Tour of the Markets-Haymaker Farmers Market, Kent, OH
While the beautiful scenery, paintings and sound of the train are great attractions during the summer, this market is open year-round for all of your local shopping (indoor December through March)! Proudly claiming Portage County’s oldest producer only farmers market, the atmosphere was every bit what you would expect it to be!
Driving into town, home of Kent State University, I was immediately reminded of my college days…coffee shops, outdoor dining…and the side of a curb being ideal parking. Kent did a fantastic job of orchestrating parking, but be prepared to come a bit early, as the market is in the heart of college town.
Walking in, luckily I was greeted with bigger items (should I need to head back to my car!), with plants of all kinds. Despite getting further into the season, many starters were still available.
While mushrooms are often found at markets, I have to give a shout out to this vendor-I was amazed at the sheer volume of their inventory! Box after box was unloaded throughout the entire time I walked the market.
At this point in the season (I’ll steer clear of state of the economy insert), we are starting to see some supply strains with eggs, so seeing an abundance here was a welcomed treat!
Instead of booths boasting a few types of offerings, this market showcased full farming operations with the whole spectrum of goods from produce to canned options!
There were so many creative goodies, far beyond what I am use to seeing at markets-here being many varieties of homemade granola.
Always a nice complement to the season’s harvest to have locally grown herbs and spices to cook with!
Greens and herbs were in full bloom, and were definitely a hot commodity and did not last too long with this crowd!
Some of the growers use outdoor and indoor options, which provide a beautiful array of greens throughout the season.
Out of respect, I try to not include faces often, but few things embrace the feeling of a farmers market quite like a family of young girls picking out their perfect flower bouquet!
Iconic to this market, the bridge in the center of the strip was covered in a gorgeous mural!
Given the size, this was tough to capture, but spanned the entire width of the bridge on both sides.
And provided the perfect setting for our musical entertainment!
For size, this is the other half of the market, coming out from under the bridge. I was amazed at the amount of booths present here!
The produce did not disappoint! Absolutely overflowing booths and gigantic cabbage were available to show you the season is here!
I love creativity in all things, and heirloom tomatoes are nature’s perfect example of that 🙂
Of course I am completely biased here, but I find garlic to be the ingredient for…everything! Great to see this in abundance.
The colorful root veggies were present in all forms and in great quantities.
The carrots were here to say hi! Don’t forget to check out some great experiments I have done with the tops-the carrot green is a surprisingly delicious green to cook with!
Rounding out our produce for the day are the aromatic friends that bring most recipes together!
Before you head home, you might want to stop by this absolutely fantastic looking coffee truck!
As I left the market, bag in tow, I strolled along the railroad tracks to explore a bit, taking a pause in this welcoming gazebo.
The train station is a great landmark right next to the market, and a great place to reconvene at the Over Easy café.
Looking back, this was a very picturesque morning along the town’s edge. But I couldn’t help but hear more behind me…
If you need a little more out of your morning, join an outdoor yoga class just down the road!
Music was starting heard from the town center, as preparation was made for Heritage Fest. If you make the drive to Kent, OH, I would encourage you to check their event calendar, as they often have other events happening in the same area!
This festival was a great added bonus! The streets were packed and likely a large contributor to any hurdle I had with parking.
With live music and food for miles, this easily became a fun and unexpected full day in Kent!
At this point in the season, you may see some of my market bag trips overflowing with produce while other weeks are only a few ingredients. This is not indicative of the market at all, but likely due to how many I’ve visited that week. I was coming off of a full week of quite an abundance, so wanted to zero in on zucchini and round out the remaining produce at home. As always, a much appreciated carton of eggs makes in in my cart whenever they are available. If you try out any of these creation, I’d love to hear from you!
Roasted Zucchini Salad with Spicy Soy and Bacon
Chili Zucchini Chips with Smoky Aioli
This market took me by surprise! I was not sure what I was walking into when I drove in, but hearing music from the morning yoga class, music from the festival, smells of food trucks everywhere, and the amount of booths-wow! Well done Kent! The permanent shops located around this area were also worth exploring, so I would suggest adding some time any day that you come to take in the full experience!
If you haven’t been following along, this is a part of the Tour of the Market series that I started in the summer of 2022, as a way to explore various farmers markets and try cooking with the local and seasonal offerings that they provide. I’d love to have you follow along with me as I continue this journey! Check out the past tours here.
You can also catch the recipes as they are published by liking and following Goddess of Garlic via Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest! If you’d like to see video tours, many of these are also available on TikTok.
Thanks again for tagging along on this journey!
Hannah (your fearless culinary visionnaire)
