To markets, to markets

Maybe it's the "eat local" movement. Combined with the "eat more organic" folks. And spurred on by the "let's have something fun down-town" crowd.

This year, we've nearly doubled the farmers markets in the area from Aurora to St. Charles to Elburn. You can shop at one every day of the week except Monday.

The granddaddy? The 95-year-old Aurora Farmers Market at the Aurora Transportation Center. The baby? The Elburn Farmers Market, which started in July.

Are they all the same? Is there anything that makes each special?

To market I went.

Tuesday

Aurora Farmers Market East is one of the newbies, started in July. It is in no way convenient to Tri-Cities residents, but I decided to include it in case you work in the area, at Ridge and Ogden avenues on Aurora's southeast side.

It is in the parking lot of Bethany of Fox Valley United Methodist Church.

You can get your blood pressure measured here, at the Rush-Copley Hospital booth. The market is just across Ogden from the hospital's Heart Institute.

A little something to eat besides the veggies? I could smell the Wurst Kitchen stand before I saw it, enticing me with the aroma of grilled bratwurst from the Aurora company. A wistful-looking Wolf Schleining, 12, told me that at the headquarters, "I'm only allowed to do two things: Mix the spices and twirl the bratwurst." He's too young to cut and grind meat. But under his grandfather's supervision, he is an enthusiastic salesman of bratwurst and hot dogs at the farmers market. This kid is extremely proud of the product and happy to help the family. "It's pretty cool to be here," he says.

Wednesday

A little bit closer is the Aurora West Farmers Market, at Galena Boulevard and Edgelawn Drive on Aurora's far west side. Most of the same vendors are here, including the Dick's Mini Doughnuts machine. Have you ever watched the doughnuts float down the oil river at Krispy Kreme? Dick's has a toy-sized version, about a foot long, and the doughnuts are the size of a quarter.

There are five produce vendors here, and several other vendors.

Its mid- to late-afternoon time slot is a little different. One shopper, cell phone to his ear, was overheard asking his wife if he should bring home some corn for dinner; he had been in the neighborhood at another business, and stumbled across the market.

Thursday

At Geneva's Green Market, you can get a cooking demonstration from a hot young chef.

Jeremy Lycan of Niche restaurant and the late legendary 302 West in Geneva, is a founder of this new market. At 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. Thursdays, you can find him or another chef demonstrating the making of a dish with produce from participating vendors, such as a blue-potato salad with onions and a mayo-brown mustard sauce.

Those interested in organic produce may want to shop here. Vendors include Heritage Prairie Market; "Farmer Ted" from Wood Duck Farms out of Elburn, with heirloom tomatoes ("please don't squeeze," pleads a sign on the basket.); and the Corner Store from La Fox with pies and breads, including cornbread made with local sweet corn. There are melons from southern Illinois on this July day, tomatoes from Kentucky and beef from Maple Park.

Friday

St. Charles' Farmers Market seems to be a favorite of the stroller-pushing set. And it has some organic producers. One of which felt free to include some more politically strident bumper stickers for sale along with the produce. Let's just say right-wing politicians and extreme fundamentalist Christians might feel uncomfortable.

It's a bit of a funkier feel here, with vendors of "The World's Greatest Jerky," T-shirts, jewelry, giftware, "Olives 4 U" and soap.

Soap? "I'm a frustrated chemist," the proprietor of the Gingham Turtle of Winfield said cheerfully, explaining how she started the business after losing her job at United Airlines after 9/11.

Saturday

You have four choices.

Sugar Grove: Do you have a sweet tooth?

Meet the Pie Lady.

And the Kringla Man.

With visions of a flour-smudged farm wife in mind, I approached the pie booth. And met a tall, young woman named Selange Giannetto, who sells not only pies, but crumbles, brown bettys and other goodies. Apple, peach, blueberry, cherry and combinations thereof. If she doesn't have it, she's willing to take orders for pickup the next week. Shoppers who don't want to eat animal products have a friend in her; she does vegan catering and uses only vegetable shortening in her baked goods.

Virgil Duvick of Newark, "the Kringla Man," sells Norwegian baked goods such as kringlas and rosettes -- the kinds of things you might enjoy at Christmas. He's sold at craft shows and a family garage sale for 22 years; he got started when he realized his aunts were getting older and somebody needed to learn how to make the old family recipes.

"I've enjoyed doing it. It's a change of pace from factory work, which was my regular job," says the white-haired baker.

Campton Hills: The market, which started this year, is small. But for those who live west of Randall Road, you can't beat the location at Route 64 and La Fox Road.

Batavia: Parking can be a bit difficult, as the private shopping center lot east of the market fills up pretty quickly (it doesn't help that there is a Panera and a diner in that mall, and both are pretty popular on a Saturday morning.) But once you're there, a decent mix of produce vendors can be found. One Saturday you could also feed your mind, as the Friends of the Batavia Library were selling used books. Erewhon Farms of St. Charles has a big booth here selling organic produce, plants and flowers ( "flowers make your house look cleaner" says the sign). They're the ones to see for blue potatoes, purple potatoes, dark opal basil and pickling dill.

