Local Fruit and Vegetable Roundup

Summer is ending. There is much to be sad about at the end of a Saskatchewan summer, such as realizing you'll have to start wearing socks again soon, the last trip of the year to The Lake, and waking up when it's still dark, but one of the great things about the end of summer is the amazing bounty of local produce available. Since I started this blog a little late in the season, I don't really have the time to dedicate an entire post to each of my favourite fruit and vegetable producers, but I want to share my list. Maybe next summer I'll dive more in depth to each one.

I will note in Saskatoon, two major farmers' markets are operated in the summer months - the main Saskatoon Farmers' Market at River Landing, and the Community Farmers' Market of Saskatoon, which operates on 8th St two days a week and 51st St one day a week. Many of the larger producers attend both markets.

In no particular order, I highly recommend the following:

• Kaleidoscope Gardens out of Dundurn, for specialty vegetables. Everything these folks grow is excellent quality and so unique. My favourites are the padron and shishito peppers, but I also frequently purchase their eggplant, squash, and kale. They run out of the Saskatoon Farmers' Market and may be attending the Community Market later in the season. They are also exceptionally nice people who take the time to get to know their customers' names and favourite products.
• The Strawberry Ranch for sweet corn. It's been a bad year for corn and sadly theirs isn't available this year, but it's always the best tasting corn around. I hope next year they have better luck!
• Little Quail Ridge Orchards (no website, but here's a brief profile from a local food blog) for BC Fruit. This orchard sells directly at several farmers' markets in Saskatchewan, including both major Saskatoon markets. Best tasting fruit around and great deals on case lots.
• WorldAway Farm (no website) for delicious fresh asparagus all spring long! They are at the Saskatoon Farmers' Market and sell other produce, including garlic, later in the summer.
• The Garlic Garden out of Yorkton for all garlic-related products. They no longer attend the Saskatoon Farmers' Market but are at the Community Market on Fridays. Awesome garlic, though last year I bought a bag from them and planted my own so I won't need to buy any this year. They cautioned me that it's not seed garlic, but I had great success with 41/42 cloves growing into full heads, which are now all curing in my garage. Previously I'd buy a bag of rounds, which lasted a bit longer through the winter than normal cloves.
• Rhodes' Raspberries and Blackcurrants just off Valley Road, for u-pick (or pre-picked) haskaps, saskatoons, raspberries, and blackcurrants! Their prices are great and the owner is the nicest. They also had the biggest and juiciest saskatoons I've ever picked. They've got black and golden raspberries as well as red, if you've ever wanted to try different varieties. Sadly no blackcurrants this year.

(These are my own backyard raspberries, but when I want more than a small bowl I go to Rhodes'.)

• I really love Robertson's Valley Farm on Valley Road, though they are effectively a new business this year as they're now operated by Spring Creek Garden. Robertson's had amazing quality produce, but Spring Creek is no slouch either! They mostly grow the same items though I do miss the gigantic kohlrabi and Spanish onions Robertson's had. Their greenhouse (still operated by the Robertsons) tomatoes are my favourites. The onion bunches are a steal, and they grow great broccoli and cauliflower.
• Speaking of brassicas, I got the most giant cauliflower I've ever seen in my life from G&R Gardens (main market) a couple weeks ago for FOUR DOLLARS. It was easily 2-3 times the size of a standard head from the grocery store. Who says the farmers' market is too expensive? G&R are also the only producer who appear to have large kohlrabis this year.
• Grandora Gardens is the place to go (both markets) for fresh and local greenhouse produce year round. Their cucumbers are my favourite product; they seem to last a week or more on the counter, and they are usually cheaper than the grocery store (though you can also buy their produce at the Co-op). They also sell a variety of hot peppers and tomatoes. While I'm personally not in love with greenhouse tomatoes, it's nice to have the option to buy from a local producer when I get a January craving for Greek salad.

(All-local beet borscht ingredients ready to throw in the pot.)

I know there are tons of other great producers I'm missing. It can be overwhelming to attend a farmers' market in Saskatoon in the summer because there are SO many farmers with wonderful looking products, so the best strategy I've found is to pick a couple producers whose quality I like and stick with them, as most of the vendors at the markets are pretty standardized on the prices of produce. If you have a favourite fruit or vegetable grower from the Saskatoon area that I haven't mentioned, please leave a comment! At some point I'll do a post on my favourite local meat producers as well.