Most Tennessee farmers markets close up shop for the winter season – but it’s one of the best times to visit the year-round Franklin Farmers Market, where you’ll find take-and-bake comfort foods, soups, organic meats, baked goods, and even greenhouse-grown flowers and produce, all sold by farmers and vendors located right here in Tennessee. Currently operating on the grounds of The Factory at Franklin, the farmers market is open each Saturday from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Here are some of our favorite Franklin Farmers Market booths to visit during the coldest months of the year.
All photos courtesy of Kate Muir Photography
Remedy Bone Broth
I’m a big fan of bone broth, both for its nutritional properties and because it definitely takes the flavor of my homemade soups to the next level. The only problem is that bone broth takes a long time to make, since the bones need to simmer for quite a while in order for the collagen in them to become sufficiently concentrated. And for those who want to drink their bone broth straight, well, ew.
Enter Remedy Bone Broth, a Nashville-based company that ships its frozen bone broths across the nation and sells them right here in Franklin at the farmers market! With flavors like Hot Chicken, Wild Alaskan Salmon, Vegan Shiitake Mushroom, Lemon Ginger Chicken, and more, Remedy has developed a bone broth that’s tasty both in your soups and special dishes and all by itself! Bone broth is said to help with inflammation, gut issues, joint pain, and more. Give it a try and see what you think.
Southern Flora Farms
This Manchester farm cultivates more than a hundred varieties of specialty cut flowers between January and November, all without the use of chemical pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, or synthetic fertilizers. Southern Flora Farms’ flowers can be found at local Whole Foods groceries, the Turnip Truck in Nashville, and the Franklin Farmers Market. Right now, January tulips are in bloom and on sale – I can’t think of a better way to ward off the winter doldrums than with a vase full of tulips on the kitchen table!
Alfresco Pasta
This small-batch artisan pasta kitchen is gaining a big reputation across the country. Its hand-crafted pastas can be savored in Nashville’s best restaurants, as well as purchased at local specialty food stores like The Produce Place, Little Hats, the Turnip Truck, and Green Door Gourmet. Using locally-sourced ingredients, Alfresco Pasta brings a wide array of raviolis and pastas to the Franklin Farmers Market each Saturday, as well as pre-made meals like smoked gouda mac n’ cheese and four-cheese lasagna – I’m getting hungry just thinking about it all!
Ellie’s Old Fashioned Doughnuts
You can always expect to see a line in front of Ellie’s Old Fashioned Doughnuts! Created by baker Danny Tassone back in 2010, the bakery has been serving up freshly made old-fashioned cake doughnuts for nearly 15 years, and developed something of a cult following in the process. Choose from creative flavored doughnuts like pumpkin or blueberry pancake or opt for the classic original, coated in sugar and cinnamon. Ellie’s doughnuts are particularly good dunked in a steaming cup of Ellie’s Organic Coffee. Ellie’s will return to the winter market on January 18th.
NashPhilly
NashPhilly is what happens when northern and southern flavors collide and create something beautiful, according to chef Dustin Scaccetti. His vendor booth includes hearty soups and delicious take-and-bake meals that are perfect for the cold weather, like garlic pulled pork, jambalaya, minestrone, roasted cauliflower and garlic soup, New England clam chowder, and more. Each dish comes with unique, easy-to-follow instructions on how to reheat and serve them once you’re home and ready to eat.
Lucy’s Kitchen
Lucy and Mark Rizzo have been selling their delicious baked goods for more than five years at the farmers market; all are made from high-quality natural ingredients. At the Lucy’s Kitchen booth, you can take your pick from nine varieties of muffins, cheesecakes with flavors like Orange Blossom and Spicy Mexican Chocolate, cookies, slow-ferment sourdough bread, and Lucy’s famous cream biscuits, as well as dips, salads, soups, and much more. If Lucy’s baked goods taste familiar, it might be because our local Whole Foods stores and several Nashville coffee shops sell them as well!
Yayo’s Original Mexican Gourmet
You can’t go wrong with a steaming breakfast taco from Yayo’s Original Mexican Gourmet, which features vintage Mexican cuisine with a modern twist. Founded in 2011 by chef Yayo Jiminez, the state-of-the-art food truck has made a name for itself both here in Middle Tennessee and on the Food Network show, Eat St. Serving up tacos with ingredients like mahi mahi, shrimp, and Bear Creek Farm brisket, as well as other culinary delights, Yayo is doing his part to help Franklin Farmers Market shoppers stay warm on cold winter mornings!
Bear Creek Farm
There’s a reason many of Nashville’s best restaurants source their beef from Bear Creek Farm. Located right here in Williamson County, the family farm raises all-natural Angus beef that’s grass-fed and grain finished, all without the use of hormones or antibiotics. The result is beef with incredible flavor and tenderness, making it a favorite among Tennessee’s top chefs. Bear Creek Farm is a year-round vendor at the Franklin Farmers Market, allowing you to enjoy meat and pork of the highest quality, right in the comfort of your own home.
MoonShadow Farm
MoonShadow Farm offers honey, farm-fresh eggs, candles, soaps, and creams and more, all from James and Brenda Sweeney’s Watertown farm. The Sweeneys let their pastured hens roam from dawn until dusk, and Brenda makes her Moon Creams skin cream with single raw organic ingredients. “Sometimes when it is so cold at the winter market, I have to wonder, ‘Why do we do this?’” says Brenda. “But then I see our thankful loyal customers, smiling and thanking us for being there. And I see other vendors, my friends and peers, young and old all doing what they love and so it goes… We’ll see you at the market!”