PORT ANGELES — This Wednesday is shaping up to be a big night.
And for those who’ve seen the 1996 movie “Big Night,” Stanley Tucci’s tale of an Italian feast for a spicy blend of guests, the Port Angeles Farmers Market will lay out a parallel: lasagna, lasagna and another kind of lasagna, plus cake.
The occasion?
The debut of the 2011 Wednesday farmers market, to bring about 15 vendors of produce, hot supper and other goods to The Gateway pavilion at Front and Lincoln streets. The midweek market will be open from 2:30 p.m. till 6:30 p.m. each Wednesday through Sept. 21, so shoppers and downtown strollers won’t have to wait for the weekend edition, which runs from
10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays at The Gateway.
To celebrate this — along with summer, which officially arrives today — the Port Angeles Farmers Market board is planning a dinner with three kinds of lasagna: with meat, vegetarian or vegan.
Nash’s Organic Produce chef Karolina Tracz will whip it all up with locally grown vegetables, meat, grains and greens, add a salad and crostini with pesto, and serve it up for $12 per person. Children 12 and younger eat for $6.
For dessert or just for a festive snack, there will be free cake, added Cynthia Warne, manager of the market.
Also all afternoon, singer-guitarist Cole Gibson will play, providing a kind of warm-up for Wednesday’s season-opening Concert on the Pier.
That free event, featuring the bluegrass band Deadwood Revival, will start at 6 p.m. on City Pier at the north end of Lincoln Street.
Each week the Wednesday farmers market will offer fresh fruit, vegetables and herbs from nearby fields plus flowers from Amie’s Garden and the Family Farm, Warne added; vendors such as Mystery Bay Seafood will serve supper.
“Come down and check out all the great summer produce, hot food,art and music,” she said. “Have an early dinner before you head down to the Concerts on the Pier. You won’t be disappointed.”
The afternoon-to-evening market is different from the Saturday version, in that “it’s not as busy . . . you can hang out and talk to the farmers,” added Tracz.
On several Wednesdays, she will do cooking demonstrations and hand out free recipe cards, so market visitors can see how to use vegetables that are new to them.
“We’ll be focusing on affordable dinners for the family,” the chef said.
Also this Wednesday, the new midweek-market sponsors, Olympic Medical Center and First Federal, will be announced.
It’s a natural for OMC to become a supporter of this event, said health promotions coordinator Bobby Beeman.
“We support the farmers market because it provides our community with direct access to wholesome food and, by extension, it encourages healthful eating habits,” she said.
The market is a multisensory experience that’s open to everybody, added Warne.
“The community is invited,” she said, “to stop down after work to enjoy the sights, sounds and tastes of the Peninsula’s finest.”
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Features Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-417-3550 or at diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.
