Archive for May, 2009

May 30 - Snappy Peas

Saturday, May 30th, 2009
The first of the snow peas and sugar snap peas are here! I’ve been harvesting them out of my pocket backyard garden, but I can’t get too many of ‘em. Also, more gorgeous, clean, tender greens than you can carry home on a cargo bike - I suggest you plan a different and more elaborate salad for each night of this week. Also, the first squash of the year, and maybe some broccoli heads.

Come hear Will McKindley-Ward for an 11am acoustic set.  Email Gabe (see below) if you want to play in the morning slot!

Saturday bike clinic: submit a cool name for the market bike clinic thing, get your tires properly inflated, then ride over to the new Bike Co-op at the People’s Media Center (4132 Georgia Ave NW, 20011) for their Clinic and Swap!

Tree and Leaf Farm: Snow peas and garlic scapes - the slim, coiled shoots that garlic sends up this time of year.  Treat them like green beans. Or ask Georgia - she will have lots and lots of recipe suggestions. Zach planted my mom’s favorite lettuce from the Santa Cruz Farmers’ Market: Baby Gem - kind of like a romaine but sweet like a Bibb, also heads of romaine lettuce, good deals on escarole and frisee endive, raddicchio heads, salad lettuce heads, arrowhead cabbage (super sweet and tender, not your German grandma’s all day stewing cabbage), bunched and baby chard, salad mix, baby kale mix (toscano and red bor) golden frill mustard. Glowing red radishes, pretty striped chiogga beets, rainbow baby beets and sweet bunching onions. Basil tops. Flower, purple basil and veggie plants for your garden. The latest rain gave the asparagus harvest a big boost, so be sure to savor these last weeks of Spring’s holy grail. These beautiful, nutrient dense vegetables are grown without chemical fertilizers, pesticides or herbicides.

Richfield Farm: Mediterranean and 8-ball zucchini. Sugar snap peas! More and more strawberries. Red and white spring onions, Savannah smooth leaf greens, red leaf mustard, chard, broccoli rabe, lettuce heads, tons of asparagus and rhubarb, those pretty hanging nasturtium and petunia baskets, herb starts. Radishes, spinach and maybe some broccoli if it looks like it’s going to start bolting this week.

Truck Patch Farms: Strawberries - the ever popular big fat Chandlers and now some of the exquisitely fragrant and flavorful Early Glows. Asparagus, curly kale, arugula, spring mix, lettuce, red chard, chives, garlic chives, tarragon, mint. Black Angus grass fed beef, pastured pork products and eggs.

Quaker Valley Farm: Strawberries and asparagus, apples, dried apples, popcorn, canned Madison peaches, blueberry, tart cherry, and maybe strawberry jam, and Fredi’s delicious fresh tasting tomato sauce.

Reid Orchard: Fuji and Pink Lady apples, apple butter, pumpkin butter, apple sauce, and herbs. Plants for your garden: heirloom tomatoes, basil, chives, cilantro, dill, french tarragon, lavender, lemon balm, lemon verbena, mint, oregano, rosemary, sage, thyme, winter savory.

Cherry Glen Goat Cheese Company: Back this week at the top of the market! Delicious handcrafted cheeses from just outside the beltway.

Audia Farms: Jams, fruit syrups, herbs, spices, tea, perennials and garden starts.

Atwater Bread: Organic sourdough and yeasted breads: Peasant Wheat, Caraway Rye, Cranberry Pecan, Kalamata Olive, traditional San Francisco Sourdough, Ciabatta, Country White, Chili Cheddar, French Baguette, Spelt, Sunflower Flax, and more. Brownies, cookies, scones, muffins, and granola.

Groff’s Content Farm: 100% grass-fed and -finished lamb and beef, pastured Berkshire pork, beautiful pastured eggs. Pre-order poultry.

Keswick Creamery: raw milk cheeses, blue cheese, feta, ricotta, quark, yogurt, and chocolate pudding.

Painted Hand Farm: humanely raised, grass-fed rose veal and goat meat. Ask her about the veal industry and why you don’t want to buy veal from anyone else. All cuts: shanks, chops, ground, scaloppini, breakfast link goat sausage, hot and sweet Italian veal sausage, traditional German-style Bratwurst (veal and pork).

Say hi to Jessica and Jody managing the market on their own this Saturday! Please bring your own bags for shopping.

