Most towns and cities these days have a farmers’ market and they can be brilliant places for picking up local produce. Edinburgh’s port of Leith has its own market every Saturday, and on the first Saturday of each month this incorporates a ‘Vegan Quarter‘. I went along to the first one back in March. The market runs from 10am till 5pm and I turned up some time before noon. I was both excited and disappointed by what I found.

Many stalls, including the ever popular Missy’s Vegan Cupcakes and Cool Jerk, purveyor of pies, were completely sold out. There was nothing left. I wandered around and soon deduced that the vegan quarter in this particular market had been far, far more popular than most stallholders had imagined.

The only stall I saw who seemed to have brought adequate stock was the ever-reliable Considerit Chocolate, so I purchased a few bars from them. Even Henderson’s, Edinburgh’s veggie temple since the sixties, was running low on grub. I left with my chocolate, both pleased that this idea was so obviously popular and slightly saddened that my haul hadn’t been greater.

Fast forward four months. I made my way down to Leith a little earlier this time and was incredibly pleased to see every stall fully stocked. In the intervening period, the level of interest had been properly gauged and everyone seemed ready for the predictable hoards. The cupcakes were back, the pies were back, Henderson’s were back with a delicious array of salads and vegan haggis amongst other things, there were bakeries and Sgaia Foods were there with their Mheat.

Also in attendance were Go Vegan Scotland, an outreach group who mainly campaign in Edinburgh and Glasgow, providing anyone who wanted to know with information on going vegan. This is a fantastic addition to the vegan quarter. It’s great to woo people with yummy food but having these guys there to tell folk about how they can live a compassionate lifestyle is brilliant.

My haul this time was much better, incorporating as it did, a macaroni pie. Strangely enough, these were not delicacies I particularly indulged in before I was vegan, but now I have a fascination for them. It made a very good lunch.

I finished off with an indulgent slab of chocolate banana cake from the All About Patisserie. They are to be found at the vegan quarter every month it seems. Lovely stuff.

Of course I had to get some more chocolate bars to take home with me. I knew I’d be in trouble if I didn’t bring at least one treat home. The challenge was keeping my hands off them until I got there…

 

 

The Leith market vegan quarter happens on the first Saturday of every month. See here for details.