A Bountiful Trip

Well Fed Foodie Blog • Written by Rita Connelly • Published 03/28/16

The Heirloom Farmers Markets are a real treasure. With three sites around town these uptown, down home markets offer some of the best meat and produce from nearby farms, artisanal foods of all sorts, freshly baked breads and sweet treats, locally roasted coffees and on any given Sunday seeds, compost, woven shopping baskets, knife sharpening and more. I’ve even had the opportunity to sell ‘Lost Restaurants of Tucson’there.

We go to the one at Rillito Park, which is held on Sundays. There is one on Fridays at Trail Dust Town and another one on Saturdays way out at the Oro Valley Market Place.
Yesterday I spent a good hour or more buying all sort of goodies and talking with the vendors. I also chatted with Manish Shah, Director of Heirloom Farmers Markets. His team is top notch; knowledgeable, friendly and into their work. Manish also is the owner of Maya Tea Company.
I needed honey – there are several vendors – but I opted for Tone Nutrition Mesquite Honey.

I’d met the owners the last time I was on ‘On The Menu Live….with Matt Russell’. We sampled several of their honeys that day and then I found their honey at, of all places, Plaza Liquors. Yesterday I bought a jar at the Market.

There are also several local coffee roasters. I purchased a pound of the Sunrise Morning Blend from Adventure Coffee Roasting.

Also on Matt’s show that day was Adela Durazo, the owner and creator of Durazo’s Poco Loco Specialty Salsas. Adela is full of life and is passionate about her products. Her salsas are fabulous, ranging from ‘Mild’ to ‘Stupid Hot’ – yes, that’s the name. She also makes a great guacamole, but I had to buy the Crab Dip. Creamy, rich, spicy and thick with lump crab and shrimp, it is addicting.

I didn’t get any roasted veggies from Red’s Roasters but I did buy some raspberry jam fromGrammy’s and some fresh vegetables.

There are always food trucks at the market and I couldn’t pass up a pie at Fiamme Pizza Napoletana. Owner Scott Volpe has a wood fired pizza oven right there and cranks out pizza after pizza with an artisans hand. Volpe has won numerous competitions for his pies and his tossing skills. His pies are the perfect combination of smooth sauce, chewy/crispy crust and quality toppings.

All in all is was a most tasty trip to the Heirloom Farmers Market.

Source: https://wellfedfoodieblog.wordpress.com/tag/www-heirloomfm-org/