Star Squash

“And, most dear actors, eat no onions or garlic, for we are to utter sweet breath; and I do not doubt but to hear them say, it is a sweet comedy.”

- A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Act 4, Scene 2), William Shakespeare

It is hard to imagine having anything but sweet breath after leaving the San Francisco Ferry Plaza Farmers Market this weekend. I must have tried at least a dozen different varieties of pluots, and at least as many peaches and nectarines (my favorite this week).

Organic Yellow Peaches

Nectarines

There were strawberries, raspberries and blackberries. Apricots and figs. Melons and tomatoes. All sweet as can be.

Organic Raspberries

Even the greens looked tender and sweet. I couldn’t help but get some of this red kale from Green Gulch Farm. There is something amazing about fresh picked greens grown with care. They look so soft, yet crisp and nutritious.

Beautiful Collards

Red Kale

I would have bought some of the beautiful collards as well if I had been able to resist the beautiful chioggia beets, whose greens came attached for free (here’s my favorite beet recipe). I also grabbed one of their tea bouquets. Yes, we have some seriously sweet breath up in here.

Fresh Tea Bouquet

Chioggia Beets

I’m very excited to see that midsummer is in full swing and the eggplants are finally worth noticing. And being the chiliphile that I am, I was delighted to find that the peppers are starting to heat up.

Green Hot Chili Peppers

Rosa Bianca Eggplants

I noticed fresh green beans have appeared too (no wax beans yet).

And lastly, does anyone know what glacier lettuce is??

Glacier Lettuce

Fresh Green Beans

Today’s purchases:

• Rooted basil (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Romanesco (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Poblano pepper (Happy Quail Farms)
• Pimientos de Padrón (Happy Quail Farms)
• Charentais melon (The Peach Farm)
• Assorted heirloom tomatoes (The Peach Farm)
• Arctic jay nectarine (Kashiwase Farm)
• Honey crisp nectarine (Kashiwase Farm
• Cioggia beets (Green Gulch Farm)
• Tea bouquet (Green Gulch Farm)
• Red kale (Green Gulch Farm)
• Eggs (Marin Sun Farms)
• Yirgacheffe Oromia (Blue Bottle Coffee)

What did summer bring you this week?

Tokyo Turnips

At this time of year, salad might be my favorite food. I know, salad sounds boring. It sounds cold, tasteless and painfully healthy. The kind of healthy that no one really wants to be.

But in early summer health is the last thing on my mind when I choose to make salad. Truth is I just can’t wait to eat all the beautiful greens and fixings I find each week at the farmers market. Food like this is a treat, and probably not at all what you think of when you think of salad.

Any good salad starts with greens. The little gem lettuces, arugula, spinach, mizuna and even more untraditional greens like purslane.

Purslane

Salad Mix

Purslane is a succulent green that is supposedly high in omega-3 fatty acids. Personally I eat it for its lemony flavor and unique texture. It’s a great addition to any salad mix.

After greens I like to layer flavors and textures into my salads. Cucumbers from the farmers market are completely different from the flavorless, waxy beasts I remember from childhood salads.

Armenian Cucumbers

I love the long, curly Armenian cucumbers, but you can also find Mediterranean cucumbers, lemon cucumbers and several other varieties I’ve never tried. Most don’t require peeling. If you don’t have cucumbers, raw sweet summer squash are delicious in salads too.

Zephyr Squash

Lemon Cucumbers

Turnips, radishes and carrots are particularly good salad additions in early summer, contributing a distinctive crunch and deeper flavor than the delicate lettuces and cucumber. If you choose good quality turnips and radishes, their greens can be added to your salad mix as well.

Rainbow Carrots

French Breakfast Radishes

Summer tomatoes add both sweetness and brightness to salads, because of their relatively high sugar and acid content. For salads I prefer the deeply flavored heirloom varieties such as cherokee purple and brandywine varieties. Roasted peppers can serve a similar function.

Sweet Peppers

Summer Tomatoes

To add substance I turn to foods that are higher in fat and protein, like avocados, nuts, eggs, grain or meats. Today I picked up some avocados and eggs from the farmers market. My favorite salad green of late is the chewy and rustic farro grain. If you haven’t tried it yet I highly recommend it.

