New Market Hours!

We’ve received a lot of requests to adjust the market’s hours, and we saw the end of Daylight Savings as the perfect opportunity to roll them back.  The market is now open from 5:00 to 6:00 pm every Monday, giving you a little more daylight and more convenient hours to shop.  We’d also like to take this opportunity to remind you of the parking options here in the neighborhood.  We’ve had some issues with parking on Winter Park Road, just north of the market.  So we want to be sure no one gets a ticket!  The map below should help.  As always, please be courteous to our neighbors; don’t block driveways and obey all parking signage.  See you at the market!

Authentic Empanadas Brings A-Game Every Time

Last week we gave props to Nicole O. for being a superstar customer showing up in spite of the heavy winds, lightning, and downpour. This week, we’ll look at a vendor that set up shop amidst the torrential downpour with zero gripes given. All summer, Maury & Tanya, have been showing up week in, week out – rain or shine – quietly making some of the most delectable empanadas we’ve had. Branding is no-nonsense and neither is the food. The savory, deep flavor of the rice and beans matched with the cooked-to-perfection, crispy on the outside, gooey on the inside empanadas make for some clean plates. We caught up with the Authentic Empanadas crew on their drive to tonight’s market to get a little backstory on the magic behind their recipes, their business and their stellar attitudes, all of which make them such market troopers on the weekly.

Where do you and Maury hail from, how did you two meet?

Maury hails from the deep south, a small town called Hallsboro, NC, and I am from New Jersey. We both met in the heart of Manhattan, New York City. We met at work, while working for a large international marketing firm. That’s where the magic between us began.

When did you guys first get into the empanada business, and where do the recipes come from?

The empanada business began for us around 3 years ago. We have been making them for about 16 years. The education and love for making them stemmed from a family member from Venezuela that moved in with us for 10 years and taught us to cook every Latin dish you can imagine!  Empanadas was her specialty! We made lots of empanadas every day for the Latin community, for many many years. The recipe was handed to us under lock & key and is only known by 3 people. This recipe is from a woman who is half Puerto Rican and half Venezuelan, originally from Caracas, Venezuela.

You drive to a lot of different markets. What do you normally do on the ride over? What’s your go-to driving music?

Business plans, we have a 2 1/2 hour drive to the market, so it makes for some good quality husband and wife time. We talk a lot, mainly about different business strategies and new marketing plans. We coast along the highway listening to smooth jazz and old school R&B.

Your hot sauce recipe is pretty much bangin. Could you give us some backstory on it?

One of my Puerto Rican friends asked if we had a Guava and beef empanada. I told her no, but that got me thinking. I wanted to develop a sauce with guava and the recipe just came to me. We have been very blessed with how well our sauce is received within the community and the local markets. Our sauce is called GUA.P.O  y caliente.  The name of our sauce is an acronym for “Guava,  Peach, Orange juice, and habanero pepper. Our sauce is all natural, and gluten free. We are currently selling our sauce at local markets, festivals and online.

What do you like Audubon Park and the Monday night market?

It has a cool, eclectic vibe. It is a small but mighty market that people genuinely love to visit! The market management is very laid back and treats its vendors as partners and that really appeals to us. We love how the community really supports the market, and that’s really awesome. We so enjoy being able to see some of the same faces week after week. We have developed a very strong customer base there, and for that we are very grateful.

Thanks, Tanya & Maury, We’ll take one of everything!

How Market All-Star Nicole Weathered The Storm

 
A lot of folks thought setting up Farmers’ Market with the remnants of a hurricane just over the horizon was foolhardy. Even more folks decided to stay in last Monday when the storm surges brought an inordinate amount of rain to Central Florida. As you may have noticed, Audubon is a rain or shine kind of market, so major props to the vendors that show up despite the conditions. Even greater praise to the local food warriors, who brave the elements to get their groceries week in, week out.

Last Monday, well into the second hour of punching fast growing water pockets from tent tops, we were only a little surprised to see regular market customer, Nicole show up with her tote bag and perpetual smile. It reminded us why we put on the market , even in the face of impending tent destruction, so this week we decided to ask Nicole what brings her out to the market every week, hell or highwater.

Asking this in the nicest way possible: What were you thinking coming to the market last Monday?

