MARKET NEWS
Many thanks to all our loyal clients who braved the weather at the end of January and continued to support us. That was a lot of rain!
Easter Market – at Easter weekend the Hastings Farmer’s Market will be held on two days – Easter Sunday and Easter Monday.

Weekly Shop
Look for late varieties of peaches and plums, new season’s apples, sweetcorn, lettuce, tomatoes,beans, zucchini and eggplants – all available from various stalls around the market. Orange beetroot from Krismaw’s, Rock melons from GF Gardens, Real Italian Gelato from Gelato, Tearolls and olive foccacia from Harald’s Breadworld.
Do sample the wares as you wander around and if you’re not too sure about what’s on offer, please ask the vendor. Our vendors are passionate about what they grow, make and sell.

This week’s sponsor is Our Verry Best Beef
Hilton and Cilla Verry sell a wide range of beef products at their stall, from fillet steak right through to meatballs.
This week they are running a special offer on
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Corned Beef and Bolar Roasts
$4 off the marked price while stocks last
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This is a fantastic offer. Furthermore, Hilton and Cilla usually sell out when running these specials, so be in quick.
If you are not sure how to prepare any of the Verry Best products, just ask Hilton or Cilla.
They have somereally creative ideas for meat dishes. Verry Best Beef also sells free range eggs.

Food of the Week - Oyster Mushrooms
Oyster mushrooms are a type of edible mushroom that are commonly found in Asian cooking, but are used all over the world. The oyster mushroom is named so because of the shape of its cap, and also, funnily enough, because it has a taste similar to the flavour of
an oyster. Oyster mushrooms can grow in many places. They like to grow on trees, as they are decomposers of wood, but can grow in
several other places. Eating oyster mushrooms has several health benefits. They are known for their ability to lower cholesterol levels, and can also help if you are anaemic. They can also be used as a good “diet food”, as they are low in sodium, potassium, starch, and fat. Oyster mushrooms can be eaten both raw and cooked – when cooked, they can be served on their own, in a soup, or in a stir-fry, among many other ways. Get creative!

Bits and Bobs...
As I sloshed around the market in all the rain on that last day in January, I felt a connection to all the many generations of market-goers that have gone before us. The food had to be sold and the food had to be bought. No wimpering off when the weather got a bit sticky.
Just think, before supermarkets and corner stores were invented, this is how it always was. No wonder our forebears invented such wonderful things as covered markets!
Our market newsletter has been going a whole year now, and we got tired of the old format. What do you think of the new one?
Finally, Emma, our market manager, has returned from maternity leave. Welcome back Emma!