You may notice we’re doing things a little differently this week: we’re turning to our core e-letter readers, many of whom have supported us in the past in myriad ways, to ask for help.

Since its earliest days, CUESA has been a small nonprofit with the potential to have an enormous impact. As the organization that operates the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, we work every day to be much more than your typical farmers’ market. Not only do provide our shoppers with a place to find outstanding, sustainably produced food, we also work to educate a growing number of curious, passionate eaters about the importance of their choices. We work to connect you to the people who produce that food, as well as the precious, fertile land on which it’s produced.

If you’ve attended our free culinary programs, produce tastings, and producer interviews, gone on one of our farm tours, used our information booth or veggie valet, or helped us divert 35 tons of waste from the landfill via our new Waste Wise program, you probably have some idea of what we mean by that. And if you stay abreast of sustainable food news via our e-letter, you should know that it takes more than good intentions to be an innovative model for markets around the nation.

We do all this on a modest budget, and a full 9% of our operating revenue comes from our Sunday Supper sales. Unfortunately, in these tough economic times, we’re still far from meeting our ticket sales goal and the supper is only 9 days away. Here’s what you can do:

• If you’ve considered attending the supper this year and haven’t gotten around to buying a ticket, please step up today. Your stomach and our farmers will thank you for it.
• If you can forward this appeal to others who may want to attend, please take a moment to do so using this link >
• If you’re looking for a more modest way to be involved, consider a ticket to our reception, which, at $60, is a wonderful way to sample local libations (see a list below) and hors d’ouevres from some amazing local chefs.
• A $10 raffle ticket gives you a chance to win one of five Year of Dining Out packages. The drawing will occur at the Supper, but you need not be present to win. Just stop by the information booth or our table in the market’s back plaza on Saturday to pick up one or more of those.
• And it’s always easy to support CUESA online. No donation is too small and they all go to make CUESA, and the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, a success!
  

Thanks so much for your dedication to a sustainable food system and your ongoing support of CUESA and the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market.

Sunday Supper reception libations menu ~ Sunday, October 5

We look forward to serving the following farmers' market cocktails at our Sunday Supper reception along with a delightful selection of local wines.

Celery Cup No.1
Square One Cucumber organic vodka, Pimm’s,
muddled celery, cilantro, and English cucumber with fresh lemon juice
and agave nectar, served with a celery stalk garnish
Created by H. Joseph Ehrmann of Square One Organic Vodka

Farewell Summer
Hangar One Mandarin Blossom vodka,
Ella Bella raspberries, fresh lemon juice and June Taylor
Summer Sweet Peach and Rose Geranium syrup
Created by Lou Bustamante of St. George Spirits

Hello Fall
Hangar One Spiced Pear vodka, Devoto Farms Jonathan apple juice,
fresh lemon juice, Bates and Schmitt Apple Cider syrup, Punt é Mes
sweet vermouth, and a dash of St. George Absinthe Verte.
Created by Lou Bustamante of St. George Spirits

Sponsor a table at CUESA’s Sunday Supper

Dine in style and support sustainable food systems with nine of your favorite people. Table sponsors at CUESA’s annual fundraising event receive ten tickets, recognition in the program and on our website, premium wines on their table, and they get to choose one of nine different menus available that evening.
View all sponsorship options here >

Meet Carl, Raquel and Greg on a farm tour ~ Sunday, September 28

Carl is a peach farmer who, when a late freeze ruined this year’s harvest, decided to grow tomatoes, beans and other veggies to keep his business going. He’s also an expert on soil health, a teacher to farmers new to organics and a man who really understands sustainability. Greg and Raquel are organic rice growers who, as former biologists, keep the health of the whole ecosystem in mind and vocally oppose genetically modified rice in California. This year the couple also grew wheat for the first time. They live with their five children in a straw bale home made from their own rice straw! Come meet these extraordinary people on CUESA’s Three Wise Farmers tour >

October is for locavores

Eat Local Month starts October 1st. Whether you're planning to take the Eat Local Challenge or just want to try sourcing more of your food from the Bay Area foodshed, you have five more days to start stocking up! Take a look at these links to learn more:

• Eat Local SF will tell you where to get meals made with local ingredients when you're eating out.
• Community Alliance for Family Farmers (CAFF) will help you find local food all over California.
• The Commwealth Club is hosting four talks in honor of Eat Local Month: 1) Local Food, Local Pride: Policies for Sustainable Economies 2) The Water Connection: State Policies and the Impact on Local Food Systems 3) From Farm to Feast: How Chefs, Farmers, and Artisans Strengthen our Community and 4) Food as Medicine: Health and Food Safety
  

And don't forget to tell us about it! If you're planning to participate in the Eat Local Challenge, we'd love to hear from you. Let us know if you'd like to be interviewed or write about your experiences for an upcoming e-letter.

