Rain, rain, you won't keep us away!

Despite the rain and wind, tomorrow's market will be OPEN. However, the layout will be a little different due to several cancellations (see the market update for ins and outs). Please visit our information booth, which will be tucked under the arches south of the clock tower, for the most up-to-date list of who will be in and who will be out and a map with location changes. Don't be a fair weather friend!

Panel discussion: Is it Safe to Eat? ~ January 7

Join CUESA on Monday, January 7, from 6:30 to 8:30 pm in the Port Commission Hearing Room of the Ferry Building for a panel discussion about food safety solutions. E. coli, GMOs, pesticides…every week, it seems, news arrives of another potential danger in our food supply. When the very thing that is meant to nourish us may also do us harm, how can consumers be conscious without becoming paranoid? A panel of food safety experts will describe strategies for making our food safer and discuss the forces that are keeping the status quo in place. Learn about the latest advocacy efforts, proposed legislation, and legal actions these groups are taking to ensure that our basic human needs are met without compromising our health. Find out how your food choices can make a difference. Join us at 6:30 for a reception with light refreshments. Discussion begins at 7. This event is free and open to the public.

Panelists: C. Noelle Ferdon, Senior Organizer, Food and Water Watch
Kevin Zelig Golden, Staff Attorney, Center for Food Safety
Elisa Odabashian, Director of the West Coast Office, Consumers Union

Joel Salatin Talks about Clucks, Bucks, and Guts ~ January 25

On Friday, January 25, join Marin Sun Farms for what is sure to be a lively talk. Joel Salatin is a third generation full-time alternative farmer in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley. His speaking and writing reflect a dirt-under-the-fingernails experience punctuated with mischievous humor as he passionately defends small farms, local food systems, and the right to opt out of the conventional food paradigm. Joel will talk about good, profitable food production. His talk will be followed by a tasting of fresh mid-winter abundance, grown or gathered from within the boundaries of the Point Reyes National Seashore. The lecture will take place at The Dance Palace Community Center in Point Reyes Station. Admission is $50 per person and proceeds benefit the Point Reyes Seashore Ranchers Association. Reservations can be made by calling (415) 663-8997 x203.

A look down any aisle at the supermarket is evidence of humans’ desire for a polychromatic diet. Rows of sports drinks, breakfast cereals, ice cream and other products scream at us with oftentimes unnaturally bright colors. At the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market this winter, citrus, roots, and greens present a natural rainbow of food choices. Why are some fruits and vegetables green, some orange and others red? The answer is in the pigments.

Pigments are colorful compounds that absorb some wavelengths of visible light and reflect others. In addition to giving plant structures their color, they perform essential biological functions. By far the most well-known kinds of pigments are chlorophylls, which are responsible for what is arguably the most important biological occurrence on Earth: photosynthesis. In this miraculous process, chlorophyll (contained in cells called chloroplasts) absorbs energy from the sun and transforms it into usable chemical energy, the fodder upon which the entire animal kingdom ultimately depends. The presence of chlorophyll makes plant tissues appear green, since the pigment absorbs red and blue light waves and reflects green ones. It is why spinach, collards, cardoons, artichokes, leeks and broccoli are green.

Another well-known class of pigments is the carotenoids, first isolated in carrots, from which they got their name. They are considered accessory pigments because they absorb wavelengths of light that chlorophyll cannot, and they pass on the energy to the photosynthetic process. Carotene is one carotenoid especially important for human nutrition; once in our bodies, it can be stored in the liver and released as Vitamin A. Carotene is also an antioxidant and may help to decrease cancer risk. Foods rich in carotene include sweet potatoes, pumpkins, cantaloupe and oranges.

Some stems and leaves also contain considerable amounts of carotene, but its orange hue can’t be seen because of all the verdant reflectivity of the chlorophyll. Grass is one carotene-containing green, and though we don’t eat it directly, some of its carotene ends up in our bodies if we consume meat and dairy products from pastured animals. Carotene is the reason why butter from grass-fed animals is always especially yellow in the spring when fresh grass is abundant and carotene-rich. The creamy yellow color that originally characterized cheeses from the English village of Cheddar is also a result of carotene in the grass eaten by its cows. Today, many cheddar-type cheeses are dyed a bright orangey-yellow, probably an exaggerated attempt to imitate the color of original cheddars.