I don’t usually check the weather forecasts [Our kind of gal!] so I had no idea of the imminent torrential downpour. When I left for the market it was just sprinkling, but there was no turning back since I must keep my little kefir grains alive. Richard [Heart of Christmas] is always there, rain or shine, and has some awesome raw dairy, cheese, and eggs! [For the uninitiated, kefir grains are used to make a fermented milk full of beneficial bacteria and yeast, providing a lot of good probiotics similar to kombucha.]

Was the trip worth it? It must have been a treacherous pass.

I’m always pleasantly surprised. My kefir grains aren’t the only ones that have to eat so it wouldn’t be too big of stretch to say going to the market is a matter of life and death [chuckles]...I do most of my grocery shopping at the market and Fresh 24.

What are your favorite items to pick up each week?

I love Enamored With Nature by Amanda Dumas, especially her fire cider, homemade vanilla extract, natural toothpaste, and deodorant…Love Lori’s local honey from St. Johns River Honey and of course Andrei’s coconuts at Natural Goodness. Michelle from Orenda Herbals is a relatively new, lovely face, and Dan always has amazing produce, but I haven’t seen him in a while.

Tonight, Labor Day! Come see what Nicole sees in our little collection of local food producers and artisanal makers. Market takes place from 6-10pm. We can all but assure you that it won’t be as wet as last week ;)

Ice Cream Sandwiches Made From Scratch

 

Our discovery of Midnight Sun Ice Cream Truck has us flying pretty high, above all the steamy temps and in the cool clouds of hand-made, quality treats. They are at the market tonight with Vanilla Bean ice cream in between double chocolate chip cookies, Rose pistachio ice cream with WA cherries on cardamom shortbread cookies, Lavender lemonade ice cream on shortbread cookies. The list goes on, and yes, it’s all just as breathtaking.

Here’s what you should know about Midnight Sun: 

They Do it Right: All of their ingredients are handmade with the exclusion of the flour (because they’re not trying to mill all day. They’ve quite a bit on their plate as it is).

They do use organic flour, local eggs and seasonal ingredients – currently they’re working with Heart of Christmas Organic Blueberries the results of which you will see tonight!

Crazy Fraiche: All baked goods are done just hours before service, ice cream is scooped and sandwiched to order.

Science Says: Their Monday Sundae is exclusive to the Audubon Park Farmers’ Market and intrinsically superior to a sundae consumed on a Sunday.

Running Down a Dream: Owners Levi & Jocelyn met in Gainesville, moved to San Diego working as the chef and manager of a Restaurant. Levi is a seasoned Chef/Pastry Chef from Alaska. Jocelyn’s a local gal hailing from Melbourne.

The Brand: It’s a reference to Levi’s birth state of Alaska which is known as the Land of the Midnight Sun (Days can be both exceptionally long and short over there, depending on the time of year). Alaska also boasts the highest per capita Ice Cream consumption in the U.S., who knew? The anvil on their logo represents the old-fashioned way of doing things. Given their efforts to make all-ingredients by hand from praline to vanilla extract to butterscotch to marshmallows and fudge, I think we can safely call them “iced-cream-smiths.”

In Their Own Words: “Ice cream has always been a
big part of our lives, both professionally and personally,” says Jocelyn.

“We are really proud of Orlando’s push for locally owned businesses and locally-produced food in particular…The Audubon Park Market is the
perfect representation of the great products and services produced locally and
it has been a favorite of ours for a while now. It feels great to be a part of it,
to be contributing to it.”

Don’t miss out on the Monday Night Magic in front of Stardust from 6-10pm!

Bamapana Vintage: Quality Threads Stand the Test of Time

 
Pickles and Blazers. That’s about it when it comes to old items for sale at Audubon Market. Everything else is as fresh as you can find – usually harvested days prior and/or made the day of. But hey –  don’t sweep those pickles and blazers beneath the rug. Just because they weren’t put to full use in their heyday, doesn’t mean they can’t be born anew under the watch of a careful, discerning eye.

Pickles, after all, are just vintage vegetables you bring to potlucks to one-up your friend who simply brought a cucumber salad with fresh tomatoes, salt, olive oil and balsamic vinegar – okay that sounds rad, too.

