The market is open every Sunday from 8:30am - 12:30pm
From May 4 - October 26, 2008
We've got these super special events planned for the season, too!
----SEPT----
September 7 - Fourth Annual Harvest Festival
Great foods to celebrate the 2008 summer bounty!!!
For sale:
High Cliff Camp Chili, Arizona Veggie Chili, Corned Beef Hash & Scrambled Eggs. 9:30am to Noon.
Music by "OLD COOL" - a fun group who performed at the winter market and earlier this season. 11am-noon.
September 14 - Grand Finale Cookoff
NORTHSIDE FARMERS MARKET WINNERS vs. THE POLITICIANS in a SOUP OR SALAD & SANDWICH COOK-OFF!!!!!
Winners of our three contests (2007's One Pot Cook-Off, 2008's Hamburger Cook-Off and 2008's Salad Cook-Off) compete against each other and some of Madison's political figures in this finale. Who will reign supreme?
Team NFM WINNERS: Valerie Holden, Tia Marshall, and Mike Basford.
Team POLITICIANS: Satya Rhodes-Conway, Dorothy Wheeler, plus one "ringer" after the primaries.
JUDGES: WE THE PEOPLE. Starting at 10:30 to noon, the public can buy 2 tickets for $1. The tickets buy a sample of a soup or salad and a sandwich sample. The team with the most tickets wins.
Rules? Yep, just like the Politicians, we can not say anything in phrases of less than 5 words. This is going to be a long, loong, looong set of rules! Please email nfmmanager@yahoo.com for rules or click here for the official rules dated August 19, 2008.
September 21 - Wellness Day
Hosted by the
Dane County Timebank.
Free chair massage, yoga, blood pressure tests, advice on navigating the medical system, nutrition, fitness, and more! All at the Farmers' Market where you can stock up on healthy local foods. Be there!
----OCT----
October 5 - Italian Day
Celebrate National Italian American Heritage Month
Live Entertainment! Dancing throughout the Market by Italian Folk Dancers of Madison. 10:30 to 11:45am. The dances from Sicily include the Old Tarantella, Montevirgine, Peppinella, Neapolitan, Quadrille, Bella Sardo and the Cavalieri.
Specialty Foods for sale from Benvenutos, Cafe la Bellitalia, and Rossario's. Spaghetti Board party! Sit down to a huge Spaghetti and Meatball Dinner with your own group. Served on a board, at your own private table by expert Italian wait staff. Reservations required, groups of 4 or more, please. Only $6 per person, plus tips for our Italian Lady Servers. Email your reservation to Dale at nfmmanager@yahoo.com.
October 12 - "THE SECOND ANNUAL ONE POT COOK OFF"
AN OPEN CONTEST FOR ANYONE WISHING TO ENTER.
Must be able to finish and serve from one pot - any Stew, Soup, Chili, Gumbo, or other
edible entre using propane or charcoal stoves.
Must use at least 3 ingredients sold at the Market.
Cash prizes for People's Choice and Market Judges
Public sampling from 11:05 am - noon. Prizes awarded at noon.
Space is limited. Entry fee TBA. To enter, call (608) 217-9631 or email the Market Manager at nfmmanager@yahoo.com.
Specific rules for Safe Food Handling will be provided.
Who won last year? What was served? Find out here!
October 26 - Last Outdoor Market of the Season
--------------------PAST EVENTS FROM 2008--------------------
----MAY----
May 4 - OPENING DAY and CINCO DE MAYO OBSERVANCE
We'll be celebrating Hispanic culture in observance of Cinco de Mayo.
Live Entertainment and Hispanic Foods for Sale!
NUEVA CANCION instrumentalists, singers, and dancers will familiarize audiences with the rich musical traditions of the Americas. Music performed in Spanish and Portuguese. Performing current and timeless folk music from all over Latin America. The group of about twelve people started in May 2006 and are striving to teach others including youngsters to sing and play. Recent performances include Art Fair on the Square, Atwood Summerfest, and the UW's World Music Festival.
visit their website
10:00am-noon
Traditional foods for sale from local Mexican cooks and families: Posole stew, Tortas, and Salsas.
EL CORRAL RESTAURANT will offer some of their signature dishes such as Cerdo al horno con frejol negro y arroz amarillo (Baked Pork with Black Beans and Rice), Tres Leches (Vanilla Cake), and Flan.
10:30am Salsa making and tasting contest.
11:00am Kids! Come on down and break the Pinatas!
May 11 - Mother's Day Special Event - Seedling Exchange
Hosted by the
Dane County Timebank.
10:00am-noon Bring your healthy perennial divisions, vegetable seedlings, bulbs, houseplants, seeds, etc. to trade for other seedlings or sell for time dollars. Please label them with your name and the name of the plant. Stay for a while or just drop off your plants. Most plants will be worth .25 or .5 time dollars. Everyone is welcome to exchange plants. Questions? Contact Emily Steinwehe or call 442-7268.
June 8 - Guest Chef and Fun Farm Animals!
11:00am Watch as a special guest cook prepares a dish from market foods, fresh that morning.
11:00am FUN FOR THE KIDS! Farm Animals at the Farmer’s Market! Bring your parents to see live farm animals! So far, we've invited some chickens,
a baby lamb,
a calf,
and a piglet. Lots of fun!
June 15 - Father's Day & Pet Parade!
Hosted by the
Dane County Timebank.
Kids and Dads (and everyone else, too!) Looking for something to do on Father's Day? Come to the Northside Farmer’s Market, then parade around your non-aggressive pet at our fun welcoming event. We will gather at 10:00 am in front of the old Kohl’s grocery store, have a little show and tell, and then parade our blue-ribbon bowsers & quality kitties around the plaza. Birds, reptiles, bunnies, and other animals are welcome, too. Be there by 10:00 am to register. Prizes to be awarded. Some photos of last year's pet parade.
