On the joy of finding challah bread in South London, gooseberry crumble & waving a magic wand for the NHS
Food writer Aaron Vallance shows me around his local farmers market
By day, Aaron Vallance is an NHS doctor. In his spare time he writes beautifully. As he says he’s
‘fusing food-writing with various other genres. But whether using fiction, biography, poetry, travel or humour – or whether reflecting on religion, racism, politics or ecology – food remains firmly at the heart of this blog.’
We share a Jewish Ashkenazi heritage and I love his piece about fish balls, where his writing gently melds and merges Caribbean and Jewish identities.
At London Farmers Markets, building up social media with stories about farmers, and what’s in season, if I found a customer talking about their market basket or what they were cooking with their finds I’d re-post. Some names came up frequently. Aaron was one of these, often writing about what he’d bought at his local market. I’m delighted to be finally meeting up with him at his local farmers market.
Wimbledon Farmers Market opened in 2000. Many customers have been shopping at the market from the beginning and love the community, friendly atmosphere. The market takes place every Saturday at a school playground near Wimbledon Park station.
Lovely to meet you Aaron, when do you get time to write?!
Do you have a market routine?
Time to do some shopping, starting off at March House Farm where farmer Mike is holding court about the upcoming England v Slovakia game in the Euros.
Aaron talks about learning at the market about the meat he buys; about animal rearing and provenance. He tells me
‘I was here a few weeks ago with Mike, he told me about why the price of lamb specifically has gone up, about the trade and how climate can affect things. That’s the sort of thing that you pick up at the farmers market that you may not pick up back at your local Tesco for example. It’s particularly meaningful for me to learn about where the food comes from and all the hard work and labour that’s gone into it.’
We’re moving on to Celtic Bakery, and the importance of being able to find challah bread in South London is dear to Aarons’ heart.
We’re at Perry Court Farm. I want to know if Aaron thinks that his farmers market is good value.
A conversation about crumbles. We’ve arrived at Ted’s Veg, where red gooseberries catch our eyes…
Sitting down with our shopping, I ask if the market inspires Aaron’s food writing.
It’s a huge achievement to be nominated for
Awards. Aaron has been shortlisted three times. Let’s hear more about it.Aaron has written a remarkable piece for
, a food magazine we both admire. He’s been following it from the start and found it an incredible platform where food is talked about with thoughtfulness, through a wider lens, whether it’s politics, economics, culture or history. As he says; ‘It resonates with me in terms of writing and interests that I have around food, and that you can use it as a launch pad to find out about lots of other things.’ Aaron submitted an idea for the theme food and the arts, art in the broader sense, not just in content but in how the column could be delivered.‘As soon as I’d seen that part of the theme, the idea of Jewish blessings came to mind. They’re said over food at mealtimes, more than a quick grace after a meal. It’s a whole routine that it almost entirely sung.’ He adds;
‘It was an integral part of my life growing up, particularly going to my grandparents for Shabbat, the Jewish sabbath meal, and because they’re particularly observant, we’d do the blessings’
Aaron asked his cousin Abby, a professional singer if she’d take part. Then his uncle wanted to help illustrate the piece. He was surprised when the Vittles editors asked if he could get more of his family to pitch in.
‘ I ended up asking my aunt, my sister; it became a real family affair with written testimony and pictures, and the audio clips as well. It was a very special piece to do. I was touched by the feedback it’s had.’
A final question about NHS food
Aarons’ favourite stalls:-
Wagay Ethiopian coffee were sadly missing on Saturday
Sires Hill bakery for apple crumble cake
Ted's Veg for new potatoes and gooseberries, where we discussed crumbles!
Perry Court farm for apples, strawberries and salad leaves
March House farm, for lamb sausages
Celtic Bakers to buy a challah loaf, and as Aaron mentioned Bread Bread also make their own challah.
Charlie's Trout, for a trout fillet
Duck Lane Farm for free range chicken and eggs
Wimbledon Farmers Market takes place every Saturday 9am-1pm.
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Gooseberries! I miss those so much. We had a gooseberry bush in our garden when I lived in the UK. We don't have them here sadly.
Fabulous! Love Aaron.