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Farmers Market 1/31/13

February 5, 2013 by Elisabeth Norris Leave a Comment

While I continue to get caught up on things here is the farmers market haul from last week. I went light on veggies simply because I didn’t get a chance to plan meals for the week. Which is sometimes good because it forces me to get a bit creative use up everything. I found some pea shoots again but I really shouldn’t have purchased them. They were too soft and worn. But not all was a loss, we were able to get one salad out of them.

Veggies

  • Leeks (still a bit early in the season to be buying them but I really needed them)
  • Lacinato kale
  • Yellow onions
  • White potatoes
  • Pea shoots
  • Avocado

Fruit

More fruit than I need but they are intended for a citrus shoot I’ve been meaning to do for the last couple of weeks. This is a good sample of the variety available right now. I still don’t have it straight on the who and what of all the varieties of citrus. And quite frankly, the more I look into this, the more confused I get.

  • Pomellos
  • Navel oranges
  • Cara Cara oranges
  • Blood oranges
  • Satsumas
  • Tangerines (a variety I can’t remember the name of)
  • Clementines (a variety of tangerine)

Kiwis! Yes, I found kiwis. Unfortunately these aren’t very good at all. I’m glad I treaded slowly and only bought four.

Kiwi

Filed Under: Farmers Market Tagged With: avocado, blood oranges, cara cara oranges, clementines, kale, kiwi, lacinato kale, leeks, navel oranges, onions, oranges, pea shoots, pomelos, potatoes, satsumas, tangerines, white potatoes, yellow onions

Farmers Market 1/3/13 & 1/10/13

January 10, 2013 by Elisabeth Norris 4 Comments

The start of the new year is now past. Everyone is seemingly falling back into the routine of life, myself included. December was nuts. I didn’t make it to a single farmers market in the month of December. Part of me enjoyed the break from having to be at a set place at a set time to pick up produce (oh how convenient our big box grocery stores are.) But by the end nothing can come close to what you can find at the markets. I was happy to return.

The winter market is in full swing. By full swing, more than half the vendors are gone for the winter thus making the selection and variety much smaller. Which means I need to supplement a bit more than I do in the higher production months. Spring will be here before know it though. And until then, I am more than happy to revel in winters bounty of citrus!!! And finding it for a $1 per pound?! Overbuying is happening.

So yes, I did go last week and I did go today. I have been a little slammed with things. I’m not giving this up though. I love being able to look back and see what I am buying. I have considered including the supplemental produce I buy to get a bigger picture of our produce consumption but I am not sure I want to complicate this post. I LOVE its ease and simplicity to do… hence why you consistently see these posts every month.

Anyways onto the fruits and veggies.

So for 1/3 I piked up:

First market haul of the year

  • kale
  • Pea shoots
  • Kohlrabi
  • Green cabbage
  • Cauliflower
  • Green onions
  • Yellow onions
  • Garnet yams
  • Tomato
  • Ginger

The Kohlrabi is very new to me. I picked it up on a whim. Apparently it is very similar to broccoli stems. I can’t say for certain because I haven’t cooked it yet. Soon though. And Pea shoots! I can’t wait to talk more about pea shoots. These were an awesome discovery that have been right under my nose for a while. Liv grew a bunch of these in the garden this last summer and I didn’t quite grasp why or how you eat them. Basically they are the tendril tops of sugar snap peas. They are tender and taste like peas in the fraction of the time it takes to grow the pea pods. Incredible addition to salads.

First market haul of the year

  • Pomelo (pink flesh)
  • Blood oranges
  • Cara Cara oranges
  • Satsumas
  • Pink lady apples

And for today’s haul:

Kitty inspection

  • Curley kale
  • Garnet yams
  • Red bell pepper
  • Jalapeños
  • Tomatoes
  • Green onions
  • Celery

Kale and chard were about the only greens one could find in the market today. No leaf lettuce, spinach, pea shoots, and not even lacinato kale. And yes, I had lots of greens on my list this morning. Kitty decided to get in my shot and started inspecting things. Which resulted in her taking a few bites out of the celery leaves.

