Carbondale Farmer's Market

We are so fortunate to have such a vibrant Farmer's Market for still being in s pretty small city. I shot these photos in late May. It's interesting how some produce is only available a week or two, and I am sure even a few weeks later, the market looks completely different. It's definitely my goal to visit the market as many times as possible this year, especially before those mornings are a balmy 95 degrees with a very high % of humidity. 

Also, this year, our weather has just been kind of odd, so I believe that growing seasons for early growing produce was severely shortened and stunted. But, now, the weather has gotten a lot warmer, it's not raining excessively, and the sun is definitely shining and feeding all of those plants! 

Here is a sneak peek of the Market, I will share lots more photos later. 

Market Fresh Ratatouille Recipe

Are you looking for a fresh, tasty recipe that you can make with items you find at the Farmer's Market? Here's a recipe you will love! This shop has been compensated by CollectiveBias, Inc. on behalf of its advertiser. All opinions and ideas are my own. #PickedAtPeak  #CollectiveBias

By incorporating fresh vegetables, and Prego® Farmers' Market sauces, your family will be eating more vegetables, and asking for seconds! This dish smells absolutely delicious while it is baking, and you can also make this dish ahead of time, and even freeze it to bake at a later date. Win-Win in my mind! 

I love the fact that we have two farmer's markets here in Carbondale, IL, and since the soil in Illinois is SO fertile, we are lucky enough to have lots of options as to what local foods we want to use. 

LET'S TALK SAUCE:

- New Prego® Farmers' Market Sauces have market-fresh ingredients, like vine-ripened tomatoes, garlic, and basil, that are picked at the peak of freshness. These new sauces are available at Walmart in the pasta aisle, my favorite aisle of all...

When I first began researching this ratatouille recipe, I found that every recipe traditionally called for a lengthy process of creating a sauce of your own. This recipe will save you so much time, by simply incorporating a jar of Prego® sauce, which makes this dish taste amazing. 

This Cotton Market Bag, above, was printed and designed by my friend at Bodega Press. It's one of my favorites! 

INGREDIENTS FOR 2-3 SERVINGS:

Squash At The Carbondale Market

- 1 Jar of new Prego® Farmers' Market sauce. I loved the Classic Marinara and the Tomato & Basil.

- 1 Zucchini, sliced very thin

- 1 Yellow Squash

- 1 Chinese Eggplant (the skinny kind)

- Olive Oil & Brush to apply oil

- Fresh Parsley, chopped finely

- Salt and other seasonings as desired

- Circular Baking Dish & Non Stick Cooking Spray

- Foil

Note: The above image shows more vegetables you can add to this recipe, but you can definitely make this with just the few ingredients I have listed. 

- Also, you can slice up onions and tomatoes, and layer them in between the other slices. 

To purchase these sauces, visit your local Walmart store, or shop online, here.

INSTRUCTIONS:

1.) Slice all 3 vegetables (zucchini, squash, and eggplant) very thinly (You can also include slices of onion and tomato here ). I used a Mandolin Slicer, which worked incredibly well for this recipe. CAUTION - Please, please use the guard piece that comes with the machine, because this took a small part of my boyfriend's pinky off and caused a big mess! Poor Bobby...Anyway! He's doing fine now :)

Set veggie slices aside and grab your sauce! It's already time to prepare your dish. 

2.) Spray your baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Spread a thin layer of sauce, roughly 1/4" - 1/2" around the bottom of the dish. I used about 2/3 of the jar of sauce, but ideally 1/2 of a jar would be perfect!

3.) "Shingle" your vegetables, see below. I loved this part! Get about 4-6 veggie rounds in your hand, and alternate colors. 

4.) Put the shingled veggies into the baking dish, over the sauce, making sure not to press too hard, because you don't want the sauce on top of the veggies while baking.

5.) Continue the veggie spiral all the way to the center of the dish.

6.) Chop the parsley to sprinkle on top of the dish.

7.) Brush olive oil onto the veggies, carefully as to not get sauce on top of the veggie slices. Add salt and any other seasonings you want to the top of the dish. Garnish with chopped, fresh parsley - this adds so much to the look of your dish! 

8.) Lastly, bake the dish at 375 degrees, for roughly 30 minutes covered in foil, then for another 10-20 minutes with the foil off. Once the vegetables have browned, and the sauce has cooked down to a desirable amount, you're done! 

Enjoy!

My Week In Images

The weather has gotten much warmer (and way more humid) in the past 2 weeks here in southern Illinois. I also found a new way to share my photos! I finally figured out the VSCO app, and now I absolutely LOVE the filters they offer! There are a few really good ones, and I like how they don't just make your photos look dark and flat, like some of the Instagram filters. You can also save these images to your cameraroll on your phone, and upload them via Instagram. Check out my photos here! 

Head on over to my VSCO page to see more!

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