UK Nutrition Education, Gray Street Farmers Market to co-host ‘Recipe Sampling Days’
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 21, 2023) — The Gray Street Farmers Market (GSFM) in Louisville is hosting Market Recipe Sampling Days.
Starting this month, the community is invited to join local farmers to sample customary recipes featuring locally grown produce, and discover how to use water spinach, cow peas, enoki mushrooms and other produce from traditional Somalian and Myanmar recipes.
GSFM works with the University of Kentucky Nutrition Education Program, housed at the University of Kentucky Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment, to take common meals from the farmers' country of origin and create recipes that are healthy and accessible by using locally available produce.
The goal of the market is to increase access to fresh, locally grown food in downtown Louisville, where food access and food insecurity are major problems in Louisville.
"Healthy eating is an important to everyone and we are excited to partner with GSFM and Common Earth Gardens to showcase how diverse cultures prepare healthy meals," said Bethany Pratt, senior extension associate with the Kentucky Nutrition Education Program.
Common Earth Gardens (CEG) collaborates within Kentucky's diverse and multicultural communities to increase land access to grow food, develop new farm businesses, and build healthy community networks. A key aspect of CEG's work is supporting farmers with international farming experience to adapt their agricultural knowledge and traditions to Kentucky's climate and then sell their food via local farmers' markets.
"We're excited to have this opportunity to showcase our farmers and their produce, and these recipes that highlight healthy meals from our farmers' country of origin," said Melissa Schreck, Market co-manager at GSFM.
Schreck adds, "The GSFM has been in operation since 2009 as an outreach program of the UofL School of Public Health and Information Sciences. The market also partners with the Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness. We had a few years off due to COVID (2020, 2021) and started up last year with a monthly market. This year, we are back to a weekly market due to our new collaboration with Common Earth Gardens."
Sampling will take place during market hours of 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. on the following days:
- Aug. 10, Water Spinach & Mushroom Stir Fry. Kachin Farm selling water spinach and garlic
- Aug. 24, Cooked Greens. Bakar Family Farm selling onion and collards
- Sept. 21, Rice & Beans. Bakar Family Farm selling cow peas
- Sept. 28, Cow Pea Curry. Bakar Family Farm selling cow peas, onion and potatoes
- Oct. 19, Soft Sugar Squash. Bakar Family Farm selling butternut squash
The Gray Street Farmers Market is open every Thursday from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. through Oct. 26 and is located at the 500 Block of E. Gray Street in Louisville, Kentucky.
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