I like to finish my salad with summer fruits and herbs. Any stone fruit is fantastic and pairs nicely with balsamic vinaigrettes. Figs are also delicious if you can find them.

Pluots

Other things I loved this week include the Ruby grand nectarines from Frog Hollow and organic cauliflower.

Organic Cauliflower

Frog Hollow Ruby Grand Nectarines

Today’s purchases:

• Yummy rosa pluots (Paradez Farms)
• Ruby grand nectarine (Frog Hollow Farm)
• Early girl tomatos (The Peach Farm)
• Purslane (Madison Growers)
• Zephyr squash (Lucero Organic Farm)
• Rooted basil (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Green shallots (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Cauliflower (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Armenian cucumbers (Payne Farm – I think)
• Tokyo turnips (Green Gulch Farm)
• Italian parsley (Green Gulch Farm)
• Salad greens (Green Gulch Farm)
• Mediterranean cucumber (Happy Quail Farms)
• Avocados (Brokaw Nursery)
• Eggs (Marin Sun Farms)

White Nectarines

Dear Readers,

I know that many of you enjoy the farmers market and visit it regularly, and if this describes you I’m sure you already know what I’m about to write.

For those of you who like the farmers market but find yourself cooking up excuses each week not to go, it is time to talk yourself out of that habit. At least this once. If you’re ever going to make visiting your farmers market a priority, now is the time. This is the season when a taste of a simple plum can change your life (I got mine from Paradez Farms).

Heirloom Tomatoes

Pluot Slices

There are only a few weeks of the year when berries and stone fruits haunt the market simultaneously, when you can get sweet cherries and perfect peaches. Even the tomatoes now would never be mistaken for anything other than a fruit. At this time of year it is possible to win friends with salad (I’ve done it many times already).

Summer Squash

Green Chard

Today I saw children begging their parents to buy foods that most of us grew up hating (beets!). And I even bought a bag of broccoli simply because it was so cute. That’s right, even vegetables are getting their moment in the sun.

Adorable Broccoli

Summer Beets

(the garlic and onions are photogenic??)

Summer Onions

Purple Garlic

An added bonus is the late summer produce is just beginning to arrive as well. Today I bought my first corn, and saw eggplants available at a few different stands.

Bodacious Yellow Corn

Mission and adriatic figs are also available, and surprisingly sweet for this early in the season. I even spied a few melons hanging out today, though I was too busy cradling peaches and nectarines to get one home safely.

Mission Figs

First Eggplants

And for today’s Moment of Zen, I present: kohlrabi.

Kohlrabi

Enjoy the summer! And if you discover or learn to love anything new this year, please come tell us about it.

xoxox
Darya

Today’s purchases:

• Heirloom tomatoes (The Peach Farm)
• Yellow corn (The Peach Farm)
• White nectarine (Paradez Farms)
• Yellow nectarine (Paradez Farms)
• Pluot (Paradez Farms)
• Basil (Chue’s Farm)
• Baby broccoli (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Green shallots (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Zephyr squash (Lucero Organic Farms)
• Mission figs (Knoll Farms)
• Red peppers (Happy Quail Farms)
• Mediterranean cucumbers (Happy Quail Farms)
• Salad greens (Green Gulch Farm)
• Red kale Green Gulch Farm)
• Purple garlic (Tierra Vegetables)
• Eggs (Marin Sun Farms)
• Yellow eye beans (Rancho Gordo)

Rainbow Chard

My eyes were deceiving me on Saturday morning, because it seemed as though the 4th of July fireworks started early here in San Francisco. The farmers market was virtually exploding with colors–fruits, vegetables, flowers, mushrooms. It was magical.

The rainbow chard was so beautiful at Dirty Girl Produce people were exclaiming at how magnificent it looked as I carried it away. The flowers and kale at Green Gulch Farm were also something to behold.

Kale & Flowers

Rainbow Chard Stems

Summer squash is now in season and I’ve been enjoying it both raw (in salads) and cooked. It’s great grilled, or stir fried with peppers, beans, corn and greens. My favorite are the yellow and green zephyr squash, the ones I used in my squash pasta recipe last week. This probably sounds weird, but I swear they are as sweet as candy.

