A Thing For Greens on Market Monday
The Chicago market sked, plus how greens make you happy and strong like bull
This Week’s Chicago/Inner Suburb Markets
Monday, June 21
Edgewater Farmers Market, 5917 N. Broadway, Chicago (June only), 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Tuesday, June 22
Lincoln Square Tuesday Market, W. Leland & N. Lincoln Aves., Chicago, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.
SOAR (Streeterville) Farmers Market, 226 E. Chicago Ave., Chicago, 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Wednesday, June 23
Andersonville Farmers Market, 1500 W. Catalpa Ave., Chicago, 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Garfield Ridge Farmers Market, 6072 S. Archer Ave., Chicago, 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Green City Wednesday Market, 1817 N. Clark St., Chicago, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Ravenswood Farmers Market, 4900 N. Damen Ave., Chicago, 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Uptown Farmers Market, W. Wilson Ave. & Broadway, Chicago, 2:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Thursday, June 24
Austin City Market, 5610 W. Lake St., Chicago, 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Daley Plaza City Market, 50 W. Washington St., Chicago, 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Growing Home Wood Street Farm Stand, 1844 W. 59th St., Chicago, Noon to 6 p.m.
Lincoln Square Thursday Market, W. Leland & N. Lincoln Aves., Chicago, 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Low-Line Market, 3400 N. Southport (at CTA Brown Line), Chicago, 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
South Loop Farmers Market Prairie District, 1936 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Saturday, June 26
Division Street City Market, 100 W. Division St., Chicago, 7 a.m. to noon
Downtown Evanston Farmers Market, 1800 Maple Ave., Evanston, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Garfield Park Neighborhood Market, 135 N. Kedzie Ave., Chicago, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Green City Market Lincoln Park, 1817 N. Clark St., Chicago, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Green City Market West Loop, 115 S. Sangamon St., Chicago, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Horner Park Farmers Market, 2741 W. Montrose Ave., Chicago, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
NorthCenter Farmers Market, 4100 N. Damen, Chicago, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Oak Park Farmers Market, 460 Lake St., Oak Park, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Park Ridge Farmers Market, 15 Prairie Ave., Park Ridge, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Plant Chicago Farmers Market, Davis Square Park, Chicago, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
61st Street Farmers Market, 6100 S. Blackstone Ave., Chicago, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
South Chicago Farmers Market, 9000 S. Mackinaw St., Chicago, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
South Loop Farmers Market Printers Row, 632 S. Dearborn, Chicago, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The Lincoln Park Farmers Market, 2001 N. Orchard St., Chicago, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.
West Humboldt Park City Market, 3601 W. Chicago Ave., Chicago, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Sunday, June 27
Glenwood Sunday Market, 1233-41 Pratt Blvd., Chicago, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Hyde Park Farmers Market, 54th St. & Old Lake Park Ave., Chicago, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Independence Park Farmers Market, 3945 N. Springfield Ave., Chicago, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Jefferson Park Farmers Market, 4626 N. Knox Ave., Chicago, 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Logan Square Farmers Market, 3107 W. Logan Blvd., Chicago, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
95th Street Farmers Market, 1835 W. 95th St., Chicago, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
North Park Community Market, 5527 N. Kimball Ave., Chicago, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Pilsen Community Market, 1821 S. Blue Island Ave., Chicago, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Roscoe Village Farmers Market, 3149 N. Wolcott, Chicago, 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Skokie Farmers Market, Village Green, Skokie, 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Vegan Paradise, 1400 W. 46th St., Chicago, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Wicker Park Farmers Market, 1425 N. Damen Ave., Chicago, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
It’s So Easy Eating Greens
When you go to a farmers market and pick up a bunch of root vegetables — such as carrots, turnips, beets or radishes — you are likely to find them with the green leafy tops attached. It is a new experience for a lot of folks. Grocery stores long ago decided that those big bunches of greens made it hard to display the vegetables attached, and purchased them in bulk with the tops removed.
That may be why so many farmers market shoppers take a look at the greens and think, “What the heck do I do with those?” Some vendors will remove them on request and take them home to compost. Wholesome Harvest, a Wisconsin farm that sells at Chicago’s Green City Market, told me that they take the recycled greens and feed them to their donkeys, which I found charming because I like donkeys.
But other buyers take the greens home, still can’t figure out what to do with them, and end up trashing them… which is a terrible waste. Don’t do it!
For one thing, green tops are very nutritious. Carrot greens are high in Vitamins A and C, iron, calcium and fiber, and also include Vitamin K (here are some other nutrition benefits from Organic Facts). Turnip greens have a similar nutritional profile.
Second, buying root veggies with their greens on stretches your food budget. It’s like paying for two vegetables in one.
And most important, the greens are tasty and relatively easy to prepare. Nearly all the work is in cleaning and cutting them. They take just minutes to cook. I like to sauté them with a little olive oil and garlic, maybe some onion, just as I do the leafy greens that are stand-alone plants such as spinach, kale or the rapini in the top photo with the carrot and turnip greens.
(Rapini, also known as broccoli rabe, is a key component of an Italian-accented roast pork sandwich that is a trademark dish of Philadelphia, which is how I plan to use it. That’s a story for another day.)
You can also eat greens raw, as in a salad, or add them to soups and stews for added flavor and nutrition.
The stems are as edible as the leaves, but they are tougher and need more time to cook. I toss them in the pan first for a few minutes, then add the leaves.
This photo is one serving suggestion: a grain bowl (I used cooked farro, aka emmer, an ancient grain) with sauteed greens and a fried egg. I cooked up a bunch of the farro and have plenty for more breakfast bowls during the week.
To paraphrase our favorite cheer at Michigan State, Go Greens!
Like a bad penny, I keep turning up. The one thing I would add to your excellent article is that when you get those greens-bearing carrots home, remove the greens and store like any other green. Left attached, they will continue to pull moisture out of the carrots in an effort to remain alive. That's what causes our carrots to degrade quickly sometimes--they are kind of still trying to grow.
Totally agree. I also have recommitted to processing the greens soon after I bring them home so they don't get lost in the fridge and spoil.