Farmers Market Update: Peas and Carrots
If you ever wondered why Forrest Gump thought peas and carrots went so well together, it must have been because he loves springtime.
The reason we think most foods go together, in fact, is because they tend to be in season around the same time and traditional recipes put them together.
But it turns out lot of things go well with carrots. Their sweetness and crunch is a wonderful contrast to many of my favorite spring treats, like spinach, asparagus and collards.
As I mentioned last week, chard is fantastic right now as well. These red and white Swiss chard bunches were so bright I actually had to turn down the saturation in Photoshop, which most photogs know is almost never done on food photos. The pink was just blinding.
It’s also a great time to get beets, fennel, lettuces, artichokes, herbs and other vegetables.
Not always associated with spring, but a seasonal treat nonetheless are fresh walnuts and mushrooms.
I’m still waiting for the spring fruits to appear. Though a few strawberries have popped up here and there, they haven’t looked good enough to buy yet. So while I’m waiting, we’re still eating up the delicious oranges, mandarins, pomelo and tangelos while we can.
Finally, if you’re into lilacs (the best smelling flowers ever), this is the most lovely season I’ve seen in years.
Today’s purchases:
- Purple carrots (Star Route Farms)
- Artichoke (Iacopi Farm)
- Rapini (Capay Organics)
- Fennel (Chue’s Farm)
- Broccolini (Chue’s Farm)
- Cara cara oranges (Paredez Farms)
- Mandarins (Paredez Farms)
- Tomatoes (Bruins Farm)
- Eggs (Marin Sun Farms)
- Walnuts (Kashiwase Farms)