Category: Food: Local/Farmers’ Markets

At the Market: Flowers, Too!

You see many customers at area farmers' markets carrying bouquets of flowers in addition to their food purchases. This mixed bouquet above is from Atlas Farm at the Copley Square Farmers' Market.

My friend Liz raves about the lilies and other flowers she buys from Stow Greenhouses.

And, it's worth a trip to the Newton market for the wonderful arrangements from Old Friends Farm.

The Word from the Farms & Market Managers

Lily Carone from Atlas Farm says, "… we have River Valley Farm Blueberries – a rain loving crop which are so plump and sweet this summer, it almost makes us pause in cursing the weather…"

Louisa Denison, Manager of the Harvard University Farmers' Markets, sent out a recipe for Blueberry Lemonade.

From Jan at Warren Farm & Sugarhouse

Blueberry Lemonade
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (about 4 small lemons)
2 cups water
*2 cups fresh blueberries
*1/2 cup maple syrup
Garnish: lemon slices
Process first 4 ingredients in a blender until smooth, stopping to scrape down sides. Pour through a wire-mesh strainer into a pitcher, discarding solids. Serve over ice, and garnish, if desired. Yield: 5 cups

In Season, Right Now!

Blueberries, gooseberries, raspberries, cherries, new potatoes.

Lily from Atlas said, "This week, we added white sweet spanish onions and eggplant to our harvest list….and peppers are not far behind. Our own raspberry crop on our new land in South Deerfield is full of flavorful bright berries too…leaving little to be desired."

Looking Forward!

The crew from Old Friends Farm sent a message to their ginger fans. "Our ginger crop (bless it's little rhyzomial heart) is the weediest we have seen in years – it's actually quite embarrassing. You would think we would have it down by now… We just finished weeding it, and its already time to start at the beginning again." This ginger should show up in September.

Follow all our Local Food/Farmers' Markets and At The Market reports:

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Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

July 18, 2013
At the Market: Flowers, Too!

You see many customers at area farmers' markets carrying bouquets of flowers in addition to their food purchases. This mixed bouquet above is from Atlas Farm at the Copley Square Farmers' Market.

My friend Liz raves about the lilies and other flowers she buys from Stow Greenhouses.

And, it's worth a trip to the Newton market for the wonderful arrangements from Old Friends Farm.

The Word from the Farms & Market Managers

Lily Carone from Atlas Farm says, "… we have River Valley Farm Blueberries – a rain loving crop which are so plump and sweet this summer, it almost makes us pause in cursing the weather…"

Louisa Denison, Manager of the Harvard University Farmers' Markets, sent out a recipe for Blueberry Lemonade.

From Jan at Warren Farm & Sugarhouse

Blueberry Lemonade
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (about 4 small lemons)
2 cups water
*2 cups fresh blueberries
*1/2 cup maple syrup
Garnish: lemon slices
Process first 4 ingredients in a blender until smooth, stopping to scrape down sides. Pour through a wire-mesh strainer into a pitcher, discarding solids. Serve over ice, and garnish, if desired. Yield: 5 cups

In Season, Right Now!

Blueberries, gooseberries, raspberries, cherries, new potatoes.

Lily from Atlas said, "This week, we added white sweet spanish onions and eggplant to our harvest list….and peppers are not far behind. Our own raspberry crop on our new land in South Deerfield is full of flavorful bright berries too…leaving little to be desired."

Looking Forward!

The crew from Old Friends Farm sent a message to their ginger fans. "Our ginger crop (bless it's little rhyzomial heart) is the weediest we have seen in years – it's actually quite embarrassing. You would think we would have it down by now… We just finished weeding it, and its already time to start at the beginning again." This ginger should show up in September.

Follow all our Local Food/Farmers' Markets and At The Market reports:

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List? Shop Amazon for all your Kitchen & Dining needs and support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

July 18, 2013
Enhancing an Italian Grinder with Summer Market Fare

Sandwiches make it onto our menu more often when I have wonderfully fresh ingredients from the farmers' markets to enhance them.

