Goose the Market:Local Food in a Downtown Neighborhood

Chris and Mollie Eley care. They care about their customers, their producers, their products, and their neighborhood. It shows the minute you step into their beautiful shop, Goose the Market, at 25th and Delaware in Indianapolis. The products, many of them from local Indiana producers, are artfully displayed along the shelves, bins, and in the meat cases. Walk through the front door and you'll be welcomed warmly in the cozy market that is a cornerstone (or, more accurately, gemstone) in the revitalization of the Fall Creek Place neighborhood area.

At Goose you'll find local Indiana produce, cheeses, prepared items, and meats. Chris has a smokehouse behind the store and makes his own bacon, sausages, and other charcuterie from locally raised meats. On the day that I was there he had Rabbit Pate (Gunthorp Farms rabbit), duck, sage, and apple sausage (Gunthorp Farms duck and Tuttle Orchard apples), and lamb bacon (Viking Lamb). Once my eyes landed on that bacon all I could think about was adapting my bucatini with bacon and eggs recipe to one with lamb bacon.

That evening I made a quick trip across the street to raid my neighbor's hen house and brought home two "still warm from the nest" eggs. The bacon, which is sweetened with Indiana Shagbark Syrup, was wonderfully aromatic. As I was cooking it, I had to exercise plenty of self-restraint to keep from snatching bits out of the pan. The newly created dish, "Bucatini with Eggs and Lamb Bacon", has to be tried to be fully appreciated (You'll find the recipe in the Winter Recipes section.). It's a hearty, cold weather entree rich with the bright yellow goodness of farm fresh eggs and the smoky, salty, sweetness of the lamb bacon. 

This bacon offers endless possibilities in the kitchen. I can't wait for spring when I'll make a hot lamb bacon dressing for a baby spinach salad. Any kind of greens sauteed in the lamb bacon drippings and topped with the crispy bits of bacon would be taken to a whole new level of delicious. A frittata made with the lamb bacon, new potatoes, mushrooms, and sprinkled with the first of the spring chives from my herb garden would be nice. Or how about wrapping whole pitted dates with thin slices of that bacon and baking them on a foil lined cookie sheet at 450 F for 5 minutes or just until the bacon is crisp? What a great way to start off a New Year's Eve party. 

You might want to plan your trip to Goose the Market at lunch time to enjoy local food specialties such as Braised Beef Short Rib, Barley, and Shitake Mushroom Soup (made with Fisher Farms beef and Homestead Growers mushrooms). Or stop by for an afternoon pick-me-up of a Double Dutch Chocolate Frappe (made rich and luscious with Trader's Point chocolate milk).

If you still have holiday gifts to buy, their gift basket of locally produced goods including LM Sugarbush Maple Syrup, Laney Dune County Honey, Local Folks Pasta Sauce, and Hickory Works smoked sea salt would please any local food lover. Or take home a dozen Shagbark Oatmeal Cookies and a quart of Trader's Point Traditional Egg Nog for a special Christmas Eve treat.

Goose the Market
2503 North Delaware Street
Indianapolis, IN 46205
Phone: 317-924-4944
www.goosethemarket.com

Photos: Bucatini with Eggs and Lamb Bacon
            Goose the Market's lamb bacon