What's new at farmers markets?
With the opening of summer farmers markets on deck, here are some of the new foods you might see at markets over the coming months. The Mill City Farmers Market hosted a preview of products, although these vendors will be at other markets throughout the metro.
The early trends? Lots of nuts, lots of grains and lots of fermentation goin' on.
Best Cellar Pickle has zesty pickled asparagus, carrots and green beans. But more notable: Portobello mushroom jerky that's salty and chewy. Also a jelly made with pink grapefruit juice and local craft beers. Check the market calendar at bestcellarpickle.com.
Dumpling & Strand uses "exceptionally curious noodles" made with freshly milled grains to rev up your side dish game. There's an almost smoky pasta made from wild rice; gluten-free noodles from toasted basmati rice; toasted farro fettuccine, and noodles of kernza, the hot new "old" grain. Former food scientist Jeff Casper has created pastas that need only the lightest of sauces. Visit dumplingandstrand.com.
Topos Ferments is so new that fermenter/owner Jim Bovino says he's still beta-testing. But he's on to something with his combo of leeks and sake kasu, a byproduct of sake production from the Japanese restaurant Moto-i that serves as a pickling agent.
Kapper's Big Red Barn near Chatfield, Minn., will be selling fresh milk in bottles, in addition to hand-pulled cheese curds. They bottle their Holsteins' milk themselves on the farm. Many people, they say, say the milk tastes "like childhood." Visit kappersbigredbarn.com.
Candor Bars are paleo-inspired and tout a slim list of ingredients. With no added sugars, they're vegan and grain-free. Flavors include curry, matcha, lemon and cocoa. See their Facebook page.
Root to Rise Kitchen is part of the boom in vegan dining, moving from pop-up events to farmers markets, with a food truck and maybe more in the future. Check out the Love Ball Sub, with a "meatball" of sprouted lentil, buckwheat, quinoa, hemp and walnuts that rocks a lot of flavor. See their Facebook page.