Beautiful, hardy, affordable, savory, sweet, delicious, decorative-- and now, adorable! The little beauties below are called honeynut squash and they are the baby cousins of the much beloved butternut squash. All the same loveliness, half the size! But butternuts and honeynuts are just a few of the winter squash varieties you'll find at your farmers market in September and October--- acorn squash, pie pumpkins, hubbard squash, kabochas, delicatas, and buttercups will all be g

The fourth installment of the Local Flavors farm-to-table dinner series, now in its 10th season, will take place on Thursday, September 21st. The series highlights locally-owned restaurants in Springfield, Peoria, Champaign-Urbana, and Bloomington-Normal with a commitment to sourcing from central Illinois farmers. The series also provides central Illinois residents with the opportunity to experience a farm-fresh meal featuring the true flavors of Illinois while also supportin

When you stumble upon beautiful peppers that look like THIS at your farmers market, you plan every meal for the next week around them-- you just do! This stunning photo was taken at Small Axe Market Gardens at the Old Capitol Farmers Market in Springfield. Those beets are looking fab too, but as a root vegetable, they'll be hanging around for a while. Peppers though, you've got to get them while their hot. Photo from Small Axe Market Gardens This week's meal plan is all about

One vegetable starring in three different dishes! I have to admit, I haven't always been an eggplant fan. I liked it at restaurants, but I could never cook it quite right at home. My eggplant parm always turned out watery, my grilled eggplants rubbery, my sauteed eggplants mushy. But eggplant has so many redeeming qualities-- it's hearty and meaty, but much more affordable than meat if you're on a budget, plus it's low in calories and high in fiber, making it a wholesome opti

Check it out! Illinois Stewardship Alliance has partnered with Copper Pot Cooking Studio to bring Farmers Market Meal Kits to the Old Capitol Farmers Market in downtown Springfield. The kits, in the style of Blue Apron, Sun Basket, and other popular meal kit delivery services, will feature perfectly-portioned, fresh, seasonal ingredients with a simple recipe; however, unlike the competition, all of the ingredients will be sourced locally from Central Illinois farmers. This me