Swiss Bakers are Green Bakers

Hillary Anderson is our Guest Hugger from Swissbakers.

 

 

There's no need to travel to Switzerland to appreciate traditional Swiss baked goods since the arrival of Swissbakers.  All their products are baked and made fresh the day of the market with natural ingredients that are locally sourced whenever possible.  They offer a wide assortment of breads such as Pajazzo, a naturally fat-free bread that is crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside, and Zopf which looks like Challah but not nearly as sweet and is traditionally served on Sundays in Switzerland.   Try the Choco Weggli that sells out almost everyday in their shop.  It's made with a butter dough and sweetened with Lindt chocolate pieces inside and sprinkled with pearl sugar on top.  The Mini Swirl Roll is a market favorite chock full of hazelnuts.  Try their Berliners filled with chocolate, fruit or the plain cinnamon.  They're similar to a donut with a much more unbelievable taste.  They also offer an array of croissants, cookies, tarts and pretzels.  Try their pretzel bread sandwiches with choices like pesto, tomato & mozzarella, tuna & pickle, and salami with pickles.  Each sandwich option is unique and incredibly delicious.

Swissbakers are "grandchild-sustainable," meaning everything has to have a positive or no impact on our grandchildrens' environment. They received the 2012 Green Business Award for their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas, water conservation, sourcing ingredients locally and they recycle whenever possible.  Try their wares and you'll be sure to come back for more.

Please join us on Aug. 31st for our Traditional Clam & Lobster Feast and the Sustainable Braintree Earth Celebration on Sept. 7th.  See you on Saturday.

Homestyle @ the Market

Maureen and Chef Hassan are the main ingredients at Homestyle Caterers.

Homestyle Caterers have been with the market since our inaugural season in 2009 and they're still as popular as ever.  As you stroll through the market the irresistible aroma of stuffed peppers, chicken pot pies, spinach pie and an array of home cooked foods will draw you to their tent where you'll find a wide selection of handcrafted foods prepared lovingly by Chef Hassan.
Chef Hassan came to the U.S. from Alexandria, Egypt and landed in Boston. While working at Anthony's Pier Four restaurant he met a nice Irish girl named Maureen and sparks began to fly. They married and bought a house in Braintree, because of the great school system, and raised their three children, Nora, Ameera and David. They opened the Ship's Wheel restaurant in Weymouth Landing and Chef Hassan brought his two teen-aged brothers, Hamdi and Mustapha and a sister, Sana, from Egypt and everyone worked together in the restaurant for several years. The Chef's next venture was a Middle-Eastern restaurant in Quincy called The Oasis. They had live traditional music and belly dancers entertained every evening. The Oasis had a menu made up mostly of the wonderfully flavorful foods that Hassan learned from helping his mother cook. He was the eldest of ten children and pitched in on a regular basis while growing up which are the same recipes he still uses today. Many of the Oasis customers came from the large Syrian and Lebanese population in the Quincy Point area and many were newcomers who loved the cuisine.

When the Oasis was sold Chef Hassan was thinking about making his life less hectic and more enjoyable. Running a restaurant is hard work with very long hours and not a lot of time for a personal life so he decided to focus solely on catering and opened the Homestyle Caterers commissary in Quincy in 2001. When the Hassans heard about the new hometown farmer's market they wanted to be part of it. The idea of having fresh, local produce, foods, and natural products in an open market in the center of town on a Saturday morning sounded wonderful. And so, the Homestyle Caterers crew has spent the past five years schmoozing with neighbors, friends, and the Braintree Farmer's Market vendors and volunteers over hot lobster pies, baked macaroni, savory falafel roll-ups, blueberry scones and much more on Saturday mornings.  Drop by and find out why Homestyle is a market favorite.

Stir It Up @ the Market

Meet Phyliss MacPherson from Stir It Up Cuisine.

This season we're throwing in a little summer heat with Stir It Up Cuisine.  Their specialty is Caribbean Pepper Jelly made with authentic Jamaican Scotch Bonnet Pepper combined with green, yellow and red peppers to create a mouth-watering, tangy, savory-sweet jelly.  It's delicious with cold cuts and various meat dishes and could become an essential pantry item in your kitchen.  One of their specialties at the market is the incredibly delicious Caribbean Pepper Jelly Cheese Torte that's perfect for a party or purchase the Mini Torte as a special treat to enjoy throughout the week.

Stir It Up Cuisine is owned and operated by Patricia Kiernan, a native Jamaican who has cultivated the art of Caribbean cuisine through her family recipes that have been passed down for generations.  Stop by their tent and sample the goods and you'll be back again and again to add this special treat to your market acquisitions.  Stir It Up Cuisine visits the market every other Saturday.

