Farmers Market Review: Irvine Certified Farmers Market

From Orange County Correspondent, Lisa Isselnane
 
Irvine Certified Farmers Market
Sat. 8am-noon
Across from UC Irvine

We made this fresh salad with our purchases from the market.

This is the largest Certified Farmers Market in Orange County with over 100 vendors. It has a lot of great products ranging from local fruit and vegetables to specialty and hard to find items like organic dates, Mediterranean hummus and pesto sauces. Basically, everything from spicy to sweet. There were many little sampling stations with toothpicks and samples generously presented.

We liked the nursery truck. He was selling plants like Passionfruit, Lilikoi, Plumeria and many Orange Tree varieties. We actually took a plant home with us for just a few dollars. There was a  musical group and a violin soloist playing as you shopped. The live music gave it a funky flair and made the place sound fun and sophisticated.
Some unusual finds were the bittermelons, guava, Japanese plums and fresh herbs for cooking. We also bought aromatic lavender and sandalwood goat milk soap bars.