The 2011 Caledon Farmers' Market Season drew to a close on October 6th.

It was the third season for the Market and featured:

• great vendors - both returning and new
• fun events like culinary demonstrations and live music
• contests for great prizes, such as the 1st annual Corn on the Cob eating contest
• weekly themes like Chocolate and Apples and Cider and sampling activities
• and, opportunities for hundreds of people to meet and experience the excellent selection of high-quality local goods available at the Market each week

The 2011 season also saw the successful launch of the Market Sprouts Club. Fun and interactive, the Club enrolled over 40 children age 12 years and under who enjoyed face painting, arts and crafts and tasting new and delicious foods.

The Caledon Farmers' Market also strengthened the already successful partnerships with the Caledon Public Library, for the launch if its Summer Reading Program at the Market this year, and with the Caledon Countryside Alliance/Eat Local Caledon, who offered up delectable culinary samples and recipes for all to enjoy.

Stacey Fokas, Caledon resident, local food guru and best selling author of Freshalicious: Think Fresh, Eat Local, Live Healthy, was also a regular feature at this year's Market and generously shared her wisdom and culinary skills by performing live cooking demonstrations and providing recipes - including the one below - featuring ingredients available from many of our vendors.

Even the weather co-operated... most of the time.

All in all, 2011 was another excellent Market season and there is plenty to look forward to in 2012.

As we prepare for the return of the Caledon Farmers' Market in June 2012, we will continue to share food-related events, recipes and other information on our website, on Facebook and via this newsletter on a regular basis.

There is also an extensive collection of photos from this year and past Market seasons on our Facebook page.

So, please stay tuned for more and remember... we are always looking for suggestions of ways to continue to grow and improve the Caledon Farmers' Market.

Feel free to share your ideas and suggestions by e-mailing us at: edc@caledon.ca.

Even though the 2011 Caledon Farmers' Market season has drawn to a close, we will continue to shared plenty of interesting (and useful) information about the local food and food-related events on our Facebook Profile page.

Be sure to continue to visit us to discover and share food-related events and information, such as your winter comfort food recipes. Why not post your favourite winter comfort food recipe?

Now that the warm days of summer have given way to cool, crisp fall temperatures we naturally crave hearty, "stick to your ribs" fare to provide a little extra comfort and warmth. And there are few meals that do this better than a robustly flavoured stew.

The recipe below, courtesy of Stacey Fokas and Freshalicious.ca, will guide you in the creation of is a simple yet hearty and flavourable stew that is the perfect comfort food for autumn.

Roasted Ontario Harvest Lamb Stew

Tools 

• 2 trays for roasting
• 2 stock pots
• 1 hand blender

Ingredients 

• 6 lamb breast - bone in
• 1/2 bottle Ontario wine (for roasting lamb)
• 1 pepper squash
• 1 white onion - finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves - minced
• 4 white potatoes - peeled and cubed
• 4 carrots - peeled and chopped
• 2 celery - chopped
• 2 small red chilies - chopped
• 3 cups of beef stock and 2 1/2 cups of water
• sea salt (to taste)
• Fresh ground pepper to taste
• Fresh sage (3-5 leaves)
• Fresh parsley (small bunch chopped)

Topper

• 1 cup of fresh arugula
• 1 clove of garlic- chopped
• Drizzle with balsamic and olive oil dressing

Preparation

1. Pre-heat your oven to 350°F and place the lamb breast and wine in a roasting tray. Place it (covered) in the oven for 60 - 90 minutes.
2. Cut pepper squash in half and roast separately (30-40 min)
3. 1st Stock Pot:
   • Take the roasted lamb and cut into small pieces and set aside.
   • Bring 2 1/2 cups of water and 3 cups of beef stock to a boil.
   • Add some water to the drippings and merge with the stock.
   • Remove the squash from the skin, add to the stock and blend with a hand blender.
4. 2nd Stock Pot
   • In a separate large pot fry the onions, minced garlic until caramelized.
   • Add the potatoes, carrots celery and chilies. Then add your stock to the vegetables along with the lamb.
5. Season with fresh herbs, sea salt and pepper.
6. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer for approximately 25 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.
7. To thicken if you like use 1/4 cup of diluted corn starch and stir in boiling stew until desired thickness occurs.
8. Serve in a bowl and top off each serving with a splash of greens (i.e. the Topper) and enjoy!

NOTE: This delicious dish can be eaten immediately after being prepared or frozen for an easy meal at a later date.

For more great recipe ideas using locally grown and produced foods, visit the Freshalicious website at: www.freshalicious.ca.

You can also follow Stacey Fokas on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date with the latest news and events regarding eating locally and seasonally.