The Italian Grinder style sandwich above was the result of a quick stop at Trader Joe's to buy milk on the way home from the Copley Square Market. Ed and Poppy (our puppy) waited upstairs while I shopped for that and something for lunch.

In the deli case, I saw mixed packages of Italian and Spanish ham and salamis. I bought the Italian to make my farmers' market version of this Italian American classic.

At home, I made a mixed salad from some tomatoes, cucumbers, and scallions from the market, seasoning it with vinegar, olive oil, and ground pepper. (There is more than enough salt in the prepared ingredients for our taste.)

Ed sliced our loaf of Iggy's Francese and I layered on the prosciutto, capocollo, and salame from the TJ's package. Next, I spread a bit of TJ's tapenade and sliced artichoke hearts we had in the refrigerator, then piled on the tomato salad.

Even in a mixed presentation like this, the freshness of the heirloom tomatoes and snappy, farm-fresh cucumbers shined through and turned a sandwich lunch into a memorable meal.

What do you know about Amazon Prime? We use it and love it. You pay once-a-year for free, 2-day shipping delivery charges. Amazon throws in access to instant streaming movies and tv shows, and they let you borrow a free ebook each month. They will even give you a one-month free trial. Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

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Details:

Words: Penny Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

July 16, 2013
Enhancing an Italian Grinder with Summer Market Fare

Sandwiches make it onto our menu more often when I have wonderfully fresh ingredients from the farmers' markets to enhance them.

The Italian Grinder style sandwich above was the result of a quick stop at Trader Joe's to buy milk on the way home from the Copley Square Market. Ed and Poppy (our puppy) waited upstairs while I shopped for that and something for lunch.

In the deli case, I saw mixed packages of Italian and Spanish ham and salamis. I bought the Italian to make my farmers' market version of this Italian American classic.

At home, I made a mixed salad from some tomatoes, cucumbers, and scallions from the market, seasoning it with vinegar, olive oil, and ground pepper. (There is more than enough salt in the prepared ingredients for our taste.)

Ed sliced our loaf of Iggy's Francese and I layered on the prosciutto, capocollo, and salame from the TJ's package. Next, I spread a bit of TJ's tapenade and sliced artichoke hearts we had in the refrigerator, then piled on the tomato salad.

Even in a mixed presentation like this, the freshness of the heirloom tomatoes and snappy, farm-fresh cucumbers shined through and turned a sandwich lunch into a memorable meal.

What do you know about Amazon Prime? We use it and love it. You pay once-a-year for free, 2-day shipping delivery charges. Amazon throws in access to instant streaming movies and tv shows, and they let you borrow a free ebook each month. They will even give you a one-month free trial. Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Join Amazon Prime – Watch Over 40,000 Movies

Details:

Words: Penny Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

July 16, 2013
Enhancing an Italian Grinder with Summer Market Fare

Sandwiches make it onto our menu more often when I have wonderfully fresh ingredients from the farmers' markets to enhance them.

The Italian Grinder style sandwich above was the result of a quick stop at Trader Joe's to buy milk on the way home from the Copley Square Market. Ed and Poppy (our puppy) waited upstairs while I shopped for that and something for lunch.

In the deli case, I saw mixed packages of Italian and Spanish ham and salamis. I bought the Italian to make my farmers' market version of this Italian American classic.

At home, I made a mixed salad from some tomatoes, cucumbers, and scallions from the market, seasoning it with vinegar, olive oil, and ground pepper. (There is more than enough salt in the prepared ingredients for our taste.)

Ed sliced our loaf of Iggy's Francese and I layered on the prosciutto, capocollo, and salame from the TJ's package. Next, I spread a bit of TJ's tapenade and sliced artichoke hearts we had in the refrigerator, then piled on the tomato salad.

Even in a mixed presentation like this, the freshness of the heirloom tomatoes and snappy, farm-fresh cucumbers shined through and turned a sandwich lunch into a memorable meal.