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May 23 - MORE Strawberries

Saturday, May 23rd, 2009

The strawberries are coming on strong now. Richfield and Truck Patch will have even more berries this week and now Quaker Valley will have some early Sweet Charlie variety too. I’d still expect them to sell out by noon, so come early. We’re still awash in asparagus, my very favorite food on the grill. And market is lush with greens for fantastic salads. Pick up some great sausages and ground beef for your Memorial Day grill, and some of those cute rolls from Atwater Bakery.

Bring the kids early for Nathan the Jazzy Juggler! He will entertain us this Saturday from 9 -11 and then we’ll have The Mountaineers with an acoustic bluegrass set.

Saturday bike clinic is still on! Contest this week: submit your ideas for a good name for the Bike Thing. We’d love more volunteers of all skill levels - really, even if you don’t know how to rebuild a hub, we still want folks on hand who can help inflate tires, learn how to patch a tube, and offer opinions on routes.

Tree and Leaf Farm: Beautiful, nutrient dense vegetables are grown without chemical fertilizers, pesticides or herbicides. Baby Mei Qing pac choi (aka bok choy) has a lovely tender white rib. Escarole, endive, lettuce heads, salad mix, baby chard, turnip greens. Baby beets and hakurei salad turnips (the greens are great too). Cut herbs. Basil, flower, and veggie plants. Asparagus.

Richfield Farm: Strawberries are in full swing. Red and white spring onions, Savannah smooth leaf greens, tatsoi, lettuce heads, tons of asparagus and rhubarb, hanging nasturtium and petunia baskets, herb starts. Maybe some zucchini and snap peas!

Truck Patch Farms: MORE strawberries, MORE asparagus, curly kale, arugula, spring mix, lettuce, red chard, chives, garlic chives, tarragon, mint. Black Angus grass fed beef, pastured pork products and eggs.

Quaker Valley Farm: Strawberries! Purple and green asparagus, apples, dried apples, popcorn, canned Madison peaches, blueberry and tart cherry jams (great with Keswick’s quark), and tomato sauce.

Reid Orchard: Fuji and Pink Lady apples, apple butter, pumpkin butter, apple sauce, and herbs. Plants for your garden: heirloom tomatoes, basil, chives, cilantro, dill, french tarragon, lavender, lemon balm, lemon verbena, mint, oregano, rosemary, sage, thyme, winter savory.

Audia Farms: Jams, fruit syrups, herbs, spices, tea, perennials and garden starts.

Atwater Bread: Organic sourdough and yeasted breads: Peasant Wheat, Caraway Rye, Cranberry Pecan, Kalamata Olive, traditional San Francisco Sourdough, Ciabatta, Country White, Chili Cheddar, French Baguette, Spelt, Sunflower Flax, and more. Brownies, cookies, scones, muffins, and granola.

Groff’s Content Farm: 100% grass-fed and -finished lamb and beef, pastured Berkshire pork, beautiful pastured eggs. Pre-order poultry.

Keswick Creamery: raw milk cheeses, blue cheese, feta, ricotta, quark, yogurt, and chocolate pudding.

Painted Hand Farm: humanely raised, grass-fed rose veal and goat meat. Ask her about the veal industry and why you don’t want to buy veal from anyone else. All cuts: shanks, chops, ground, scaloppini, breakfast link goat sausage, hot and sweet Italian veal sausage, traditional German-style Bratwurst (veal and pork).

Cherry Glen Goat Cheese Company: This is their off week, but if you must have some, they’ll be down at the 14th & U market.

Look forward to seeing you this Saturday! Please bring your own bags for shopping.

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May 16 - Strawberries and Asparagus

Saturday, May 16th, 2009
We are getting one of the earliest crops of strawberries this season - thanks to overwintering with row covers. Still come early-ish, I can’t imagine they won’t sell out! The rhubarb is still in season, so that classic combo is ready for pies and cobblers.  Also try Truck Patch Farms’ suggestion for Strawberry Asparagus Salad.

We’re deep in asparagus, and we’ll have it until about mid-June. But you can start thinking about putting by now for December when you’ll be missing it again. Always ask your farmer what kind of break they can give you on bulk. Trim, blanch and freeze it, make pickles if you’re into canning, or make soup and freeze in ready to serve portions.

Lots of exciting things happening in Mount Pleasant this Saturday! Be sure to get a market-side viewing position for the Bancroft Elementary School Marching Band and Cheerleaders coming down the street for their pre-Spring Fair parade. Throw flowers and cheer them on, your very own singing, dancing, celebrity-gardening DC Public School kids!

