Celebrating Black History Month with a Panel on Local Foodways! | February 19th, 2024

Fresh & Local:

Local Foodways: A Black History Month Conversation

Market Umbrella is excited to invite you to our Black History Month event, a captivating panel discussion on local foodways. This engaging conversation will explore the rich history and impact of local foodways within the context of Black History Month. We are proud to bring together experts who will share their insights and experiences in the world of food, farming, and culinary arts.

Moderated by:

Marcus Coleman, Professor at Tulane University

Featuring:

Zella Palmer, Food Historian, Chair and Director of the Ray Charles Program in African American Material Culture at Dillard University

Ben Burkett, Farmer & Organizer

Serigne Mbaye, Chef & Restaurant Owner of DAKAR NOLA, James Beard Award 2022, 2023 Semifinalist

Registration is open to the public, and we encourage you to secure your spot soon as capacity is limited. This event is completely free of charge, reflecting our commitment to fostering community engagement and celebrating the cultural contributions of the Black community.

Don't miss this opportunity to gain valuable perspectives and connect with like-minded individuals passionate about local foodways. Feel free to share this information with your network, and we look forward to seeing you there!

Picks of the Week:

Black History Month Chef Highlights!

Chef Shonda Cross
If you attended our annual fundraiser, Moonlight Market last April, you may recognize Chef Shonda Cross of Chef Shonda Fine Dining to Go as our crowned Moonlight Market Best Chef of the night - voted best dish and chef amongst the 10 local restaurants and pop-ups featured during this night of farm-to-table fare and fun! Grateful for the relationship she's cultivated with CCFM and the farmers and producers in our community, Chef Shonda understands the power that food has and the opportunities CCFM provides for smaller businesses and local producers. Chef Shonda is a self-taught chef who was born and raised in New Orleans so good food has always been an integral part of her life. Food is her love language and thus she relishes in the ability it has to bring people together, to create joy, and memories that extend far beyond the dinner table. We are excited that Chef Shonda will be joining us again this Sunday at the City Park market for a cooking demonstration as a part of our market activities celebrating Black History month. Keep up with what Chef Shonda is up to beyond the marketspace by following her on instagram!

Chef Keirsten Garnett
Chef Keirsten Garnett has been an avid supporter of the Crescent City Farmers Market for the last decade! She began shopping at the market while she was in culinary school at NOCCA, having been invited to take part in their first full-year elite culinary programing. Chef Garnett's first connection to cooking started at the age of eight when she made a birthday cake for a relative and saw the joy it brought to him. While working in the food industry, she noticed the lack of support for local farmers and produce, and decided to shift her focus to highlighting and celebrating the seasonal ingredients that our local producers have to offer. In recent years, Chef Garnett created the Creative Plate, offering an array of food and meal prep services using produce from producers at CCFM as well as special diet meal plans created to fit the needs of each client. Now Chef Garnett is preparing for the seasonal shifts of summer and working to develop a seasonal tasting event. Check out the Creative Plate and follow Chef Garnett on instagram to stay in the loop about her culinary work - you may even see Chef Garnett in the market space later this summer for a chef cooking demonstration!.

Black History Events at Market

Throughout the month of February, the Crescent City Farmers Market has a ton of fun activities lined up that highlight the contribution, skill, and passion of Black vendors, chefs, and community members. On Sunday, February 18th, we will host market tours to highlight our Black vendors. Market tours will begin at the top of every hour. Feel free to stop by before or after you finish your shopping! Join us on Tuesday, February 20th, for a Tea Tasting Ceremony with Portia of NOLA Botanical Tea. This is a wonderful opportunity to start the day in a relaxing way. On Thursday, February 22nd, Kristian, Assistant Grower with River Queen Greens, will host a natural dye class. Kristian will have an interactive activity exploring natural dye-making and provide background information about its relationship to history and place. Sunday, February 25th, Chef Shonda will host a cooking demonstration using ingredients from the market. Stop by to watch her create a dish and be sure to grab a sample. Rounding out the month, on Thursday, February 29th, Valencia of Wellness Honie will lead 30 minute mindfulness classes throughout the market. Practicing mindfulness involves breathing methods, guided imagery, and other practices to relax the body and mind to help reduce stress.

Cajun Growers is back at the Tuesday Uptown market!