What do you know about Amazon Prime? We use it and love it. You pay once-a-year for free, 2-day shipping delivery charges. Amazon throws in access to instant streaming movies and tv shows, and they let you borrow a free ebook each month. They will even give you a one-month free trial. Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Join Amazon Prime – Watch Over 40,000 Movies

Details:

Words: Penny Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

July 16, 2013
At The Market: Berries & Corn!

It's starting to look a lot like summer around Boston's Farmers' Markets with some of our favorite summer crops coming into the city from the farms, orchards, pastures, and ocean. The heavy rain followed by heat has taken its toll on our farmers but they're doing their best to keep planting and harvesting.

This customer is checking out the cherries and raspberries at the Foppema's Farm stand at the Copley Square Farmers' Market.

Stillman's Farm has some of their early corn at their stands at markets throughout the area.

The Word from the Farms & the Commissioner

“The purchasing of locally-grown fruit like blueberries through a wide range of local food markets not only helps support our local growers, but also contributes to the rich agricultural heritage of the Commonwealth,” said DAR Commissioner Greg Watson. “And blueberry season marks the arrival of summer in Massachusetts.”

Lily Carone from Atlas Farm reports that the blueberries are in and, "There is a full array of color on the stand now – including rainbow carrots and chioggia beets!"

Peter Ward, Manager of the Central Square Farmers' Market, did some taste-testing for you. "The sugar snap pea is vastly overlooked. And its reputation isn't enhanced – on the contrary, it's damaged -by the over-chilled tasteless snap peas you might see at the supermarket. I tried sugar snap peas from every vendor at the Farmers Market …and their snap peas are crisp, crunchy and moist and sweet."

In Season, Right Now!

You can see in the photos some of the wonderful produce we've been enjoying.

Get Some Before It's Gone!

Garlic scrapes, radishes, and strawberries are all coming to the end of their spring crops.

Coming Soon!

Lisa from Atlas Farms says, "Peppers, eggplant, heirloom tomatoes…it's all just around the corner."

Plus, more varieties of corn, peppers, and the early stone fruit

Follow all our Local Food/Farmers' Markets and At The Market reports.

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List? Shop Amazon for all your Kitchen & Dining needs and support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

July 10, 2013
At The Market: Berries & Corn!

It's starting to look a lot like summer around Boston's Farmers' Markets with some of our favorite summer crops coming into the city from the farms, orchards, pastures, and ocean. The heavy rain followed by heat has taken its toll on our farmers but they're doing their best to keep planting and harvesting.

This customer is checking out the cherries and raspberries at the Foppema's Farm stand at the Copley Square Farmers' Market.

Stillman's Farm has some of their early corn at their stands at markets throughout the area.

The Word from the Farms & the Commissioner

“The purchasing of locally-grown fruit like blueberries through a wide range of local food markets not only helps support our local growers, but also contributes to the rich agricultural heritage of the Commonwealth,” said DAR Commissioner Greg Watson. “And blueberry season marks the arrival of summer in Massachusetts.”

Lily Carone from Atlas Farm reports that the blueberries are in and, "There is a full array of color on the stand now – including rainbow carrots and chioggia beets!"

Peter Ward, Manager of the Central Square Farmers' Market, did some taste-testing for you. "The sugar snap pea is vastly overlooked. And its reputation isn't enhanced – on the contrary, it's damaged -by the over-chilled tasteless snap peas you might see at the supermarket. I tried sugar snap peas from every vendor at the Farmers Market …and their snap peas are crisp, crunchy and moist and sweet."

In Season, Right Now!

You can see in the photos some of the wonderful produce we've been enjoying.

Get Some Before It's Gone!

Garlic scrapes, radishes, and strawberries are all coming to the end of their spring crops.

Coming Soon!

Lisa from Atlas Farms says, "Peppers, eggplant, heirloom tomatoes…it's all just around the corner."

Plus, more varieties of corn, peppers, and the early stone fruit

Follow all our Local Food/Farmers' Markets and At The Market reports.

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List? Shop Amazon for all your Kitchen & Dining needs and support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

July 10, 2013
At The Market: Berries & Corn!

