Here’s some of what you’ll find at the Wednesday afternoon Decatur Farmers Market, which this year has doubled its number of vendors.
Hibiscus tea and ginger throat drops
Tiffany Ghent, a singer-musician turned farmer, founded Decatur-based StarCast in 2014, to develop a line of teas, tea sweeteners and throat drops to support the physical and mental health of entertainers like herself. She offers bottled tea and dried tea blends, as well as ginger drops that are just the thing to soothe your throat, whether it’s worn out from singing, or sore from allergies or a cold. They’re so delicious that we now keep a little dish on our desk for when we need a sweet lift. We tried a bottle of the Marley Blend tea, made with hibiscus, ginger, lemon zest and cinnamon, and particularly liked the balance of flavors. The hibiscus is not overwhelming, and the cinnamon is subtle. The ginger drops are just as balanced. Her other teas include Can You Stand the Rain, Cocoa-Mint Truffle, Let Me Clear My Throat and Poetic Jus Tea.
$8 per 16-ounce bottle of prepared tea, or a four-pack for $24. $12.50 per 4-ounce package of ginger throat drops. Available at the Decatur Farmers Market, 308 Clairmont Ave., Decatur. Also available at Atlanta Harvest or starcasttea.com.
Credit: Courtesy of Mrs. Rosa
Credit: Courtesy of Mrs. Rosa
Fresh Venezuelan cheeses
In 2021, Zaimar Castille and Maria Rosal opened a creamery to produce the Venezuelan cheeses they learned to make from their mother, with recipes passed down from their grandmother, Mrs. Rosa. This was a business they had dreamed of starting, and the pandemic provided an opportunity. They make a range of cheeses, including the queso fresco and queso palmitas we purchased. Both are fresh white cheeses with a mild flavor, the palmita a little firmer than the fresca. Both were delicious with a glass of wine, but we also crumbled them into salads and sliced them for sandwiches. If you visit the Mrs. Rosa booth at the market, they also serve hot dishes, such as cachapas, a delicious fresh corn pancake with your choice of fillings and cheese.
Cheeses range from $7.50 to $13 per pound. Available at the Decatur, Brookhaven, Dunwoody, Tucker, East Atlanta Village, Avondale Estates, Snellville, Norcross, Sandy Springs and Buford Highway farmers markets. Also available at Brito Supermarket, Talpa, Super Carniceria Jalisco and at mrsrosafoods.com.
Credit: Ashley Charette
Credit: Ashley Charette
Cold-pressed juice
Several times a week, Ashley Charette and Nick Edwards of Juiced & Aligned go into their shared kitchen space in Decatur and cold press raw vegetables and fruits for their line of nine flavors of juice. Their bestsellers — I Am Powerful (apple, ginger, lemon), I Am Loved (kale, apple, lemon) and I Am Divine (beet, mint, apple, lemon) — are available year-round, while other flavors, such as spiced apple cider or holiday juice (pear, apple, lemon, cranberry and pomegranate) are seasonal. These juices are intense, but balanced — which makes sense, since Charette and Edwards create them based on the seven chakras, or energy centers, in the body. We tried all three bestsellers, plus strawberry lemonade, and loved them all. And, cold-pressed juices keep all the vitamins, minerals, enzymes and nutrients from the fruit and vegetables, which makes them all-around winners.
$9 per 12-ounce bottle, $34 for four bottles. Available at the Decatur, Peachtree City, Duluth and Emory farmers markets, and coming soon to the Grant Park and East Atlanta Village markets, Atlanta Harvest in Ellenwood, Honey Pot in Hapeville or via direct message at instagram.com/juiced_and_aligned. Available for pickup at their shared kitchen, or for delivery in metro Atlanta.
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