Farmers Market 5-06

 

Ah! Back to the farmer’s market. I have missed it. Three weeks without and I was beginning to go into withdrawal!

The market is in transition. It’s everywhere. Citrus fruits are on their way out you can see it in the quality and quantity of the produce. Tables that have, for the last couple of months, been groaning with every variety of citrus you can images now have just a few meager samples, most of them heading towards over ripeness. The exceptions are those honey sweet Kamrat Tangerines, which while small were fairly plentiful.

I guess that is as close a change of seasons as we get around here.

The next series of crops has not come in yet. Wares are sparse as farmers await to harvest the new crops.

I am not certain what is next but I can’t wait!

The first of the cherries is in, expensive and unspectacular, I was none the less tempted into buying some because they are the one fruit I can never resist.

The apples are on their way out as well, though apple stragglers appear all year long.

 And while the strawberries are plentiful they are not very good. Every farmer I have talked to says the same thing. It’s the lousy weather. Cool days that never clear rob strawberries of their sweetness. So while they look good, most are sour and watery. We managed to find one vender with a decent batch but they were mostly over ripe. I ended up macerating them to prevent them from rotting…not that macerated strawberries are exactly suffering or anything!

 The interesting find this time around were the yellow flowered greens. I was far too fascinated by them not to ask what they were and once I found out, I had to try some. These pretty little flowers belong to bok choi and Chinese broccoli.

I was unsure what to do with it but the seller assured me that it was nearly impossible to ruin it. And she turned out to be right. The taste is sweet and somewhat nutty, reminiscent of snow peas more than broccoli. They were a bit fibrous but definitely tasty!

 

I usually buy hunks like the ultra aged wedge next to the wheel which I use instead of parmesan, but they go so fast in my house.

You can tell this cheese is a labor of love! Best eaten out of hand, the cheese itself is just about everything you could wish for in a good cheese. Even mild, it has a distinct tang and just enough sharpness to keep it interesting. It melts beautifully and is strong enough to stand up to almost any sandwich filling.

The aged version is nutty and biting. It grates like parmesan but has a much more distinctive and assertive presence. And a little goes a LOOOOOONG way. My last hunk lasted me about 6 months.

All in all a satisfying trip back to the market.