Summer Squash

Zephyr Squash

Fruit is still the main attraction at the market these days, however.

White Peaches

Peaches, apricots, nectarines and plums are absolutely perfect right now, but the cherries are already on their way out. Don’t get too sad though, the early fig crop is already starting to appear.

Figs

Yummy Rosa Pluots

There are a few seasonal novelties available now that are also worth mentioning. I spied nopales (aka cactus leaves) today, as well as bitter melon.

Bitter Melon

Nopales

Green garlic should be around for a few more weeks, and you can even still get baby broccoli, cauliflower and romanesco.

Romanesco

Green Garlic

And if you happen to stop by Far West Fungi, porcini are in season.

Porcini Mushrooms

Today’s purchases:

• Salad greens (Green Gulch Farm)
• Arugula (Green Gulch Farm)
• Purslane (Green Gulch Farm)
• Italian basil (Chue’s Farm)
• Squash blossoms (Chue’s Farm)
• Rainbow chard (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Lacinato kale (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Padron peppers (Happy Quail Farms)
• Sweet pepper (Happy Quail Farms)
• Mediterranean cucumbers (Happy Quail Farms)
• Zephyr squash (Lucero Organic Farm)
• Star squash (Lucero Organic Farm)
• World’s best cucumber (Lucero Organic Farm)
• Yellow nectarines (Hamada Farms)
• Eggs (Marin Sun Farms)
• Smoked maple ham (Prather Ranch Meat Co.)

Lapin & Hedlefingen Cherries

My friend E began her healthstyle upgrade at the beginning of 2010, and has shared her journey with Summer Tomato readers in the past. Today she kindly agreed to share her farmers market as well.

E. Foley is a geek girl extraordinaire. She writes amazing online dating profiles for geeks and non-geeks, helping clients all over the world find love. Her writing can be found at Examiner.com, Dating Sites Reviews, and elsewhere as a ghostwriter. By day, she is the Copywriter at ThinkGeek.

Follow her @geeksdreamgirl on Twitter.

Dating profiles for geeks =http://geeksdreamgirl.com

Non-geeks = http://onlinedatingprofiler.com

Farmers Market Update: Maryland

by E. Foley

I don’t know about you, but I’m sick and tired of Darya’s constant Californicating. Those of us on the best (aka East) coast of the U.S. appreciate our farmers markets on a far deeper level because we only get them from May through November. Such is the case in my home state of Maryland.

(Really, I love Darya and the Californicating actually helps me plan for things coming into season over here.)

Maters

Summer Veggies

I’ve been working with Darya on my healthstyle since the beginning of 2010 and am proud to report I’ve lost about 20 pounds without ever feeling deprived. In fact, I feel like I eat way tastier things now. I’m still having the occasional cookie or bacon cheeseburger, but on the whole, my healthstyle is much improved as a result of having her coaching me.

My boyfriend and I have visited all the farmers markets in a 20 mile radius and we’ve decided to call the Olney Farmers and Artists Market home. Out of all the markets we visited, this one seemed to have the best mix of vendors. These pictures are from my trip on Sunday, June 13th.

Kohlrabi

Fresh Corn

One of the common things I’ve heard from the farmers is that the unseasonably hot weather lately has pushed the growing season up a bit. Last week, I tried two new-to-me things: garlic scapes and saskatoon berries. With the garlic scapes, I made a delicious (albeit really strong!) pesto. I also threw them into pretty much everything we cooked last week. Saskatoon berries taste like a cross between a blueberry and a sweet apple. They were great in pancakes as well as a spread I made by blending them with local chevre.

This week, neither scapes nor saskatoons were available. Asparagus, another spring favorite of mine, has also disappeared. Since we have absolutely fabulous local goat cheese from Cherry Glen Farm, I was making lots of Asparagus & Goat Cheese Quesadillas. (Feel free to throw garlic scapes in there if you still have them!)

Red Onions

Flowers

But summer is moving in quickly! Last week’s strawberries are being pushed out by blueberries, cherries, raspberries, and blackberries. I’m getting over mono, so I can’t drink alcohol quite yet, but I’m sensing a blackberry mojito in my future.

Mojito Time!

