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We danced all last night to popular ’80s music performed live by Tainted Love. The music brought back a lot of good memories and it was just plain fun. This morning, we woke up to the sound of rain drizzling outside and I was really excited. I am not normally a huge fan of cold, wet weather but I had been craving it. Fall represents luscious pumpkin desserts, savory butternut squash dishes, hot specialty drinks, and sexy boots. Okay, well in San Francisco, we always wear boots, but it just feels refreshing to wear boots in October. Today was the perfect day to make the pumpkin spice latte I have been craving since the begining of the month. I contemplated going to the Farmer’s Market, since I didn’t know how many vendors would still be there due to the rain and I still had a fridge full of vegetables from last week. (I really overbought at the market last Sunday.) Though, I really needed a butternut squash to make soup and was running low on fruits. We have been eating a lot more fruits for breakfast, since forgoeing processed cereals for the October: Unprocessed challenge. I really couldn’t fathom getting fruit from the supermarket- fruit from Safeway just evokes distasteful emotions, especially since I have been shopping at the FM for six months consecutively. It is just so hard to go back to conventional produce once experiencing the diversity and deliciousness of the FM. So I put on my rainboots, grabbed two reusuable shopping bags, my Canon S90 and headed to the Fort Mason Farmer’s Market. The Nike Women’s Marathon had just ended and the streets were open to cars again. There were a good amount of dedicated FM shoppers getting their weekly groceries. Oddly, I really enjoyed the space and quietness. Though, it was cold, really cold. Despite the quietness, cold and missing vendors, I still managed to fill up my bags with persimmons, Asian apples, carrots, unique lemons, pomegranates, squashes, and peppers.
- Is it childish to purposefully step in tiny puddles?
- I only really discovered Persimmons last year. Unknown in South India, my mother-in-law sneaked a few away with her to India. Persimmons are a mild weather fruit. – Ken’s Top Notch Farms
- I was starved and this beautiful raisin bread looked so good, devilishly tempting. I resisted, remembering the October: Unprocessed challege.Note: Do not go grocery shopping hungry.
- Impulsive buy: Fresh Sage. How do I use sage? I would love pointers. -Happy Boy Farms
- Walnuts are making an appearance at the Farmer’s Market starting now!
- The are not limes- they are lemons and are best eaten before they start turning yellow. They are called Sudachi Lemons. I have never used them, but can’t wait to use them.
- I don’t have a lot of experience eating Pomengranets, but Satish likes them. I am going to try them out in salads and with grains.
- I am going to use this 2 pound baby in a curried soup!- Swank Farms
- The prettiest onions I have ever seen. They are called Cipolline Onions and are an Italian heirloom varietal. They are sweet and great for carmalezing. I am going to roast them in the oven with the butternut squash and use them in the soup. -Happy Boy Farms
- I never liked apples and cringed everytime I thought of red apples. Then I went to a Kitchen Table Talks, where heirloom fruits and vegetables were highlighted. At this event, we had a chance to taste several varieties of heirloom apples. I was hesitant at first, but tried each one and went back for seconds. Refreshing, juicy, crisp, lightly sweet. Tasting these apples really changed my entire attitude towards the fruit. They were nothing like the waxy, imposter red Delicious apples sold at stores and given to school children. Pictured are the Gala variety from Billy Bob’s Organic.
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I LOVED the hot weather we were having so I was really sad to see a return of the chill. You’re right, safeway produce is bleh. I’ve often seen mold growing on them (EWWW). I try and get mine from the farmer’s market or, more often, Whole Foods (because I’m not a morning person to get to the FM in time). Cala’s is ok too, better than safeway at least.
I LOVED the hot weather too and would prefer it any day. The rain was just an excuse for me to make an Indian Pumpkin Spice Latte at home and decompress! Whole Foods is an exception… the Castro, Civic Center, and Haight have evening markets.
https://clubdinein.wordpress.com/2010/10/18/indian-spiced-pumpkin-latte/
Love all the fall tastes and colors. Just bought some pomegranate over the weekend too. It’s been seeded and sitting in the fridge ready to be eaten! 🙂
You can fry sage leaves in a little butter or ghee–quickly, & add as a delicious topping to pasta, bruschetta–I’m thinking with garlic, maybe goat cheese to accompany that squash soup, even sweet potatoes. The Greens cookbooks with show the way!
Lovely blog~
Thank you for the tips, I will try the sage with ghee. I am sure my family will really like the flavor of sage with sweet potatoes.
🙂