Spring has sprung and the region's farmers, growers and food producers are gearing up for another bountiful harvest season. The opening dates for several area farmers markets have been recently announced, so mark your calendars and plan to be there to purchase spring veggies, garden starts, artisan food and more.

Perry Street Thursday Market: Opens Thu, May 2, from 3-7 pm; thursdaymarket.org

Fairwood Farmers Market: Opens Tue, May 7, from 3-7 pm; fairwoodfarmersmarket.org

Spokane Farmers Market: Opens Sat, May 11, from 8 am-1 pm; spokanefarmersmarket.org

Kootenai County Farmers Market: Opens Sat, May 11, from 9 am-1:30 pm; kootenaifarmersmarket.org

Kendall Yards Night Market: Opens Wed, May 15, from 5-9 pm; kendallnightmarket.org

Impossible Burger 2.0

Favorite local vegan/veggie friendly restaurant Cascadia Public House (6314 N. Ash) has been serving Impossible Foods' buzzworthy meat-mimicking, all-plant-based Impossible Burger since last year, but it's since gotten even better. The North Spokane eatery recently began serving the recently improved plant patty — the maker's new recipe brings buffs to flavor and texture — which was designed not for practicing vegans/vegetarians, but to tempt frequent meat eaters to make the conversion, at least once and awhile, from animal to plant protein. The Impossible Burger is making such massive waves in the food industry of late that even Burger King is testing it out in the Chicago market, with plans to roll out the patty to locations nationwide sometime later this year. In the meantime, head to Cascadia to sample this meat-like burger ($16) that is known to fool even the most bombastic of beef lovers.

Food for Fines

Do you make it a (bad) habit to let your library books sit around your house past their due date, collecting dust and accruing hefty fines for something totally preventable? If so, the Spokane Public Library is now running its annual Food for Fines campaign, accepting donations of nonperishable human food and pet food to eliminate all active fines on a single account. The event runs through Saturday, April 20, and donations (one item per account is enough to wipe any fines) can be accepted at any branch. Donated food is then distributed to Second Harvest, with pet food going to SCRAPS. Last year, this campaign collected more than 10,000 pounds of food to feed the region's food-insecure population. ♦