Hands-on Kimchee Making Class ~ October 27

In collaboration with Urban Kitchen SF, CUESA will host a hands-on kimchee class on October 27th with Todd Champagne from Happy Girl Kitchen. Just in time for the cold season, the class will focus on making this traditional fermented cabbage dish whose wonderful pro-biotic properties are said to boost your body’s immunity. Our hands-on classes sell out fast so get your tickets soon. The class runs from 5:30 - 7:30 pm.

 

In Search of a Righteous Porkchop ~ October 29

The reality behind industrially produced meat — cramped confinement, routine use of antibiotics and growth hormones, food safety violations and E. coli epidemics, pollution of air and water, enormous carbon footprint, and so on — has made some eaters into staunch vegans. For others, however, all-or-nothing is a false choice.This free panel will explore the middle ground: moderate consumption of meat from animals raised humanely and sustainably on family farms. Panelists: Nicolette Hahn Niman, attorney, rancher, and author of Righteous Porkchop: Finding a Life and Good Food Beyond Factory Farms; David Evans, fourth generation rancher and owner of Marin Sun Farms; and Aaron French, chef at the Sunny Side Café, ecologist, and writer. Moderated by Elanor Starmer, researcher and policy analyst for the national consumer advocacy organization Food and Water Watch. A short reception with farmers’ market snacks will follow. Ferry Building's Port Commission Hearing Room, 6:30 to 8:30 pm.

CCOF organic beer, wine and spirit tasting ~ October 23

Sample a wide range of organic beers and wines and chat directly with the winemakers and brewers as CCOF certified organic members come together to showcase and share unique beverages. Those attending will also have the chance to bid on amazing prizes, including a brewery tour for six donated by Uncommon Brewers, a tour and tasting for six at a Healdsburg ranch provided by Medlock Ames winery, and a keg of beer from Thirsty Bear Brewing Company. Proceeds from the event will help fund CCOF’s nonprofit education, advocacy and outreach programs. The tasting takes place in the Ferry Building from 4-8 pm. 

Tuscany Meets Marin: A benefit for Marin Organic

Savor the richness of Fall — artisan cheeses, heirloom vegetables, hand made breads, and fresh oysters — paired with award-winning wines, specialty beverages, local brews, and the stunning work of Douglas Gayeton (see ann example of his work above), author of Slow: Life in a Tuscan Town. Special guest Dario Cecchini, Italy's irrepressible celebrity butcher and showman, will also be at the meal, which takes place at Cavallo Point, the Lodge at the Golden Gate. Tickets have been reduced to $350 per couple. Learn more or buy tickets >

Kitchen Table Talk: What You Need to Know About Genetically Engineered Food ~ October 27

For its sixth installment, Kitchen Table Talks will begin to dissect the complex issues of genetically engineered foods and equip participants with knowledge and specific actions to protect themselves, our community and the environment. Two of the most laudable champions in the fight to educate and protect the public from the unregulated, untested genetic engineering of food and unchecked interests of industrial agriculture will lead the conversation: UC Berkeley microbial ecologist Ignacio Chapela and Center for Food Safety attorney Zelig Golden.  The talk will take place from 6:30 - 8:30 pm at SUB-Mission gallery in the Mission District of San Francisco. Read more here >

Arlequin pastries coming to the Thursday Market

Beginning next Thursday, the market will feature pastries from Luis Villavelazquez, the pastry chef from Absinthe and Arlequin Cafe. Recently, Villavelazquez told the SF Weekly why he is drawn to selling at Ferry Plaza: "The idea is to expand the bakery program here by having it be more visible. People at the farmers' market are more open to food -- especially Thursdays. I think I can do some cool combinations that people would love."

Saturday, October 17 ~ Market to Table

11:00 am - Seasonal cooking demonstration and book signing
Leslie Christensen, 3Spoons: Organic Gourmet for Everyday

Tuesday, October 20 ~ Food Wise Booth

12:00 - 1:00 pm - CUESA's market chef Sarah Henkin will be giving out recipe cards and samples of a simple meal made with market ingredients.

Saturday, October 24 ~ Harvest Festival

10:00 am - 1:00 pm - Hands-on butter churning and cider pressing activities for kids and adults. Wool and cotton spinning demonstration by members of the Spindles and Flyers spinning guild.

