KuKuMa – every Saturday at Hohen Platz Square
In addition to the two popular farmers’ markets in Wolfsberg on Fridays at Weiher Platz and in the market hall next to the Euco Center, since September 2019 there is also s Saturday market – KuKuMa (culinary culture market) at Hohen Platz Square. Since it opened, I’ve been a regular market customer, because I really enjoy the atmosphere there, especially when there is live music. Although there was a period when it was not possible to close the square to cars on Saturdays, the old town has been car-free again every Saturday morning for a few weeks now. This makes it easier for families with children, cyclists, wheelchair users and pedestrians to move around freely in the old town, it reduces noise and makes it more pleasant for visitors and everyone involved in the market. A special atmosphere is created when weddings take place and the bride and groom can share their joy with their wedding guests in front of the registry office in the Alte Post.
There are many wonderful products at KuKuMa and the stallholders put their heart and soul into them. In the next few months I will be presenting some of my favorite products here on WolfsBlog and today I’ll start with the hair soap from Johannes Schwar, from the Jörglbauer organic farm. I have been trying to shop plastic-free as much as possible for a few years now and I noticed this product because of its paper packaging. I love this soap, which replaces shampoo and conditioner and saves us a lot of plastic bottles and money in the process. A bar of hair soap lasts for 2-3 months in our two-person household and we like to switch between the different types.
My husband’s favorite products from the Jörglbauer stand are the ready-made liver dumpling soup and the beef-spread (with beef liver and potatoes), both in a glass jar. He likes to have both products in reserve in the fridge for those times when his stomach is growling and he doesn have much time. This is also a type of fast food, ready quickly, but healthier than normal. The Jörglbauer product range contains a lot of different products and it’s best to have a look yourself at the next KuKuMa and talk to the very knowledgeable, young organic farmer.
One product that I can’t pass without wanting it in my shopping basket are the cheese dumplings from Gerlinde Wagner’s Pasta Passion stand. Gerlinde is known for her wonderful filled pasta made from regional ingredients, the dough for which Gerlinde and her assistant Brigitte even add natural colouring to, such as that from beetroot or nettles, but my favorite Pasta Passion product are the cheese dumplings. A light vegetable soup over the sliced, flat dumplings is a wonderful meal that I always look forward to. Gerlinde also has a lovely, small shop at the end of the street, on the corner opposite the town hall, which is open on Fridays from 9am to 1pm and on Saturdays she has a market stall at KuKuMa.
My husband Erich Kronlechner has also been a regular stallholder at KuKuMa since the beginning of June. He is as happy as a lark to prepare coffee at his specially built, mobile cart. A few years ago he met Christian Thurner from San Giusto Kaffee in Kötschach Mauten at the Wolfsberg trade fair and he was immediately impressed by the self-roasted coffee. The coffee beans are now packed in Kötschach Mauten in Erichś own environmentally friendly packaging. The Krone Kaffee coffee is available to buy at FUNDUS in the Bambergerstraße and at KuKuMa, where Erich also makes coffee-to-go in environmentally friendly paper cups. He offers espresso from a portafilter coffee machine, Mocca-Master filter coffee and lots more in between. He can also grind the beans for you to suit various coffee preparation methods. The espresso is the best-selling coffee at KuKuMa – but I prefer to drink a cappuccino with milk froth.
In September 2020 the Tomazej family (Saat & Tat) from St. Michael bei Bleiburg won the Carinthian Bio Award. We are fortunate to have a Saat & Tat stand at KuKuma every week. Many different, freshly harvested vegetables and potatoes, as well as different types of flour, sunflower seed oil, bread and a lot more are sold personally by farmer Marian at KuKuMa. He also grows lentils himself and I can highly recommend them. Marian’s lentils and the pine cone potato are my favorite Saat & Tat products.
Since I’ve been buying products at the market regularly, I needed to go to the supermarket less and less. Almost everything we need for our two person household is available at markets in Wolfsberg. What we buy doesn cost any more than products of a comparable quality in the supermarket and with our purchases we support regional farmers and producers. At the same time, we avoid plastic packaging. What more could we want?
