Posted by BostonZest, November 16, 2009 at 11:05 AM
Note: On Mondays, one of our various Market Scene correspondents checks in with what's fresh at farmstands, what's coming up, and what you better get while the gettin's good. This week, we hear from Boston correspondent Penny Cherubino of Boston Zest. Take us to the market, Penny!
Open Tuesdays and Fridays, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. (map) The final market of the season is Wednesday, November 25.
At the Copley Square Farmers' Market in Boston's Back Bay, customers and vendors were saying goodbyes. Their market season is ending. Customers asked, "How many more weeks do we have?" Vendors counted down, "Two more weeks, three more markets."
Under a pale gray sky, with a punishing wind, a powerful gust took down one of the market tents. Simeon Cook from Cook's Farm and Bakery kept one eye on his own tent from behind his pies, breads, cookies and granola. He had mixed feelings about the end of the season. Yes, he'll miss his customers, but he said, "On a day like today, I look forward to sitting by my fireplace all winter."
Note: On Mondays, one of our various Market Scene correspondents checks in with what's fresh at farmstands, what's coming up, and what you better get while the gettin's good. This week, we hear from Los Angeles correspondent Leah Greenstein of SpicySaltySweet. Take us to the market, Leah!
Persimmons from Peacock Family Farm.
If fall had an official color—like poppies are the official flower of California, Humuhumunukunukuapua`a is the official fish of Hawaii and Crocs are the official shoe of Mario Batali—it would have to be orange. Vibrant, warm and evocative of piles of crisp leaves perfect for jumping in, or the jack-o-lantern shrapnel you wade through the morning after Halloween, orange permeates the season.
The brightest orange at the market wasn't from pyramids of pumpkins as you might expect. In fact, there were hardly any pumpkins (perhaps related to the jack-o-lantern shrapnel?). Instead it came from the near fluorescent marigold blooms at the South Central Farmers Cooperative stall. Marigolds are the traditional flower of El Diá De Los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead, which started yesterday and continues through today.
"You know it's October when the pumpkins outnumber the tomatoes."
[Photographs: Nick Kindelsperger]
I arrived at the Green City Market in Lincoln Park on a truly miserable morning. The infamous winds of Chicago were howling off the lake and biting me through my terribly thin hoodie. With my arms folded over, I made my way through the market, wishing I had worn a coat. The first person I talked to about vegetables just broke into laughter. She would have felt sorry for me, she explained, if I wasn't so irresponsible.
How did it end so quickly? Though Green City Market runs all year-round, after October it retreats in to an indoor location. I don't blame them. Though they can still sell some winter vegetables, along with other preserved items, this move indoors truly does signal the end of the fall bounty. It's kind of sad to think about if the possibilities for eating weren't so spectacular.
Note: On Mondays, one of our various Market Scene correspondents checks in with what's fresh at farmstands, what's coming up, and what you better get while the gettin's good. This week, we hear from Boston correspondent Penny Cherubino of BostonZest. Take us to the market, Penny!
The arrival of instant winter in the Northeast brought out hoods, muffs, and furry hats at farmers' markets this week. Shoppers and staff at the Copley Square Farmers' Market in Back Bay were all bundled up. This season is one of plenty for those shoppers who know that many Boston-area markets continue operating late into October. And, a few, like Copley, don't close for the season until Thanksgiving.
Farmer Chris Kurth (photo above) of Siena Farms showed off his beautiful baby bok choy. Cooler fall temperatures bring back some of the greens that are missing in the heat of summer. Baby lettuce and mesculn mixes are available again.
Note: On Mondays, one of our various Market Scene correspondents checks in with what's fresh at farmstands, what's coming up, and what you better get while the gettin's good. This week, we hear from Boston correspondent Penny Cherubino of BostonZest. Take us to the market, Penny!
It's autumn in New England and each week a few farmers' markets close for the season, but the Boston Public Market outside of South Station will remain open through the end of October.
Aside from providing shoppers in the waterfront, financial and shopping districts with fresh food, this market has symbolic importance. It's operated by the Boston Public Market Association and is a seasonal reminder that the people of Boston want a permanent, year-round public market.
