The Konocti Fiddle Club added to the festival atmosphere at the Friday Night Farmers' Market on Friday, July 16, 2010. Photo courtesy of the Lake County Community Co-op.

CLEARLAKE – The Friday Night Farmers' Market hosted the Konocti Fiddle Club this past Friday as part of their summer series of music specials.

The market also was attended by local Chic Le Chef cuisine preparer, Esther Oertel, who was busy previewing the current harvest by the farmers for her slated demonstration next week.

Oertel, also known as the Veggie Girl, plans on giving a cooking demonstration at the market at 6 p.m. Friday, July 23, at the co-op booth after shopping with the farmers present at the market that day.

The market runs from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. through August, 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. in September and is managed by the Lake County Community Co-op as part of their commitment to strengthening the local food system in Lake County.

The Konocti Fiddle Club, featuring more than 20 youth and adult musicians, entertained and educated the large, attentive audience with various styles of music, including bluegrass, hoedowns, waltzes and jigs, as well as some fiddle history.

Various instruments were demonstrated, including the washboard, mandolin, banjo and the spoons, as well as many very well tuned and played fiddles.

Upcoming musicians at the market include Michael Barrish, Borrowed Time, Blue Collar and Without A Net.

The market, in its third year of operation, is located under the cool trees on the lakefront lawn of Redbud Park in Clearlake and features local and regional farmers, artisans and food vendors, including a new line of organic and gluten free baked goods of Sweet Freedom. Owner Lisa Rosen had an appealing variety of sweets including cheese cakes, cookies, lemon bars and brownies.

The farmers are accepting WIC and senior farmers' market vouchers distributed by the USDA and are just reaching full peak of the summer harvest season, which includes basil, tomatoes, zucchini, beans, cucumbers, watermelons, peppers, strawberries, potatoes, boysenberries, onions, cantaloupe, okra and more.

The farmers' market is part of the Lake County Community Co-op's vision for a more sustainable local food system. They collaborate with the Clear Lake Chamber of Commerce and the City of Clearlake.

For more information on the market, go to www.lakeco-op.org, or call Market Manager Hileri Shand at 707-483-0785.

Now celebrating more than two and a half years years in existence, the Lake County Community Co-op envisions cultivating an evolving community by nurturing values of social, economic and environmental responsibility.

The co-op encourages member input and participation for the continued success of its co-creation. It wishes to support local farmers and producers while providing a forum for community activities.

For more information or to become a member of the LCCC, follow the links at www.lakeco-op.org or call 707-993-4270.

Visitors to the Friday Night Farmers' Market at Redbud Park in Clearlake, Calif., can find fresh fruits, vegetables and baked goods. Photo courtesy of the Lake County Community Co-op.