Foodbuzz 24 24 24: Operation Public Market

Imagine... hundreds of local farmers and vendors, all showing up no matter what time of year it is, no matter what the weather, to this open air place:


Rochester NY's 103 year old Public Market is thriving like crazy in these tough economic times. Found in the heart of the city, thousands show up every week on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday looking to find the best, freshest, local veggies, among other not so local fair (mango anyone?). Vendors' offerings range from fresh fruits and veggies, meats, cheese, bread, honey, clothing and other household goods... and the occasional live chicken (it's legal to raise chickens for eggs in your backyard in the city! No roosters allowed though):


I'm thankful for being picked again to participate in this months 24 24 24 by Foodbuzz. I proposed a task in cooking for a group with only $20 to spend at the local public market... Each person's task was easy... or maybe not so easy for some. Roam the market, $20 in hand, and buy up ingredients to make a delicious meal to feed 8 adults and 1 kid later in the day. Each person came up with creative ways of spending their money and brought amazing dishes to the party last night. (no one bought a live chicken though... I totally should have!)

Let me tell you a little more about the market... It is not for the claustrophobic, you tend to feel like cattle being herded through the lines of tightly packed vendors... it's rather easy to loose your friends, I've definitely lost John more than once there (thankfully he's tall and easy to locate!) I mean just look at all those people!


And that's just one aisle of the market!! This place is huge. And let me tell you, it will try your patience... after almost two hours of being trapped behind slow moving people and numerous sets of parents attempting to fit a double wide stroller full of kids and veggies down a crammed isle... you may end up looking like this:


Yeah I was reaching my point of wanting some people free time here... Thanks for making sure to capture the Kodak moment John! :D But the payoff of fresh local veggies...


totally makes it worth it!

To give you an idea of what I bought... I got this huge thing of tomatoes, eggplants, yellow and green squash for a total of $5. Impressive huh!


I also picked up dessert for us, a large marble angel food cake $1.50. A mini chocolate cake $2. And some cannoli for $1.25 each. Delicious!

Once everyone got home from the market the cooking began! Not everyone has sent me their recipes yet, so I'm going to do posts all week about the specific recipes everyone made as they send them to me! Then I'll link them back to this post so everyone can see all the recipes! So check back for an update link at the end of this each day this week!

For now though here's a little taste of what we had. Starting with an appetizer I made, simple and seriously delicious!

I bought some chicken andouille sausage from a butcher for $3 a pound. Pairing this with some extra sharp cheddar ($2 for 1/2 lb) from an Amish run stand and a loaf of honey wheat bread ($3) from a local baker... made for an irresistible appetizer!


Andouille & Cheddar Slider
1 lb chicken andouille sausage (or other VERY spicy sausage)
1/2 lb extra sharp aged cheddar cheese
1/2 loaf honey wheat bread

Cook the sausage on the stove or a grill until an internal temperature of 160 is reached. Slice into bite size pieces. Slice bread into small chunks, top with cheese and sausage. CHOW!

Totally easy and amazingly flavorful!

We had an amazing time and THANK YOU FOODBUZZ for making it possible! A glass of wine to you in thanks!


Check back for the recipe links to all these great dishes... which one looks the best to you??

Update:
Veggie Salsa
Tomato Scallion Quiche with an unusual crust...