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The abundance of summer’s harvest is on full display at Brighton Farmers’ Market. Come enjoy the fresh, delicious bounty from our local farms and support a more sustainable food supply.
Good Grub Club
All kids are invited to stop by the Good Grub Club tent to join in some tasty fun. Each week a different fruit or vegetable will be featured, and kids will be encouraged to try a sample. Teen assistants will offer fun activities. The market is grateful to the Greater Rochester Health Foundation for funding this program to encourage children to eat more fruits and vegetables.
Freshwise Catering 
Now you can come to the market for brunch! The Freshwise Catering truck has joined the market and offers delicious food you can eat right at the market. The menu includes pancakes made from the market’s own Allens Hill Farm pancake mix, plus omelets and burgers made from local ingredients. Look for the green truck.
EBT
Thanks to a program offered by Foodlink, food stamp recipients can bring their EBT cards to the market and receive tokens to purchase food from the market. In addition, credit and debit cards can be used to obtain tokens — no need to stop by the ATM! Stop by the Foodlink table for more information.
Ida with Carrot
Featured Vendors
Our intern, Anne, has been getting acquainted with the market’s vendors. Here’s her report this week:
Allens Hill Farm 
What happens when a man with 20 years of restaurant experience comes across a Genesee Country Village recipe for Apple Cider Molasses? The answer is Allens Hill Farm, run by John Loveland. John says that the recipe inspired him to play around with different products and ingredients, and from there he turned this playing into a business.
Allens Hill Farm uses as many products from other local vendors as possible. Keeping the environment in mind, it also tries to minimize the amount of product packaging and uses recyclable materials when possible.
While standing at the booth talking to John, three sets of people stopped to try a sample of his 8 Grain Brownie Mix, and while 2 of the sets of customers bought the mix, the third said that they would be back next week to buy it. Another woman came up and specifically asked for Apple Cinnamon Pancake Mix. When asked by a customer if egg whites could be substituted for the whole egg, John smiled and said that customers play around with substitutions all the time and he’s heard they are happy with the results. It’s no surprise that he would encourage people to play around with his recipes to fit their dietary needs, as he has done a great deal of experimenting with his recipes himself.
Allens Hill Farm sells a number of popular products at the market, including pancake mixes, cake mixes, granolas, and syrups. For a complete list of products, recipes using its products, testimonials from customers, and other information, visit www.allenshillfarm.com.
Ann’s Purple Produce 
Let’s break down the name, shall we? Ann—the name of the proprietor, Ann Shauman. Purple—the color of most of the products, the wagon in front of the tent, the handwritten signs describing the products, and even Ann’s shirt and shoes. Produce—the products, including beets, hot peppers, herbs, Ronde de Nice (round zucchini, which looked pretty neat to me), carrots, and beans (along with many cut flowers and plants that can be put in the ground), that are sold at the market.
And how did Ann’s Purple Produce get started? Well it started when Ann wanted to own a lavender farm, but it wasn’t economical in upstate New York. So she flipped through catalogues and noticed that there are many purple things to grow. You may be trying to think of purple things, and your list may be pretty short, but did you consider carrots and beans. Ann allowed people to sample purple beans this past week at the market, and even though she said that they turn green when cooked, she encouraged people to eat them raw in all their purple glory with dips or in a salad. Although I did not get to see a purple carrot, Ann said they would be at the market soon, possibly as soon as this upcoming Sunday.
While standing at her tent, trying to interview her, many people came up and I found myself waiting to speak with her as she spoke to every customer and answered questions. “You’re not going to get much time with her,” a customer said to me. “She’s always busy.”
So I looked at the signs hanging from the tent as I waited. One sign said that the produce is “sustainably grown” and although it is not certified organic, it is also organically grown. When I got to ask Ann about this, she said that she doesn’t use chemicals unless they are approved for organic growing, uses row cover to keep bugs away, and uses soy bean meal and composted manures for fertilizer.
Another sign hanging from the tent explained that a part of all sales goes to a Fairport non-profit organization called Joining Hearts and Hands, run by Bill and Joanne Cala (http://www.joiningheartsandhands.org/press.php). In Ann’s words,“They work to build schools, provide student scholarships and better communities in Western Kenya.” Ann made it a point of letting me know that she traveled to Kenya with them last January and taught in several schools there, so the organization is obviously one she truly believes in. It’s really nice to know that when buying products at the market, the money made is not only supporting local farms and businesses, but is also helping people in need in Kenya.