At any rate, the folks at Ozark Dreams have you covered in the pickle department – delicious local produce brined and aged to sweet, spicy perfection.

That’s taken care of – Now, who is curating the coolest old-school threads?

Peter Von Taborsky brings us Bamapana Vintage…

Where did the name come from?

It’s an Australian Demi-God of mischief. He was kicked out of his tribe for doing a bunch of horrible things, but he would just sneak back into the camp, wreak havoc and blame it on everyone else. In retrospect I probably should’ve thought of something else. But it was my email address since the 90’s so I just decided to keep it.

How did you get into clothing resale?

As far as selling. I had sold clothes since the 90’s, I would sell band T-shirts, stuff like that. It was a fun way to supplement income and then it kind of fell to the side. A couple years ago, my wife told me I need to get rid of some of the stuff. It was all super cool stuff. I started putting it up online, making semi-decent money. At the time I had a cleaning business that was starting to go south, because of the economy. So in the last year, I made more money with Bamapana than I ever did with my cleaning business. It’s something I love to do, even though I’m not getting rich.

What does wearing vintage clothing do for one’s confidence?

If you’re getting married tomorrow and you said you needed a suit. I would say go vintage. It’s close to fitting, and it doesn’t look like you bought it at the mall. You can bring it to a tailor and it’s going to fit you like a glove. You’re going to be bulletproof.

What has been your proudest moment as owner of Bamapana Vintage?

I picked up this suit that was green corduroy; It was from the 1970’s based on the research I did. It has a 5” lapel which was super huge. I sold it to a guy who was from Ireland and he moved to Sweden to get married. He wrote me an email, he was like, “I love this suit. My fiance loves it. It’s going to fit great. I’m getting married in it is there anyway you can sell me the tie that’s in the picture?” – The tie wasn’t for sale yet. I paid a quarter for the tie. So I wrote him back, ‘Tell you what: I’m going to give you the tie, it’s a wedding present and he wrote me the nicest letter back about how this is the suit he dreamed of getting married it in. [The tie was purchased around the corner at men’s store that was in the Fashion Square plaza. The original owner retired and sold it before he passed in ‘98] It hung there until I purchased it. Now it’s going to be in this guy’s wedding in Sweden. I LOVE that! It’s going to get a second life you know.

Is it being a vintage clothing aficionado, finding steals and letting them go?

I wanted to keep this Run DMC shirt. It’s shirt that I picked up recently; it was apart of a limited series, each included a lyric from, I wanna say, Run’s House? I would’ve definitely kept that, but this person in California really wanted it. A lot of the times I’ll see something and it just needs to be rescued… I love the fact that I can walk into a thrift store and drop a couple hundred bucks knowing that we’re going to get the money back. And I like the fact that something my wife was kind of leery of, she now thinks is fun. We love going out thrifting.

Audubon’s Hottest Give Us The Dish on Monday Night Magic

 
Sure there is a lot of glitz and glam surrounding local food systems, but we decided to move past that, dig a little deeper to learn about the nitty gritty that makes a good farmers’ market.  We thought, “Who better than the Celebs of Audubon to school us on local produce and authentic value-added product?” Read on to discover what gems bring these Audu-hotties out of the limelight and into the market huddle every Monday night from 6-10 pm in front of Stardust Video & Coffee.

Jason Seifer, Motivational Speaker/Social Media Rockstar.

What Does the Market Offer That Keeps You Coming Back Each Week?
Milk, cheese, fish tacos, companionship [editor’s note: Fish Tacos are happening tonight, companionship every night.]
Using the Audubon Park Garden District acronym (APGD), four words that best describe the Monday market?
Audubon People (are) Generally Delightful ; Or All Puns Garner Discontent

Ivy Assiter, Audubon’s Food Wunderkind, works on the weekends, a fact which more or less explains a propensity for having the club goin up on a Tuesday.

What are your go-to items at the market?

Order of Tanta-lizing fish tacos to split with my main squeeze.
Star Juice’s watermelon and mint juice.

The delicious sorcery that is Buttermilk Bakery – ESPECIALLY POP TARTS. (They know their way around some baked goods).

What is the first food you ate in your life?