June 22 - Juneteenth Celebration
Live Entertainment and "Gullah" Foods for Sale!
29 States in the US Celebrate Juneteenth as an official State Holiday... What's Juneteeth? Juneteenth is a celebration of emancipation. Click and learn all about it at wikipedia!
10:30am-12:00 noon - Monika & George, West African dance.
Enthusiastic, excited and vibrant performers who have been studying African dance and drum for 17 years. Starting with Haitian, Congolese and Afro Cuban, their dance and drum style progressed to West African. They studied with Master drummers and dancers from Guinea, Senegal, Mali and Ivory Coast. George spent 7 years, while Monika spent 4 years dancing in a troupe, Ballet Sangamar.
10:30am-12:00 noon - Les Foté, West African drumming
Les Foté (in Guinea's tribal Susu language means "the white ones") is a group of drummers led by Shawn Barry of WADOMA. They have performed at various venues in Madison including the 2006 Troy Gardens Festival and the Madison Made Music Festival. This enthusiastic and fun group of drummers is led by Shawn Barry, who has been playing music from Guinea, West Africa for ten years. Shawn has performed with Kweku Ananse, Baraka Drum and Dance Troupe, and directed Dadawah Drum and Dance Company for 3 yrs.
10:00am-noon Featured Foods for Sale: Barbecue Beef Sandwiches, Sweet Potatoe Pocket Pies, Praline Muffins and Praline Candy.
Featuring Smoky Jon's #1 BBQ!
July 6 - American Day (learn about it at wikipedia)
Live Entertainment and Specialty Foods for Sale!
10 am-11am Entertainment:
Yankee Doodle Duggleby!
Celebrate the red, white and blues of our nation's unique musical heritage
with local musician John Duggleby. Accompanied by electric/acoustic
guitars, mandolin and drum, Duggleby covers two centuries of All-American
classics, ranging from Stephen Foster and George M. Cohan to Bruce
Springsteen and Chuck Berry. Singing along is not only permitted, but
encouraged!
3-person band "I, ME & MYSELF"
9:00am to Noon Featured Foods for Sale:
Brats, Hot Dogs, Baked Beans
and Apple Pie.
Featuring Brats from Hamann Charcuterie, Hot Dogs from Oscar Mayer,
Buns from Pierce's Northside Market Bakery, Beans and Apple Pie from
I.A.N.'s Cafe. Cheese curds from Villa Tap. Please support our local Featured Partners in any way
you can!!
Food demonstrations from Grandma's Kitchen
10:00am: Making Butter in a Mason Jar
10:30am: Making Home Made Ice Cream
11:00am: Squeezing berries
for great Juices
July 13- First Annual Chef Challenge
NFM's 1st Annual "Chef Challenge" Hamburger Cook-Off!
The winner of our first chef's challenge of the season will walk away with a $100 prize!
Local chefs, professional and amateur, are invited to participate in the great Northside Burger Challenge. The burgers will reflect each chef's individual creation, the only requirements being that one ingredient must be from a Market vendor, and one from Pierce's Northside Market. All burgers must be prepared at the market from scratch. The winner will be judged on the basis of flavor, texture, consistency, blend of spices, aroma, and color.
The culinary event begins at 9:00 a.m. Judges will make their award at noon. Entry cost is $10. Call Dale Matthews at (608) 217-9631 or email nfmmanager@yahoo.com to enter.
July 20 - Water Wonderland
Hosted by the Dane County Timebank.
Fun games for kids and kids at heart starting at 10am. (Kids under 7, please bring an adult.) Kids and parents, people who care about our water resources - Water games to cool off and information about local water. Learn, play, have fun!
- Sponge relays
- Drip Drip Drop (like "duck duck goose" only with water)
- Team Ice Cube Melt Contest.
- Wet t-shirt relay (How fast can you put on a soaking wet t-shirt?)
- Water balloon relay
- Bucket brigade
- Presentations on our lakes, Cherokee Marsh and water quality (9-12)
- Meet your local water commissioner!
PLUS! Farm Animals at the Farmers Market! We got rained out back in May but they're coming back.
August 3 - Hmong Harvest Holiday.
Dale will be making Curried Sweet Potatoes and Laotian-style Zucchini Salad... as well as his New Orleans-style Beignets. Vendor Juan's Gonzales' hermana Reina will be making Parmesan roasted corn-on-the-cob (recipe link at left). Bring your appetites!
August 10 - Chef's Challenge #2
Take on a local chef in an IRON CHEF-style event (9am to noon). Prepare a salad using five ingredients from the Northside Farmers Market, one ingredient from Pierce's Northside Market and A SECRET INGREDIENT. Winner takes home a great Restaurant Gift Certificate and "BRAGGIN' RIGHTS." Yes, we need cooks to participate. Call Dale Matthews at (608) 217-9631 or email nfmmanager@yahoo.com to enter.
August 17 - Back-to-School Day
Arranged by the
Dane County Timebank.
Come and donate school supplies to be distributed among deserving kids from the community.
August 24 - Kids! Come and see the Wienermobile!
Oscar Mayer's Weinermobile will be at the Market from 9am to noon.
Wiener Whistles for the kids.
Wish You Were An Oscar Mayer Wiener? Your wish can come true on August 24. At the Northside Farmers Market, you can be a NEW Oscar Mayer Beefier, Juicer Beef Hot Dog and have your photo taken to prove it! You'll be able to download your pic and share your photo with friends and family, add graphics to it and even download it to Facebook. You'll also receive a $1.00 off coupon toward the purchase Oscar Mayer's all-new beef hot dogs.