october at the market
Pumpkins everywhere, small and large, including the white ghost pumpkins that make me laugh. Piles of squash in a jumble of different colors and shapes. The nice young cop who works the market beat standing with his coffee in front of one of the pastry stands, trying to decide between an apple fritter and a bear claw (I think he's working his way around the market; I saw him at a different stand just up the block two weeks ago). Maple syrup, maple sugar, maple candy. Fresh cranberries. Hickory nuts. The younger son of my favorite potato farmer, minding the stand by himself for the first time and looking nervous; I didn't see his dad or older brother, but suspect they'd just gone to get doughnuts or some such. Brussels sprouts, turnips, beets, cabbage, cauliflower. Early leeks and late tomatoes. After last week's frost, I'm told, the spinach should be extra-sweet.
Another relatively modest week for me: onions (red and yellow), potatoes (just red norlands, nothing fancy), broccoli, poblano peppers, red peppers (since it looks like this really is the last week for them), and of course apples. In my defense, I still have all of last week's kale because the squash curry lasted longer than I anticipated and so I haven't made dal yet. Now that I've picked up potatoes I should make samosas to go with; I do have the dried pomegranate seeds and an unconscionably large bag of amchur that I should use.
The apple report: I got apples from a different orchard this week, so these aren't heirloom apples. Three of the varieties are completely new to me, so all I know is based on my own aesthetic observations and what I wrote down on the bag after I asked the vendor to explain things to me. He was very nice, although I think a little irritated that I didn't get any Empire apples even though he suggested them twice. (Empires are perfect for pie, but I don't make pie.)
Beni Shogun: Apparently a clone of the Fuji apple, of which I've heard but which I don't think I've actually eaten. Developed in Japan (probably this century, but I'm guessing, and it's not a particularly educated guess). Pinkish-red shading into yellow patches, very round and smooth; an exceptionally pretty apple. Having just eaten one, I can also report that the flavor is nice, if mild and rather conventional, and that they're nicely crisp without being hard. Not likely to become a favorite (my favorites almost always have a strong or unusual flavor), but it'd be a nice apple for a fruit basket, or for someone whose taste in apples does not run to the extravagant.
Tsugaru: Another Japanese apple; a cross between Golden Delicious and "something else"; a quick google suggests that the "something" is Jonathan. Red and round and just very apple-looking.
Kogetsu: Japanese; Golden Delicious x Jonathan, but looks quite different from the Tsugaru: bright yellow with a red cheek.
Honeycrisp: Macoun x Honeygold, developed at the University of Minnesota (rather recently, I think, but I'm guessing again). Googling reveals that it's actually patented by the University of Minnesota, and that it has its own web page and tagline: "explosively crisp." Which, in fairness, is not a bad description. Honeycrisps are in fact not my favorite style of eating apple - they're extremely sweet, and I prefer even my sweet apples to have a tart edge. But they're very juicy, and they do have a satisfying crunch.
I am tempted to continue yammering on about the really good red pepper soup I made for dinner last night (with polenta croutons!), but upon sober consideration I think I've done enough obsesso-food-geek blithering for one day.
Another relatively modest week for me: onions (red and yellow), potatoes (just red norlands, nothing fancy), broccoli, poblano peppers, red peppers (since it looks like this really is the last week for them), and of course apples. In my defense, I still have all of last week's kale because the squash curry lasted longer than I anticipated and so I haven't made dal yet. Now that I've picked up potatoes I should make samosas to go with; I do have the dried pomegranate seeds and an unconscionably large bag of amchur that I should use.
The apple report: I got apples from a different orchard this week, so these aren't heirloom apples. Three of the varieties are completely new to me, so all I know is based on my own aesthetic observations and what I wrote down on the bag after I asked the vendor to explain things to me. He was very nice, although I think a little irritated that I didn't get any Empire apples even though he suggested them twice. (Empires are perfect for pie, but I don't make pie.)
Beni Shogun: Apparently a clone of the Fuji apple, of which I've heard but which I don't think I've actually eaten. Developed in Japan (probably this century, but I'm guessing, and it's not a particularly educated guess). Pinkish-red shading into yellow patches, very round and smooth; an exceptionally pretty apple. Having just eaten one, I can also report that the flavor is nice, if mild and rather conventional, and that they're nicely crisp without being hard. Not likely to become a favorite (my favorites almost always have a strong or unusual flavor), but it'd be a nice apple for a fruit basket, or for someone whose taste in apples does not run to the extravagant.
Tsugaru: Another Japanese apple; a cross between Golden Delicious and "something else"; a quick google suggests that the "something" is Jonathan. Red and round and just very apple-looking.
Kogetsu: Japanese; Golden Delicious x Jonathan, but looks quite different from the Tsugaru: bright yellow with a red cheek.
Honeycrisp: Macoun x Honeygold, developed at the University of Minnesota (rather recently, I think, but I'm guessing again). Googling reveals that it's actually patented by the University of Minnesota, and that it has its own web page and tagline: "explosively crisp." Which, in fairness, is not a bad description. Honeycrisps are in fact not my favorite style of eating apple - they're extremely sweet, and I prefer even my sweet apples to have a tart edge. But they're very juicy, and they do have a satisfying crunch.
I am tempted to continue yammering on about the really good red pepper soup I made for dinner last night (with polenta croutons!), but upon sober consideration I think I've done enough obsesso-food-geek blithering for one day.