Vendor Profile: Corner Market Secret Recipes

By: Beth Thiret, Master Gardener

Take a cube of bread, dip it into any of the eight sun-warmed varieties of olive oils and feel yourself momentarily transported to the warmth of Spain. Move down the table and sample the seven balsamic vinegars. Now you’re in Modena, Italy, where they’ve been known to age their vinegars for a lifetime. Notice the exceptional quality of the 18-year-barrel-aged balsamic vinegar. Turn around, taste the three varieties of mustards . Could this be Germany? Finish off your whirlwind tour with the flavors of Mexico in the salsas. Thanks to the knowledgeable assistance of Corner Market Secret Recipes’ Jim Shubin, your mini vacation didn’t require any airfare or a passport.

The flavors and creations of the Corner Market Secret Recipes come from the owner and Fort Collins native Carol Ann Steele Kates. As a grocer’s daughter, Kates grew up working around food. “We stocked shelves before we could read. We did it by the pictures, “ she explains. After the closing of the Steele’s Markets in 2001, Kates turned her attention to what she knows best—the food business.

At the Corner Market Secret Recipes stand each Saturday, you can find her award-winning cookbook, Secret Recipes from the Corner Market, written as a tribute to her father and the vanishing breed of independent grocers. Along with the taste extravaganza above, you can also sample barbecue and dipping sauces.

In order to utilize more local ingredients Kates is creating a raspberry chipotle salsa in addition to an Italian salsa. Keep your eyes out for the introduction of a porcini mushroom olive oil that Kates hopes to have out by the end of this season. Her new cookbook, Cooking Seasonally in Colorado, should be available at the beginning of the growing season in 2011.

When asked why she likes farmers markets, Kates says she especially enjoys encouraging younger cooks that come to her with questions. “I’m not a fan of 4am, but the connection with the customers is what I really like.” Return customers are her favorite form of recognition and she understands the importance for customers to develop relationships with the people who are growing and making their food. While Kates may not be at her booth every Saturday, you can always find friendly help and advice from Shubin. He’ll personally guideyou through the tastes, but he’ll leave the final decision between you and your tastebuds.