Brighten up winter’s dark days with a trip to an Indianapolis farmers market. Fresh seasonal produce, scrumptious foods and these eight vendors might just offer a weekly prescription to warm up cold days.
Indy Winter Farmers Market
🗓️ 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturdays through April 26
📍 The AMP at 16 Tech, 1220 Waterway Blvd.
Ouala
The delicious and versatile spicy peanut butter called “manba” or “mamba piqué” from Haiti will enliven more than your PB&J. Manba transforms brownies, burgers, cookies, noodles, s’mores and the end of your spoon.
Savory richness balances the hint of chili in Stanley Dumornay’s Ouala brand. Originally inspired by his Haitian family heritage and humanitarian work in Haiti, Dumornay partnered with a friend to first bring manba to Canada and then the United States.
Salamat Cookies
When Mike Williams II lost his photography job during the pandemic in 2020, he started baking cookies with his Filipino mother, Lourdes “Mama Odie” Williams, as a way to express gratitude to those who helped him through tough times.
That gesture of appreciation blossomed into a family business that unites distinctive Filipino flavors with America’s beloved oatmeal cookie.
“Salamat” is the Filipino word for “thank you,” and you’ll say it on repeat after tasting the Space Yam cookie’s combination of ube halaya (purple yam jam), macapuno (sweetened aged coconut), white chocolate and melted marshmallows.
Tasty Treats Bakery
A half-strawberry crunch, half-Oreo cookie cake on Tasty Treats’ Instagram reels is hypnotizing. It will inspire you to visit the vegan bakery and meet owner Amber Green. The Indiana University Kelley School of Business graduate discovered her love of baking during the pandemic and then turned that passion into a niche with the slogan “Taste like Granny’s.”
Indulge in vanilla Biscoff cake, snickerdoodle cookies, oatmeal cream pies, whoopie pies and red velvet cake. Green decorates special-occasion cakes too.
Yoltlayohle
Forget supermarket tortillas sealed in plastic bags who knows how long ago. Experience the joy of making your own tortillas, as well as tamales, pupusas and arepas, with fresh masa. No flour or preservatives go into the three varieties of masa that Yoltlayohle brings to market.
All are prepared with nixtamalized organic corn ground in-house. Choose bold amarilla, delicate blanca and nutty azul. If you’re not sure about working with masa, Yoltlayohle also sells yellow and blue corn tortillas.
SoBro Winter Farmers Market
🗓️ 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays through April 30
📍 Half Liter BBQ, 5301 Winthrop Ave.
Forage 360
Jody and Jason Cunningham don’t just gather tasty things like ramps, wild mushrooms, black raspberries and woodland flavorings such as elderflowers. They also love to share their knowledge of foraging during guided walks and classes.
Shop for products such as hickory bark syrup, mushroom powders and, in spring, ramp powder. The Cunninghams also sell fresh gourmet mushrooms, microgreens and pasture-raised eggs. Ask about their immunity-boosting black walnut tincture and specially blended “Golden Relief” rejuvenating tea with white willow bark.
Broad Ripple Winter Farmers Market
🗓️ 9 a.m. to noon Saturdays through April 26
📍 Broad Ripple Middle School, 1115 Broad Ripple Ave.
Corea Kimchi
Linda Moh grew up eating homemade kimchi. The spicy, fermented Napa cabbage pickle is an essential of Korean meals. Rich with probiotics, vitamins and antioxidants, kimchi’s ginger-garlic-chili profile also enhances steaks and hot dogs.
Braise kimchi with chicken, blend it into mayonnaise and tuck a few pieces inside grilled cheese sandwiches. “One can also make kimchi from radishes, cucumbers or any greens,” says Moh, who grows her own ingredients for the kimchi she has been preparing in a certified kitchen of Flanner House’s since 2021.
J’adore Pastry
Youssef Boudarine grew up baking with his mother in Morocco. His creativity eventually landed the pastry chef at a Casablanca outpost of the famous Ladurée of Paris. He also worked for renowned chocolatier Pierre Hermé.
Friends convinced Boudarine to settle in Indianapolis, where he has served eye-popping desserts like pumpkin-shaped mousse and perfect Cromboloni at Bluebeard, Anthony’s Chophouse and Gallery Pastry. Mark your calendar for the third Saturday of the month to find Boudarine’s sweets at the Broad Ripple Winter Farmers Market.
On Nov. 16, he’s planning gluten-and nut-free grab-and-go mocha pots de cremé made with Calvin Fletcher coffee and frangipane galettes that unite the airyness of croissants and luscious almond filling.
3-in-1 Restaurant
The irresistible aroma of 3-in-1’s griddle welcomes you at the door with a clear message: Eat now, shop later. Discover delectable Salvadoran tamales, known for a light and fluffy texture that sets them apart from traditional Mexican tamales.
The Vasquez family, proud owners of 3-in-1, add sweetness to their tamales by using Indiana corn cut fresh from the cob. Their Indianapolis restaurant is also renowned for serving hearty and tender pupusas filled with just cheese and cheese-plus-beans, chicken or the flavorful Salvadorian vegetable loroco.
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