Testing the celery

I think she wanted to know why I was questioning her inspection.

Winter citrus

  • Blood oranges
  • Pink Lady apples
  • Lemons
  • Satsumas

I was telling my citrus lady that I really like that they have been leaving on the leaves and stems on the oranges (adds so much to a photograph) and she told me that they started doing that to cut cost. By not stripping the leaves and stems off and not washing them they are able to offer the citrus to us at a lower cost (and less labor for them). I am more than happy to scrub my oranges clean and shiny… I wash all my produce anyways.

Filed Under: Farmers Market Tagged With: apples, blood oranges, cabbage, cara cara oranges, garnet yams, ginger, green onions, kale, kitty, kohlrabit, lacinato kale, onions, oranges, pea shoots, pink lady apples, pomelos, satsumas, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, yellow onions

Farmers Market 4/26/12

April 26, 2012 by Elisabeth Norris Leave a Comment

Creature of habit I am. What is more interesting about this post is that I took these pictures with a 24mm manual focus lens! I didn’t have to stand high above on a step stool to get everything in frame as I do when I use the 50mm. A friend is letting me borrow it to see if it is one I’d like to have in my arsenal.

  • Romanesco
  • Butter lettuce
  • Artichokes
  • Leeks
  • Kale
  • Russet potatoes
  • Avocado
  • Tomatoes

  • Tangerines
  • Mandarins

Well Satsumas are officially on their way out. My citrus lady doesn’t have anymore for the season. I’m not quite ready to give them up so I bought a few from another farmer.

Filed Under: Farmers Market Tagged With: artichokes, avocado, butter lettuce, kale, lacinato kale, leeks, lettuce, mandarins, romanesco, russet potatoes, satsumas, tangerines, tomatoes

Farmers Market 4/12/12

April 12, 2012 by Elisabeth Norris Leave a Comment

Much smaller haul this week. Lots of green!

  • Cabbage
  • English peas
  • Asparagus
  • Kale
  • Green garlic
  • Oak leaf lettuce (I think)

I was happy to see a ton more english peas at the market. But after shelling them today I was greatly disappointed with the yield. Very small immature peas. I may have to hold back for a couple of weeks till they get a bit more mature… especially when they are $2 per pound. Also curious to see if the price will drop a bit in the coming weeks.

  • Pomelos
  • Satsumas

Didn’t need much by way of fruit. Still have a bit left over from last week. I was a wee bit saddened to hear that the satsuma season is coming to an end. But as one season ends another begins!

Filed Under: Farmers Market Tagged With: asparagus, cabbage, english peas, flowers, green garlic, kale, lacinato kale, lettuce, oak lead lettuce, pomelos, satsumas

Farmers Market 4/5/12

April 6, 2012 by Elisabeth Norris Leave a Comment

A day late, I know! But I did get back to the market yesterday after being gone for nearly two weeks. It really did feel like I overbought but I didn’t. Instead I ended up splurging on 3 “new to me” items. Making up for the last couple of weeks? Maybe.

fruit

  • Satsumas
  • Guava (possibly green apple guava?)
  • Cosmetically challenged pink lady apples (yes that’s what they were called and they were significantly cheaper!)
  • Lemons
  • Cara cara oranges
  • Pomelo

  • Leeks
  • Lemon grass
  • Carrots
  • Green onions (this giant bunch was only $1!!)
  • Kale
  • Amaranth greens aka Chinese spinach aka Indian spinach

  • Japanese sweet potatoes
  • Tarro root
  • Yellow onion
  • English peas (first of the season!)
  • Garlic
  • Broccoli
  • Red bell pepper
  • Avocado
  • Tomatoes
  • Ginger

So the “new to me” items are the amaranth greens, tarro root, and the guava. The tarro and guava were kind of a given since I chickened out on buying them several weeks back. But the amaranth greens? Impulse buy while I was waiting to pay the lemon grass and English peas. Someone was asking about these greens and the purveyor introduced as amaranth or Indian spinach. And I thought, “hey, another form of spinach, you should try it!” I’m not so sure its much of a spinach but I’m sure I’ll find something interesting to do with it. The leaves are pretty though.

