This morning a friend and I went to a flea market. I remember the first time I went to this flea market. It was more than a decade ago and at that time I lived in a different state. While I was visiting a friend in Florida, she took me to this market. I was so happy and surprised to see so many familiar vegetables, fish and plants - many I have seen in Sri Lanka. Most vendors here are Vietnamese and they sell produce and plants that you cannot easily find at a regular store. I don't go there often because it's a bit far from where I live. Also they open at 6 am and if you go late there's not much to buy. So when a friend and I decided to go to this flea market this weekend, we left very early and reached there around 6.20 am.
I was looking to buy a ginger plant and a pandan plant. Pandan (Pandanus amaryllifolius ) is called "Rampe" in Sinhalese and is often used in Sri Lankan curries as a flavoring. It is very common to start a curry with adding mustard seeds, curry leaves, several pieces of pandan to hot oil. I found both ginger and pandan for $5 each.
Then I saw a vendor selling several hummingbird trees (Sesbania grandiflora ). I was so excited as this is something my mom always has in her garden. We eat both leaves and flowers of this tree, which we call "Kathurumurunga" in Sinhalese. According to Google this is very frost sensitive. Though we rarely have weather below 0 degree Celsius in this area, I've lost papaya plants due to frost several times, so I have to find a good covered spot in the back yard for the hummingbird tree or plant it in a big pot so I can move it easily.
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| From left to right: Ecuador Princess, ginger, hummingbird tree and pandan. |
I also bought a flower plant called Ecuador Princess (Tibouchina lepidota als). Google tells me that it was developed in Australia, so my Australian readers must be familiar with this plant. I saw this plant for the first time several weeks ago at a shopping complex. It was full of beautiful purple flowers, but I didn't know its name. Then I found it at a nearby plant nursery, but it was too big and too expensive. Today I bought it for $7.
I bought several vegetables as well. A bunch of Chinese watercress, winged beans, hummingbird flowers, and ridge gourd - all are my favorite vegetables. Some of these are expensive. Hummingbird flowers are $4/lb. and winged beans are $5/lb. I hope my hummingbird tree grows well and gives me lots of flowers and leaves for cooking.
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| Winged beans, Chinese watercress and ridge gourd ()on top, and hummingbird flowers. |
I also bought a 1.5 quart CorningWare dish. Once I bought a smaller dish for $7 at a thrift store, so I think this is a good deal for $5. It is hard to find used ones with lids and brand new ones at CorningWare website are very expensive.
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| I have several CorningWare dishes with this blue cornflower pattern. |
We spent over an hour walking around at the flea market. There were many vendors selling old tools, books, clothes and other knickknacks.
On the way back, we stopped at a store that sells Amish products. There are no Amish communities in Florida, and the lady at the store said they get their products from Pennsylvania.
I bought several things I hadn't tried before - buckwheat pancake mix, a small jar of apple butter, a jar of Amish style sauerkraut, a bottle of Maple syrup - and also some breakfast to go because we didn't have breakfast before leaving home.
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So That's how I spent my Saturday morning. I spent close to $90 for everything I bought today. I wouldn't have spent that amount if I had gone to the nearby grocery store, but I like everything I bought today. I am not sure if I'd go back to the Amish store again, but I'll definitely go to the flea market again.
Now it's time to water plants and cook. Hope you all are having a wonderful weekend.
XX
Nil
Interesting vegetables: I am interested in the pandan. I have a recipe which calls for rampe and I didn't know what it was. I wonder if it would grow here in Western Australia? My curry tree is doing well, so perhaps it would.
ReplyDeleteYes, I think rampe will grow too if you have a curry leaf tree. I have heard that some Indian stores sell frozen pandan leaves, though I don't know how it tastes. Also, it is used in Thai cooking so if you have a Thai store they might have it. Sometimes they have cans of pandan leaf extract too.
