New Winners for May, and a Goodbye

Erin Barsotti!

And May’s Vendor Appreciation gift goes to…

Jeanne and Tom Ceyler, of Jeanne’s Kitchen!

Sadly, we must say Goodbye to Jeanne as she retires from our Market, after 13 years of involvement in farmer’s markets across Miami and Shelby counties with her baked goods, desserts, jams, and produce!

When I turned into Jeanne and Tom Ceyler’s driveway to meet with them before they joined our market in 2016, to say I was shocked would be an understatement. I had no idea I would be entering a paradise of edible landscaping! Numerous fruit trees, succulent herbs, vegetable gardens, and gorgeous flowers surrounded her charming home. In my head I ran through the many fruits, vegetables and herbs she incorporates into her jams, desserts, and breads… and they were all here just waiting for her to use, right outside her door!

I have a deep appreciation for well-maintained gardens, and I understand the love and commitment it takes to keep them bearing heavily and looking beautiful. I also realize just how long it takes to pick enough berries to make a pie, that’s always devoured far too quickly! Just walking up to her front door, I wished time would allow me to spend a lovely afternoon wandering the meandering paths and beds that entirely encompass her acre slice of heaven.

We’ve been surprised by Jeanne many times – her widespread assortment of jams and her unusual flavors (I had never heard of corn cob jelly or thought of growing chocolate mint for cookies!)… Ryan Leach of Live Simply Live Richly Farm said it best – you look at Jeanne’s offerings and think, “Well that looks nice” – then you taste it and Wow, realize just how good she is at what she does. Not only that, but the many veggies, fruits and herbs she grows for her baked goods and jams is so impressive.

It was her Cottage Dill Bread she was baking while we talked, and I laughed when I saw her well-worn and clearly loved recipe, conveniently displayed on a wooden holder made by her husband. You can get such an intimate, honest idea about a person and their preferences by looking through their oft-used recipe books and finding their splattered, dog-eared, yellowed pages with all the necessary notations!

We’ve known Jeanne and Tom for a long time, since our first year at the Piqua Farmer’s Market – we were set up next to them during our initial venture into the world of Miami County’s wonderful markets. They were, and always have been, so welcoming, supportive, and friendly to us – I’m sad that the time has come for them to retire, but so glad to have had them as part of our Market Family!