Every second and fourth Sunday, I have a stall at Farmgate Market in Hobart. This weekly market has been going for just over a decade and is a true farmers market. You must be the grower or maker to have a stall there, and if the product can’t be eaten, drunk or planted, it has no place at the market. Even before we moved to Tasmania, we used to try to coordinate our visits so that we could visit the market in Hobart on a Sunday. I’ve paid for excess baggage many times when I couldn’t resist over-enthusiastic buying of produce we weren’t able to find in Brisbane. Despite its relatively small size, both geographically and in population, I continue to be amazed at the variety of produce available and the innovativeness of artisan makers who frequent the market each week. Some see it as a stepping stone, a way to trial a product before launching it in a larger market. For some, it is about brand awareness and compliments their products’ availability in the shops. Others go on to open a shop front. And for others, like me, their market stall is their shop front.
Farmer’s market shoppers can be quite evangelical about their preferred way to shop, and I am probably no different. As a stallholder and a market shopper, I enjoy having more than just a transactional relationship with my customers and other stallholders. I’m happy chatting with my customers about what’s happening in their lives, and for many of them, I could tell you their preferences in cake, the flavours they like and don’t like, whether they have any allergies or dietary requirements, and probably those of their other family members! Similarly, I like to chat with other makers and producers to find out what’s in season, what they’re experimenting with and opportunities for collaboration.
My next door stall holder, on a regular basis, is hemp farmer Tim. In Australia, it’s only been since 2017 that hemp has been legally able to be sold. For a long time, misconceptions and its association with marijuana prevented its sale, and only after consistent lobbying by hemp growers did the situation change. As a result, for many people, hemp is still an unknown product and a large part of Tim’s reason for having a market stall is not just to sell his products but to educate people about hemp. Elsewhere, hemp has been recognised as a nutritious, protein-rich product and has long been consumed in other parts of the world. I used to read recipes from Europe, in particular, that included hemp and lament the lack of availability.
Tim’s family-run enterprise currently produces edible hemp under its Tassie Hemp Shop brand, selling hemp hearts, oil made from the pressed seeds and flour produced from the outer husk of the seed. There’s also hemp beer and moisturiser. Hemp is a bit of a wonder product, with various parts of the plant being suitable for fibre, building materials, biofuel, as well as being edible. I‘ve done a bit of recipe testing for Tim, and he’s quite persistent in asking if I would write a small book of hemp recipes! I’m not sure if I have enough in my repertoire at this stage for an entire book, but with that possibility in mind, it is an ingredient I like to experiment with in my cooking and baking.
Hemp is high in protein, fatty acids, vitamin E and a range of minerals, and these properties tend to pigeonhole hemp as a “health food”. Any Google search for hemp seed recipes yields the usual variety of bliss balls, hemp milk, smoothies, energy bars and vegan burgers. Hemp, however, is incredibly versatile and can be used in the same way as other nuts and seeds, adding texture and flavour.
This recipe for carrot and hemp crackers could very well fall into the ‘health’ food category and probably tends to reinforce all of the preconceived notions about hemp seeds! They are vegan, gluten, and dairy-free, with carrots used to bind the dry ingredients. However, I hope this doesn’t stop you from trying them. It’s based on a recipe from Henrietta Inman, which I’ve tweaked over the years. There is plenty of scope for you to add your own preferences by changing the herbs (fresh ones work well) and spices and experimenting with other vegetables, zucchini perhaps? Our green thumb neighbour gifted us a huge amount of carrots, which had to make way in her garden for winter crops, so it’s carrot everything here!
Carrot & Hemp Crackers
Makes about 30
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon yellow mustard seeds
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
100 g carrots, peeled and finely grated
120 g almond meal
100 g hemp hearts (hulled hemp seeds)
1 teaspoon fenugreek leaves
1 teaspoon salt
few grinds of fresh black pepper
Preheat the oven to 170°C.
Use a pestle and mortar or a spice grinder to grind the fennel, mustard and coriander seeds. You want it to be reasonably fine but a few larger pieces will be okay.
Tip the spices into a larger bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Use your hands to mix everything together, squeezing the mixture a little to bind.
Put the mixture onto a large piece of baking paper and place a second piece on the top. Roll the dough out evenly until it is about 3 mm thick. Use a ruler and a knife or a pizza roller to trim the edges and then cut into strips about 2 cm x 9 cm. Lift the entire piece of baking paper onto a baking tray and bake. Reroll any scraps and follow the same method for cutting additional crackers. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes before checking them. The outer crackers will brown first, and, depending on your oven, you might need to turn them around so that they cook evenly. Remove the crackers as they bake, and return the remaining ones to the oven. Keep a close eye on them. If they brown too much, the crackers will become bitter, so make sure to remove them as they bake. You want them to have a golden colour with slightly darker edges.
The crackers will keep in an airtight container for at least a week.
Next week: quince + a pie
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These are a great idea I’m definitely trying them!
Oh yes! One of the best of the very few true farmers markets in Australia - I’ve planned my travel around it too .
What’s the market situation in Launceston?
Must say I’m not a purist regarding mixed markets, just keen on clarity . There’s many parts of oz where a true farmers or good practice market is just not possible. I’m lucky to be spoiled for choice where i live for all sorts of options to avoid the supermarkets.
Thanks for the recipe. I have hemp flour in the pantry .
Therese