Also, the Mt Pleasant Business Association is sponsoring an all day Spring Sidewalk Sale.  Check out the businesses across the street and then wander down Mount Pleasant Street to see what’s on offer.

Saturday bike clinic! Come to market and bask in the bike friendly glow and pat yourself on the back for having participated in WABA’s Bike To Work Day on Friday 5/15. Get your tires inflated properly, learn how to patch your own tubes, get advice, volunteer! This week we’ll have a couple local dads with Xtracycle bikes happy to talk to you about options for riding with kids.

On the bandstand, we’ll have Gabe on fiddle for that sweet market sound and then Salvador and friends playing folk music from Veracruz, Mexico!

Produce this week:

Richfield Farm: Strawberries without pesticides because Ian’s got one of his beehives right in the middle of the strawberry patch. Red and white spring onions, broccoli rabe, mustard greens, lettuce heads, asparagus, spinach, rhubarb, bountiful hanging nasturtium baskets, herb starts.

Truck Patch Farms: Tons of asparagus, green bore kale, arugula, spring mix, lettuce, red chard, chives, garlic chives, tarragon, mint. Maybe some strawberries! Black Angus grass fed beef, pastured pork products and eggs. Bacon. For chicken, please email Bryan directly at order@truckpatchfarms.com.

Tree and Leaf Farm: My favorite greens ever!  Escarole for White Bean Soup (use it in this vegan Tuscan White Bean Stew, or with sausage and chicken broth for the authentic Italian version). Endive pairs perfectly with Keswick’s Blue Suede Moo blue cheese in salad. Lettuce heads, salad mix, mustard mix, chard, baby arugula and baby pac choi. The first salad add of the season: baby hakurei turnips (the greens are great too). Green garlic, chives, garlic chives, tarragon, sage. Basil plants. And asparagus that’s never seen a hint of herbicide in its long perennial life!

Cherry Glen Goat Cheese Company: Welcome back the most local cheesemongers in town! From a mere 26 miles north, comes this creamy delicious goat cheese rounds, ricotta, and chevre.

Keswick Creamery: raw milk cheeses, blue cheese, feta, ricotta, quark, yogurt, and chocolate pudding.

Atwater Bread: Organic sourdough and yeasted breads: Peasant Wheat, Caraway Rye, Cranberry Pecan, Kalamata Olive, traditional San Francisco Sourdough, Ciabatta, Country White, Chili Cheddar, French Baguette, Spelt, Sunflower Flax, and more. Brownies, cookies, scones, muffins, and granola.

Groff’s Content Farm: 100% grass-fed and -finished lamb and beef, pastured Berkshire pork, beautiful pastured eggs. Pre-order poultry.

Painted Hand Farm: humanely raised, grass-fed rose veal and goat meat. Ask her about the veal industry and why you don’t want to buy veal from anyone else. All cuts: shanks, chops, ground, scaloppini, breakfast link goat sausage, hot and sweet Italian veal sausage, traditional German-style Bratwurst (veal and pork).

Quaker Valley Farm: Purple and green asparagus, apples, kids love dried apples, popcorn, canned Madison peaches, jams, and tomato sauce.

Reid Orchard: Fuji and Pink Lady apples, apple cider, apple butter, pumpkin butter, apple sauce, and herbs. Plants for your garden: heirloom tomatoes, basil, chives, cilantro, dill, french tarragon, lavender, lemon balm, lemon verbena, mint, oregano, rosemary, sage, thyme, winter savory.

Audia Farms: Jams, fruity syrup, herbs, spices, tea, perennials and garden starts.

Look forward to seeing you this Saturday! Please bring your own bags for shopping.

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May 9 - Mothers Day

Saturday, May 9th, 2009
Mother’s Day! In case you were wondering what to get me, I’d like to drop a few hints: a Tree & Leaf Market Bag made from recycled seed sacks and super cute trim, which they will stuff with this week’s harvest would be delightful, as would a lush and edible hanging nasturtium basket from Richfield Farm, a selection of teas from Audia Farm and some of their blackberry syrup for the Atwater bread and fresh market eggs french toast you’re going to make me for my Sunday breakfast in bed (plus Truck Patch bacon AND sausage from Groff’s or Painted Hand because Mother’s Day is once a year and I don’t mind being indulged), a couple jars of strawberry jam from Quaker Valley Orchard to evoke the strawberries coming in a couple weeks, some slabs of Keswick Creamery cheese, and a bouquet of asparagus and pretty mint.

