September 10 Market

this week
--What's coming to the Market this week?
--Cooking Ideas - Eggplant

What's coming to the Market this week?

School has started but it's still summer at the market. Berries (strawberries, blueberries, blackberries) will be readily available. Peaches and melons are in good supply too. Plums (Brooks, Italian, Mirabelle among others) will be available. Apples will be plentiful too.

The variety of peppers and eggplants coming to the market has been outstanding the last two weeks and will be again this weekend. Corn and tomatoes will be plentiful this week too. You will find a wide variety of greens too, including lettuces, kale, chards, spinach and arugula. Looking for fresh herbs? You'll find a good amount of basil, parsley, cilantro, shiso, mint and chives this weekend. Carrots, beets, cucumbers, cabbage (green and red), fennel, potatoes (many kinds), onions and radishes will be in good supply too. Check the availability list for a more complete listing.

In:
Salubrious
Blossom Vinegar
Vibrant Flavor

Out:
Cuisine Mentor back September 24 back next week
DePaula Confections back next week
Nonna's Noodles back September 17
Little Pots and Pans back next week


Cooking Ideas - Eggplant

Eggplant comes in many shapes and sizes, from the long slender violet colored Asian varieties, to pale White Egg variety. Eggplant is a versatile vegetable. It can be grilled, stuffed and baked, roasted, sauteed or breaded and fried. Ayers Creek Farm included a recipe for Baba Ganoush (or Ganoosh) in their most recent newsletter. Baba Ganoush is one of my favorite eggplant dishes (ratatouille is another favorite) and very easy to make. Enjoy!

Baba Ganoosh
from Ayers Creek Farm

Place the eggplant in a slow oven, 250 degrees or so, and cook until completely soft, 2 - 3 hours does the trick. When fully cooked, char the outside, preferably over a wood fire, and then peel. Egglant absorbs smoke very easily, and if cooked over a wood fire in can become acrid, so we have found it is best cooked in a oven first. Mash the eggplant pulp with a 1/4 cup or so of tahini, the juice of a lemon, a pressed clove or garlic. A potato masher or fork is best for mixing. Some parts of the Levant, they make a very fine paste, and in other parts they have a lumpy mix. We favor the lumpy when the eggplant is fresh. Salt, stir in some chopped parsley and then cover with olive oil. Spoon on to pita, crisp bread or pepper slices.