Long-time CCFM vendors, Tad and Lillie Ledet of Cajun Growers, have made their return to the Tuesday market! In tow, they’ll have a selection of vine-ripened tomatoes, sweet and hot peppers, and crisp cukes all the way from Cutoff, LA. Dedicated Saints fans, their tent is hard to miss. Just look for the ol’ black and gold! Cajun Growers is joining our expanding line up of Tuesday vendors with other recent additions including Pearl River Pastures and T&R Dairy - find all you need to fill up your fridge and pantry Tuesday mornings at the end of Broadway Street!

Vendor of the Week:

Black Value-Added Product Vendors

Pickled NOLA - The New Orleans-based company Pickled NOLA LLC specializes in delicious homemade pickles. Jeremy Oatis, the founder of Pickled NOLA, is a Dean of Students, a Mardi Gras Indian, and a serious pickler. He first started making pickles four years ago to use up a surplus of home-grown cucumbers! Two years later, with the encouragement of friends and family, Pickled NOLA was born. Since then, Jeremy and Kimberly Oatis have expanded the offerings of Pickled NOLA to include an array of seasonal and locally-sourced pickled vegetables, including dill cucumber pickles, pickled green beans, and pickled garlic. Pickled NOLA provides a fresh, natural alternative to store-bought pickled products.

LA Best Kettlecorn - From farmers markets to local festivals, Louisiana's Best Kettlecorn has become synonymous with good times and great flavors. Husband and wife team, Amanda and Jairus, pop their kernels in small batches, using time-honored techniques to achieve that perfect balance of sweetness and saltiness that keep customers coming back for more. Follow the smell to find them at CCFM on Sundays or book them for your private event! 

NOLA Botanical Tea - Portia Cooper started the company out of her own personal testimonials.Portia researched the benefits of tea and discovered that ginger root tea is known to help aid bloating and increase energy. However, the way that it’s sold in stores affects its medical properties. Nola Botanical Tea offers quali-tea loose/bottled teas as well as unbleached tea filters, wooden spoons, and blue agave sweetener. Their tea blends include Hibiscus, Elderberry, Chamomile, and Ginger Root tea. Each tea serves a unique purpose in helping you with different needs, and their unbleached tea filters/wooden spoons allow you to maintain the medicinal benefits of the tea without the unwanted toxins.

Buttery Spell - Meet Amanda and Nick, the owners and butter connoisseurs of Buttery Spell! Buttery Spell was started in August 2020 during the height of the pandemic. While Amanda was home attempting to stay sane in the midst of all the stress and craziness, their very first nut butter, Milk Chocolate Pecan, was born. A year later, the compounds were introduced! The first compound butter made was Shrimp Butter, now known as Cajun Butter, and it’s still around to this day. Buttery Spell makes their gourmet peanut butters and compound butters with love and intent, intentionally utilizing fresh ingredients and amazing flavor profiles with the goal of waking up your taste buds!

Recipe of the Week:

Potato Leek Soup

Leeks are over-topping the tables at market this time of year, and customers take tons home to use in their own special recipes! Searching for a crowd-pleaser that guarantees leftovers? Try this traditional French potato and leek soup. This recipe is flavorful, easy to prepare, and extremely versatile. You might add protein into the soup mixture, top it off with your preferred herbs, or do both! The variations are endless. 

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 4 large leeks, white and light green parts only, roughly chopped (about 5 cups)
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
• 2 lbs. Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped into ½-inch pieces
• 7 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 2 bay leaves
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 cup heavy cream
• Chives, finely chopped, for serving

Directions

• Melt butter over medium heat in a large soup pot. Add the leeks and garlic and cook, stirring regularly, until soft and wilted, about 10 minutes. Adjust the heat as necessary so as not to brown.
• Add the potatoes, broth, bay leaves, thyme, salt, and pepper to the pot and bring to a boil. Cover and turn the heat down to low. Simmer for 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are very soft.
• Fish out the thyme sprig and bay leaves, then purée the soup with a hand-held immersion blender until smooth. (Alternatively, use a standard blender to purée the soup in batches.) Add the heavy cream and bring to a simmer. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. If the soup is too thin, simmer until thickened. If it's too thick, add water or stock to thin it out. Garnish with fresh herbs, if desired.

Source: Once Upon a Chef