Later we’ll have a family cocktail party with this Rhubarb Simple Syrup turned into sparkly sodas for the kids and a Negroni-like cocktail for me (gin, sweet vermouth, and rhubarb instead of Campari). Twist of lemon will have to be courtesy of Florida, but if we treat the foods that are shipped thousands of miles as treats instead of staples, I think we’re being good localvores.

This Saturday’s bike clinic features Ben West, Washington Area Bicyclist Association’s official DC Bike Ambassador. Minor bike repairs performed and TAUGHT! Never be stuck with a flat again, you can fix it yourself. Register for WABA’s May 15th Bike To Work Day and let Ben help you pick a safe route or find a Commuter Convoy (there’s one leaving from the market site that Friday morning).

We have THE BEST music line up! Your delightful neighbors Rick and Mara will ply us with accordion music in the morning, then Gabe Popkin and his friend Jacob will give us some bluegrassy fiddling action.

On to the food…lots of stuff for your garden, but plenty of edibles too:

Tree and Leaf Farm: Wonderfully busy salad mix with great keeping powers, never a brown or wilty bit in it, triple washed and ready to go. Sweet & spicy mustard mix with pretty young Golden Frill and Purple mustard greens. Gorgeous neon green Tokyo Bekana Asian green is mild and delicious raw in salad or wilted in soup or stir fried. Beet greens, chard, long scarlet radishes, green garlic (like scallions but garlic flavored, use in EVERYTHING, also puree with olive oil for a great pesto), chives, tarragon, sage, rosemary. Young plants for your vegetable garden.

Atwater Bread of Baltimore will bring MUCH MORE bread this week! Organic sourdough and yeasted breads: Peasant Wheat, Caraway Rye, Cranberry Pecan, Kalamata Olive, traditional San Francisco Sourdough, Ciabatta, Country White, Chili Cheddar, French Baguette, Spelt, Sunflower Flax, and more. Brownies, cookies, scones, muffins, and the highly addictive new chocolate cherry granola! Seriously, I hated granola until last week. Make a breakfast parfait of Keswick’s yogurt, some market jam, and this granola, send it to work or school in an individual serving size jar.

Painted Hand Farm from Pennsylvania will have humanely raised, grass-fed ROSE veal and goat meat. All cuts: shanks, chops, ground, veal scaloppini (a thin cutlet), breakfast link goat sausage (Mother’s Day breakfast…), hot and sweet Italian veal sausage, traditional German-style Bratwurst (veal and pork).

Groff’s Content Farm located in Rocky Ridge, Maryland: 100% grass-fed AND grass-finished lamb and beef, pastured Berkshire pork, beautiful pastured eggs (mm, Mother’s Day breakfast…) in a rainbow of colors. Pre-order poultry.

Truck Patch Farms: Asparagus, kale, arugula, spring mix, chard, chives, tarragon, mint. Plus Black Angus grass fed beef, pastured pork products and eggs. Don’t forget my mother’s day bacon. For chicken, please email Bryan directly at orders@truckpatchfarms.com.

Reid Orchard: My favorite Fuji and Pink Lady apples, apple cider, apple butter, pumpkin butter, apple sauce, and lots of herbs. Plants for your garden include heirloom tomatoes, basil, chives, cilantro, dill, french tarragon, lavender, lemon balm, lemon verbena, mint, oregano, rosemary, sage, thyme, winter savory.

Quaker Valley Farm: Apples, popcorn, cider, canned Madison peaches, jams, and tomato sauce.

Audia Farms: Jams, fruity syrup, herbs, spices, tea, perennials and garden starts.

Richfield Farm: Asparagus, spinach, rhubarb, scallions, hanging flower baskets, herb starts.

Keswick Creamery: raw milk cheeses, blue cheese, feta, ricotta, quark, yogurt, and chocolate pudding. Ask what special “scratch” or aged cheeses are available each week.

Cherry Glen Goat Cheese Company - We are going to share them with the 14th and U Market, so they’ll be down there this Saturday. But they are so happy with your big Opening Day welcome and look forward to returning next week.

Look forward to seeing everyone this Saturday! Please bring your own bags for shopping.

