conditioner (Soy)

For Pillsbury, I went online to look it up and couldn’t “copy and paste” sections of it, so I just copied the whole thing. Understand I have nothing against Pillsbury, they are just the other version of refrigerated cinnamon rolls that I have typically purchased in the past.

I used the “Grands” version since the Trader Joe’s rolls are jumbo. As you can see, they are fairly close in some areas and quite a bit different in others. The TJ’s version had a few more calories, a little more fat, almost half the sodium, fewer carbs, more cholesterol, more fiber, and a teeny bit less protein.

For me, the big difference is the ingredient list. If I have to choose between a product with 10 ingredients (all of which I can pronounce AND recognize) and one with 30 ingredients (of which 4 are corn starch and different forms of corn syrup) and multiple preservatives, I’ll take the former.

So, there ya have it. I really do believe that what we put into our bodies DOES matter and if I have a choice between something more natural and something laden with artificial ingredients & preservatives, I will always take the more natural version.

Yep, there they are. Nice, large, ooey gooey deliciousness. Enjoy!

This lovely market now has 3 locations:

Aurora Transportation Center

233 N. Broadway (Rte 25)

Saturdays, 7:30a-12p

June 11-Oct. 22

West Aurora Plaza

1901 W. Galena Blvd

Wednesdays, 2p-6p

July 6-Aug 31

Spring Lake Park

3500 McCoy Dr

Tuesdays, 10a-2p

July 12-Aug 30

Most Farmer’s Markets have similar offerings, but they also have unique vendors, which is what makes Market hopping all the more fun. In addition to the vendors I highlight below, you will find fresh fruit and veggies, large bouquets of fresh flowers, jewelry, purses, books, made-to-order Thai food, refreshing lemon shake-up drinks, made-before-your-eyes kettle corn, some meat and cheese vendors, and much more. So, stop by and support local farmers and businesses.

This is a GREAT way to teach your children about where food comes from. My kids use some of their allowance money and they learn how to decide what they really want as opposed to just blowing their money on the first thing they see (my kids now have the treats they want to buy mapped out in their head before we even get there and how much they will need to bring with them. It’s awesome!) And, you often don’t get that personal one-to-one interaction with employees at the supermarket the way you do when you see the same people at your fav booths week after week. Enjoy!

Date: Every Saturday from late April-November 1st

Where: Corner of Liberty Dr. & Main St., Wheaton, IL

Time: 8a-2p

Size of market: Medium-Large

There are a number of vendors that we return to each visit and you will find yours. You will also find more and more Saturday mornings where you will say to yourself “I think I’ll run by the French Market real quick to pick up _____________.” Trust me.  

Here are some of our favorite vendors:

I Have a Bean

I love this booth, especially on a hot day. They will whip up a delicious frozen coffee beverage to your liking and also sell all-fruit smoothies that are quite delicious. They give you a discount on their bags of whole bean coffee, as well, so be sure to stop by their table and say hi.

They also offer coffee that is delivered to your home or office….ooooh!….and they personally roast it the same day it’s delivered!

Check out www.ihaveabean.com and see what the buzz is about. Get it…buzz…from caffeine? I am hilarious!

Hahn’s Bakery

If you have never heard of pretzel bread…RUN to the French Market this coming Saturday and snatch up one of these babies! Hahn’s Bakery sells long, baguette-style loaves of pretzel bread that make wonderful sandwiches or yummy snacks sliced right off the loaf. They also sell pretzel rolls that add a little something extra to an evening meal. I have GOT to go now that I’ve been talking about them…they are just TOO good. We arrived around 12:45p the day we went…and they were already sold out of the baguettes so we got the rolls.

Suzette’s Creperie

Feel like a Madeline? (Chocolate AND Traditional flavors are offered) How does a Chocolate Croissant sound? Yummy? Well, visit Suzette’s Creperie booth and shop to your tummy’s content.

The Breadsmith

Chris bought some delicious sourdough bread and the woman at the booth was sweet to give us a bonus loaf of bread…a cinnamon bobka. The only other time I’d heard of a bobka was in a “Seinfeld” episode where Jerry and Elaine were trying to find a chocolate bobka to take to a dinner party. I thought it was cake…because they never did find it so I never got to see what it was. I digress…the woman stated this cinnamon bobka made great French Toast…it was heavenly! I am posting the recipe to MyCookingShow momentarily.

Twin Garden Farms

Are you in the mood for the sweetest, most tender corn on the cob you have EVER tasted? Visit Twin Garden Farms for their Mirai corn. Never heard of it? Neither had I…but you will be SO glad you did. Basically, a group in Harvard, IL (nope, didn’t know this existed either ), developed this awesome corn hybrid. Thanks, guys! This yellow corn is SO sweet and juicy that you can eat it off the cob…RAW…and it is absolutely delicious. Boil it for 2-3 minutes, no more no less, and you will have a delectable side dish to compliment any summer meal. Since it is so tasty raw, you can cut it off the cob and add it to your favorite salad or salsa. You will be so spoiled after having this corn that you will want no other corn. It is a bit more expensive, $4/6 ears, but very worth it. And, the cobs are gigantic so you can easily break them in half and serve many hungry diners.

Doughnuts

I don’t know the name of this vendor…but that will not prevent you from finding their booth. They are usually nestled in the back corner with a white awning and…the aroma of freshly cooking doughnuts wafting through the air—you’ll find it.   They are made on this adorable, automatic assembly machine that pops fresh batter into the conveyor belt of hot grease and makes the mini bundles of goodness right before your very eyes. They may not be very big, but they are quite puffy so one is actually sufficient. Grab these on the way out, sit on the curb, and have a warm, sugary treat to end your visit to the French Market.

With the turn of seasons, look for us to do more shows this summer, including on location at some pretty cool places we have lined up. And, the offer is always out there if you have a favorite recipe you would like to share, it would be nice to welcome you into our online family as a Guest Contributor!

Bright red, juicy, delicious!

Filled 2 gallon zip-top bags!

Years ago, I was watching some random cooking show and the person was talking about picking good fruit. I wish I could remember who the person was, but alas, I cannot. The wonderful advice they gave has served me well. When looking for a good watermelon, you basically want to pick the ugliest one. Goes against what you would think, right? The “ugly” is from hatchmarks, or rough, brown patches, that bees have made on the rind. The more hatchmarks, the sweeter the fruit…thus, the more the bees have been at it.

Look for a good amount of dark green striping, lots of hatchmarks, and a melon that is heavy for it’s size (I could barely hold this in one hand while I was rinsing it) and you will have picked a winner. The melon pictured was SO sweet and juicy that my 8 yr old asked for seconds right off the bat. It is difficult to judge the ripeness of a fruit that you can see inside of, but the “ugly” method rarely fails me.

So, get out there and look for some ugly, heavy fruit and enjoy a delicious melon!

P.S. Don’t forget to completely wash the outside of the melon with water and, preferably, Fruit & Veggie wash, before slicing. Pat dry with a  paper towel to make things less slippery. This is

         important because any germs/bacteria/dirty hands on the outside of the rind will be introduced to the inside (that we eat) by the knife as you cut the melon.