A carotenoid called lycopene is responsible for red color of watermelons, tomatoes and pink grapefruit. The egg industry often uses lycopene as a supplement in chicken feed to make yolks a brighter yellow. However, eggs from chickens that get to eat bugs and grass and pick through compost are naturally rich in color. If you’ve ever eaten Happy Quail Farms eggs in the summer, you've seen that their chickens are getting to eat plenty of the farm’s leftover red peppers—the yolks are almost red!

Another class of pigments, the flavonoids, includes anthocyanins, the pigments that give blueberries, grapes, blackberries and other fruits their dark purple, blue and red colors. Anthocyanins are also present in vegetables like red carrots and purple broccoli. Both carotenoids and flavonoids often become more concentrated in fruits as they ripen, signaling that they are ready to eat. In the fields, farmers rely on these color changes to know when fruits like tomatoes, citrus, peaches and figs are ready for market.

In the kitchen, it’s a joy to experiment with color, but some pigments are more easily preserved than others. Carotenoids and chlorophylls are oil-soluble, so while their color might be altered slightly by the level of acidity in a dish, it usually remains relatively intact when cooked. Flavonoids are water-soluble and can easily leach out of fruits and vegetables if they are boiled or braised.

This winter, paint your kitchen with nature’s diverse palette. Here are just a few of the vivid fruits and vegetables you’ll find at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market:

Red/pink: beets, potatoes, chard, carrots, blood oranges, cara cara oranges, watermelon radishes, pomegranate juice

Orange: sweet potatoes, winter squash, carrots, oranges, rutabagas, persimmons

Yellow: beets, carrots, chard, lemons, grapefruit

Green: greens, broccoli, cabbage, leeks, kiwi

Purple: broccoli, carrots, potatoes, cabbage, orach

See you at the market!

This is the most up-to-date information about which sellers will and won't be attending the market as of Friday, when we send this letter. If there are no changes to a seller's status, they will not be listed. To find out which farmers regularly attend each market, click here. Please understand that there are often last-minute changes--it's the nature of farming!

Saturday, January 5

Out: Achadinha Cheese Co., Allstar Organics, Andante Dairy, Bella Viva Orchards, Bernard Ranches, Chan's Nursery, Cowgirl Creamery, Devoto Gardens, Downtown Bakery, Ella Bella Farm, Far West Fungi, Frog Hollow Farms, G.L. Alfieri Farms, Happy Girl Kitchen Co., Hare Hollow, Hayes Street Grill/Viccolo Pizza, Hodo Soy Beanery, Hog Island Oyster Co., June Taylor Co., Juniper Ridge, Knoll Farms, Lagier Ranches, Marin Sun Farms, Noe Valley Bakery, Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Co., Primavera, RoliRoti, Rose Pistola, Short Night Farm, Tierra Vegetables

Tuesday, January 8

Market is back open after a two-week hiatus! Please visit the info booth for a list of who will be in and out for the day.

Seasonality synopsis for January

Debuting this month:
Flowers (look for narcissus, tulips, flowering quince and other branches, ranunculus, and anemones), plant starts, green garlic

Plentiful/at their peak right now:
Fruits: Citrus (many types and varieties including blood oranges, Oro Blancos, and kumquats), kiwis, guavas, cherimoyas
Vegetables: Root vegetables, cruciferous vegetables, Asian greens, chicories, lettuces, fennel, mushrooms

Winding down/limited supply:
Potatoes, pasture-raised eggs, Brussels sprouts, avocados, artichokes, apples and pears (now available from cold storage only)

Saying goodbye this month:
Pomegranates, Dungeness crab

Recipes for January

Champagne Citrus Compote from Becky Courchesne of Frog Hollow Farms

Collard Greens with a Parsley Caper Sauce from Charles Vollmar, Chef and Owner of Epicurean Exchange

Frisée Salad with Lardons and Poached Egg from Rick Hackett of Market Bar Restaurant

Milk Braised Marin Sun Pork Shoulder with Cabbage and Polenta from Steffan Terje of Perbacco Restaurant

See you at the market!