Gearing Up for Market Season

1. The hard core market season will be starting next week, although I'll be phasing in different events over the next month and a half. Columbia City starts this coming Wednesday, Wallingford and Mad-Cap start in the middle of May, and Magnolia, Lake City and Queen Anne will be starting in June. Ballard and the University District have been running all winter, of course.

It's a time for buying equipment, paying lots of money for health permits, and finishing up those winter projects that certainly aren't going to get done this summer.

Each market has a different rhythm. For me Columbia City, Mad-Cap and Magnolia peak early, while Lake City stays pretty steady throughout the season and Ballard is craziest in the fall. I'm grateful that they don't all peak at once, and I'm glad I've been doing this long enough to have some idea of what to expect.

I'm looking forward to trading with the farmers and catching glimpses of each new fruit and vegetable as it comes into season. By the time October comes around I'll be good and ready to slow down, but right now I can't wait to start.

Carrot Hiatus

There haven't been many local carrots around the past few weeks. That's disconcerting, because all through the bleak winter they've been such a consistent staple. Still, their absence lately is a sign that many good things are on the way, like strawberries, and asparagus, and snap peas.

Kale Buds

Two years ago nobody was selling kale buds at farmers' markets, but last year, all of a sudden, they were everywhere. They're the tasty, colorful, early yellow flowers of the kale plant. The upper parts of the stems are nice and tender, but the lower parts can be tough and chewy.

Kale buds are a perfect example of an edible part of a plant that folks got in the habit of throwing away, or composting. Then some farmer got the idea to bring them to a market and see if anyone would buy them.They were successful enough that, before long, everyone was selling them.

A Glimmer of Spring

Locally grown flowers are not something you often see this time of year, at least not in the Pacific Northwest. These tulips were grown up near the Canadian border by Alm Hill Gardens, in the greenhouses where they grow their berries and tomatoes over the summer. They've actually got some growing out in the fields now as well, but they're not quite ready yet. This is the first year they've grown winter flowers. They certainly fill me with anticipation and hope.

The Bleakest Time of Year

This is the bleakest time of year for us aspiring locavores. Even the winter squash has mostly come and gone, and we haven't really seen anything new popping its head out of the ground in months. Spring is still a month out.

Some encouraging thoughts:

Brussels sprouts are wonderful if you quarter them, toss them with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and then roast them. I usually roast some garlic at the same time, then I smash it up and mix it with oil and vinegar, and toss it with the Brussels sprouts once they're ready.

Savoy cabbage is consistently good this time of year.

There are many varieties of beets.

There are many varieties of kale.

Carrots are sweetest this time of year.

Our ancestors ate root vegetables out of necessity. We eat them by choice.

And yet, for all that, I can't wait to see the first spring asparagus, or the first summer tomato.