I want to say carrots, but it was probably Bananas. Or Taco Bell.

Sarah Robinson, Pastor of Audubon Park Covenant Church
Favorite things about the Monday Market, which takes place from 6-10 pm?

Fresh veggies, the Heartsong Natural Soap, St. John River Honey, Isle of Salsa chimichurri sauce, Smiling Bison when they come out [monthly]... and the atmosphere!

Erica Abalos-Hernandez, (A new Mom!) First Lady of Redlight Redlight Craft Beer Parlour

[editor’s note: the following was delivered via text message while Erica fed the baby, meaning she is a multi-tasking boss. And she listens to Tupac, FTW.]

We’re big fans of the fresh fish of Wild Ocean. Also, we always make sure to have royal reds or rock shrimp on hand to spice up any weeknite meal. We’ll grab whatever greens are available for juicing or salads from any of the great growers. Everything always looks so appealing and fresh.

I love the bagels from Orlando Bread, and because I cannot resist sweets, Buttermilk Bakery’s berry pop tarts and the brownies from Flour Life are wondrous.

Yuri Gama, Academic, Urban Studies.

Why Are Farmers’ Markets Important to the community?

First of all, farmers markets are important because it empowers local commerce and neighborhoods due to its visibility. Secondly, they function as public hubs that strengthen a network among dwellers of the region. And third, they have the power of providing healthy food and products that generally we don’t find in corporate markets.

Which grocery items do you like to check off your list at the Audubon Community Market?

I like the diversity of products, and the music attractions. I like that Buttermilk Bakery, the coconut water, and the Orlando compost company.

Check out Yuri’s presentation on the Mid-20th century construction of I-4 and the subsequent relegation of Orlando’s African-American community to the Parramore District. Tuesday, July 28th, Juice Bike HQ. 6:30 pm

Farm-haus Meals are Going Fast!

 

We’ve enjoyed watching Farm-Haus blossom over the past few months and we’re lucky to have them at the Audubon Community Market. They’ve created such a demand for their quality meal delivery service, spearheading the Fast-Slow Food model, they’ve expanded to 6 Districts in the Orlando area, now including Winter Park and Downtown.

While the Audubon Market is their Monday pre-order, pick-up location, you can also purchase Farm-Haus meals on the spot while shopping with us for your weekly groceries.
Their Meatless Mondays are a hit and a much-needed respite from the carnivorous weekends we sometime indulge in. Not to say these veggie meals aren’t delicious. Chefs Julian De Garden and Mike Garcia, both with a great culinary pedigree in the Orlando Restaurant scene, take quality – often local – ingredients to the next level.

Tonight they’ll have Double Portabello Mushroom Burger topped with havarti cheese, garlic aioli and a side of herbed potato salad.

Good food all around, ready to eat or ready to prep. Come Market with us tonight! Check the Farm-Haus menu for the rest of the week above.

All of the Sweetness, None of the Sugar

 
At the Audubon Community Market we don’t like to rely on sales gimmicks. High Quality, Naturally-Grown Local Produce should speak for itself. It’s another story, however, when nature brings the sleight of hand. For the uninitiated, Synsepalum Dulcificum, when first introduced under its more common name Miracle Fruit, sounds like the person describing it to you is giving you the business.

“So if I eat this berry, it’s going to turn sour things sweet? Thanks, Willy Wonka, but I’ll buy a bushel-full next week,” one might say in a tone laced with 90’s sarcasm.

Then the skeptics try it and within moments of letting the fruits juices coat the tongue, discover a world of pure imagination. Lemons, Greek Yogurt, Pickles, Sour beers all put on a candy sweet mask. How does it happen? It’s not the result of some mind-altering drug (though some foodies are getting together for “flavor-tripping” experiences that pair the miracle fruit with sour foods). This berry native to West Africa induces a small switch in perception in the signals the tastebuds send to the brain all because of the pulp’s naturally-occurring active ingredient – aptly named Miraculin.

