Warren Pears

Welcome back to Standard Time, add that extra hour to your clock and enjoy the long Sunday.

Farmers markets are closing up shop throughout most of the US, but they go on strong here in SF all year. It’s actually a wonderful time for local produce.

Colorful Grapes

My favorite foods like kale and chard really shine this time of year, as do the other green veggies like broccoli, cabbage and brussels sprouts.

Rainbow Chard and Kale

Though it is certainly a cruciferous vegetable, it is a little strange to consider purple cauliflower a green veggie. But it’s definitely healthy, and reminds me a lot of my mom.

Purple Cauliflower

Even better? All this stuff is really cheap.

Romanesco

Unlike the expensive berries, peaches and tomatoes of the summer, fall produce is uber affordable. Two dollars for kale, three for delicata squash, one for an apple, autumn produce is a bargain however you slice it.

Rome Apples

Of course there are always a few thing that cost a little more (grapes and pears come to mind), but on average my spending goes down substantially from now until late March.

What are these pears doing?

I use this opportunity to try more fruits than I normally would, since fruit are usually the most expensive items at the market. This time of year you cannot miss the pears, apples, persimmons, pomegranates and kiwi fruit.

Kiwi Fruit

It’s a great season, and honestly I’m even looking forward to the progress into winter. The citrus are just starting to reappear, and I found these adorable sudachi lemons at Hamada Farms.

Sudachi Lemons

Any servings suggestions?

Today’s purchases (~$20):

• Baby broccoli (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Leeks (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Brussels sprouts (Iacopi Farm)
• Kiwi (Four Sisters Farm)
• Assorted heirloom apples (The Apple Farm)
• Meyer lemons (Hamada Farms)
• Sudachi lemon (Hamada Farms)
• Warren pear (Frog Hollow Farm)

Tags: Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, San Francisco

Winter Squash

Alright Mother Nature, you win. It’s autumn now and I’ll accept it, even if San Francisco only had about five days over 80 degrees this year. I don’t need summer when I have produce like this.

Thompson Grapes

Bring on your autumn grapes. Grapes have never been my favorite fruit, but they are so sweet and crispy this year I can’t resist them. I like wine too, and harvest is soon. Grapes are ok with me.

Flame Grapes

I’ll take your apples too. These heirloom varietals don’t taste anything like the overly sweet fujis I grew up with. These apples remind me of what I’ve always wished apples tasted like whenever I have apple cider.

Autumn Apples

And these little wickson apples, the size of golf balls, are as complex as a glass of wine.

Wickson Apples

Of course I don’t mind the sweet white pomegranates, with their pink seeds and delicate flavor. They aren’t as sour as the red ones are this early in the season, and the seeds aren’t nearly as tough and woody.

White Pomegranates

I finally gave in and got some brussels sprouts too. Sure I used to hate them, but once I learned the secret to cooking these little guys they became a welcome guest on my dinner plate. I’m especially fond of the smaller sprouts like the ones I found today, because they are almost never bitter.

Early Brussels Sprouts

With Halloween approaching not even the winter squash offend me, but these days I eat them instead of carve them.

Sugar Pie Pumpkins

Yes I’ll miss summer—or at least the idea of it. I’ll miss the peaches and plums.

Peaches

I’ll revel in the last of the figs and melons.

Brown Turkey Figs

Maybe if I’m lucky you’ll give me a few more weeks of eggplant.

White Eggplant

Perhaps the sweet peppers will last until my birthday next month.

Sweet Peppers

Or maybe the spicy ones will?

Hot Peppers

What always breaks my heart most is the tomatoes. I can live a few months without strawberries, but the tomatoes really get me. Everything is better with a dry-farmed early girl tomato on it. It will be hard to see them go.

Organic Cherry Tomatoes

But I love my cauliflower. (Pretty much everyone loves my cauliflower). And it will keep me company as fall rolls in and winter approaches.

Cauliflower

I’ll embrace your root vegetables as they sweeten in the cold.

Beets and Carrots

I’ll give you some time on the persimmons though, I don’t think they’re quite ready yet.

Hachiya Persimmons

Today’s purchases (~$40):

• Heirloom kabocha squash
• Savoy cabbage
• Carrots
• Leeks
• Red Russian kale
• Brussels sprouts
• Wickson apples
• Daikon
• Ginger root
• Garlic
• Dahlias

Is your farmers market still running?

Tags: apples, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, chili peppers, eggplant, Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, figs, grapes, peaches, peppers, pumpkins, San Francisco, tomatoes, white pomegranate, wickson apples, winter squash

Sweetest Strawberries Ever

I don’t usually buy a lot of fruit. It’s not that I don’t like it, I think it’s wonderful. But it tends to be much more expensive than vegetables. And it’s also hard to get soft fruit home without smashing it.

But today, I couldn’t help myself.

Similar to last week, the cherries were just way too good to pass up.

Ranier Cherries

But I also realized that I hadn’t even tried any of the newer fruit in the market, like these amazing blueberries. I sampled a few, and knew some would be coming home with me.

Delicious Blueberries

Then there were the plums. I love plums, but like tomatoes they are one of those fruits that are so rarely good that you forget what real ones taste like. Until you try one.

Fruits

I thought it was a bit early in the season for plums to be good, but I was wrong. These were as sweet and luscious as I’d ever tasted, and of course I had to get some.