Blackberries

My one beef with this market is that some of the farmers don’t put up signs to identify what farm they’re from and me being me, I forget to ask. The list below is labeled as best as I could!

Purple Kohlrabi

Purchases:

• Organic Spring Mix (Sligo Creek Farm)
• Cherries (Falcon Ridge Farm)
• Eggs (Fox Hollow Farm)
• Green Bell Peppers (Penn Farm)
• Cucumbers (Penn Farm)
• Purple Kohlrabi
• Shelled Peas
• Pattypan Squash
• Beets (with the most BEAUTIFUL GREENS!!)

I have a question for you Summer Tomato fans. What’s your favorite thing to do with kohlrabi?

Assorted Sweet Peppers

I want to start today by saying there is no one on earth I love more than my dad. Walking around the farmers market this weekend I wished more than anything that he could be with me to see and taste all the amazing produce we have right now here in San Francisco. He’s such a sucker for good food made or grown by people and families who truly care about what they’re doing. I know he’d love it here and I can’t wait until he visits next.

This is a particularly special time of year for fruit lovers. Last week the best cherries were the deep red bing and brooks varieties, but this week the yellow-red rainier cherries finally came into their own, rivaling the sweetness of even the best of the red cherries.

Rainier & Bing Cherries

White Peaches

We are also in the middle of the fleeting dark berry season. Most of the dark berries are hybrids of blackberries and raspberries. Boysenberries are the most well known hybrid, but today I also found fresh logan and olallie berries. Olallies are my dad’s favorite (I bought 3 boxes in his honor).

Peaches & Nectarines

Mature Fava Beans

But of course, fruit is not all that is special about this time of year. The fava beans are peaking and now’s your chance to get in on this springtime delicacy. I’ll be featuring a spectacular recipe for a Persian fava bean stew next week.

Rainbow Chard

Squash Blossoms

Also in the early summer you can find beautiful squash blossoms. These are a wonderful treat that pair particularly well with eggs or on pizza. They are also delicious stuffed with goat cheese and herbs, and fried in tempura batter. Decadent, but certainly worth it.

Spanish Red Garlic

Sweet Red Onions

Garlic and onions, while generally consistent, are at their best this time of year. It is nearly impossible for Photoshop to do justice to the neon fuchsia color of the sweet red onions in this photo, but in person they seemed to almost glow with radiance in the morning sun.

Lavendar and Sweet Peas

Violet Sweet Peppers

Looking ahead, peppers are what I am most excited about in the coming months, but they are already starting to impress me with their smell and color. This is, however, a fantastic time to start buying pimientos de padrón (another of Dad’s favorites), as they will continue to get spicier as the season progresses.

Happy Father’s Day Dad!

xoxo

Today’s purchases:

• Organic tomatoes (Bruin Farms)
• Salad greens (Green Gulch Farm)
• Arugula (Green Gulch Farm)
• Spinach (Green Gulch Farm)
• Curly kale (Green Gulch Farm)
• Red kale (Green Gulch Farm)
• Purslane (Green Gulch Farm)
• Mediterranean cucumbers (Happy Quail Farms)
• Pimientos de Padrón peppers (Happy Quail Farms)
• Violet sweet pepper (Happy Quail Farms)
• Sweet red onions (Balakian Farms)
• Eureka lemon (Brokaw Nursery)
• Garlic (Knoll Farms)
• Olallie berries (Yerena Farms)
• Eye of the goat heirloom beans (Rancho Gordo)
• Green shallots (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Tokyo turnips (Dirty Girl Produce)

What’s your dad’s favorite fresh produce?

Favas

I am absolutely honored to introduce Judy Witts: Tuscan market maven, cooking teacher, Italian life coach and author of the Divina Cucina book of Tuscan recipes.

Judy lives, shops and teaches cooking in Florence, the central city in the Italian region of Tuscany. I spent several months in Tuscany during college (my home was in Siena) and I’m delighted to have someone as knowledgeable as Judy share with you the magic of the region.

What I find particularly fascinating and inspirational about Judy’s account is her emphasis on the vendors themselves. Though at a farmers market we tend to focus on the food, it is essential to remember that none of it would be there without the care and passion of those who produce it.