Miraculin binds with the molecules which act as sour receptors in your tastebuds, building a little bridge that bypasses the bitterness and places you safely in Sugartown. Some conspiracy theorists will tell you its ability to mimic sweetness is so effective, Miraculin’s use for large-scale production was allegedly squashed in the 1970’s by the dominant sugar companies of the day. Some folks found out how to extract Miracle Fruit’s Miraculin and use it for large-scale production (though its effects weren’t as strong those found in whole, fresh fruit form). Just prior to approval, FDA required miraculin be categorized as an additive rather than a simple food stuff which would require years of further testing and money that miraculin backers did not have. Efforts to find out why the sudden obstacle appeared also ran into trouble. Requested reports related to the Miraculin proposal obtained through from Freedom of Information Act revealed missing documents, blackouts and redacted information. Pretty shifty stuff that undoubtedly left a sour taste in the mouths of miraculin proponents.

All of the chicanery, however, doesn’t mean we in central Florida can’t enjoy the actual berries for ourselves today! Lucky for the Audubon Market the Emerald Knight, for just a couple more weeks has some miracle fruit from his own crop. Get them tonight from 6-10pm in front of Stardust – Rain or Shine – and experience this natural fruit fun for the whole family!

Local Food Boxes Delivered to Your Door

 
America is the land of the supermarket. At Audubon Community Market we’re all about making your trips to those behemoths and their sun-scorched parking lots less frequent and with lighter loads. It’s common in other developed countries to grab just a couple days worth of items on the way home from work, or in between errands, so why can’t we?

If the hassle of carrying over ten pounds of grocery from the market has proven cumbersome, or if you don’t want to make a grocery trip every three days, Audubon vendor MyYardFarm, the maker of edible landscapes and distributor of local food, brings you MyFoodBoxes – quite literally.

All you have to do is place your order every Monday while shopping or just hanging out at the Audubon Community Market. On Friday you will receive a food box at your doorstep or you can choose to pick up in Winter Park (520 Clay Street, Winter Park FL 32789).

Food Boxes can accommodate a complete diet with over 7lbs of local produce plus proteins such as all-natural bacon and grass-fed beef, Raw Dairy, Lettuce and Microgreens. Boxes range from $60-$95.

The basic vegetarian Mega Staples Box is $60 with over 7 lbs of seasonal local produce. Following is what you’ll find in this week’s box, delivered on July 10th.

Hydroponic, Organically Grown: Butter Bibb Lettuce Assorted Local Seasonal Produce:  This Week, July 10th – Tomatoes, Yellow Squash, Zucchini, Bell Peppers, Sweet Cubanelle Peppers, Cucumbers & Pickling Cucumbers, Eggplant, Non-GMO Corn, Green Beans My Yard Farm Micro Greens Mix – 4 Oz Bag Lake Meadow Naturals Farm Eggs, Dozen. (No Antibiotics or Hormones) Grass Fed Raw Milk, 1/2 Gallon – Natural Springs Dairy (Pet Consumption Only) Grass Fed Raw Butter, 8 0z. – Natural Springs Dairy

Homes within a five mile radius of My Yard Farm location in Winter Park receive delivery free of charge. Those outside this zone will pay a nominal fee. Ask My Yard Farm crew for further details and information on weekly subscriptions.

Produce also available for purchase on the spot tonight from 6-10pm in front of Stardust.

Wrest yourself from the grips of the supermarket today!

Fourth of July Shopping List

 
Fourth of July is THIS SATURDAY everyone! Make your celebrations of the highest quality with local ingredients and be careful who you give the fireworks to. Take a look at the list below for culinary inspiration.  These Audubon Market vendors have you covered.

Be safe this weekend and Be kind to your body always. Check us out tonight, the storms will be done by 6pm, and after that it will be a cool, breezy market until 10pm!

Ozark Dreams – spicy dills, salsas and spreads, these pickles made from local produce are amazing and a must-have at your BBQ.

Wild Ocean Seafood – Seatrout, Mullet, Royal Reds, and Smoked Fish Dip. Cinthia has all of the cooking tips to make dishes your friends will never forget. Ceviche recipe here.

Buttermilk Bakery  – Amazing pastries like their artisanal pop-tarts. Their blueberry jam recipe should come in handy.

You’re going to be grilling, a sharp knife is crucial. Chef’s Edge has you covered.

My Yard Farm has Lake Meadow Naturals Eggs. These eggs in Deviled form will crush all opponents.