August at your Farmers' Market

Like

Tweet

Share Share

Richmond Main St. Farmers' Market

In This Issue Mad for Melons Pick a Perfect Pepper Farmers' Market Week Food Festivities Market Highlights Market Events Cookin' the Market Locavore Fresh Approach What's in Season End of Summer Recipes Your Community

August 2013

National Farmers Market Week is August 4 to 10. Communities are converging to celebrate a simple miracle: farmers coming together to share a harvest thats feeding local families. The result? Farmers' markets are bolstering local economies, improving community health, and bringing diverse groups of people together through a shared social space. We're celebrating with contests, cooking demonstrations, photo exhibits, and other events. To learn more visit the Farmers Market Coalition and stop by your farmers market information booth.

Mad for Melons Cut a big slice of juicy watermelon and dig in! Summer is in full swing when melons appear at your farmers' market. Big watermelon, fragrant cantaloupe and honeydew, and a variety of specialty melons like Persian, casaba, canary, and Crenshaw, just to name a few, are available. Each has a distinctive sweet flavor and each is a must-try this season. Cube into fruit salads, blend into a smoothie, or eat out of hand. Enjoy! Read more here.

Food Festivities Gravenstein Apple Festival Saturday and Sunday, August 10 & 11, Ragle Ranch Park. Live music on two stages, delicious food, cooking demonstrations from local chefs, arts and crafts booths, a petting zoo, pony rides, apple pie contest, and so much more. Bodega Seafood, Art & Wine Festival Saturday & Sunday, August 24 & 25, at 16885 Bodega Hwy. Enjoy a juried fine art and craft marketplace, a variety of foods with an emphasis on seafood, three stages of entertainment and large dance floor, kids games, and wine and beer tastings.

Pick a Perfect Pepper From the sweet bell pepper to the hottest habanero, there are pepper varieties for every taste at your farmers market. Like peppers mild? Try bell peppers in red, green, orange, yellow, and yes, even purple! Sweet Italian peppers and banana peppers have a mild flavor as well. Like a little hotter pepper? Try pepperoncini or Anaheim pepper for a little zing in your recipes. Or move higher on the Scoville hotness scale to the jalapeo, poblano, or the yellow wax chili pepper. Want a five-alarm chile pepper thatll make your eyes water? Then brave the habanero, the Scotch Bonnet or the little Thai chili peppers. There's a pepper for every taste and every recipe at the market! More on peppers here.

Market Highlights

J&J Ramos Farms: Delicious gala apples have arrived! And dont forget their yummy stonefruit - peaches, nectarines, plums, and pluots. Try some peaches on the grill! Sweet! And pick up some of their awesome almonds, too. Nunez Farm: Fantastic organic veggies like dinosaur kale, red and green cabbage, rainbow chard, onions, summer squash, beans, and lots of red and white potatoes. MarElla Honey B's: Big jars of sweet local honey from bees buzzing around the Concord area. Enjoy in hot tea, mixed in homemade salad dressings and marinades, and on top of yogurt.
Julie's Roasted Corn & Potatoes: Grilled corn on the

The "Freshest Cargo" Mobile Farmers Market is here! This 22-foot truck equipped with on-board cold storage will take the cool factor of the food truck movement and apply it to fresh fruits and vegetables. The truck is designed to sell fresh produce procured from local farmers in food deserts in Contra Costa Countys Richmond, San Pablo, Pittsburg, Brentwood, and Concord areas.

cob with all kinds of toppings from butter, cheese, and bacon crumbles to mayo, lemon and chili flakes. Stuffed baked potatoes with all kinds of add-ons. Kernel Steve's Kettle Corn: A farmers' market staple, freshly popped sweet salty kettle corn. Watch as they pop it and enjoy a bag as you walk the market. Neve Roses: A wonderful array of roses and colorful summer flowers like roses, carnations, lilies, alstroemerias, freezias, eucalyptus branches, and so much more.

Market

August at your Farmers' Market

Events Keep up-to-date on the Freshest Cargo Facebook page, on Twitter and Instagram!

August 7: Enter to win an electric fan for these hot august nights. August 21: Enter to win $10 Carrot Cash and a bag of fresh produce. August 28: It's back-to-school time! Enter to win a backpack filled with school supplies!
Keep up-to-date! Check the farmers market Facebook page for event updates or changes.

Locavore Strong ties have always existed between small family farmers and their communities. There is an organization that strives to continue to keep farmers and consumers in close contact. The Community Alliance with Family Farmers (CAFF) is a non-profit organization that advocates for Californias family farmers and sustainable agriculture. One of their most popular programs, and one of the most recognizable, is the Buy Fresh, Buy Local campaign which connects producers and consumers by publishing regional editions of the Eaters Guide to Local Food, providing marketing assistance and materials to businesses and farmers, and running public education and awareness campaigns to promote local food. Please join with them in their efforts to keep the connection between farmers and consumers. See how you can help!

Cookin' the Market - Chef Anna Buss

Moringa/ Malunggay: The farmers market is not only a place where I can find the most delicious tasting produce around, it has also become a farmacy for me. The other day I was out at the farmers' market in search of produce for the next cooking demonstration. While I was strolling along I noticed that people were flocking to buy leaves and long thin green pods labeled Moringa (it can also be found labeled as Malunggay). It turns out Moringa, also known as the Miracle Tree, offers an abundance of medicinal properties. Every part of the plant is edible including the bark, leaves, flowers, fruits, seeds, and gum. The Moringa leaves are high in vitamin C, and vitamin A. They are also a good source of protein and are high in iron and calcium. Besides being called the Miracle Tree Moringa is also known as the Horseradish Tree because of its horseradish-like flavor. The leaves can be tossed in a salad, soups, or used as spice for a main dish. They can also be dried and saved for later use. Next time you are at the farmers market buy some Moringa!
Look for recipes, cooking tips, tricks, and more on the Cookin' the Market Facebook page!

What's in Season Fruit: Apriums, blackberries, figs, grapes, melons, nectarines, peaches, plums, pluots, raspberries, and strawberries. Vegetables: Artichokes, beets, bell peppers, bok choy, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, chard, corn, cucumber, daikon, eggplant, garlic, green beans, herbs, hot peppers, kale, leeks, lettuce, longbeans, mushrooms, onions, potatoes, spinach, summer squash, tomatoes. Coming Soon: (September) Apples, pears, winter squash.

Summer's End Recipes Melon Salad with Basil Vinaigrette A tangy sweet salad served chilled. Eggplant, Pepper & Feta Salad Great for picnics and barbecues. Peach Chutney A real sweet tangy taste of summer, great on toasted baguettes or as a topping for meats and chicken. Corn Stuffed Tomatoes A summer favorite, light and refreshing, great for a cool dinner. Find more great recipes on our website! And pick up the Summer Produce Guide at your market's info table for tips on how to purchase and store your fresh summer produce.

Your Community Family Free Movies Wednesday, August 9, 6pm, Richmond Memorial Auditorium. This month: "Journey 2: The Mysterious Island." Masquers Playhouse presents "The Lieutenant of Irishmore" August 23 to September 27, 8pm to 10pm.

Richmond Main St. Farmers' Market Wednesdays, 10am to 2pm, through October 30, 13th and Nevin Ave.

If you don't already receive this monthly email newsletter, sign up today! Subscribe

Forward this message to a friend 800.949.FARM, www.pcfma.com