Hawkesbury Harvest Farmers And Fine Food Market - Castle Hill

This weekend just past marks my first ever visit to a real-life farmers' markets. It was very exciting indeed.

I'm not a morning person. Really I'm not. On numerous times I've campaigned  to be allowed to become nocturnal, but it just won't fly. It was, however, with great gusto that I leapt out of bed on Saturday morning, at a time beginning with a single digit no less, and reminded husband that he was taking me to the Hawkesbury Harvest Farmers' and Fine Food Market in Castle Hill.

There was a mixture of fresh produce, hot food, as well as meats, cheeses, breads and jams; I felt like the kid in the proverbial candy-store!

We ended up taking home a tub of lemon myrtle youghurt, which is the nicest I've ever tasted. I'm not normally a youghurt fan (I always associate it with the over-sweet supermarket variety), but I could eat a whole tub of the stuff!
We also picked up some perfect brahman apples: crispy and fresh, not at all floury, and perfectly tart.

Apples were $6 a bag (about a kilo)

Husband had a delicious honey and port cured bacon (he won't eat eggs) roll for his breakfast, which was gone in seconds. He loves his bacon, but this was a real treat.

Honey and port cured bacon and egg roll $6

I ended up [reluctantly] dragging myself away from the poffertjes and having a fresh-cooked vegetarian (spinach and fetta) gozleme, yum!

Gozleme $8

The markets definitely weren't cheap, and while I'm not likely to change my shopping habits around them, it was a nice day out, with a good friendly family vibe.

The markets are held at Castle Hill Showground on the second Saturday of every month, from 8am - 1pm. When we arrived around 11 it was busy but not crowded, with plenty of (free!) parking. It was a beautiful sunny morning; the mood was relaxed and cheerful, and the fresh (and at times unusual) produce was beautiful and bountiful. I'd never seen purple or black potatoes before Saturday!

If you're headed in, give yourself an hour or two to relax, walk around and enjoy something delicious for breakfast. I'd suggest taking a bag for any delicious goodies you pick up along the way!

Contact/Get There:

Castle Hill: Farmers & Fine Food Market
Castle Hill Showground Castle Hill, enter via Carrington Road.

Starts 8:00am, 2nd Saturday each month, except January

May - Sat 9th
July - Sat 11th
June - Sat 13th

http://www.hawkesburyharvest.com.au/

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NOTE:

My clever Mum just sent me a link to the Australian Farmers' Markets Association Market Finder, also. Clever lady - no excuse for missing them now!

Parklea Markets

Trips to Parklea Markets for our weekly fruit and veg used to be the norm in our household, but busy schedules and hubby's shift work has made this weekly ritual (as well as just basic grocery shopping) a bit erratic.

This weekend, having the time off together was lovely, and a trip to Parklea Markets was a nice treat, too. A quick trip for fresh veg ended up becoming a few hours very fast!

First treat of the day was corn on the cob. Fresh and sweet corn, brushed with butter and sprinkled with salt. It was THE juiciest corn I've ever tasted and at $3 was a pretty awesome breakfast!

We picked up a (big) parsley plant and a potted strawberry for $3 a piece to replace some recent fatalities in our garden, and the parsley quickly found its way into my chicken stock on arrival home.

I would say Saturday morning is the best time to to pick up your fruit and veg from the market, as you're getting the first pick, but we got there in the afternoon to a great choice. There are 3 large fruit and veg places right next to each other. If the apples in one look a little sorry, just move on to the next. Together, they have a great choice available, but we often end up in the last one along, which is the largest.

10 Poffertjes - $6

With our groceries out of the way, and at a saving of $20, we had a wander round, and came to the Dutch Poffertjes House. I'd first encountered these coin sized Dutch pancakes last year at the Aroma Festival in the rocks, and they didn't last long!

We sat down and shared 10 of them, with a milkshake each, and it was a lovely sweet end to the day!

I can tell you it's going to become a regular trip now, after our weekly fruit and veg bill dropped from $30-$40 to a staggering $17. I can't recommend market shopping enough: it was a great day out for both of us, and the saving on the hip pocket was lovely.

Parklea Markets are Open 8:30am to 4:30pm Saturday, Sunday and Public Holiday Mondays. The earlier in the morning the better, and quieter. Just be prepared for big crowds and lots of prams. Remember to wear comfy shoes!

Contact

601 Sunnyholt Rd, Parklea, NSW (Australia)

http://www.parkleamarkets.com.au/

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