Thank goodness this winter our local Elks Lodge is hosting the farmer’s market. That’s right! We don’t have to wait until June for it to start up again. It’s held twice a month, on Saturdays, and although it is smaller with less vendors than the summer/fall farmers market, the produce, artisan breads, local honey and grass-fed meat vendors are here.

I was worried I would have to travel out of town on weekend mornings to other markets to satisfy my produce wants. This past Saturday, I picked up one of my favorite fingerling potatoes to roast, Purple Peruvian Potatoes. They are tasty and pretty much have the same texture as most fingerling potatoes, but are a little mealier. They are purplish-brown in color and once roasted they lose most of the purple, but they’re still delicious!

I like to roast these fingerlings with the most simple flavors. A little sea salt, some fresh ground black pepper, fresh thyme and garlic with a drizzle of light extra virgin olive oil is all they need. Just roast at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 25 minutes, then toss. Add the garlic and cook for an additional 25 minutes.

These little darlings go with almost anything. You can add them to a stew, place alongside a chicken, or just about any other entree. When mashed, they make a colorful side your guests won’t be expecting.

These potatoes are slightly more sweet than your standard fingerling potatoes. Seek them out when you can. Hopefully you’ll find a relatively local farmer who knows the value of these unique potatoes. Serving them up to our guests who are seeing them for the first time always creates a buzz, and that buzz certainly doesn’t go away when they start eating them. Enjoy.