Strike up a conversation about community with Nicole Foster, and after just a few minutes, you’ll be amazed to believe that she and her family have only lived in Baltimore for six months.

In that short span, the Northeast Baltimore transplant—who owns vegan creamery Cajou with her husband, Dwight Campbell—has become so invested in the area, that she has organized an entire festival devoted to bringing the community together.

“We were inspired by everything here,” says Foster, who recently moved to Coldstream Homestead Montebello from Reston, Virginia with her husband and two sons. “Baltimore felt like a place where we could create things. As opposed to other places where would have never formed a market because it always seemed like, ‘Well, maybe somebody should do that.’ But here, it felt like that somebody was us.”

Foster is gathering more than 30 local makers, food vendors, and wellness organizations for the new Market at Montebello, a monthly event that kicks off this Saturday, May 25, and will continue on five additional Saturdays through October. Her hope is that residents from the areas surrounding the lake will use the market to connect with one another, while also accessing resources to build a greener, healthier neighborhood.

“Soon after we moved here, my husband and I were walking with our boys around the lake and we noticed that people would say good morning, but that would be it,” Foster says. “No one would stop and chat. There was no coffee shop or gathering place for people to come and create fellowship with one another, and we really thought that was missing.”

Located on the parking pad behind Montebello Elementary School, the environmentally conscious market will feature a composting demo by the Baltimore Compost Collective, yoga on the lake led by Bikram Yoga, and a cooking tutorial from Chef Catina Smith—who will teach attendees how to prepare arancini with romesco sauce using a few simple ingredients. There will also be kid-friendly activities, including seedling planting with the University of Maryland Extension Master Gardener Program.

Ultimately, Foster would like the market to be a catalyst to start a community-run garden using composted materials. As a step toward that long-term goal, she is donating a portion of all vendor fees from the first market to Montebello Elementary. The donation will help to rebuild the school’s vegetable garden and ensure that students learn where their food comes from.

“I think about the proverb, ‘Give a man a fish and you can feed him for a day, but teach a man to fish and you can feed him for a lifetime,’” says Michelle Diggs, who will be vending at the market with her startup Blondie’s Doughnuts. “You’re teaching children something as basic as how to plant a tomato or a cucumber. But it’s really about teaching them what that could mean for an entire community.”

Diggs will be on site slinging her scratch-made Brioche doughnuts injected with fillings like lemon curd, vanilla bean cream, and berry jam—which she and her husband prepare out of the Bmore Made With Pride commercial kitchen on Harford Road. Other local food businesses to look out for throughout the season will include Mera Kitchen Collective, Pure Chocolate by Jinji, Zeke’s Coffee, Healthy People Juice, Vegan Soul Bakery, Cuples Tea, and, of course, Cajou.

There will also be live music spun by DJ Harvey Dent, and handmade crafts and clothing for sale from the likes of Orange Scissor Art, Regal Clothes, Scent City Candle Company, and Mitchell & Co.

Rosalind Mitchell—a Waverly resident who founded Mitchell & Co. after helping her grandson with a science project 10 years ago—is looking forward to selling her artisan soaps, lotions, body creams, and bath bombs at the community event.

“I’m excited to see all of the creative people that are in this community come together,” Mitchell says. “We have some wonderful talent on this side of town, and I hope the market helps people to see all of these great small businesses and start to patronize them more.”

The thriving small business scene, and the welcoming community feel, are reasons why transplants like Diggs and Foster say they feel so at home working and living in the Northeast Baltimore area.

“I’ve lived in many different states throughout my life, and Baltimore people are the warmest I’ve ever met,” says Diggs, who grew up in Richmond, Virginia. “You meet all different people from all walks of life and they’re all just good to the core.”

Above all, Foster hopes that the market will be a tool to unite and strengthen the areas surrounding Lake Montebello as a whole.

“Coldstream Homestead Montebello is very different from Mayfield,” she says. “And Mayfield is very different from Lauraville. These are vastly different communities, but it’s exciting for them all to come together. I’m visualizing people overlooking the lake and feeling really transformed by this experience.”

At least when it comes to eating habits, Emily and Eddie Garner have distinctly different childhood memories. Emily’s parents were staunch vegetarians for a time, while Eddie’s father was a butcher who made filet for the family on a weekly basis. “My parents were vegetarians before I was born,” says Emily, “but the story goes that when I was three, I went to a friend’s house and I ate a McDonald’s cheeseburger for the first time. I came home saying, ‘Mom, I want a cheeseburger,’ and that was the end of their vegetarianism.”

These days, the co-owners of Bikram Yoga Baltimore, who live in a charming Cape Cod-style home in the Villa Cresta neighborhood of Parkville, are very much in sync when it comes to their eating habits—and their kitchen rituals, too. While Emily does all of the cooking for their household, which includes their boisterous brood of three (Charlie, 8, Marty, 4, and Paige, 3), Eddie says, “I’m always happy to clean and get things down from high shelves.”

“It’s impossible to practice yoga and not feel a greater connection to the world around you.”

