Frugal April, day 11: Farmers market finds, and a small splurge

Farmers markets my absolute favorite place to shop. I enjoy supporting farmers directly whenever possible, both because I enjoy talking to them and learning more about their farms and because it is usually less expensive to cut out the middle man.  I generally shop at the Leesburg farmers market, which is a bit west of where we live, because it is open year-round. There are vendors for just about anything you can imagine, but winter is usually a bit quieter.  This time of year, though, is exciting. Many of the farmers are eager to talk about their upcoming growing season; you can find seedlings of flowers, tomatoes, and herbs; and some of the food vendors are coming back.



This week I was lucky enough to score a major deal on last-of-the-season apples. Only $1 a pound for these beautiful golden delicious apples!  While some farmers market produce can be pricey--at least to the hardcore budget consumer--there are still sales at various points in the season!   If you're looking for organic produce, farmers markets are definitely the way to go. Buying direct from the farm means the farmer profits more and you get better deals. Frugal foodie win!



And now to my splurge of the week.  On my way back to the car I stumbled upon a new (to me, anyway) booth: Simply Nut Free Chocolates. MaryAnne Klank has been making chocolates for years, and offers guaranteed nut- and peanut-free chocolates that are amazing. (And she offers them mail order as well!) I sampled a dark chocolate truffle with a bit of chili in it, and fell in love. I ended up splurging on chocolate bunny lollipops for my husband and kids. (I think they were $1.50 each.) There are plenty of dairy free chocolates, so if you don't mind shared equipment, many of these are vegan-friendly as well. Allergen information from her website:

All of the dark chocolate is processed on the same equipment as milk chocolate and may contain traces of dairy. The regular candy confections such as the velvets, creams and caramels are wheat free as well as nut free but we do make chocolate dipped pretzels in the same areas. We do not dip pretzels into our machinery to avoid cross contamination from wheat to the chocolate. There are no sesame products used in the production of the candy.

The Melodies are processed on shared equipment with barley malt and soybean oil and may contain traces of these items.

Have a happy Monday, everyone!