Union Square Mondays

Since the year-round Brooklyn Greenmarkets are only open Tuesdays & Saturdays, I’ve been hitting the Union Square Greenmarket the past few Mondays. The set-up there is a little different right now due to some construction going on off of Union Square West. For the most up-to-date list of producers, swing by the CENYC tent & grab a map detailing who’s there on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. This list will help you plan for future trips but may be updated when more producers return in the springtime. If you decide to go to Union Square on a Monday, you will find: Bread Alone, Patches of Star Dairy, Greener Pastures, Buon Pane, D&J Organic, Red Jacket Orchards, Central Valley Farm, Martin’s Pretzels, Body & Soul Began Bakery, Madura Farm, Queens County Farm Museum, Berkshire Berries, Troncillito Farm, NY Beef Co, Tello’s Green Farm, Healthway Farms, and Race Farm.

During my first walk through, the greens at Hydrogarden Farm, D&J Organic caught my eye. I paid $6.00 for 1/4th of a pound of baby spinach and frisee. I was too excited by the thought of the greens and decided to splurge. My next stop was at Patches of Star Dairy for goat cheese. Their goat cheese is so smooth and creamy that it needs little else to be enjoyed. They also have ice cream but it might be until summer before I get up the nerve to try it. I also picked up half a dozen eggs at Central Valley Farm. 

Queens County Farm at Union Square Mondays

I was almost headed home until I spotted the Queens Country Farm Museum’s stand. I had no idea they were at the Greenmarket, and as of right now they only have a stand there on Mondays. What really caught my eye were the free samples of hot tomato soup being handed out on a really cold day of walking around outside. The soup was made from the farm’s frozen Brandywine tomatoes. Other notable edibles included: fresh local eggs, microgreens, broccoli sprouts, and honey.

 

Herbs and Microgreens and Honey

 

And now for a bit of history. The Queens Farm can be traced back to 1697 with only eight owners of the farm since then. The museum opened in 1975 and became a historic landmark in 1979. For more information on the farm, check out their website www.queensfarm.org where you learn more about events starting up in the spring, renting out the farm, educational programs, sustainable agriculture, and more.

Tomato Soup

Make sure to stop by their booth the next time you’re in the neighborhood for a tomato soup sample and to learn more about the farm’s historic origins. You will also now find pasture-raised heritage pork – could there be a better reason to go to Union Square.

Last Saturday at Brooklyn Borough Hall

Last Saturday, I decided to head down to the Greenmarket at Brooklyn Borough Hall. With only three stands open, my trip was relatively short and made even shorter by the below freezing temperature and biting wind. First, I stopped at Bread Alone because I was in dire need of their nutty granola mix only to find out that an early-to-rise shopper had bought out all of their granola first thing that morning. 

I then headed over to Not Just Rugelach where I picked up some of their granola instead. Not Just Rugelach is at Borough Hall both Tuesdays and Saturdays and offers a wide array of savory and sweet baked goods. Highlights from the savory side included: Foccacia (available with three different toppings: tomato, tomato with garlic, and onion), knishes (potato, spinach with feta and dill, and sweet potato), quiche, pot pies, brioche, whole wheat, seven grain, rye, and challah bread. If you’re in the mood for dessert, there were: brownies, danish, old fashioned pound cake, carrot cake, pies, muffins, scones, cookies and donuts. In addition to the granola I had picked out, I also settled on a zucchini cake and an apple cider donut – which seems to be a standard farmer’s market offering.

I found the best offerings of the day at Wilklow Orchards, a family farm located in the Hudson Valley. The ample selection of apples included over one dozen varieties: Winesap, Empire, Jona Gold, Mutsu, Cameo, Macoun, Candy Crisp, Red Delicious, MacIntosh, Fuji, Golden Delicious, Rome and Honey Crisp. Wilklow also offered a nice array of baked goods: banana bread, pies, cream cheese poundcake, donuts, and muffins. Since I was already covered in the baked goods department, I picked up an acorn squash (the only vegetable/gourd I saw that day), apple cider, tenderloin, and bacon. Wilkow’s free range beef and pork menus are shown below and if you eat meat – they offer something for everyone.

 

Wilklow's Free Range Beef

Wilklow's Free Range Pork

I will report back on how the tenderloin turned out and think I will roast the squash and either make a soup or risotto with it. Which reminds me, I also decided to pick up a few apples in case I go with the soup.

Urban Folks

Wendell Berry’s article “New Year’s Revolutions: What city people can do.” featured in Edible Brooklyn’s winter 2008 issue (which I just dug out of my stack of articles to read) sets up thought provoking questions for the urban eater and then challenges us to move into a more active role in the process of eating. Are we merely consumers blindly feeding on what the food industry serves us? As city folk, why should we care to know where are food comes from? Have we lost the sense of connectedness to community and land? Since we do live in an urban landscape, is it realistic for us to then make the connections between farm to table? 

My response to Berry’s article (which you can find at www.ediblebrooklyn.net if you missed the issue) would be first to explore the year round farmer’s markets found in your neighborhood. For starters, there are four Greenmarkets operating year round in Brooklyn: 

Greenpoint – McCarren Park – Open Saturdays 8-3

Fort Greene Park – Open Saturdays 8-5

Brooklyn Borough Hall – Open Tuesdays & Saturdays 8-6

Grand Army Plaza – Open Saturdays 8-4

Check out the official Greenmarket website to download their locations map and schedule which includes information on Manhattan, Bronx, Queens, and Staten island. I know that it is the dead of winter and dreadfully cold outside, but I challenge you to get out there and find out what’s at your local farmer’s market. You might be surprised, and you might even enjoy yourself.