Aurora Transportation Center: What I liked here was the paper bags. Snazzy peck-sized numbers, with handles, emblazoned with the market's logo.

Wiltses of Maple Park was selling corn out of the bed of a pickup; Theis Family Farm was here, too. Somebody was selling seafood from Texas, Gloria's had meat, poultry and eggs, I could get Indiana musk melon, Curds and Whey was doing its usual sampling, a youth group had a bake sale, and Wolf Farm of Eau Claire, Mich., was selling Silver Creek Apiaries honey.

"Everybody is so friendly and good to us, we just want to be here every Saturday," said Josie Wolf, who runs the farm with her sons Ralph and Joseph. They also sell at the Tuesday and Wednesday markets in Aurora.

Sunday

Geneva French market: Ooh-la-la.

It is not just a farmers market. You can buy clothing, jewelry, home decor items here. There are baked goods, a pickle vendor, sauce and food mix vendors, cosmetics representatives. It is definitely a most upscale crowd. Think carefully coiffed women in high-heeled sandals, carrying little dogs.

But it is not too upscale for kolackys from a bakery in North Riverside or pickles. Or a brown-and-black-habited nun selling pastries to fund her order's soup kitchen for the poor in Chicago.

It is in the parking lot north of the Metra station on Third Street.

Elburn: More food, fewer crafts, per design of the founder, Jim Gillette.

Gillette, a former Elburn co-op employee, wants to concentrate on stuff you can eat. Like the corn grown by the Slepicka family of Maple Park. Or the table loaded with goods from Hans Bakery in Geneva. The market is in the parking lot of Elburn Lions Park, south and west of the downtown.

Familiar faces

You can see some vendors at several markets.

Curds and Whey Cheese of St. Charles, for example. (Rob Murphy, co-owner, may understand farmers markets as well as anyone; he runs the St. Charles Farmers Market.)

And farmdirectblackangus.com of Maple Park, with its hormone-free, grass-fed beef.

Stojan Farm and Wiltses Produce, both out of Maple Park, sell sweet corn and other vegetables.

River Valley Kitchens, a mushroom producer based out of Wisconsin, sells mushrooms and related jarred products (such as bruschetta spread) at most of the markets.

Vendors of home-party goods, such as Pampered Chef kitchenware, are at a few. Several have pet food sellers, such as Barks and Purrs and Chicago Barkery.

Norway Produce out of Norway, Ill., is at the Sugar Grove and Aurora farmers markets with fruit, vegetables, hull-less popcorn and home-made sauerkraut.

Grandma's Farm Fresh Eggs -- offering ovoids from chickens, ducks and turkeys -- is at Sugar Grove and Geneva Green.

And Gloria's Meats are a favorite, too. (She also sells eggs.)

What if it's Monday?

There may not be any farmers markets, but the good thing about living out here is that there are farmstands, especially if you venture west of Randall Road.

There's Theis Farm Market, 6N953 County Line Road, Maple Park; Norton Farm, 39W369 Route 64, St. Charles; Heritage Prairie Market; and Windy Acres, 37W446 Fabyan Parkway, Geneva.

If you go

Elburn

9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sundays through Sept. 30

Lions Park, 500 S. Filmore St.

Geneva French

9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sundays through Oct. 28

Aurora East

10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays through Aug. 28

Ridge and Ogden avenues

Aurora West

2 to 6 p.m. Wednesdays through Aug. 29

Northwest corner of Edgelawn Drive and Galena Boulevard

Geneva Green

7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursdays through Oct. 25

RiverPark, 75 N. River Lane

St. Charles

7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Fridays through Oct. 26

Fourth Avenue and Main Street

Campton Hills

8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays through Oct. 27

Campton Square Shopping Center, southeast corner of LaFox Road and Route 64

Batavia

8 a.m. to noon Saturdays through Oct. 27

Water and Wilson streets

Aurora Transportation Center

7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays through Oct. 16

233 N. Broadway (Route 25)

How to not be a rube at the farmers market

Bring some cabbage to get your cabbage. Cash is king, followed by checks. Most of the produce vendors do not take credit or debit cards. Some of the other vendors do -- particularly at the Geneva French Market, which features lots of artisans and franchises. It's courteous to pay with smaller bills, and two vendors at one market loved it the day I paid for some small purchases in quarters.

Know your seasons, especially if you want to eat stuff that is produced around here. If there are tomatoes at a market in June, they're not from northern Illinois, unless they were grown in a hothouse. Many of the vendors label where things came from, typically Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan and Arkansas.

"Local" fruit in most markets meant Michigan.

"Local" doesn't necessarily mean "organic." If organic is important to you, look for certification from an organic produce association. Some vendors at the Geneva Green and St. Charles farmers markets displayed these.