Of course, feeding their young family—with their finicky tastes and personal preferences—can be challenging. (Charlie loves a ham and cheese sub, Marty has a serious sweet tooth, and Paige likes spicy salsa.) “We try to eat every night around five,” says Emily, “but just getting them to the table can be like herding cats. The kids hate the ‘d’ word (dinner). If I specifically say what they’re eating, they’re more likely to come running to the table.”

On this winter’s day, as Emily prepares dinner, Paige, Charlie, and their pit bull mix, Lenny, run around the house, and Eddie checks on the cornbread baking in the oven of their cozy, sun-drenched kitchen. On the menu for dinner is a Pinterest find called Tilapia Stew and a recipe for so-called “Yummy Cornbread,” passed down by Emily’s mother.

“My mom doesn’t know where she got this recipe,” says Emily, as she adds a can of creamed corn to the bowl, “but it’s likely an old church-lady situation. It’s cornbread, but it’s doctored up with whole kernels, creamed corn, and sour cream—it’s really halfway between cornbread and corn pudding.” Also on the lineup is a kale salad with pomegranate seeds and pecans. “The trick with kale,” says Emily, “is to massage the chopped greens to soften them before you dress them.”

When they’re not feeding their family, the Garners can most often be found in their equally warm Cockeysville hot yoga studio. “Everything I know about life, I learned in the yoga studio,” says Eddie, smiling. “I’m so much nicer now. It’s impossible to practice yoga and not feel a greater connection to the world around you.”

The students, says Eddie, keep them inspired. “What I love is that the yoga is accessible to anyone,” he explains. “In class, I can have a 17-year-old standing next to an 83-year-old. Or someone who is a quadriplegic in a wheelchair next to someone who wants to lose 100 pounds. I want people to know that everyone can benefit from yoga. I can help reacquaint you with your body and how it moves so that you can find your way out of pain.”

The Garners first discovered yoga when they were living in New York City in 2004. Emily, who studied dance at Butler University in Indiana, was pursuing ballet professionally and working at Starbucks to make ends meet. Eddie, an opera tenor, was working for a company that produced concerts at Carnegie Hall and singing on the side. As struggling artists, the couple happened to buy a book called The Cheap Bastard’s Guide to New York City.

“There were tips, like ‘This place has three free appetizers during happy hour,’” says Emily, laughing. “Or, ‘If you volunteer to sell merchandise here, you can get free tickets to a Broadway show.’” Fortuitously, one of the tips included a pay-what-you-can donation class at a Bikram Yoga studio. “I loved it right away,” recalls Emily. “I called Eddie from the street and said, ‘You need to take class with me.’” Echoes Eddie, “I loved it immediately and knew after one class I wanted to be a teacher.”

But when they’re not in their yoga studio, their favorite spot is their kitchen and great room, the true heart of their home. “I grew up almost always eating at home,” recalls Emily. “Family meals were the time we talked about pretty much anything and everything. So, when all of us are together eating, I feel good knowing my kids will remember Sunday morning pancake breakfasts or whatever it is—it’s a time when, through a meal, we are creating their sense of home.”

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Kale and Quinoa Salad

INGREDIENTS

• 1⁄2 cup uncooked red quinoa, rinsed
• 6 cups chopped kale
• 1 cup pomegranate seeds
• 1⁄2 cup dried cranberries
• 1⁄2 cup pecans, chopped

FOR THE DRESSING

• 1⁄4 cup olive oil
• 4 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 2 tsp. Dijon mustard
• 1 Tbsp. honey
  Salt and pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS

To make the quinoa, add 1 cup of water to a small saucepan and add quinoa. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat and simmer for about
13 minutes. Remove from heat, keeping quinoa covered, and allow it to sit for about five minutes, then fluff quinoa with a fork. Place kale in a large bowl and gently massage to break down fibers. Add quinoa, pomegranate seeds, dried cranberries, and pecans.

To make the dressing, whisk together olive oil, apple cider vinegar, Dijon mustard, honey, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Pour dressing over the salad and toss together until evenly coated. Top with additional pomegranates, cranberries, and pecans as desired.

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Fish Stew

INGREDIENTS

• 6 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
• 2 Tbsp. cumin
• 2 Tbsp. paprika
• 3 tsp. minced garlic
• 1 1⁄2 tsp. salt
• 1 1⁄2 tsp. pepper
• 2 lbs. tilapia (cut into bite-sized pieces, fish can be partially frozen)
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 large bell peppers (sliced into 2-inch strips)
• 14 oz. diced tomatoes, drained
• 14 oz. coconut milk
• Fresh cilantro to taste

DIRECTIONS

Combine the lime juice, cumin, paprika, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Add in the tilapia and mix until coated. Cover and place in the refrigerator to marinate for 20 minutes or longer. (You can marinate the night before). Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook until they begin to soften, about three minutes. Add bell pepper, tomatoes, and marinated tilapia. Pour coconut milk over ingredients and mix. Cover and simmer about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Just before serving, garnish with cilantro.