Introducing the Kobe Beef of Strawberries
We get a dizzying amount of pitches for Valentine’s cocktails and aphrodisiac menus (money back if you don’t end up doing it on the table!), but a call from Evan Obsatz at Butterfield Market actually piqued our interest in things one-of-a-kind. He says that on February 12, pending Customs approval, he’ll be the only local supplier to receive 40 boxes of Amou berries — large, sweet, and juicy strawberries that are carefully cultivated on Japan’s Kyushu Island. It’s Japan’s most expensive strawberry, and it’s currently in short supply, hence a $45 price tag for a box of seven to twelve. But wait — the berries are wrapped in red tissue paper and come with a certificate of origin! That should take the edge off the fact that you’re not giving her a ring.
At the Greenmarket
Primetime for Beans But Also Tomato Fights
Almost as good as Greenmarket food is the packaging. The environmentalist brings muslin for cheese-wrapping, the fashionista has a repurposed gift basket on her arm, and there’s a chef with a wheelbarrow-bike. We just met the most produce-specific shopper yet: She has a thermal bag for dairy, plastic containers for tomatoes and berries, ziplocks for baby salads, and regular bags for everything else. We stopped smushing peaches into our purse to watch her shop.
At the Greenmarket
A Particularly Peachy Tomato Season Reaches Its Peak
Thanks to the past few months of alternating deluges and warm, sunny days, this summer’s tomato selection is particularly ample and exceedingly acceptable. For the next six weeks or so, you’ll have your pick, whether you’re after ruddy beefsteaks to adorn burgers, many-colored teardrops sized for snacking, or bulging, odd-hued, Dr. Seussian heirlooms worth sketching before you slice into them. After the jump, a sampling of the most fetching love apples available right now.
At the Greenmarket
Watermelon Radishes Meet Their Namesake; Lima Beans Exceed ExpectationsA profusion of weighty, thick-skinned melons has rolled into town, coinciding with the sweetening of delicate heirloom tomatoes. To carry home the spoils unspoiled, we recommend heavy-duty totes for the former and a small bag or basket for the latter. Once home, make room in the fridge, since nothing beats the heat like a cool melon. But leave those heirlooms on the counter — a refrigerated tomato is never the same again.
At the Greenmarket
Market Salutes Homer With Simpson Lettuce and Doughnut PeachesFrom the overpoweringly fragrant cantaloupes to the increasingly colorful tomatoes and peppers, everything at the market sells itself these days — the vendors just try to keep up. But on the northwest corner of Union Square, you can enjoy some old-fashioned salesmanship: With his dapper suits and British-Australian accent, Joe Ades has been perfecting his patter for fifteen years, slicing carrots into strips with the imported Star peeler and offering to sell the very one he’s using to guarantee there’s no scam.
At the Greenmarket
Peaches Should Be Squeezed, But Pea Shoots Are Good to GoPrice is far from the only variable at the Greenmarket: You have to factor in crop variety, farming practices, and location. Peaches at some stands taste young right now, while others are fully peachalicious. You’ll find firm, photogenic specimens suitable for a few days of ripening, and smushy, fragrant piles of fruit begging to be sliced right into a pie crust. Shop around, and disregard those signs prohibiting squeezing.
Huge Gooseberries Are Here; Callaloo Promises ImmortalityAfter sighting the season’s first apricots at the Greenmarket last Saturday, we figure the dog days can’t be far behind. Gather your dinner-party guests while the weather is still cool enough for cooking, and be prepared to switch to a raw-food (or ice-cream) diet any day now.
At the Greenmarket
Sour Cherries and Mountain Spinach Enter the Greenmarket’s Great StageIf, like our frugal foremothers, you’re into preserving, now’s the time to mobilize. You can buy up berries for jam, freeze pitted cherries for future pies, pickle zucchini, turnips, garlic and beets, and put up enough pesto to see you well beyond tomato season. Or take the modern approach to seasonality, and eat up while the getting is good.
At the Greenmarket
Cherries and Raspberries Are Coming, But Strawberries Are Going, and Fast
Most farms will bring in the last of their strawberries in the next week or two, and prices are at their lowest now, so this is a great time to gorge on the tiny red gems. Lucky for us, a parade of other fruit awaits, from the already-appearing cherries to high-summer glories like apricots. And tri-star strawberries, a unique variety that lasts all summer, have only just begun.
At the Greenmarket
Medieval Zucchini and Bloomsday Cheese Compete for Your Greenmarket Attention
If you find yourself a little cowed by the impenetrable wall of leafy greens and swarms of rabid-looking guys in chef’s jackets in Union Square every Saturday, reach out to your local farmers. They’ll point you to what’s new, at peak, or just plain easy to cook, and they’re happy to brag about which restaurants are buying their stuff. This week that means zucchini, spinach, and carrots of a kind we haven’t seen yet this season.
At the Greenmarket
Peas Roll In, and Tomatoes Are Better Than They Have a Right to Be
It feels like the first week of camp at the market, as we check out which of our friends from last summer are back and how they look this year. A few weeks later than usual, some of the most popular warm-weather farmers, like Keith’s Organics and Eckerton Hill, have returned, with tables already full and lots more to come. It’s going to be a good summer, we can just feel it.
At the Greenmarket
Bouquets of Chive Flowers Bloom; Radishes and Raspberries Aplenty
The market has reached a critical mass: It’s no longer possible to snap up every piece of good-looking produce and carry it all home. Our plan of attack is to go early, do a walk-through before the buying frenzy, and bring big bags — oh, and hit the ATM first.