Note: On Mondays, one of our various Market Scene correspondents checks in with what's fresh at farmstands, what's coming up, and what you better get while the gettin's good. This week, we hear from SoCal correspondent Leah Greenstein of SpicySaltySweet. Take us to the market, Leah!
Carnival Squash at McGrath Family Farms. [Photographs: Leah Greenstein]
I'm tired of tomatoes. There. I said it. After two months straight gorging myself on Early Girls and Purple Cherokees, Green Zebras and Sun Golds, I think I've finally had enough tangy-sweet-tomato-goodness to last me until next summer—or at least until January, when I break into my stash of homemade canned heirloom tomatoes for lasagnas and stews.
Fortunately, the Los Angeles farmers' markets (and Southern California's farmers), from Hollywood (map) to Santa Monica (map) and everywhere in between, seem ready to oblige, with fall's delights finally making inroads.
Italian Prune Plums, aka Sugar Plums
There are, of course, some hangers-on that I'm grateful for. Namely Italian Prune Plums, also known as Sugar Plums or Empress Plums (prunus Domestica). More oval-shaped than Satsuma or Damson, they have a deep, purply skin with golden flesh and a freestone pit inside. These wonderfully sweet plums are perfect for baking or cooking (try them in a kuchen or with pork chops), and, as their name indicates, they're also great for drying. Store ripe sugar plums, unwashed, in the fridge. These will only be around for a few more weeks, so don't wait.
Posted by BostonZest, September 21, 2009 at 3:30 PM
Note: On Mondays, one of our various Market Scene correspondents checks in with what's fresh at farmstands, what's coming up, and what you better get while the gettin's good. This week, we hear from Boston correspondent Penny Cherubino of BostonZest. Take us to the market, Penny!
[Photographs: Penny and Ed Cherubino]
Provincetown Farmers' Market
Ryder Street parking lot, Provincetown MA 02657 (next to town hall; map) Hours: Open Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. through December 5.
In 2007, Andy Pollock from Silverbrook Farm organized a farmers' market in Provincetown, Massachusetts. Over the years, this town at lands end, on the tip of Cape Cod, has served as a haven for fishermen, artists, writers, and the gay community. Today vacationers and tourists are its primary source of income, and the farmers' market is a welcome addition to the Saturday scene.
The market is hopping on good weather weekends. Hands reach across the stands to exchange cash for crops, customers lean in to ask questions, and farmers scurry to refill their baskets and boxes any time they see a break in the action.
Silverbrook Farm had a great supply of tomatoes, corn, potatoes, herbs and squash. They were also featuring their wonderful cippolini onions and local honey.
Posted by tressa eaton, September 18, 2009 at 10:45 AM
"Michelle Obama started her speech by saying she had never seen so many people excited about fruits and vegetables."
[Photographs: Tressa Eaton]
White House Farmers’ Market
810 Vermont Avenue NW, Washington DC 20005 (b/n H and I Streets; map) Hours: Open Thursdays from 3 to 7 p.m. through Oct. 29.
The brand new White House Farmers' Market (run by local market organization FreshFarm Markets) opened for the first time yesterday on Vermont Avenue between H and I streets, just outside the White House grounds.
After waiting in a huge line, shoppers passed through metal detectors, got patted down by secret service, and had their reusable market bags inspected. Waiting on the other side of the metal detectors were fruit and vegetable farmers, meat farmers, producers, cheese makers, and flower vendors.
Note: On Mondays, one of our various Market Scene correspondents checks in with what's fresh at farmstands, what's coming up, and what you better get while the gettin's good. This week, we hear from Chicago correspondent Nick Kindelsperger. Take us to the market, Nick!
[Photographs: Nick Kindelsperger]
Oh man, is summer really over? That's the first thing I thought when I stumbled into the Logan Square Farmers' Market this weekend. The sun was beaming and it felt warmer than it had the previous two weeks. But there was a sinister vegetable about, one that immediately clued me into the idea that the end of summer was nigh.
Big orange pumpkins. Does anything else say fall so clearly? I spotted these at Triple A Farms stand from St. Anne, Illinois. Now I love fall as much as anyone, but it was a little disconcerting, especially when the rest of the market was dedicated to the usual summer fare.
Most of the stands still had mounds of tomatoes. But none looked quite as beautiful as these cherry tomatoes from Triple A Farms.