Find more of Judy’s market adventures and recipes at her blog Over A Tuscan Stove and follow her on Twitter @divinacucina

Thank you Judy, and I hope the next time we share a meal it is in your neighborhood!

Farmers Market Update: Tuscany

by Judy Witts

I have had a thing for markets for as long as I can remember. Before working in hotels and starting a professional career in food, I loved to travel and was always drawn to markets to explore what the locals ate before heading out on my own.

I lived near the Plaka in Athens for 3 month–over 30 years ago–and can still remember the smell of brined olives and huge cauldrons of boiling tripe and soups at the late night market. Sitting and eating there was like living in a Fellini film.

Duccio Siena

Antonio

When I moved to Florence in 1984, I found myself drawn once again to the hectic market space to learn the language of food in my new country. Shopping was my way to understand not just the language but customs, and also gather recipes.

In every new town I visit markets are still the first stop for me to see what is the same and what is different.

New Garlic

New Potatoes

For my cooking classes we plan our menus at the market, celebrating local traditions and the seasons. Why plan a menu only to arrive and find you have chosen ingredients which are not in season?

New Red Onions

My Italian mother-in-law taught me to spend more time shopping and less time cooking.

The secret behind this is to buy ingredients in season at the height of their flavor peak, which means you need less fussy cooking to create a great meal.

Tenerumi

Apricots

Having a few high quality pantry items also makes your cooking taste better.

Parmigiano Reggiano

In Tuscany this means extra virgin olive oil and some sea salt. I have traditional balsamic vinegar and some homemade red wine vinegar, which is popular in Tuscany.

Porchetta

Just Eggs

I shop at the local markets weekly or head down to Florence for their covered Central Market. Recently I toured Bologna to visit the Slow Food Market and Rome to see the newly rebuilt Mercato Trionfale.

Meat

Herbs

Not only do I go to the markets for the food, but also for the artisan butchers and the purveyors.

Mannetti & Maialino

For Italians, these are not just jobs but traditions which have been passed down through generations. Each artisan is an expert in his field. What better way to learn to cook and, more so, how to eat?!

Giovanni

Marcello

We are currently heading into the summer. tomatoes are sold green from local farms and ripe red from Sicily and Puglia, where the sun and volcanic soil work quickly to ripen fruits and vegetables.

Green Tomatoes

Bad weather is also a gift, a raining day followed by heat, gives us porcini mushrooms.

Hug your butcher. Bring cookies to your vegetable purveyor–your health is in their hands!

Stefano Conti

Ricardo

Love yourself and treat yourself to the best, you deserve it.

Princess Peaches

I’m not sure if it is officially summer yet or not, but if we’re judging the season by what we find at the farmers market there is no lingering doubt: summer is here.

Normally I am a very disciplined shopper. I focus on vegetables, particularly green ones, and only pick up enough fruit to quench my sweet tooth. But there was none of that today.

Nectarines

Organic Strawberries

I think I remembered to pick up a bunch of kale and some salad supplies, but for the most part I couldn’t pull my attention away from all the fruit that filled the farmers market today.

Cherries are still the most abundant (and enticing), but in addition this week there were also peaches, nectarines, strawberries, blueberries, plums and apricots. And unlike the sour fruit you usually find this early in the season, all this was sweet, plump and juicy.

Haas Avocados

Saturn Peaches

(My apologies to those of you who do not live in California or do not have access to such wonderful produce. My number one complaint at Summer Tomato is about how I flaunt San Francisco produce and thus torture those who don’t have it. But my goal here is to share and inspire you to want fresh fruit and vegetables, so if it means making a few of you long for CA produce, so be it.)

Summer Squash

Green Garlic

But in truth there were a number of wonderful vegetables today. Green Gulch farm was back, with their typical assortment of breathtaking greens and herbs. Summer squash, peas, carrots, onions, cabbage, broccoli and beets also shouldn’t be missed.