Deborah's Kitchen Spreadable Fruits and Relishes

Deborah Taylor from Deborah's Kitchen.

At the Braintree Farmers Market each one of our vendors are carefully selected to ensure that our customers will enjoy a wide selection of high quality local foods.  Deborah's Kitchen joined the market in 2011 and they've been supplying us with their all natural, low sugar, spreadable fruit and relish.  While the majority of jams and preserves use two thirds refined sugar or high fructose corn syrup, Deborah's Kitchen uses two thirds fruit with all natural sugar and no preservatives.  From chefs to gourmet cooks and just plain folks, the payoff is a far superior flavor with less calories.

Try an assortment of their creative fruit blends that make each flavor a unique gourmet treat that can be used for meat and fish glazes, stir fry, marinades and barbeque sauces, desert toppings and fillings, sandwich spreads, breakfast bread and cereal toppings.  Add them to salad dressings or mix into yoghurt or cottage cheese or simply spread them on top of your toast.  Their Spreadable Fruits will enhance any meal and also be a much healthier choice. 

Deborah's Kitchen also offers a delicious Sweet Pepper Relish and Green Tomato Relish that are a perfect accoutrement to meats, seafoods and cheeses.  Mix the relishes with a bit of mayo to make the perfect tartar sauce for your crab cakes.  Hot Hot Peach and Hot Hot Cranberry are perfect to heat up your main courses or cheeses.  Try them.

Copicut Farms joins the market

"B" from Copicut Farms displays their fresh eggs.

This season the market welcomes Copicut Farms to our weekly lineup of vendors.  Copicut Farms is owned and operated by Vince and Elizabeth Frary, a fourth generation Massachusetts farm family.  On their 80 acre farm in Dartmouth, MA they raise chickens, turkeys and Cornish games that spend their days faraging freely in the grass and sunshine.  In addition to raising all of their poultry in a healthy environment, with access to fresh greens, they are one of only a few farms in the state with a state-licensed on-farm processing facility allowing them to hand-butcher all of their poultry.  This means that they can ensure their birds are treated humanely and their customers receive the absolute freshest meat and eggs available.  For more information go to their website at copicutfarms.com.

Carlos V' Ramos will be joining us this coming Saturday, July 27th, as our musical entertainment.  BELD provides solar power for the sound system in an effort to keep the market earth friendly.  The market operates every Saturday from 9 to 1 outside the Braintree Town Hall, One JFK Memorial Dr., Braintree,  rain or shine, hot or cold.  In the event of extreme weather conditions the market is moved inside the Braintree Town Hall.  Join us at the market and find out why this market has a loyal following.  Now is the peak season for fresh, healthy, local produce.

The Cupcakerie is Back

Kristin Brennan is the Chief Cupcake Maker at The Cupcakerie

This season one of our loyal vendors that has been with the market since it's inception in 2009 is more popular than ever.  Meet Kristin Brennan from The Cupcakerie and known fondly by all at the market as 'The Cupcake Lady'.  Kristin lovingly creates all her gourmet cupcakes from scratch with local ingredients and seasonal flavors.  Some of her favorites are the Velvet Elvis, Lavender Bean, Shake your Coconuts and a Featured Flavor every month.  Her sampler sets of eight different flavors of mini cupcakes have been selling out every week so look for them early when you arrive at the market. This season Kristin has added freshly brewed coffee made from New Harvest coffee beans so you can have your morning 'cup of joe' as you stroll the market.  Iced coffee is also available-it's cluckin' awesome.

Looking for a quick, delicious recipe for all that kale that's coming in at the market?  Andrea Nahigian, who was at our Community Tent last week representing the American Diabetes Association, recommended this recipe to us.  It's kale chips that are light, crispy and flavorful and much healthier than potato chips.  Tear apart the leaves of the kale, spritz them with olive oil, lightly salt and add garlic powder for extra flavor.  Toss and spread them onto a cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for ten minutes or so until crispy.  They're a delicious snack. 

Omega Olive Oils & Vinegars

Alex and Felicia Pakalnis serve samples of their olive oils and Balsamic vinegars.

This season the Braintree Farmers Market welcomes Omega Olive Oil, owned and operated by Felicia Pakalnis, to our vendor list.  The company is located in the South Shore where they are able to bring market shoppers the freshest olive oil made here in the United States.  All of their olive oils and vinegars are specially crafted in California.  Sample their new Black Currant Balsamic Vinegar, used in sauces, salads and dressings.  Drizzle it on any dessert, such as ice cream, cheesecake or summer fruits.  It's also delicious on angel food cake with fresh berries or on cottage cheese or yogurt.  It pairs nicely with their Blood Orange Olive or, for the more adventurous, their Chipotle Olive Oil.  Stop by and try these healthy accompaniments that will enhance your market purchases.