It's starting to look a lot like summer around Boston's Farmers' Markets with some of our favorite summer crops coming into the city from the farms, orchards, pastures, and ocean. The heavy rain followed by heat has taken its toll on our farmers but they're doing their best to keep planting and harvesting.

This customer is checking out the cherries and raspberries at the Foppema's Farm stand at the Copley Square Farmers' Market.

Stillman's Farm has some of their early corn at their stands at markets throughout the area.

The Word from the Farms & the Commissioner

“The purchasing of locally-grown fruit like blueberries through a wide range of local food markets not only helps support our local growers, but also contributes to the rich agricultural heritage of the Commonwealth,” said DAR Commissioner Greg Watson. “And blueberry season marks the arrival of summer in Massachusetts.”

Lily Carone from Atlas Farm reports that the blueberries are in and, "There is a full array of color on the stand now – including rainbow carrots and chioggia beets!"

Peter Ward, Manager of the Central Square Farmers' Market, did some taste-testing for you. "The sugar snap pea is vastly overlooked. And its reputation isn't enhanced – on the contrary, it's damaged -by the over-chilled tasteless snap peas you might see at the supermarket. I tried sugar snap peas from every vendor at the Farmers Market …and their snap peas are crisp, crunchy and moist and sweet."

In Season, Right Now!

You can see in the photos some of the wonderful produce we've been enjoying.

Get Some Before It's Gone!

Garlic scrapes, radishes, and strawberries are all coming to the end of their spring crops.

Coming Soon!

Lisa from Atlas Farms says, "Peppers, eggplant, heirloom tomatoes…it's all just around the corner."

Plus, more varieties of corn, peppers, and the early stone fruit

Follow all our Local Food/Farmers' Markets and At The Market reports.

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List? Shop Amazon for all your Kitchen & Dining needs and support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2013 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

July 10, 2013
Shopping at the Copley Farmers’ Market: Photo of the Week

Penny spotted our neighbor Bob Oppenheim shopping at the Copley Square Farmers' Market and started taking photos before he noticed her.

We introduced readers to Bob last year when he had a one man show of his artwork at the Trustman Art Gallery.

We submitted this photo to the editors and it was selected for the covershot in this week's Back Bay Sun.

You can read some of the stories at the newspaper's website www.backbaysun.com and download a copy of the paper by clicking on the "Full Print Edition" icon in the left hand column. The new issue is usually on the website by Wednesday of each week.

Disclosure:The Independent Newspaper Group, owner of 12 local papers: Back Bay Sun, Beacon Hill Times, Charlestown Patriot-Bridge, Chelsea Record, East Boston Times Free Press, Everett Independent, Jamaica Plain Gazette, Lynn Journal, Mission Hill Gazette, North End Regional Review, Revere Journal, The Logan Times, and Winthrop Sun Transcript. This company is one of our freelance clients and you'll see our photographs, columns, and articles in their publications.

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a Birthday or Wedding gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

July 6, 2013
Shopping at the Copley Farmers’ Market: Photo of the Week

Penny spotted our neighbor Bob Oppenheim shopping at the Copley Square Farmers' Market and started taking photos before he noticed her.

We introduced readers to Bob last year when he had a one man show of his artwork at the Trustman Art Gallery.

We submitted this photo to the editors and it was selected for the covershot in this week's Back Bay Sun.

You can read some of the stories at the newspaper's website www.backbaysun.com and download a copy of the paper by clicking on the "Full Print Edition" icon in the left hand column. The new issue is usually on the website by Wednesday of each week.

Disclosure:The Independent Newspaper Group, owner of 12 local papers: Back Bay Sun, Beacon Hill Times, Charlestown Patriot-Bridge, Chelsea Record, East Boston Times Free Press, Everett Independent, Jamaica Plain Gazette, Lynn Journal, Mission Hill Gazette, North End Regional Review, Revere Journal, The Logan Times, and Winthrop Sun Transcript. This company is one of our freelance clients and you'll see our photographs, columns, and articles in their publications.

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a Birthday or Wedding gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

July 6, 2013