End of Season

[Happy Boy Farm tomatoes, summer 2007]

The Fillmore Farmers' Market -- my neighborhood market -- closes this weekend for the season, and I'm sad! I'll just say it plain: I love having a market within walking distance; I love the gorgeous live jazz played while I browse the fruits and vegetables; I adore the smallness of it, and the growers who remember me each week; I love that the girl who sells the eggs steered me to H&M last month, where I bought my new fall coat. And I'm feeling a bit waaa that I have to give it up for four months.

But maybe it's a good thing (trying to be positive here)? If the market was open year-round, I wouldn't appreciate it so much (but I would, I know, just give me a chance!). I might never get to sleep in because of rousing myself somewhat early on Saturday mornings to go get my weekly haul. In fact, I might take all that fabulous and affordable organic produce for granted if it was constantly available. So doing without will definitely make me look even more forward to next March, and the turn into spring.


[Summer bounty from the market]

All season long I've been gorging myself -- and whoever comes over for dinner -- on fresh organic salad, heirloom tomatoes, sweet and delicious little potatoes, corn, pears, plums and strawberries, baby chard, radishes ... need I go on? Almost every week I've faithfully loaded up my enormous canvas bag and lugged it all home -- happily -- while planning the week's menus out in my head. Of course I can, and will, go to the wonderful Ferry Building market but -- whine -- it's not within walking distance. I suppose I'll manage somehow.

Moving on: This weekend, I have lots of eating activities planned, but I rather think I'll keep them under wraps for the time being. Just know they will involve many sweets, and probably also tea.

Eating my solo dinner tonight of: a glass of Ravenswood Zin, roasted fingerling potatoes with lashings of sour cream, a faux sausage, sauteed chard, and a glorious salad of roasted beets, tiny tomatoes, and greens. An unexpected, quick 5-miler with the girls (and dog!) after work has made me even hungrier that usual, and it all tastes so good -- yum. I think I'll have a couple of squares of milk chocolate to finish it off.

Oh, the simple is so divine sometimes, no?

Roasted beet salad with greens, for one

One bunch beets, stems removed
Handful organic salad greens
2 Tb. pumpkin seeds
grape tomatoes
olive oil and vinegar

Oven to 400 F. Roast the beets until tender when pierced with a fork, about 45 minutes or so. Remove from oven and let cool a bit, then slip from their skins and coarsely chop. In a bowl, toss the beets with the greens, tomatoes, and pumpkin seeds, and drizzle with the olive oil and vinegar. Salt and pepper to taste.

ps: She has a lovely post about farmers' markets up right now that does them much more justice than I.