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May 2 - Opening Day

Saturday, May 2nd, 2009

This Saturday is the first day of the 2009 season of the Mount Pleasant Farmers’ Market and it’s going to be a great year! Come out to Lamont Park (at the corner of Lamont and Mt Pleasant St. NW) between 9 am and 1 pm to say hi, enjoy some music, lounge on the bandstand, catch up with the neighbors, and fill your bags with Spring produce!

Ride, push, drag or tow your bike to market! We are starting a free weekly drop-in bike clinic with clever folks on hand to show you how to maintain your steed. Bring your bike, we’ll have tools, patches and expertise on hand to change a flat, adjust your brakes, get that saddle positioned just right, oil your chain, and get you riding for the Spring!

Asparagus (oh, the longed for asparagus!), rhubarb, fresh, crisp greens, perennials and strong herb and veggie starts for your own gardens, eggs, meat, cheese, and the best bread in the Mid Atlantic region…read on!

Four new vendors join us for the 2009 season:

Atwater Bread of Baltimore will bring organic sourdough and yeasted breads: Peasant Wheat, Caraway Rye, Cranberry Pecan, Kalamata Olive, traditional San Francisco Sourdough, Ciabatta, Country White, Chili Cheddar, French Baguette, Spelt, Sunflower Flax (my favorite!), and more. They’ll also have brownies, cookies, scones, muffins, and yummy crispy crunchy granola! Watch for delicious soups-to-go made from local ingredients throughout the season, and ask about fresh pizza dough to take home and make your own pizza.

Cherry Glen Goat Cheese Company from just 28 miles up 270 in Boyds, Maryland, will bring you rich, creamy, hand-made artisanal goat cheeses. Beautiful rinds and exquisite flavor.

Painted Hand Farm from Pennsylvania will have VERY humanely raised, grass-fed veal and goat meat. They’ll be bringing all cuts: shanks, chops, ground, veal scaloppini (a thin cutlet), rose veal, breakfast link goat sausage, hot and sweet Italian veal sausage, traditional German-style Bratwurst (veal and pork).

Groff’s Content Farm located in Rocky Ridge, Maryland, will be bringing 100% grass-fed AND grass-finished lamb and beef, pastured Berkshire pork, beautiful pastured eggs in a rainbow of colors. Talk to Julie or Jennifer about ordering poultry in the coming weeks.

Also returning this year are all your favorites:

Tree and Leaf Farm: Beyond organic. Baby chard, baby rustic arugula, salad mix that really lasts, curious chicories, green garlic, chives, cilantro, tarragon. Great heirloom tomato, pepper, basil, lettuce, greens and herb starts to put in your vegetable garden. Also, some unusual perennials that are great for self-spreading, wildflower borders: Maximillian sunflower grows to 8′ tall spattered with 4″ bright yellow sunflowers and attracts goldfinches; heirloom Plume poppy is also very tall and doesn’t mind lousy soil; purple Echinacea is attractive to beneficial insects and butterflies.

Truck Patch Farms: LOTS of asparagus, one thing that little heat wave was good for! From the greenhouse: curly kale, arugula, spring mix, Red Ruby chard, chives, tarragon, mint. Plus Black Angus grass fed beef, pastured pork products and eggs. For chicken, please email Bryan directly at orders@truckpatchfarms.com.

Quaker Valley Farm: Apples, popcorn, cider, canned Madison peaches, jams, and the best tomato sauce ever made. My family is requesting that it be canned by the gallon next season because we love the fresh, bright flavor from their Juliet Roma tomatoes. Great on pizza (thicken it with some paste if you prefer), toss with pasta, or eat it straight out of the jar like my 2-year-old does.

Reid Orchard: Apples galore! And apple sauce, apple butter, and delicious ciders.

Audia Farms: Jams, herbs, spices, tea, catnip, perennials and garden starts. Ask Kathy about all kinds of exotic herbs from far flung culinary traditions and their possible medicinal properties.

Richfield Farm: Asparagus, spinach, 100s of pounds of rhubarb (another side effect of the heat wave!), scallions, hanging flower baskets bursting with nasturtiums, herb starts.

Keswick Creamery: raw milk cheeses, blue cheese, feta, ricotta, quark, yogurt, and chocolate pudding. New this year: each week, Melanie will send a unique “scratch” cheeses - artisanal experiments in the arcane cheesemaking arts.

Look forward to seeing everyone this Saturday! Remember, please bring your own bags for shopping - someday they’ll be banned and you’ll want to be in the habit!

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