Pharmacy in Your Kitchen: Farm Market Field Trip (and healthy recipe!)

This fall, Survivors and Thrivers embarked on a vibrant and interactive "Pharmacy in Your Kitchen" field trip to the Kings Drive Farmers Market, then returned to The Pink House to prepare their bounty using a healthy recipe we're happy to share!

Before heading out, everyone was split into color-based teams. Each group was challenged with a fun scavenger-style mission: find ingredients needed for our cooking demonstration plus track down other market foods that matched their team color. The energy was high, and the creativity was inspiring as each team explored the market stalls, comparing fresh produce and celebrating their finds.

Once back at The Pink House, Chef Cheryl Hoover worked her magic by turning the day’s bounty into a colorful, nourishing dish: Farmers Market Salad with Lemon Basil Dressing. Cheryl reminded us how easy and joyful it can be to shop for ingredients across the rainbow and create something both beautiful and delicious.

This session was about tasting fresh flavors, sparking creativity, and learning how food can be medicinal. Survivors and Thrivers left inspired to explore their own farmers markets, finding colorful produce to bring health and healing into their kitchens.

Says Chef Cheryl, “I love to go to the farmers market and try to find all the different colors of the rainbow and make something beautiful with them. This salad has them all and then some! If you make it, be creative with finding veggies, and have fun.”

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Farmers Market Salad with Lemon Basil Dressing From Pharmacy in Your Kitchen with Chef Cheryl Hoover

Serves 4

Salad Ingredients

• 1 large sweet potato (skin on), diced

• 1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

• 1 Tbsp olive oil

• Salt & pepper

• 6 oz mixed greens

• 1 ½ cups diced red cabbage

• 1 ½ cups grape tomatoes, halved

• ½ cup sliced radishes

• 1 cup diced cucumber

• ½ yellow pepper, diced

• 1 cup blueberries

• 1 avocado, sliced

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Dressing Ingredients

• 3 lemons, juiced

• ½ cup basil leaves

• 1 garlic clove

• 1 tsp Dijon mustard

• 2 tsp honey

• ½ cup olive oil

• ¼ tsp salt

• ⅛ tsp pepper

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Directions

1. Toss the sweet potato and chickpeas with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast at 450°F for about 20 minutes until tender but not mushy.

2. Blend all dressing ingredients in a mini blender until smooth.

3. In a large bowl, combine greens, cabbage, tomatoes, radishes, cucumber, and yellow pepper. Add cooled sweet potato and chickpeas, then toss lightly with dressing.

4. Top with blueberries and avocado slices. Serve and enjoy!

A huge thank you to Chef Cheryl Hoover and to all our Survivors and Thrivers who joined us. This field trip reminded us that food can bring not only nourishment, but joy, community, and healing.