At the Greenmarket
First Strawberries Arrive to Find the Market a Regular SausagefestPeonies stole the show last Saturday, while strawberries have sidled in at Yuno’s stand on Mondays and Fridays. There should be berries in quantity by next weekend, but for now we’re focusing on meatier matters, like what to grill as we kick off the outdoor-cooking season.
At the Greenmarket
Lobsters Roll In, Fiddleheads Advance, and Ramps RetreatCool weather and rain have made for a slow growing season thus far, while also creating the ideal conditions for fiddlehead ferns, which sprout in damp, wooded areas and more than compensate for sun-bathing weather in our book.
At the Greenmarket
Local Asparagus Finally Shows Up, With Sorrel in Tow
Fiddleheads, peas, and strawberries shimmer, miragelike, in our near future — but don’t let them distract you from the bounty available right now. The market has never been greener.
At the Greenmarket
Wild Dandelion Greens and Field-Grown Rhubarb Kick Off the Growing Season
The Greenmarket is looking more like dinner as all those inedible flowers make way for an increasing variety of produce. We’re not going totally locavore just yet, especially since the picking at gourmet markets is getting better by the day. But if need be, it could be done.
At the Greenmarket
Ramps Signal Spring; Ripe and Runny Cheese Comes Early
The pink, white, and green flag of spring has been raised: Little ramplets reared their heads a few inches from the damp earth last weekend, and Greenmarketers are already engulfed in the savory fumes of their oniony funk.
Getting Fresh With Extra-Local Lettuce and Immature EggsThere’s already lovely salad to be had, and farms south of the city are beginning to pull up the first shoots of green garlic and chives; farmers upstate report that early crops will be harvested the moment the ground warms up enough.
At the Greenmarket
Union Square Bursts Into BloomFarmers are just now planting seed; if storage potatoes and onions don’t scratch your spring foraging itch, greenhouse greens and a profusion of flowering plants, budding fruit-tree branches, cut flowers, and potted herbs should do it. We’ll be keeping tabs on seasonal foods at the gourmet markets until local produce is going strong.
At the Greenmarket
Foul-Weather Friends: What to Get at the Greenmarket This WinterHoliday tents full of “unique gifts” have sprouted once more in Union Square, crowding the produce, and beginning later today, we’ll be updating you on what’s new at the gourmet shops, not the Greenmarket. But although some farmers take off for the season after Thanksgiving and others come only through Christmas, there’s still plenty to shop for at the market this winter. Look for the following hardy offerings when the weather is above freezing.
At the Greenmarket
A Farewell to Farms: Whey-Fed Pork and Mâche Crown the Season
Next week we turn to specialty and gourmet markets in search of seasonal produce and other ingredients. We’ll return to Union Square with springtime’s ramps and fiddleheads; in the interim, stalwart Greenmarketers can look forward to a winter’s worth of greens, onions, garlic, potatoes, and apples — not to mention fragrant rosemary garlands, cranberry-pecan sourdough, guinea hens, Christmas trees, and jars of golden pear chutney.
At the Greenmarket
The Freshest Thanksgiving Fixings
From pumpkin bisque to pecan pie, you can stock up on provisions for Thursday’s feast at the Greenmarket. The farmers take Friday off, but more than usual will show up for the Thanksgiving Eve rush.
Beets Get Deep; Catch Leeks and Radicchio at Their Peak
Fashion writers may be buzzing about the spacebots and froth of spring, as this trend feature attests, but the look at the Greenmarket is all earmuffs and fingerless gloves. This season’s curvaceous pears, potatoes, and cabbages continue to turn heads.
The Silkiest Pumpkin, P.C. Pâté, and Summer in Jars
Take a hint from the squirrels gathering acorns in Union Square and drag home bags of heavy storage foods like apples, onions, and potatoes. That way you’ll be stocked for hearty cold-weather meals.
Calmer Cows Giving Better Milk; Reserve Thanksgiving Turkeys Now
When the ground grows cold, root vegetables, winter squash and hardy greens start storing sugar to help keep from freezing. Why not stock up on some sugar of your own, in the form of cider doughnuts or molasses cookies?
At the Greenmarket
Estella Squash Arrive, and Gorgeous Frost Berries Make Brief Appearance
Watermelon and winter squash face off at the market this week: Summer melons will soon be a memory, but the earthy-sweet flavors of fall foods like squash and apples are coming into their own. And don’t forget the pumpkins.
At the Greenmarket
Concord Grapes Ripen, Summer Corn Lingers On
Thanks to the cool weather, the produce at Union Square looks perky this morning, as hardier lettuces and winter squash replace their delicate summer counterparts. Even late-afternoon visitors will find the stands looking fresh.
What to Look For
Purple-black Concord grapes are a flavor-packed fall phenomenon. Their sweet-tart intensity is easiest to appreciate once the seeds have been separated from the aromatic flesh. Try them in sorbets and gelées, or make them into Concord-grape ketchup (recipe) ($5 per quart at Cheerful Cherry Farm, available Friday and Saturday).
At the Greenmarket
Fragrant Eggplants and Chiles That Don’t Sting
The Union Square Greenmarket celebrated its 30th birthday this past Saturday, and fall officially begins at the end of the week. While the forward-thinking are canning tomatoes and hedonists are gorging on peaches and corn, farmers are talking about the Frost. Upstate farms could experience a nighttime freeze by October, but until then, the late-summer parade continues.
