Victoria Cosford
School holidays shouldn’t only be holidays for children. Parents too are entitled to a break in routine, the load lightened – and a farmers’ market experience can provide that in so many ways. Apart from it being such a fun outing for the whole family, with lots of free activities for the kids, did you know you can stock up on ready-made meals and healthy snacks as well?
Woodland Valley Farm is a great point of departure, and not only for their wonderful eggs. Alongside a wide range of fresh pastas and gnocchi – bucatini, pappardelle, giant fusilli, fettuccine – there are also lip-smacking sauces like venison ragu, tomato-basil, Bolognese and pumpkin.
No cooking is required at all if you stock up on Scratch Patisserie’s spinach rolls and sausage rolls, bulgy fat pastries which come in frozen packs of four. Radiance Kitchen too supply their exquisite colourful gluten-free dumplings – vegetable, pork, chicken and prawn – to takeaway and reheat back home. Same with Heart & Halo’s fabulous lasagne!
Meanwhile, at the Church Farm stall you’ll find four types of curry pastes, Indian home-style, rendang, Thai red and Thai green – so then it’s just a matter of locating your protein. Misty Creek offers whole and half birds along with tenderloins, breasts, Marylands and wings, while Hayter’s Hill has cubed beef perfect for curries, along with ribs, mini roasts, veal schnitzels and fabulous sausages. At Local Dorper Lamb you’ll find spicy lamb koftas, lamb rissoles and eye fillet kebabs, minimal cooking involved, just toss in a bag of Gourmet Salad Hut mixed leaves and there’s your meal. Conscious Ground do an excellent sausage and chorizo as well.
Not only is everything going to taste fantastic, require minimal effort, and have travelled few food miles, but you’re also supporting our local farmers and producers. That sounds like… happy holidays!
Woodland Valley Farm, Scratch Patisserie, Church Farm, Hayters Hill and Local Dorper Lamb are at New Brighton Farmers Market every Tuesday from 8am to 11am, and at Mullumbimby Farmers Market every Friday from 7am to 11am. Misty Creek, Radiance Kitchen, Conscious Ground, Gourmet Salad Hut and Heart & Halo are at Mullumbimby Farmers Market every Friday from 7am to 11am.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