A food agenda for the next administration ~ Wednesday, October 1

Attend a panel discussion at UC Berkeley that will posit a policy framework for achieving healthy food and agriculture systems in the United States. Panelists will be Michael Dimock, President, Roots of Change; Michael Pollan, Journalism Professor and author; Judith Redmond, co-owner of Full Belly Farm and President of the Community Alliance with Family Farmers; and Mark Ritchie, Minnesota Secretary of State and co-founder of the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. Buy tickets >

Asian food beyond borders ~ October 10-12

Join the Asian Culinary Forum (ACF) for three days of unique taste workshops, cooking classes, panel discussions and a full-day symposium celebrating Asian food. Whether you are a chef, farmer, writer, artist, entrepreneur, researcher or avid cookbook reader -- the goal of the ACF is to bring together diverse passions in a creative and thought-provoking environment. Several of the events take place in the Ferry Building, including "The Politics and Practicalities of Rice" and "Meals, Meaning, and Memory in Asian Diasporas." Learn more or buy tickets >

Parking hours expanded on a trial basis

The Golden Gateway Garage will be opening at 7:00 AM (as opposed to the current time of 8:00 am) on Saturdays starting tomorrow for market workers and shoppers. The validation rate is $3 for the day, as long as you leave by 10 pm. Note: This is a test to determine whether or not there is sufficient demand to open at 7:00 am, so take advantage of this option if you can! See a map of the best parking options here >

Waste Wise volunteers are needed every Tuesday and Saturday at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market. E-mail ashleigh@cuesa.org for details.

Saturday, September 27 ~ Market to Table

10:30 am - Meet the wildcrafter
Hall Newbegin, Juniper Ridge, interviewed by Susie Wyshak

11:00 am - Seasonal cooking demonstration
Kathleen Stewart, Downtown Bakery

11:45 am - Seasonal cooking demonstration
Curtis Ross, Alchemy 7

Saturday, October 4 ~ Market to Table

10:30 am - Meet the roaster
James Freeman, Blue Bottle Coffee Company, interviewed by CUESA volunteer Matthew Runeare

11:00 am - Seasonal cooking demonstration
Laura Stec, Innovative Cuisine and author of Cool Cuisine: Taking the Bite Out of Global Warming

10 am - 1 pm - Education booth: Where does your food dollar go?
Location: South Driveway

Sunday, October 5 ~ CUESA's annual Sunday Supper

Learn more here >

All programs take place in CUESA's Dacor teaching kitchen, in front of the Ferry Building on the north side, except as noted.

This is the most up-to-date information about which sellers will be attending the market as of Friday. If there are no changes to a seller's status, they will not be listed. You'll find a list of which farmers regularly attend each market here. Please understand that there are often last-minute changes—it's the nature of farming!

Saturday, September 27

In/returning: Bernard Ranches
Out: G&S Corn, Glashoff Farms, Knoll Farms

Tuesday, September 30

In: McEvoy Ranch (Tuesdays during store renovation)

Returning and plentiful this month (weather willing): Asian pears, dates, apples, summer squash and early winter squash varieties, French prunes, artichokes, pomegranates, carrots in many colors, frisee, brown rice, Valencia oranges, radishes, basil, strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, Brussels sprouts, grapes, romanesco, cucumbers, eggplant, peppers, wheat, persimmons, corn, onions, lettuces, okra, grass-fed beef, tomatoes, melons, ornamental millet, potatoes, beans (wax, shelling and Romano), jujubes, jicama, radicchio, sweet potatoes, plums

Winding down/limited supply: Pawpaws, prickly pears, peas, nectarines, peaches, pluots, fresh garbanzo beans, figs

Farms that may be returning in this month (weather willing): Flying Disc Ranch, Woodleaf Farms (please note that due to extreme weather last spring, they don't have stone fruit to sell this year but will bring us some of their wonderful vegetables).

Seasonal vendor items not to be missed: Tofu jerky from Hodo Soy, Sikil P’ak from Primavera, Bread and Butter pickles from Happy Girl Kitchen, Bella Donovan coffee beans from Blue Bottle Coffee

Featured Recipes for September:

Sharlyn Melon with Boccalone Lardo and Torn Basils
from Chris Consentino of Incanto and Boccalone

Miriam’s Butternut Squash and Pear Soup
from What San Francisco Families Eat!: Favorite Family Recipes from Presidio Hill School in San Francisco

Ear-Shaped Pasta with Broccoli Rabe & Sausage
from Janet Fletcher, San Francisco Chronicle

Sweet Couscous with Fresh Pomegranates
from cookbook author Paula Wolfert