11:00 am - Seasonal cooking demonstration
Cindy Pawlcyn, Mustards Grill and Cindy’s Backstreet Kitchen

Old habits are hard to break. And, while apple farmer Stan Devoto has long been aware of the benefits of organic farming, it wasn’t until recently that the veteran farmer began to consider a change.

Stan and his wife Susan have been farming flowers, a wide range of apples, and persimmons on Devoto Gardens' 20 acres in Sonoma County for 33 years. “Things were working okay, so I didn’t see the need for a change,” he recalls. But that’s not how his three daughters Christina, Jolie, and Cecily saw it.

“They said, ‘Dad, you’re behind on the times, you’re a dinosaur, it’s the right thing to do,’” says Stan. The Devoto girls were concerned about the farm’s environmental impact, but also about the health of their family. “They said they didn’t want to live here if I was going to be spraying synthetic poisons around the house,” he recalls. Stan and Susan did some research into what exactly it would take to become certified, and they decided to give it a try. 

Because organic certification requires that farmland be free of all synthetic pesticide, herbicide and fertilizer for 3 years, the Devotos, like many transitioning farmers, feel like they’re in a kind of limbo. “There is no way to prove you’re in transition. You’re not organic, but you’re not conventional grower anymore either,” he says. In other words, transition means all the work of organic without being able to command the price for certified produce.

During this lag time, Stan has found organic solutions to battling the diseases, scabs and mildews that might blow onto his property from surrounding apple orchards. He’s also had to develop new organic ways to strengthen the soil. But there’s a light at the end of the tunnel; after one more year, a lot of paperwork, some fees, and an in-depth inspection process, the Devotos will be set to offer certified organic apples.

In addition to an expanded wholesale market, Stan hopes he might also be able to sell more of his organic windfall apples, the fruit that is not suitable for packing. “They have great flavor but they might be scabbed, bruised or partly eaten by a worm (more worms are to be expected when you’re growing organic),” he says.   

Windfall apples are allowed to drop to the orchard floor and are gathered once or twice a week to be used for juice; they also make up around one third of Devoto’s crop. In recent years, the farm hasn’t had a market for most of these apples, as an abundance of apple juice concentrate from China, as well as from other regions of the US, has drastically reduced the market. (See a recent article in the Santa Rosa Press Democrat).

New markets are not Stan’s only motivation. “My reasons for going organic have nothing to do with a monetary gain. In fact, I don’t think there will be one because there’s so much more work involved.”

As standardized as organic certification has become under the USDA, it’s worth noting that farmers' reasons for making the switch still vary quite a bit. In Stan’s case, the financial risk, hard work, and time spent in limbo is all — at the core — an investment in his family. "It’ll be great if they can take over the farm when I’m ready to retire,” he says.

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, October 17

In: Bernard Ranches, Hare Hollow
Out: Juniper Ridge, Lagier Ranches
Last week: Green Gulch Farm, Kashiwase Farms

Tuesday, October 20

no changes

Thursday, October 22

In: Arlequin
Out: Lucero Organic Farm

Returning and Plentiful this month (weather willing):
Jujubes, pears, dates, apples, squash, artichokes, carrots, frisee, lemongrass, walnuts, Valencia oranges, radishes, muscat grapes, strawberries, pumpkins, broccoli,  mushrooms, almonds, persimmons, pomegranates, raspberries, Brussels sprouts, romanesco, cucumbers, peppers, wheat, onions, lettuces, pastured pork, tomatoes, marigolds, potatoes, Violetta beans, radicchio, sweet potatoes, chestnuts, root vegetables, celery, kale, sunchokes, cabbage, kohlrabi

Winding down/limited supply:
Cucumbers, peas, nectarines, peaches, pluots, plums, figs, quince, okra, eggplant, blackberries, melons, basil

Vendor and Value added items not to be missed:
Sorbet from Scream Sorbet at the Thursday market, fruit cheese from June Taylor, chicken stock from Mountain Ranch, olive oil soap from Bariani

Featured Recipes for October

Pear and Spinach Salad from Trish Tracey, Ramblas Tapas Bar

"Drowned" Broccoli Rabe with Tomatoes & Pancetta from cookbook author Joyce Goldstein

Sausages & Plums Braised in Red Wine from cookbook author Molly Stevens

Apple Baby Galette from Kathleen Stewart, Downtown Bakery & Creamery (September 27, 2008)

Cocktail ~ Apples to Oranges from Lou Bustamante, Hangar One Vodka (September 30, 2007)