Shop Tomorrow 10 am to 2 pm! (But We're Closed on Saturday)

Because Christmas falls on a Friday this year, and many of our farmers would rather spend the day with their families than prepare for market, we'll be closed on Boxing Day, December 26. Tomorrow's Christmas Eve market will feature a special expanded list of sellers to help you stock up for the holiday weekend, including Fatted Calf, Hog Island Oyster Company, Rancho Gordo, G.L. Alfieri Farms, Everything Under the Sun, and Marshall's Farm Natural Honey.

Help CUESA Support Farmers and Educate Urban Eaters

Do you enjoy reading this newsletter each week? Have you attended one of our programs, classes, or farm tours? Or do you simply want to help spread the local and sustainable gospel — in the market and beyond? If you are passionate about this cause, please consider giving to CUESA. We rely on contributions from the community to continue our important work. And remember: we're a nonprofit, so all donations are tax deductible. Our heartfelt gratitude goes out to those of you who have already donated this year.

Michael Pollan at the Ferry Building ~ January 23

CUESA and Book Passage invite you to hear one of our nation’s most trusted names in food-related issues speak about his new book, Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual. This handy, pocket-sized resource is the perfect guide to mindful eating, drawing from a variety of ethnic and cultural traditions. Pollan is the author of In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto, The Omnivore’s Dilemma and The Botany of Desire. Tickets are $20 (includes a copy of the book). A portion of the proceeds will go to CUESA. Call Book Passage at (415) 927-0960, ext. 1, to reserve your spot. Learn more >

Join the Canvolution with a Year-Long Canning Project
The blog Tigress in a Jam is hosting a year-long challenge that encourages bloggers and other food enthusiasts to can a new seasonal item each month. Wanna participate? Learn more >

This Holiday Card Speaks for Itself

Despite the prolonged build-up, the holidays often whizz by, leaving many of us a little stunned. For food lovers, slowing down to relax can be especially challenging.

"We like to have people over — our friends and family — and really enjoy them," says Georgeanne Brennan, author of Gather: Memorable Menus for Entertaining Throughout the Seasons. "We don’t want to do elaborate cooking, and yet we still want to have nice food to honor those guests."

One of the best ways to achieve all these goals, says Brennan, is to plan ahead. "Know what you’re going to do, so you’re not trying to finish the risotto while you’re whipping up the meringue."

Create a game plan — decide what to cook first, what you can reheat, and what you can leave until the last minute. You can also borrow a stress-reducing technique from the professionals: "mise en place," which means having all the ingredients chopped and measured before you begin cooking.

Brennan also recommends keeping your pantry stocked with quick, easy-to-prepare items, like frozen puff pastry; "it thaws quickly and you can work miracles with it." The chef and author always has olives, almonds, walnuts, and a selection of cheeses and cured meats in the house — basic pantry items that allow her to put together something quick and tasty.

At a recent CUESA cooking demonstration, Brennan prepared gougères, savory French pastries that can be made ahead of time and served on their own or filled with cheese, chicken salad, egg salad, or crab.

Gougères

Makes about 30 Ingredients 1 cup water 6 tablespoons butter 1 teaspoon salt ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1 cup flour 4 large eggs, plus 1 egg lightly beaten 1½ cups shredded Gruyère cheese Preparation Preheat an oven to 425º F. In a saucepan over medium high heat, combine the water, butter, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil, stirring. Continue to cook until the butter has melted, 3 to 4 minutes. Put the flour in all at once and mix vigorously with a wooden spoon until a thick paste forms and pulls away from the side of the pan, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and make a well in the center. Crack one egg into the well and beat it into the hot mixture, either with the wooden spoon or an electric hand-held mixer. Repeat with three more eggs. Whisk in 1 cup of the cheese, mixing well. Line two baking sheets with a silpat or parchment paper. Use a teaspoon to shape the gougères. Dip the spoon into a glass of cold water, then scoop up a generous teaspoonful of the mixture and push it onto the baking sheet with your fingertips. Repeat, dipping the spoon in the water each time to prevent sticking. When done, brush the top of each with a little of the egg mixture, being careful not to let it drip onto the paper, which will inhibit the puffing. Sprinkle each with a little of the remaining cheese. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350º F and bake until the gougères are golden brown and crunchy, about another 15 minutes. If underdone, they will be mushy and uncooked inside. When done, pierce each with a wooden skewer to let out the steam, and then turn off the oven. Leave them in the oven for 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Recipe source: Gather: Memorable Menus for Entertaining Throughout the Seasons (Sasquatch Books, September 2009)

This is the most up-to-date information about which sellers will be attending the market as of Wednesday. 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!

Thursday, December 24

In: Fatted Calf, Hog Island Oyster Company, Lagier Ranches, Rancho Gordo, G.L. Alfieri Farms, Everything Under the Sun

Saturday, December 26

The market is closed

Tuesday, December 29

Out: Alive Restaurant, Blossom Bluff Orchards

Returning and plentiful this month (weather willing):
Page mandarins, nettles, root vegetables, winter squash, persimmons, carrots, Meyer lemons, grapefruit, oranges, radishes, collard greens, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, rapini, limes, baby lettuces, cardoons, puntarella, radicchio, sweet potatoes, leeks, fennel, cabbage, kiwis, chicories, salsify, mushrooms, walnuts, clementines, cherimoyas, stone-ground wheat, dandelion greens, dried shelling beans

Winding down/limited supply:
Grapes, Dungeness crab, pomegranates, avocadoes, berries, pastured eggs, pears and apples (many varieties will still be available of both these fruits from cold storage throughout the winter)

Farms returning this month:
Brokaw Nursery

Vendor and value-added items not to be missed:
Bing cherry syrup from Lagier Ranches, prime rib roasts from Marin Sun Farms, horseradish from Happy Girl Kitchen

Featured recipes for December

Leek and Rapini Fritters from Angelo Garro with Nikki Silva & Davia Nelson (The Kitchen Sisters, authors of Hidden Kitchens)

Grilled Radicchio Salad with Pink Grapefruit, Pink Peppercorns and Garlic-Tarragon “Ranch” Dressing from Chef Eric Tucker of Millennium Restaurant (February 9, 2008)

Hearty Brown Rice, Butternut Squash, and Kale Soup from Sarah Henkin, CUESA's Market Chef (January 13, 2009)

Apple Cider Pie from the Smit Family of Hidden Star Orchards (November 22, 2008)