Boulder Farmers Market’s Wednesday Night Market begins May 1, 2024 and will feature a variety of new food businesses. (Eliza Earle – Photo provided)
As many small business owners will tell you, starting your own business is not for the faint of heart.
It requires relentless passion, long hours, and an unwavering belief that what you are offering is worth everyone’s investment, not just your own. In today’s world, the only way to get noticed as an entrepreneur is to get a viral video, woo an angel investor, or if you’re lucky, pitch your product on national television. It may seem like it.
But for Boulder’s natural foods industry, farmers markets have proven to be a place for emerging food businesses to enter, especially through Boulder’s Wednesday Night Market. In preparation for the reopening of weekday markets next week, he introduces two of his inspirational vendors who have leveraged farmers markets to create successful businesses.
Juan Ignacio Stewart of Frescos Naturales and Green Belly
In 2014, Stewart launched Green Belly, a line of Guatemalan-style hot sauces based on her mother’s recipes, and began selling them at the Boulder Farmers Market. Like many food business entrepreneurs, he started with a strong product and idea and learned the ins and outs of business ownership along the way. Today, the Green Berry stand at the Boulder Farmers’ Market continues to draw customers to sample the classic, flavorful hot sauce, many of them locally sourced in the area. You can find it in businesses and restaurants.
Stewart didn’t stop there. Instead, his home experiment turned into a new business venture. Inspired by the natural fruit drinks he enjoyed while living in Latin America, Frescos Naturales packs real fruit and plant flavors into an easy-drinking, refreshing, wholesome non-alcoholic beverage. Ta. The product became so popular that Stewart and Frescos Naturales were featured on Shark Tank, the popular television show that brings entrepreneurs onto national stages to promote their products. You can find Frescos Naturales in grocery stores across Colorado.
Claudia Bouvier and Ted Steen at Pastificio Boulder
Pastificio Boulder was founded on the idea that better grains make the best pasta. At Pastificio Boulder, we use locally sourced heirloom wheat and mill it in-house to create a dry pasta that’s incredibly smooth, easy to digest, and full of flavor. For the uninitiated, comparing pastificio pasta to most pastas available today is like comparing homemade sourdough bread to white sandwich bread. You cannot simply compare the two.
Pastificio Boulder started its business at the Boulder Farmers Market and quickly gathered a following. Their products blend raw materials sourced from market vendors to create inherently local products with mass appeal, which has allowed them to quickly expand into wholesale. . Pastificio Boulder craft pasta can now be found at Whole Foods stores in the area. While it may no longer be available at the Boulder Farmers Market, the company’s pasta is still available at its online store, shop.bcfm.org.
Pastificio Boulder Heirloom Wheat Garganelli with Fresh Asparagus and Creamy Ricotta Lemon Sauce
material:
• 1 lb. Dried Heirloom Wheat Garganelli
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 small onion (chopped)
• 1 lemon, zest and juice
• 1 bunch asparagus, washed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces.
• 8 ounces fresh ricotta cheese (Five Freedoms Dairy)
• 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• Finely chopped chives.
• salt and black pepper
For pangratato:
• 3 thick slices of sourdough bread
• 3 cloves of garlic (chopped)
• Olive oil
• 1 lemon peel
• salt and black pepper
direction:
• Prepare pangrattato by toasting 3 slices of sourdough bread in the oven. Cut it into squares and coarsely grind it in a food processor (so it’s about the size of a pea). Sauté the garlic in olive oil and add the lemon zest and breadcrumbs. Stir the mixture to coat the breadcrumbs and add sea salt and black pepper to taste.
• Wash the asparagus, remove any dry, fibrous ends, and cut into 2-inch pieces. Boil the asparagus in salted water for 2 minutes, then cool quickly in ice water. drain.
• Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil with plenty of salt.
• Fry the onions in olive oil until light golden brown. Add lemon juice and zest.
• Add the asparagus and toss to coat the surface. Season with salt and pepper.
• Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the pasta box. Place the ricotta in a bowl and season with salt, pepper, and half of the Parmigiano-Reggiano.
• Once the pasta is al dente, transfer it to a bowl and toss gently.
• Add the asparagus to the pasta and toss gently.
• Arrange on plates and sprinkle with pangrattato, fresh chives, and remaining Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.
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