Note: On Mondays, one of our various Market Scene correspondents checks in with what's fresh at farmstands, what's coming up, and what you better get while the gettin's good. This week, we hear from Boston correspondent Penny Cherubino of BostonZest.
This May, a new farmers' market began operating on the plaza in front of Boston's Prudential Center. As a recent Boston Globe article put it, "Normally, farmers seek markets where they can sell their wares. In Massachusetts, the markets are hustling to find the farmers."
Prudential Market founder Dave Gilson of Gilson Family Herb Enterprises was able to recruit the farms he needed. Last week he said he is pleased to have a great mix of vendors who get along well and help one another.
One of those vendors, Drumlin Farm has a very green story. Owned and operated by Mass Audubon, it's both a working farm and a wildlife sanctuary. Apprentice farmer Greg Bodine explained that the farm promotes awareness of the relationships among people, land, and wildlife.
There was a time when I cultivated tomatoes over acres, not in small pots on windowsills. I now make my home in Brooklyn and have no backyard, front yard, or rooftop to speak of. But in college I spent my summers riding in the back of pickup trucks; weeding fields; and selling tomatoes and peppers, blueberries and yellow squash at farmers markets' throughout the D.C. area. Back at school, friends and I yearned for food that didn't originate in the dining hall so we founded a highly successful biweekly farmers' market. I don't claim to have the wisdom of full-time farmers, but as a former farm worker and market manager, and as an active market go-er and home cook, I feel that I know a thing or two about what makes a good farmers' market.
Note: On Mondays, one of our various Market Scene correspondents checks in with what's fresh at farmstands, what's coming up, and what you better get while the gettin's good. Take us to market, Jen!
I am addicted to attending farmers' markets. The most recent proof was over the weekend: I had no intention of shopping for food yet I found myself wandering through the Divisadero Farmers' Market in San Francisco after breakfast. Though I am going out of town and didn't need anything in my fridge, I found myself buying just a bit of okra, just one nectarine, and just a couple tomatoes like an addict who needs a fix.
I mentioned last month that I was practicing restraint and holding off on purchasing okra. But a month later, I filled my bag with okra and brought it home to fry, pickle, and saute. As I write this, okra is cooking away to be included in a quick dinner (I tweeted the complete meal plan, random as it is).
Every time I spy tomatoes of all sorts at our market, my heart goes out to the East Coasters who have lost their crops due to tomato blight. I do not take for granted the fact that we've had a terrific tomato season—so good that I will be able to can many pounds of tomatoes in the coming month for my winter reserves.
In Chicago, things are just getting ready to flip from summer bounty to outright excess. The best-looking tomatoes are still the small Sun Golds, and while apples have started to make an appearance, they aren't the delicious crisp and sweet variety—but we are getting awfully close.
What clued me in to the impending abundance were the massive piles of Midwestern sweet corn at the Wicker Park & Bucktown Farmers' Market. Ears were dumped in big bins and picked over by the zealous shoppers, ready to sink their teeth into what real corn should taste like.
My first stand was Iron Creek Farms from Saint Joseph, Michigan. They had an impressive collection of little potatoes, cauliflower, and, of course, corn.
Note: On Mondays, one of our various Market Scene correspondents checks in with what's fresh at farmstands, what's coming up, and what you better get while the gettin's good. This week, our Boston correspondent Penny Cherubino of BostonZest checks in.
Bostonians who live downtown, have more than 25 farmers' markets within easy walking or public transit distance. The City Hall Farmers' Market is one of the most convenient. It's located on the plaza outside Boston City Hall at the Government Center subway station. It's also close to many places that bring people into the heart of the city.
Rose 23 Bread is a must-stop for me. They make excellent baguettes, wonderful scones, and tempting cookies and tarts. Their sandwiches and salads make this stand perfect for workers from nearby offices who shop the market on their lunch hour.
Today, thanks to the good folks who work on behalf of Serious Eats advertiser Pure Kraft Salad Dressings, we are proud to bring you a video portrait of Bishop. It's beautifully shot and edited by our friends at Optic Nerve, and it chronicles both Bishop's story and the story of farmers' markets in general. So thank you, Kraft, thank you, Optic Nerve, and thanks in advance, serious eaters, for taking the time to watch.
