January Farmers Market

Farmhouse Breakfast Week 22-28 January

This week is Farmhouse Breakfast Week, a week celebrating the most important meal of the day!

This Saturday is the first Cranbrook Farmers Market of the new year so is the perfect opportunity to get up early and stock up on lovely ingredients to make a delicious breakfast this weekend.

Bread, jams, pastries, breakfast muffins, juice, eggs, bacon and sausages will all be available from 9-12 in the Vestry Hall. (Plus ingredients for lunch and dinner too!)

Top Breakfast Facts:

• Research suggests that breakfast eaters have lower stress levels than breakfast skippers.
• People that start the day with a healthy breakfast are more likely to be within their ideal weight range than those who skip breakfast.
• You should have breakfast within two hours of waking to replenish energy stores after an overnight fast.

Producer Profile - Bake and Crafthouse

Name and Business Name:

Kate Alsanjak – Bake and Crafthouse

Short Description of the produce and business:

Bake and Crafthouse is based just on the edge of Cranbrook town centre and I offer an exciting selection of cooking and craft classes. For the farmers market I make and sell a range of delicious cakes using local and seasonal ingredients whenever possible. The cakes and deserts are also available to order from the Bake and Crafthouse and I also stock a range of handmade gifts at the workshop.

How long have you been selling at Cranbrook Farmer’s Market?

I have been selling at the farmers market for 3 months, the Bake and Crafthouse opened in September 2011.

The best thing about Cranbrook and the local area?

I love the wide range of independent shops in the high street and everyone has been really friendly and supportive since I opened. There are lots of exciting food enterprises around and I keep discovering new local producers and suppliers. I also love cherry season and this year I have rented a cherry tree for the year (just outside Northiam) so will be working on lots of new cherry recipes in the Summer.

Which other markets and fairs do you show at?

From February I will be selling a range of tarts and deserts at Penshurst Farmers Market, I also have shopping events at the Bake and Crafthouse premises from time to time.

What is your busiest time of year as a producer and why?

The busiest time is during the school holidays as I run lots of classes for children. They love to learn to bake and take home lots of delicious goodies and recipe cards.

Contact details, phone, website etc:

Telephone: 01580 388087

Email: kate@bakeandcrafthouse.com

Website: www.bakeandcrafthouse.com

Blog (with lots of receipes and workshop updates) www.bakeandcrafthouse.blogspot.com

Producer Profile - Wishfield Honey

Name and Business Name:

Matthew Noakes - Wishfield Honey

Tell us a bit about your produce and business:

I am based in Horsmonden and currently run about 40 hives, with a view to increasing. My main reason for keeping bees, is for the bees. I produce nucs (half a hive) of bees between April-June. During the rest of the year I make honey, lip balm, hand cream and polish and I am always looking into producing other bee related products such as candles.

How long have you been selling at Cranbrook Farmer's Market?

18 months.

What is the best thing about Cranbrook and the local area?

Cranbrook is an old market town and the Farmers Market is appropriate for it. The surrounding area also has several attractions as well as being a picturesque part of the Kent countryside.

Which other markets and fairs do you show at?

Aside from Cranbrook Farmers Market I also attend Horsmonden, Yalding and Penshurst Farmers Markets. I also sell at The Hospice in the Weald Summer and Winter Fairs, Finchcocks Spring Fair and a few others, time allowing!

What is your busiest time of year as a producer and why?

The busiest period for me is March-October as this is when the bees are at their most active. March-August I'm busy with the bees and September-October is harvest time followed by preparing everything for the winter.

Top tips for using honey & your favourite honey recipe:

At this time of year honey is excellent for coughs and colds and during the summer, it is good for allergies. I also use honey in cooking, as a subtle sweetener on chicken, duck and fish.

There are also several cakes which honey complements well. My favorite of these is a Deluxe Honey Fruit Cake, here is the recipe:-

DELUXE HONEY FRUIT CAKE

INGREDIENTS:

100g Honey
300g Self-raising Flour
125g Demerera Sugar
200g Butter
200g Mixed Fruit
25g Chopped Almonds
50g Chopped Glace Cherrys
4 Free Range Eggs
2 Tbsp Milk

METHOD:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 140 degrees C/ 275 degrees F/ Gas Mark 1 and grease and line your cake tin.

2. Put all the ingredients except the self-raising flour into a bowl and mix
thoroughly.

3. Once well mixed sift in the self-raising flour and again mix well.

4. Bake in the oven for about 1 hr 45 min and cool in the tin for 20 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.

This does make a large cake, but if stored in an airtight container it will keep well. Enjoy!

Contact details, phone, website etc:

Matthew Noakes
Tel:   01892 722682
Email:   mjn6@btconnect.com

Dates for 2012