Filed Under: Farmers Market Tagged With: amaranth greens, apples, avocado, broccoli, cara cara oranges, carrots, english peas, garlic, ginger, green onions, guava, japanese sweet potatoes, kale, lacinato kale, leeks, lemon grass, lemons, onions, oranges, pink lady apples, pomelos, red bell pepper, satsumas, tarro root, tomatoes, yellow onions

Farmers Market 3/8/12

March 8, 2012 by Elisabeth Norris Leave a Comment

Aside from the artichokes and citrus I didn’t have much of a plan for the market today. I think I came out with a pretty good variety this week. I noticed a few new items this week, specifically guava and taro root, that I chickened out in purchasing. But thats what a google search and next week is for, right?

  • Yellow cauliflower
  • Artichokes
  • Cabbage
  • Beets
  • Asparagus
  • Okinawan sweet potatoes

I do have to note that I am hooked on these Okinawan sweet potatoes. Aside from the purple flesh, which is is quite enticing to the eye, they taste as if they are laden with spoonfuls of brown sugar. I ended up baking the ones I purchased last week and they were incredible. All they needed was a bit of butter and a pinch of salt. The skin was just as delightful as the flesh because the sugars caramelized a bit. I’m looking forward to finding some other ways to prepare them.

And the usual in the citrus department…

  • Kumquats
  • Pomelos
  • Satsumas
  • Cara Caras

But I also found kumquats! Om nom nom.

One of the flower vendors had a bunch of these little guys on sale. As I stood there looking over the different colors of orchids I suddenly realized that for a few dollars more than I spend on a bouquet of flowers and I can have a plant that continually gives flowers. Sold! I will have to find him a proper pot and get him planted this weekend.

Filed Under: Farmers Market Tagged With: artichokes, asparagus, beets, cabbage, cara cara oranges, cauliflower, flowers, kumquats, okinawan sweet potatoes, oranges, orchid, pomelos, satsumas, yellow cauliflower

Farmers Market 3/1/12

March 1, 2012 by Elisabeth Norris Leave a Comment

Despite being rainy and foggy as I made my trek to the market this morning, I think I made out pretty well. I found some Okinawan sweet potatoes! I knew I was overdue to purchase something “new to me” at the market, but really? I was sold upon seeing their beautiful purple flesh. There is definitely something about vibrant colorful food.

  • Leeks
  • Broccoli
  • Cabbage
  • Okinawan sweet potatoes (also known as Hawaiian purple sweet potatoes)
  • Garnet yams
  • Yukon gold potatoes
  • Green onions
  • Carrots
  • Spinach

  • Bosc pears
  • Satsumas

Went easy on the fruit as I still have quite a bit. Hoping to use a good chunk of it up over the weekend.

Filed Under: Farmers Market Tagged With: bosc pears, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, garnet yams, green onions, leeks, okinawan sweet potatoes, pears, satsumas, spinach, yukon gold potatoes

Farmers Market 2/23/12

February 25, 2012 by Elisabeth Norris Leave a Comment

Thursday was such a bright and abundant day at the market. I truly do think it was due to the sun shining. The highlight was finding these awesome rustic/gnarly carrots and a purple cauliflower. I’m already thinking the cauliflower is going to be used for a soup that is heavily laden with goat cheese despite the spring/summer weather we are having!

  • Carrots
  • Russet potatoes
  • Purple cauliflower
  • Yellow onions
  • Dino kale

  • Pomelo
  • Cara caras
  • Blood oranges
  • Satsumas
  • Pink lady apples

Nom de bloom.

Filed Under: Farmers Market Tagged With: apples, cara cara oranges, carrots, cauliflower, kale, lacinato kale, onions, oranges, pink lady apples, pomelos, potatoes, purple cauliflower, russet potatoes, satsumas, yellow onions

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Hi there! My name is Elisabeth. I’m a 30 something wife, baker, cook, whole food eater, fitness enthusiast, amateur photographer, cat lover, Jesus follower living in Half Moon Bay, California. Read More…

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