DeleteWow you were very early birds weren't you, sounds like a very interesting morning, you found some lovely things. x
ReplyDeleteIt was an interesting morning Marlene, but I'm not an early bird at all. That's one of the reasons why I don't go to this flea market often. :)
DeleteYour corningware dish reminded me of Mum's straight away. She has the exact same and they last forever. Wonderful find.
ReplyDeleteI love early mornings so to be able to spend it in such a way as you did with your friend is perfect.
Kylie
I love Corningware with the blue cornflower pattern, and so far have two small dishes, two big ones and a platter. All used ones, so they definitely last forever. :)
DeleteI've never heard of most of those foods 😊 Isn't it interesting how different regions have specific foods.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I thought there was an Amish settlement near Sarasota???
Actually, there is! Thanks to you I just googled and found it is in Pinecraft, Sarasota. They do use electricity and no buggies according to what I read, but I'd like to visit one day. And I read that there are several Amish restaurants there as well. I hope they are not mainly catering for tourists though, most places in Florida are too tourist oriented for my taste. :)
DeleteWonderful post, Nil. I love the photo of the Amish items. They look so sweet and carefully hand crafted. It sounds like you had a fantastic time with your friend. I've never heard of that hummingbird plant. Here people plant the butterfly bush and trumpet vines. My visiting hummingbirds like the four o'clocks and blossoms on the Meyer Lemon and pomegranate bush. So glad that you treated yourself. My mom used that same same Corningwear when we were kids. I love it. Great find.
ReplyDeleteI don't know why it's called hummingbird tree, perhaps it attracts hummingbirds. We don't have hummingbirds in Sri Lanka though. I like four o' clocks, and that's something my mom also grows.
DeleteThe Amish store had handmade soaps, and I though about your soaps. Yours are prettier, the ones at the store were plain blocks, but had nice fragrance.
Nil, I love the Tibouchinas. Just up the road the street is lined with them and they look stunning when flowering. I might grow one here one of these days.
ReplyDeleteYes Chel, the purple color is so vibrant. My front yard needs some colorful flowers, so it's perfect there.
DeleteOops, I started to comment, then I lost my comment (cat help . . . it's hard to explain). So I hope you aren't getting this twice!
ReplyDeleteThe Ecuador princess plant is beautiful! I've never seen one before. Buckwheat pancakes are my favorite kind of pancake because they stick longer in my stomach so I don't get hungry again so fast. And they taste good.:-)
Not sure what happened to your first comment Priscilla, looks like it vanished in the internet jungle. :)
DeleteI had buckwheat pancakes this morning. I really like it, and I'm going to make it from scratch next time because I have some buckwheat flour.
Wonderful finds at your market Nil, you must be in heaven finding some of your favourite foods. tiboucina is a popular plant here, they've just finished flowering, but make such a stunning display.
ReplyDeleteWonderful finds at your market Nil, must've felt good to take some of your favourite foods home, look forward to seeing what you make with the hummingbird flowers. The tibouchinas have just finished flowering here, they make a stunning display.
I cooked hummingbird flowers with shallots, curry leaves, cumin powder, salt and turmeric and added very small amount of thick coconut milk. It reminded me of mom's cooking. I don't know how to explain its taste, can't think of anything similar. :)
DeleteFor some reason, your comment appears with a big space in between. :)
So it does....I'm not sure why that is. It took a couple of goes before it posted, twice my comment disappeared.....don't think they're linked, just interesting that gremlins seemed to have been out playing :) Your hummingbird dish sounds delicious.
DeleteI haven't been to a Flea Market for a long time, so it's interesting that you call them that in Florida. The Corning Ware dish is a really good buy and so useful. We can grow the Tibouchinas here although we don't have one here anymore, so colorful, and I didn't know the full name. I would like to try the Amish Sauerkraut, being a sauerkraut maker now, ha, ha, it looks good in the bottle. Are there seeds in it NiL? Have fun with your purchases. Pauline
ReplyDeletePauline, the label says it has cabbage, vinegar, salt and a preservative. No sugar, no seeds.
DeleteOne of these days I'm going to make sauerkraut at home. Another one in my long to-do list. :)