zucchini

24 CARROT BOLD

Crunchy carrots from Kawano, Suzie’s Farm and JR Organics at the North Park Farmers’ Market make the perfect snack anytime, whether you dunk them in raw garlic spread from Majestic Garlic, hummus from Lisko or Baba Foods, or any of the delicious Bitchin’ Sauce flavors.

Toss shredded carrots with  olive oil from the California OIive,  a squeeze of fresh lemon from Gilbert Quintos or Paradise Valley and a little mustard for a classic French carrot salad; add apples, almonds and raisins from Smit Orchards to give it an American twist (but skip drowning them in mayo ala the old school cafeteria version).  

If you’d rather cook  your carrots, try this gorgeous vegetable ribbon pasta recipe; you’ll want to add zucchini from Valdivia Farms, mushrooms from Kawano and butter from Springhill Cheese Company to your shopping list.  Don’t overlook the carrots’ edible green tops; grab some green garlic from Suzie’s and almonds from Hopins AG and whip up this carrot top pesto to spread on ciabatta from Belen Bakery or, better yet, drizzle it over homemade carrot soup.  That’s a bowl of 24 carrot gold!

Tomatoes, corn,  green beans, okra, oh my!   So many choices for delicious produce at the North Park Farmer's market, how can one decide what to buy?   Not to worry-succotash to the rescue! 
At the heart of succotash is corn and beans and the dish resembles a stew in texture.   However, there are as many recipes for succotash as there are imitations of Sylvester the Cat  lisping over the syllables..  Our version of succotash  starts by  sauteing Da-Le Ranch bacon and removing it from the pan.  In that same pan, saute Valdivia farms zucchini, Suzie's purple okra, onions from the Produce Stand,  Kawano farms corn,  green beans and cherry tomatoes from JR Organics.  Finish by adding back the bacon and season with Salt Farm's roasted garlic infused salt.  The result is no more sufferin' succotash!

SHOP, DINE, DANCE

On the evening of Saturday, August 13th Amici Park will be transformed for the Italian celebration called Ferragosto. It's the time of year that the Italians take a break from the busy summer harvest to sit back and appreciate the bounty of the land, take a vacation and maybe even throw a festival or two. Visit the Little Italy Mercato in the morning to shop from the bounty that San Diego's summer weather brings to the market, and visit vendors like Italianissimo with their weekly offerings of Italian specialties. Then stay around for Ferragosto (buy your tickets online here) and dance the night away.

In honor of Ferragosto, all things summer-y and Italian oriented, here's a recipe for simple fresh pasta to be eaten and enjoyed al fresco. Start with  3/4 pound of fresh linguini from Lisko Imports and cook just until al dente. In a bowl chop up a pound or so of tomatoes (cherry, grape, heirloom, whatever your heart desires) from Schaner Farms, mix that with a handful each of chopped basil and parsley from JR Organics, a minced red hot chile from Suzie's Farm, a few cloves of Sage Mountain's super fresh garlic, a healthy glug of Marion's olive oil and a big pinch of sea salt from Salt Farm. Thinly slice a few baby zucchini from Tom King Farm and toss with the freshly cooked and drained pasta. Now toss the tomato mixture in and top it all with a generous dusting of Pecorino Toscano from Taste Cheese. Mangia bene!

LET'S PLAY SQUASH

Zucchini, yellow crookneck, pattypan and 8-ball, oh my! The summer squashes are making their appearance on the scene and at the North Park Farmers' Market. Tender and small, these guys are ripe for the picking, and eating too!

The pattypan and yellow crookneck squash from Kawano Farms are as sweet as can be. Steam them, sautee them or throw them on the grill. Any way you eat it is sure to be delicious. The 8-ball squash from JR Organics is perfect for stuffing with a little pork sausage from Da La Ranch and some wild rice. Or go raw and dip slices of Valdivia Farms' tiny squashes in Lisko Imports' spicy Cascabel Pepper hummus for an afternoon snack.

Farmer's like Valdivia and Suzie's Farm are putting to good use more than just the fruit of the plant, they sell the squash blossom as well. Try them in a quesadilla or omelette, or use this method and impress your family or guests:

Saute a few shrimp from Poppa's Fresh Fish with garlic, then blend with some ricotta or quark from Taste Cheese or Springhill Farm, adding fresh herbs to taste. Stuff 3 or 4 squash blossoms per person with the shrimp mixture. Most recipes call for battering the blossoms and deep frying, but we go a little healthier and easier by dipping them in a little beaten egg and then cornmeal and sauteeing quickly in some good olive oil from Thyme of Essence. Serve on a bed of pea shoots from Suzie's Farm, with a little drizzle of pesto from Lisko Artisan Deli.

Get your squash on!