Farmers Market Missive: Santa Clara

       I love food- I love trying new food- I love learning about food- at this point in my life I am open to trying just about any food offered. So it was with glee that I hopped into my friend's car the other day and headed out- practically kid free save for the brand new addition- to their local Farmers Market in Santa Clara, California. The majority of my Farmers Market experiences have been limited to Pacific North West growing conditions- currently at our local market we mostly have root vegetables and kale- so it was my great delight to discover that right now is citrus season in California!

        First off it was a shear joy to buy citrus that is being grown with in miles of where it is sold- ditto on the winter strawberries- my kids may have totally gorged themselves as they haven't had a fresh berry in months! Aesthetically the market in Santa Clara was a visual feast- the colours and textures a jumble of yellows, reds and orange at a time with most of our veg is brown and dull. I was treated to samples of food I have never tried before like these huge citrus- the Pomelo- can I just say yumm!

        It wasn't just the fresh produce that intrigued me- the raw milk stand was ever so interesting and after drinking raw milk in my coffee and on our cereal for a few days I have to say I really liked it- not just the full fat aspect but the real taste- it actually tasted like milk! In Canada raw milk is "illegal" and very hard to come by- unless you have a cow parked in your side yard- which obviously in the city we do not.

       After buying plenty of provisions for the coming days the Mommas and the little Miss headed to a favourite coffee shop- my friend knows me well! Chromatic Coffee is a coffee lovers delight- really good strong beans that are hand crafted in the Valley of the Hearts Delight -isn't that the most amazing name for an area! Apparently they make really good "fancy" drinks here as well but I just went with my standard latte as I love good espresso! FYI- this is also Hipster central which I- of course- loved- great people watching to go along with yummy coffee!

        I thoroughly enjoyed our mini foodie adventure-  all the new foods topped off by excellent coffee and company! See that pastry above- a mini pecan pie if you will- yeah it was gone in seconds- it was just that good! I will admit that I think the most thrilling part of the entire experience was the citrus- so different than anything I have ever experienced- even in my friend's yard she has many different citrus trees growing- including Meyer Lemon- oh the curd that could make! The Valley of Heart's Delight is now for the most part Silicone Valley but the food is still there too and it is oh so good!

      Friends it is Friday again- time sure does fly when you are having fun! This weekend we are going to throw ourselves into winter activities up at Grouse Mountain- a completely different experience from last weekend spent in the sun! Happy Friday Friends!