Loving the thought of a winter farmers market and then realizing I can't afford 'the bounty' I accumulated as a result of said idea

It's true...my need for grapefruit marmalade and island-grown Jerusalem artichokes seemed much greater when I was getting a charming back-story from the artisan farmer hocking the above mentioned goods . Nonetheless, I now posses these edible wallet-bruises and will find a equally charming way to use them. In all honesty, this is what I tell myself to justify these useless purchases, as I think many of us do. Tell me: WHEN DID CHARMING AND QUAINT BECOME A FOOD GROUP???!!!

setttttle.....I did, however, meet some really neat people; Like the guy who made me pose 'as a farmer' behind his stall. And Matt, a local bread maker baking his wares off at Cafe Brio...as I am still sifting through my bread-making fiasco, he graciously gave his email to answer any questions I might have. And David Wood of Saltspring Island Cheese, who braved the fidgid elements to provide info on his generous samples of amazing goat cheeses (I bought a Montana semi-hard sheep cheese I'm going to use atop a pizza tonight - the rind going into this weeks bread making experiment...stay tuned).

I really do love being at farmers markets, though. It gives you an opportunity to find out what we can consume locally and what is possible to grow and make on our own. In fact, that's one of the best parts: these people aren't geniuses they are just passionate about one thing and do it really well - which is why we call them artisans, I suppose. But I encourage all of you, as this blog often does, to try things like making your own cheese, bread and jams and growing your own sill-side beans and edible flowers...you might just find a pint-size farmer's market of your own making right in your kitchen...good luck! It gets messy...