Rainbow Carrots

Red Mustard Greens

Today’s Purchases:

• Strawberries (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Green shallots (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Red kale (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Cherries (Twin Girls Farm)
• Mediterranean cucumber (Happy Quail Farms)
• Cubano pepper (Happy Quail Farms)
• Summer squash (The Peach Farm)
• Green garlic (The Peach Farm)
• Princess Peach (Tory Farms)
• Avocado (Brokaw Nursery)
• Salad greens (Green Gulch Farm)

Hawaiian Apples

My goal at the farmers market today was to get everything I need to survive the next few days at the annual neuroscience department retreat at the Asilomar conference grounds in Monterey, CA. Last year they served us some of the most unspeakably disgusting food I’ve ever eaten in my life, and budget cuts forecast this year to be even worse.

Almost certainly I’ll be stuck eating fewer calories than usual, but I like to have a few of my own things to make sure I am at least somewhat nourished. For a complete rundown of what I’m bringing, watch the 3 minute video clip below.

How do you survive conferences and events that serve horrible food?

Since I also won’t be cooking dinners or making salads at work for the next few days, I didn’t buy my usual cornucopia of vegetables this week. But I certainly wanted to!

Peaches and Pomegranates

Pumpkins

The seasons are changing before my eyes. Autumn fruits like pomegranates, pears, grapes and apples are downright abundant. You can also find pumpkins, carrots and beets, all wonderful for roasting in the fall. (Try this recipe for delicious roasted beets with mint and chevre).

I even found chestnuts at K & J Orchards!

Brussels Sprouts

Chestnuts

I learned today that Brussels sprout season is early this year (it usually starts in October-November). I decided to buy some since I know they will keep well until I return on Tuesday. They are really small right now, which is how you want them for the best taste. I used to hate Brussels sprouts, but have since learned the error of my ways.

Roasting Pimentos

Peppers and Eggplants

The good news for those of us who adore summer produce is that most of it is still spectacular. Tomatoes, peaches, plums, zucchini, melon, peppers (oh the peppers!), eggplant, figs, okra and green beans are what I’m going to focus on for the next few weeks while they are still around.

Paw Paw Ice Cream

Oh, and if you’re a fan of paw paws, Langier Ranches made up some paw paw ice cream you can get for only $1!

Today’s purchases:

• Hawaiian apple (Devoto Gardens)
• Empire apple (Devoto Gardens)
• Mutsu apple  (DeVoto Gardens)
• Asian pears (Paredez Farms)
• Taylor’s gold pears (Frog Hollow Farm)
• Emerald beaut pluots (Frog Hollow Farm)
• Summerset peach (Frog Hollow Farm)
• Corn (Catalán Family Farm)
• Brussels sprouts (Iacopi Farm)
• Tokyo turnips (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Baby savoy cabbage (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Cipollini onions (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Pimento pepper (Happy Quail Farms)
• Sweet cheese pimento (Happy Quail Farms)

What did you find at the farmers market this week?

Impressive Melons

If you follow me on Twitter (@summertomato) or Facebook you already know I’ve been down in Orange County the past few days and hit up the Irvine farmers market on Saturday. I’m always impressed by what I find in the OC, but I don’t think anything could have prepared me for melons like these!

Huge Watermelons

I also found some pretty spectacularly-sized daikon, or Japanese radish. Seriously, what do you guys put in your water?

Giant Diakon

I thought of about a hundred hilarious things to write under these photos, but I’d love to hear your suggestions. So let the games begin!

In the comments tell us your best caption idea for any of the 3 photos above. The funniest caption writer will be proudly dubbed the Summer Tomato commentor of the week. (note: innuendos welcome, but kindly refrain from NSFW language).

Asian Pears

Emerald Beaut Pluots

Since I am heading back to SF on Sunday, I didn’t buy much this trip. However I did grab a few of these emerald beaut pluots and Asian pears to share with friends and family.

I learned that the emerald beaut season is ending here in the OC, which is interesting since I mentioned last week it is just beginning in SF. In my experience, emerald beauts are the last available pluots at the end of the summer.

Jujubes (Chinese dates) are plentiful now here in Irvine. It is also a great time to get peppers, eggplant and assorted Asian greens and vegetables.

Jalepenos

Jujubes

Yuchoy

Chinese Eggplant & Melon

Chinese Long Beans

Don’t forget to tell us what you found at the farmers market this week!

Please visit Food Renegade for more great Fight Back Friday articles about local and sustainable food.