Virctoria Heirloom Rhubarb

Amazingly, I still had to restrict myself from buying strawberries, even more cherries, and also some peaches I found that were unseasonably delicious. But I did have to save some of my money to get vegetables.

Radishes

I’m mostly enjoying salads these days. I like them with French radishes, carrots, sugar peas, spring onions and usually some quinoa or lentils.

Beautiful Treviso

I’m not ready to buy them yet, but summer vegetables are becoming more common as well.

Early Summer Squash

The strangest thing I found at the market this week was fresh Japanese ume plums, which I’ve only ever seen pickled. I might pick some up next week so if any of you have a recipe I’d love to hear it.

Ume Plums

Today’s purchases (~$50):

• Cherries (Bella Viva Farms)
• Blueberries (Triple Delight)
• Flavorosa plums (Twin Girls Farm)
• Spring salad mix (Star Route Farms)
• French radishes (Heirloom Organic Gardens)
• Asparagus – last week! (Zuckerman’s Farm)
• New potatoes (Zuckerman’s Farm)
• Red Russian kale (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Green shallots (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Mediterranean cucumbers (Happy Quail Farms)
• Whole chicken (Marin Sun Farms)

Tags: blueberries, cherries, Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, plums, radishes, rhubarb, San Francisco, summer squash, treviso

Artichokes

Huge thanks to my wonderful boyfriend today for stepping up and covering this week’s farmers market while I was home sick. But boy am I sad I missed it.

First Cherries

This week two of my favorite spring treats made their appearance: cherries and fava beans.

Fava Beans

And though I’ve always known spring is the best time for lamb, I never dreamed of discovering lamb bacon. LAMB BACON! Holy crap is this stuff good.

Lamb Bacon

Since I wasn’t there I don’t have much more to report. Check out the rest of Kevin’s photos below.

Leeks

Asian Pears

Blood Oranges

Daikon

Strawberries

Green Garlic

Sugar Cane

Ruby Chard

Today’s purchases:

• Lamb bacon (Marin Sun Farms)
• Brisket (Marin Sun Farms)
• Rainbow chard (Star Route Farms)
• Red Russian kale (Star Route Farms)
• Carrots (Star Route Farms)
• Cherries (Twin Girls Farms)
• Strawberries (Catalan Family Farm)
• Artichokes (Iacopi Farm)
• Kohlrabi (Chue’s Farm)
• Daikon (Chue’s Farm)
• Mandarins (Paredez Farms)

Is your spring market open yet?

Tags: artichokes, Asian pears, chard, cherries, daikon, fava beans, Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, lamb bacon, leeks, San Francisco, strawberries, sugar cane

Purple Spring Onions

I’m not sure I’ve done enough yet this year to illustrate what a truly special season spring can be. In the springtime, everything is new.

Breathtaking Tulips

We get the first greens and fresh colors since the final harvest in autumn, but in the spring everything is sweeter and more delicate.

Bloomsdale Spinach

We don’t just have garlic, we have the sweeter and more subtle green garlic. Carrots, while large and husky in the winter are small and tender in the spring. These baby carrots taste nothing like the fake, flavorless “baby carrots” that come in big bags at the supermarket. These carrots are special.

Real Baby Carrots

Swiss and rainbow chard are better right now then they are at any other time of year. They’re so beautiful it’s hard to not bring extra home to put into a vase.

Rainbow Chard

Artichokes and asparagus are also peaking right now. I was so overwhelmed by the sweet, earthy smell of artichokes when I walked up to the farm stand that I forgot to actually take a photo of the beautiful vegetables (there are plenty from previous weeks if you want a peek).

Though most people don’t think about eggs as a seasonal product, they are. Chickens don’t lay as many eggs when it’s cold. Plus, pastured grass is lush and filled with plump, tasty bugs once spring arrives. We got some pullet eggs this morning from Eatwell Farm. We had asked for the extra-large eggs, but apparently they sold out before the market even opened this morning. They’re that good.

Pasture Raised Eggs

For farmers market noobies, one of the most impressive things you can introduce them to is Meyer lemons. Lemons are sour and their peels are bitter, right? Not Meyers. While they aren’t exactly sweet, their acid is not harsh. And their peels are so thin and tender you can eat them raw. Meyer lemons are divine.

Perfect Meyer Lemons

But one of the best aspects of spring is the hints of summer that sneak in from week to week. Now we have strawberries, and they’re actually getting good.

Endless Strawberries

We also have some early tomatoes and ripe, creamy avocados, two of my absolute favorite summer ingredients.

Haas Avocados

As a last throwback to winter I plan to make a soup with one of these celery roots later this week.

Celery Root

Today’s purchases:

• Rainbow chard (Iacopi Farm)
• Red Russian kale (Eatwell Farm)
• Oregano (Eatwell Farm)
• Pullet eggs (Eatwell Farm)
• Leeks (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Shallots (Dirty Girl Produce)
• Spring onions (Everything Under The Sun)
• Meyer Lemons (Hamada Farms)
• Cara cara oranges (Hamada Farms)
• Tomatoes (Bruin Farms)
• Cioggia beets (Star Route Farms)

Tags: avocados, carrots, chard, eggs, Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, Meyer lemons, onions, San Francisco, spinach, strawberries, tulips