Taste of the local: Phoenixville Winter Market

By Margaret Gilmour

The Phoenixville Winter Market is open throughout the winter and offers locally grown, fresh food to any willing buyer.

And there are plenty of willing buyers.

Lots of locals come bundled up ready to bear the elements and tread over the snow-dusted ground for the short time the roadside market opens for business.

Here, farmers and artisans don hats and down coats to sell their goods for one hour, on the second and fourth Saturday of each month.

This past weekend I stopped by for a visit and, like everyone around me, promptly lined up to make my purchases before making any conversation. That would come later. 

You take along your tote to fill it up with last fall’s cellared root vegetables, cold weather greens, artisanal cheeses, organic fudge, specialty baked goods, grass fed meat products and other handcrafted wares.

Hot beverages are also for sale to sip as community members first buy their fill (before everything goes), then spend time catching up on local happenings.

Since 2000, the Phoenixville Farmer’s Market has been preserving the local agricultural heritage by providing farm-fresh food.

Equally important is the stronger community they have been building through weekly gatherings that take you outside to meet your neighbors, as well as those who grow or craft the goods you carry home. You’re not just shopping here, you’re visiting. The Market is a social occasion where the main attraction is the people you meet and the meal you’ll prepare later that day.

First to go in my sack was a container of Shellbark Hollow Farm’s sharp chevre II, recommended to me by Jill Deskiewicz, cheese prep and Nubian goat milker at Shellbark Hollow.

After spreading the sharp chevre II onto a cracker later that day, I decided it deserved the Best of Philly award it garnered in 2008 (in the cheese category). It’s smooth with just enough bite to distinguish it from other goat cheese, and it even boasts hints of Provolone.

I added more to my tote as I passed by each table, my favorite purchase being the curly endive (Cichorium endiva) from Charlestown Farm (I have been yearning for fresh greens). At home I whipped up a mustard vinaigrette and topped the salad with cracked pepper and shaved Parmesan. The greens held their own, were not bitter at all, and satisfied my craving (for a few days, at least).

As I filled my bag, my youngest son selected heart-shaped Linzer cookies with jam-filled centers baked by Whole Hearted Baking Company. His face was smeared red by the juicy fruit as he happily made his way over to sample the fudge offered by Betty’s Tasty Buttons. The perfect mouth-watering treat for my littlest Valentine.

Where: Bridge Street & Taylor Alley

When:  February 28

            Winter Market | 10 a.m. until 11 a.m.

            March 14 & 28

            Winter Market | 10 a.m. until 11 a.m.

            April 11 & 25:

            Winter Market | 10a.m. until 11a.m.

More info: Phoenixville Winter Market

 

(Top right photo: Melissa Ingaglio and Sue Decker of Charlestown Farm)