Market Finds

Photo by John Anderson

The retired baker in me sometimes gets jealous when I see all the retail venues available to today's current crop of talented local bakers. Here are some of the tastiest baked treats I've encountered at farmers' market stalls around the city lately.

Cake & Spoon Baking Company (www.cakeandspoon.com) Baker Melissa Brinckmann makes the most delicate sweet and savory tarts on the market these days. Her puckery and luxurious lemon curd tarts ($4) are my current favorite guilty pleasure. Custard fillings for the individual ($6) and regular ($12) quiche vary from week to week, depending on what's fresh in the market – one week it was Kocurek sausage with Swiss chard, another time there was tender asparagus, and most recently, oven-dried teardrop tomatoes with goat cheese and basil – all excellent. Currently, you can find Brinckmann at the Downtown Farmers' Market every Saturday, and she'll also be at the Sunset Valley market starting May 14. Also, look for her Texas pecan and lemon chess tarts at Franklin's Barbecue.

Photo by John Anderson

Jake's Natural Fine Foods (www.jakesgranola.com) Jake's is already well-known for its variety of delicious granola flavors for sale in stores all over; now the company is rolling out its newest product at farmers' markets around town. Look for Jake's new Biscotelle ($5) – twice-baked gluten free cookies made with rice flour and flavorings such as almond, pistachio, lemon poppy seed, and white chocolate with orange. These thin, round beauties are just the ticket for a crisp cookie lover like me, and they pair well with tea or coffee, very crunchy and not overly sweet. They are for sale at the Downtown, HOPE, Cedar Park, and Truck Farm farmers' markets.