The Tale of the Mac & Cheese

Grinnell Farmers Market shopper,

Recently, a Farmers Market shopper told a staffer that they haven’t had a home-cooked meal in over a month.

That’s right, Market shopper — over a month.

As she stirred her third frozen macaroni and cheese meal of the week, she felt her body physically cringe. Right then and there, she thought, “Enough.”

She grabbed some vegetables at Market, stir-fried them in some light oil, and tossed in some seasonings for fun.

Instead of her stomach twisting in agony over the thought of a fourth mac and cheese meal, it settled down like a gently flowing lake. Mentally, she said, she felt lighter — and she could swear she felt the nutrients and vitamins circulate throughout her body.

It’s wondrous what a side of vegetables can do, isn’t it?

So, Farmers Market shopper, if you’re stuck in a cycle of frozen macaroni and cheese meals, don’t worry. The Grinnell Farmers Market is open when you need it.

Savor the season! 🌱

In This Newsletter:

• Announcements
• The Tale of the Hearty Frittata: A Market Recipe
• You Heard It Here First! Upcoming Market Events
• Learn to Cook with the Grinnell Farmers Market, Part 2
• Sponsor Recognitions
• Part-Time Vendors Coming to Market

Celebrate National Farmers Market Week With Us!

In honor of National Farmers Market Week, the Grinnell Farmers Market is organizing their second Biggest/Weirdest/Funnest Fruit and Vegetable Competition on Aug. 6, from 3-6 PM.

Community members: submit your own vegetables and fruit OR vote your favorite one! There will be winners for each category, announced at 5:30 PM.

Due to an emergency, Lani's Music will not be performing at Market on Thursday, Aug. 6 as originally planned. She will perform on a future date, TBD. Meanwhile, please join our farmers and Market for our second year of the biggest/weirdest/funnest vegetable and fruit competition!

Senior Farmers Market Vouchers Available

Older Iowans have time to apply for Senior Farmers Market vouchers through Northeast Iowa Area Agency on Aging. These can be used at the Grinnell Farmers Market through Oct. 31.

To apply for vouchers, visit https://nei3a.org/our-services/farmers-market-vouchers/ or call NEI3A at 1-800-779-8707.

To be eligible for this program, participants must be older than 60; have a pre-tax income of $29,526 for a household of one or $40,034 for a household of two.

Each eligible participant receives 10 vouchers valued at $50 total. (Available once a year.)

Feedback Requested: Customer Survey

What would you like to see at Market? Tell us what inspires you to shop with us, which times you prefer, and how you prefer to get news from us in our 2026 Farmers Market Customer Survey. Help us make the Market season better mid-season!

Start A Market Loyalty Punch Card!

Enter our monthly Grinnell Farmers Market giveaways with a completed Loyalty punch card. With each Market purchase, a vendor can sign off a slot on your punch card. With 10 purchases marked on your punch card, you are automatically submitted to win a basket of Farmers Market goodies, including baked goods, produce, and more! Collect a punch card with our market team at the corner of 4th Ave. and Broad Street.

Bacon, Bell Pepper, and Goat’s Cheese Frittata

Ingredients:

• Diced shoulder bacon or side bacon — from Compass Plant CSA
• 2-3 bell peppers — from Olson Garden Market, B&J Vegetables, and more
• 8-12 eggs — from Compass Plant CSA and Country Variety
• Fresh basil — from Olson Garden Market
• Green onions — from Olson Garden Market & B&J Vegetables
• Optional: Additional vegetables, like eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes

Extra ingredients to buy at the local grocery store:

• Feta cheese
• Parmesan cheese

Instructions:

• First, prepare your vegetables. Have sliced bell peppers (any color) ready in hand, as well as any other vegetables you decided to include. Make sure to slice your green onions and basil into strips at this point, too.
• In a bowl, whisk together 8-12 eggs, depending on how high you’d like your frittata to be. Add a generous grated or pre-shredded amount of parmesan cheese and season with black pepper. (The parmesan salts the eggs!) Set aside for now.
• Preheat your oven to 375°F.
• Grab a 9.5 inch (oven-safe) pan with sloping sides and turn up your heat to high. Toss in sliced bits of bacon and season with black pepper. You should hear the sizzle!
• Add your sliced bell peppers first, since they take the longest time to cook — and depending on if you bought smaller, curly eggplants or your typical large eggplant, you might have to toss in your eggplant in before the bell pepper. Lower your heat to medium here.
• Add your optional zucchini after a few minutes. After that cooks and softens after a few minutes, add your sliced tomatoes.
• Add your sliced green onions and cook for a 1-2 minutes.
• Add sliced basil leaves and cook for another one more minute.
• Add slices of goat’s cheese all over the pan.
• Afterward, pour your egg mixture into the pan and grab your spoon to stir in the middle of the pan. Lower the heat of the pan to be low. Clean up the sides with your spoon and make sure you stir it a bit to prevent the egg from burning to the bottom.
• Season the top of the frittata with more parmesan cheese.
• Pop your pan into the oven for 40-45 minutes, or whenever your knife can stick in the frittata and it comes out clean.
• Enjoy and savor every bite!

Upcoming Market Events

Tips for Cooking Your Market Vegetables, Part 2

Did you try last week’s cooking tips? Tell us how it went and get entered to win a Farmers Market giveaway! In the meantime, here are some more tips:

Caramelize Your Veggies!

🌱 If you are like us and want to cook vegetables with minimal supervision, use the oven! Dry heat caramelizes your veggies, which means more flavor!

Start your oven at about 375-400°F and season your vegetables with seasonings of your choice. Salt and pepper is a good start, and you can add smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, a drizzle of oil, and minced garlic if you are feeling fancy. This is great for cauliflower, zucchini, and other Market vegetables. You can leave it in the oven for 10-12 minutes, or whenever you feel its soft/crunchy enough to remove.

Properly Salt Your Greens

🌱 Add salt after cooking your leafy greens. 


Why? Adding salt early means excess water will be released, which then means you’ll be eating an especially soggy dish!

Check Out Our Line Up:

Thursday, August 6

• Hannah’s Crafts & Crazy Hartz Blooms

Purchase crochet products, scrunchies, coasters, keychains; or wrapped bouquets and flower arrangements in jars!

Saturday, August 8

• Personalized Pages & MoSips & Vonstein Floral

Purchase homemade activity books, lemonades, fresh flower bouquets, floral arrangements, and single stems/floral bunches.

Thursday, August 13

• Crazy Hartz Blooms

Purchase fresh flowers of all colors — see the different kinds offered in the picture below!

Savor the Season!

This Grinnell Farmers Market newsletter is brought to you by Grinnell Mutual and organized by the Grinnell Area Chamber of Commerce.