Great Gifting: Last-Minute Market

In the "What were they thinking?" category, all of the big Portland area farmers' markets have sold their last turnip for the month*, leaving those of us with holiday meal shopping, not to mention hostess gift-giving, to fend for ourselves among the hordes running amok at local stores.

Fortunately, some brilliant minds have come up with a Winter Solstice Pop-Up Farmers' Market and Bazaar that will be dispensing local goodness this Saturday at Tastebud restaurant in Southeast Portland. There will be a small, well-curated list of the city's top market vendors taking over the street, the inside of the restaurant and adjoining garage space. They'll be featuring produce for your tables, Tastebud's fabulous Montréal-style bagels and specially assembled, unique gift bags of local goodness that will make you the hottest party guest in town.

Vendors

• Persephone Farm: Finest produce around
• Tamiyasu Orchards: Apples and pears
• Dee Creek Farm: Goat cheesy & sweet cajeta
• Ayers Creek Farm: Amazing pantry-stocking dried grains, legumes, corn, jam, plus fresh chicories and more!
• Lauretta Jean’s: Pie! Pie! Pie!
• Olympic Provisions: Meat! Meat! Meat!
• Springwater Farm plus The Soup Annex: Mushrooms (fungi and spores), mushroom broth and delicious hot soup.
• Tastebud: Open House! Bagels hot and fresh from the oven; Mobile brick oven parked out front with pizzas and cider

Authors

• Anthony Boutard: Beautiful Corn: America's Original Grain from Seed to Plate
• Karen Brooks: The Mighty Gastropolis: Portland, A Journey Through the Center of America's New Food Revolution (10 am-noon)

Looks like a killer line-up with plenty of holiday food and gift opportunities. Come for lunch and snacks, check a few items off your list and say "Merry Christmas!" to your favorite vendors.

Details: Holiday Pop-Up Market. Sun. (12/22), 10 am-3 pm at Tastebud,3220 SE Milwaukie Ave. 503-234-0330.

* People's Co-op will have their usual market on Wed., 12/19, from  2-7 pm, and Jackie at the Oregon City Farmers' Market informs me that they will have a "Get Your Merry On" market on Sat., 12/22, from 10 am-2 pm.

* * * 

If you're looking for other consumable Christmas items for yourself or for gifting, GoodStuffNW contributor Jim Dixon of Real Good Food will have his retail warehouse open Friday and Saturday with lovely gift-size (375ml) bottles of various olive oils, plus fennel pollen, salt-packed capers, Katz vinegars, Italian oregano, etc.

Details: Real Good Food Holiday Hours. Fri.-Sat. (12/21-22), 10 am-5 pm. At Activspace, 833 SE Main at 9th Ave., space 122.