Squared Roots
It will be a few months before our region’s farmers markets are brimming with produce that grows out of the ground. So winter really is the opportunity for root vegetables to shine.
There is plenty of variety that grows underground, from carrots to potatoes to sweet potatoes to beets and turnips and radishes and rutabagas and more. Nichols Farm and Orchard (Marengo, Illinois) is the region’s largest diversified produce farm. And during my Saturday visit to the Green City Market winter location I took the photos above and below to underscore the delicious, healthy rainbow of colors that’s at the root of it all.
Not surprisingly, some of this stuff came home as part of my market haul.
Clockwise from left, there’s cremini mushrooms from River Valley Ranch (Burlington, Wisconsin); onions, Empire apples, sweet potatoes, rainbow carrots and red potatoes from Nichols; two tofu salads from Chicago’s Phoenix Bean (Happy Lunar New Year, Jenny!); large eggs from Ellis Family Farms (Benton Harbor, Michigan); and a lovely focaccia from Chicago’s Dorothy’s Bistro, which I split down the middle and turned into a couple of yummy pizzas (sauce, Mozzarella, Italian sausage, mushrooms).
Uptown Farmers Market Gets Permanent Site
While the indoor season still has a way to go, it’s nice to have the opportunity to project forward when we can shop outside. So I was happy to receive word that the Uptown Farmers Market — located in the North Side Chicago neighborhood of the same name — is moving to a permanent location on Wednesdays starting May 3.
The Uptown Farmers Market was launched in 2021 at the historic Gerber Building below the Wilson Red Line station at Broadway and Wilson. The farmers market was something of a placeholder for the long-planned Chicago Market food co-op as it concluded its fundraising to bring its grocery store to fruition.
A sizable grant from the city of Chicago, announced last year, put Chicago Market over the top and the build-out is ongoing, with a late 2023 opening if all goes well. But the farmers market could not stay in place during construction, and the new location a few blocks west — at Sunnyside Mall, on Sunnyside between Magnolia and Beacon — is now in place.
Here’s the full scoop from Chicago Market.
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We're excited to announce we've found a new, permanent home for the Uptown Farmers Market!
Starting May 3, 2023 the Market will take place at Sunnyside Mall — the pedestrian stretch of Sunnyside between Magnolia and Beacon, just a block south of Wilson Avenue.
Why the move?
We loved getting the Market launched in our parking lot these past two seasons, but it's not a long-term solution because we'll be using our lot for Chicago Market grocery shoppers. And starting this season, the lot will be packed with construction workers and equipment as they build out our store.
About Sunnyside Mall
We connected with the Sunnyside Mall Committee and they were really excited to host our Market. Their mission aligns so well with a farmers market — Sunnyside Mall is committed to creating a safe engaging community space in the heart of Sheridan Park.
Sunnyside Mall is a short walk from both CTA EL station exits, so it's super convenient to get to. And we love that it keeps the Market close to Chicago Market — co-ops and farmers markets are great partners.