Grapevine October 16 2005 Market

Grapevine October 16 Market

--What's coming to the Market this week?
--Winter Market Schedule
--Moroccan Stew

We're entering the last three weeks of the regular season. From apples to winter squash, there's plenty of fruits and vegetables to choose from as well as seafood, meats and prepared foods. And don't forget, the market doesn't shut down in winter. We'll be open again this winter (see article). Mario's Moldovan Ravioli, Freddy Guy Filberts and Happy Harvest Farm are all back this week. Music this week is Fiddlin' Earl White. See you at the market!

What's coming to the Market this week?
We're in the last few weeks for peaches, nectarines, asian pears and strawberries. Apples and pears will be plentiful. The hazelnut harvest has been quite good and there will be plenty of hazelnuts available. Chestnuts should be in good supply too.

As for vegetables, the cool weather crops look great. Cauliflower and broccoli are available in many colors. All greens are looking good too. Root crops such as beets, carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes will be plentiful. There are more varieties of winter squash available than I can name. My favorite this week is "Red Warty Thing". And there will be plenty of pumpkins too.

to the availability list

Winter Market Schedule
The winter season for the Hillsdale Farmers Market begins in November. The market will be open twice a month November through March, 10 AM - 2 PM. The winter dates are:

November 6, 20
December 4, 18
January 15, 29
February 12, 26
March 12, 26.

December 4 is the Annual Holiday Market with craft vendors, music and more. Look for brochure with the winter schedule this weekend and in the November issue of theSouthwest Community Connection.

Moroccan Stew
When our oldest son was born 13 years ago this month, friends brought brought over meals for us. Many of those dishes have become standby recipes in our house. This recipe is one of them.

The original recipe is from the Moosewood Restaurant and is pretty straightforward. You should be able to find all the vegetables at the market. Like most of my favorite recipes, you can easily make substitutions in this recipe. If you want, you can mix sweet potatoes with the butternut squash or go all zucchini instead of mixing the summer squash in with the zucchini. With couscous or rice and a salad, this dish makes a great fall meal. Enjoy!

To the recipe

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Grapevine October 9 2005 Market

Grapevine October 9 Market

in this issue
--What's at the Market this week?
--Using Wild Mushrooms

Thanks to persistent computer crashes, last week's newsletter never came out. But now the market has a
new (to us) computer and things are much better.

Freddy Guys Filberts, Garden Color, Picklopolis, Viridian Farms and Vibrant Flavors are all back this week. Mario's Moldovan Ravioli is off this week butwill be back next week. Greg Clarke will be performing this week. See you at the market.

What's at the Market this week?

You may have noticed the small notice "Weather and other factors affect what the farmers bring to the market" on the availability list. Weather definitely affected what came to market last week. The heavy rains at the end of the week made it nearly impossible for a few farms to harvest anything for last week's market. Frost caused problems for others. Fall is definitely here.

Despite the change of the season, summer fruits and vegetables are still available. Peaches,nectarines, melons and strawberries will be available for another week or two as will corn and tomatoes. Most greens and lettuces will be readily available.

While cold weather causes problems for some crops, it's great news for others. Cold weather is good news for brassicas like cauliflower, broccoli, cabbages, kale and collards because these plants increase their sugar levels to protect themselves from frost. There are a lot of varieties just cominginto season now. Give them a try.

To the availability list

Using Wild Mushrooms

Brassicas aren't the only plants that like cold, wet weather. Wild mushrooms thrive in the fall. Chanterelles, lobster and matsutake are just a few of the mushrooms harvested in the Northwest. Wild mushrooms have wonderful flavor and can be used in many ways.

Roasting is the simplest way to prepare wild mushrooms and works particularly well with chanterelles. Clean the mushrooms to remove any dirt or debris. If very dirty, then wash with water. Cut mushrooms into 1 inch chunks or wedges. (If using chanterelles, leave the smaller ones whole.) Toss mushrooms with a little olive oil, salt, pepper and a splash of dry white wine. Place mushrooms in a shallow baking dish, cover and place in a preheated 375 degree oven. Bake for about 20 minutes. Uncover, turn mushrooms over and bake for another 20 minutes. At this point, the mushrooms should be soft and tender and the liquid nearly evaporated.

The roasted mushrooms can be used hot with grilled meats or cool in salads. You can also toss the hot mushrooms with cooked pasta and grated Parmesan cheese. Tastebud Farms, an occasional Hillsdale Market vendor, makes a great sandwich using wood oven roasted chanterelles, Fraga Farms goat cheese and greens in a pita. Have fun coming up with your own variations.