<p>Reading Into Black Agricultural History</p> | February 27, 2023

Fresh & Local:

Reading Into Black Agricultural History

We're rounding off our Black History Month book list with a few books about race and agricultural history! Knowing Black people's intricate relationship with land and agriculture in the United States gives us an even greater appreciation of the work they do to nourish the community.

• Working The Roots: Over 400 Years of Traditional African American Healing by Michele E. Lee contains interviews, stories, and conversations; artifacts; photographs; and what feels like an exhaustive list of plant-based remedies carried on through generators of Black Southern rural healers.
• We Are Each Other's Harvest: Celebrating African American Farmers, Land, and Legacy by Natalie Baszile is an anthology of poetry, essays, and interviews that each shed light on Black people's wrought history in America and relationship to the land. Examining agricultural history from the Middle Passage to today, this collection paints a comprehensive picture of Black farmers' possibilities and obstacles.
• Black Nature: Four Centuries of African American Nature Poetry edited by Camille T. Dungy is our pick for the poetry lovers out there. Black poets from literally all walks of life write about nature and agriculture in this marvelous collection that includes the work of nearly 100 writers, including Pulitzer Prize-winning poets Gwendolyn Brooks and Natasha Tretheway.

Picks of the Week:

Save the Date for Moonlight Market!

On April 20th, Market Umbrella will host our first fundraising event since the pandemic: Moonlight Market! A new take on a much-loved event we hosted in the past, at this Moonlight Market more than ten local New Orleans pop-ups and restaurants will create and serve one-of-a-kind dishes using fresh, local ingredients just like you'd find at market! The event takes place alongside our Thursday farmers market where you can connect directly with local farmers, food businesses, and community organizations. We’ll also have live music, local drinks, raffle prizes, and more! Stay tuned for our event lineup and more details.

Moonlight Market is a celebration of local food, culture, and community, including the more than 75 food-producing families who bring fresh food to the Crescent City Farmers Market and help us to uplift the growing number of families we serve as we work to increase food access and improve community health across Louisiana. Celebrate with us this Spring-- click here to save the date!

Greater New Orleans Foundation Supports Market Umbrella with an IMPACT Grant!

Market Umbrella has been awarded an IMPACT grant by the Greater New Orleans Foundation (GNOF)! This grant helps us as we work to expand the use and impact of our food access programs in New Orleans and across the state. We are grateful for GNOF’s support of our farmers markets, programming, and mission!

With roots extending nearly 100 years, the Greater New Orleans Foundation connects generous people to the causes that spark their passion. As one of the most trusted philanthropic organizations in the region, GNOF works every day to drive positive impact through philanthropy, leadership and action in our thirteen-parish region. Learn more at www.gnof.org.

Markeeters Meetup!

Join us for the next Marketeers meetup on March 5 at the Sunday City Park Market! For the next activity, we’re making our own Mr. and Mrs. Potato Heads! Bring out the kiddos to showcase their creativity with their marketeer buddies! We’ll be at the More Than a Market tent.

Marketeers Club is a free membership program for market-goers under the age of 12. Marketeers participate in monthly market activities and receive a special $5 market token of appreciation during their birthday month! To join in the fun, enroll your kids in the Marketeers Club by completing this membership form.

We’re Hiring!

Join the Market Umbrella team and help us build a stronger food system and healthier community! We’re in the market for a full-time Vendor Support Manager to help us recruit and support vendors through outreach and direct assistance. We’re also hiring a full-time Administrative Assistant to provide office-wide support for our daily operations, and a part-time Communications Coordinator to manage our public-facing communications including social media, our website, and this newsletter! If you or someone you know is passionate about local agriculture and working with an organization with a focus on food access and nutrition education, click here for more information and to apply!

Vendor of the Week:

Petit Jardin

This week’s vendor of the week highlight is Erica Sage of Petit Jardin. Erica offers a selection of naturally grown vegetables and fruits harvested from a small sustainable plot of land in Central City that first began as a space for her to grow food for her growing family. Honoring quality over quantity, Petit Jardin additionally produces small-batch, hand-curated goods such as spicy pickled vegetables, moringa powder, soaps, dried herbs, dehydrated citrus, and edible flowers. Petit Jardin is black-owned, woman-owned, mom-owned, and operates on the belief that small impactful shifts in what we put on and in our bodies will imbue positive effects physically, mentally, and spiritually both individually and as a collective. You can find Erica at her beautifully grown fruits and vegetables at our Uptown Tuesday market.

Recipe of the Week:

Savoy Cabbage and Andouille Sausage

As Black History Month comes to an end, we’re sharing one more recipe with roots in the African diaspora. This week, we cooked up cabbage and sausage! This dish has humble beginnings: the practice of boiling a piece of fat or pork along with vegetables began during the period of enslavement as a way to make the most of poor cuts of meat. The technique is still used in kitchens today to add flavor to all kinds of greens! In this recipe, cabbage takes on the rich flavors of the pork, garlic, and seasonings to make a satisfying side dish or a fulfilling entree. Find these ingredients at our Tuesday market to make this simple-yet-spectacular dish yourself!

What’s your favorite dish to make after visiting the Crescent City Farmers Market? Share your recipes with us on Instagram or Facebook and it might be featured in our weekly newsletter!