I chanced upon Farmer Fred at the Kendall Village Farmers Market. Talk about supporting local…read morefamily farms! Here's the poster perfect example. There was Fred, his wife Gaelle and their boys. They have raw goat's milk and home-made cheese, bananas, mangoes, longans, and other fruits. All available in just small quantities from their farm. The fruits are harvested that very morning and the milk milked the evening before.
Fred was selling some guarapo (sugar cane juice). When I ordered one, he asked me if I prefer purple cane or yellow cane. I've drank guarapo all my life and I've never gotten asked this question!! I ended up with the purple cane, on his recommendation, and he squeezed a little key lime juice in it. I have to say, it's refreshing, only mildly sweet, and the best ever guarapo I've ever had!!
As I sipped my juice, he explained to us how sugar cane juice is very different from what you may imagine it be to: water with sweet cane sugar. The juice is actually alkalinizing, and contains several essential nutrients, such as calcium, potassium, iron, magnesium and phosphorous. Moreover, the canes he used were just cutted that morning on his farm so it's way fresher than what you may get at, say, a Cuban cafe. And of course unlike the processed cane sugar, which is devoid of any nutrient.
As many who shop farmers market may notice, there are stalls selling real local products, and stalls selling cheap produce shipped in from elsewhere. If your aim is to support local family farms, Farmer Fred is the stall to go to. Friendly people, quality product, reasonable price. (mangoes $2 a lb, longan $3.) Sadly or not, while he has a webpage, https://www.facebook.com/cubanredfred, he doesn't put up much info about where you'll find him next. I chanced upon Farmer Fred at the Kendall Village Farmers Market, and I'm definitely looking forward to my guarapo next time I see him!