The Little Treats in Life

I don't usually pay much attention to local markets, festivals and fairs because I always thought they were going to be a bit pants...I mean, this is Stoke-on-Trent! However, after launching my cupcake business I participated in a fair few of these community events and realised how ignorant I had been. The people on the stalls are so passionate, so friendly, and really good at what they do!

Last weekend, Daddy N told me that there was an Artisan Market being held in Trentham Gardens and it looked good. I got there asap and revelled in the buzzing atmosphere, the gorgeous aroma of food and the many samples of free food. 

I thought I would share some of my lovely memories :)

I fell in love with the Miscos Chocolates and Truffles stall. Remember that partay in the mouth experience I often talk about? Imagine that you have just jumped into a limo, drove across town, and gone to Kanye West's party - that's the party in your mouth experience I had with these (we're also imagining that Kanye West is cool). These were all hand made with the very best and fresh ingredients, and tasted sooooooo good!

These mini-cupcakes from Tinakiiana Petit Fours were just melt-in-your-mouth gorgeous! 

I have never seen a larger assortment of relishes and chutneys in my life. Fat Jax do everything from sweet and sour to hot and fiery. I wish I had the patience to make my own chutneys, but considering that I don't I guess I'll just have to keep buying these!

One of my favourite stalls by far was the Vanillis Italian Patisserie; I literally hovered around there for 20 minutes! They had everything from luxurious chocolate brownies, noist carrot cakes to savoury vegetable samosas - gah, I do love me some samosas! I just found out through some internet trawling that they have their own cafe; many trips will be commencing there!

I loved the old school vintage feel of these cola bottles from the Classic Cola Company. The stall owner said that the cola was made using a unique recipe by someolddudewwhodiedalongtimeago *ahem*. I loved all the different versions of the cola. These bottles will be perfect for a tea party, picnic or a BBQ.

Oh, hellooooooooo healthy food getting ready to go in my belly so I get a six pack soon...please? Racheal's Company had a lovely selection of granola that we tried. It was inspiring listening to the story behind the company and the granola was such yummy.

You cannot go wrong with bread and olive oil, can you? Now imagine that the olive oil had been infused with all kinds of glorious spices, chillies and other flavours; it was heavenly! Greek Oil Direct hit the jackpot with this idea. I know you can get these from the supermarket, but it is an altogether different experience when it's home made and the fresh ingredients are still in there - yum!

It was the name of the company of the company that really got me; #brownies. Oh boy, did we have a chuckle at that. There were gorgeous slabs and slabs of brownies all piled up high on the stall - it was heaven. We tried the Snicker and Mars brownies and said that they were definitely the best brownies that we had tasted for that price range,  

There is nothing better than the smell of fresh coffee beans! Just the smell from the Man CoCo stall gave me a caffeine rush. 

There were so many other stalls owners there that had great products but the above were my favourite. I got to spend the day checking out local produce, see new businesses and sampling gorgeous food and drinks.

Are there any local markets that you enjoy going to and would recommend?