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Step 1
The best way to eat local foods is to get to know local farmers, and the best way to do that is to visit farmers markets. During the summer, farmers markets are held all over Indianapolis, so choose the one that is closest to you or that is held at the most convenient time.
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Step 2
In the winter, when most farmers markets close, you can still find many of your favorite vendors at the indoor winter market at Traders Point Creamery.
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Step 3
Speaking of Traders Point Creamery, it’s your best source for local, organic dairy products. The creamery produces award-winning yogurt, cheese, milk and ice cream, which you can buy at the on-site farm store or at grocery stores around town. We’re also big fans of the goat cheese from Capriole Farms, which sells its products at many local farmers markets.
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Step 4
If you’re interested in purchasing local bakery products, peruse the selection at Scholars Inn Bakehouse, located at 701 Broad Ripple Ave. The house-made breads include sourdough, rosemary olive, paisano, New York rye, whole wheat and more.
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Step 5
Once you have local bread, you need something local to smear on it. That’s where Dillman Farm comes in. The Bloomington-based farm is famous for its apple butter, but we’re secretly obsessed with the seedless red raspberry jam instead. Dillman Farm products are available on the farm’s website and at many stores around Indy.
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Step 6
Oh, you wanted to use the bread to make sandwiches? If you want local meat, one option is Apple Family Farm near McCordsville, which offers natural, grass-fed beef, lamb, veal and poultry. Another choice is Moody Meats, which has an old-fashioned meat market near Avon. Its sister farm, Lone Pine Farms, provides the store with all-natural beef, pork and chicken. Downtown, visit Goose the Market, which carries a wide variety of Indiana meats.
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Step 7
Need a chocolate fix? Shop with Endangered Species Chocolate, which is based in Indianapolis. The company manufactures its chocolate with fair-trade cocoa and donates 10 percent of its profits to conservation efforts.
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Step 8
Does it all sound like too much work? Sign up with local company Farm Fresh Delivery, which will bring you a weekly delivery of local, organic produce and other local grocery items. The service carries products from Traders Point Creamery, Dillman Farm and Scholars Inn, as well as many other local producers. Our favorites include Sechler’s Pickles, mushrooms from Homestead Growers and pasta sauce from Local Folks Foods.
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Step 9
Would you like to give a gift basket of local foods? Visit the website for Taste of Indiana, a gift basket company that stocks only the finest Hoosier food products.
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Step 10
Another way to get local produce is to sign up for a community-supported agriculture program, often known simply as a “CSA.” When you join a CSA, you’re buying a “share” of one farm’s produce for the season. You usually have to pay up-front for the whole season, so you share some financial risk with the farmer in case of crop failure. But you’ll probably end up with heaping deliveries of the freshest in-season produce you can buy.
