Apple Time Actually Comes Earlier
New stuff in market (of course) and good news about Froggy Meadow
Little Green Apples Are Here
It’s easy to find apples at the autumn farmers markets. Less well known (or found) are summer apples, such as the ones above that I saw for the first time this year at Nichols Farm and Orchard’s stand at Green City Market in Lincoln Park.
It’s not surprising to see these at Nichols. They are not only the region’s largest diversified produce farm, but they also have the widest selection of apple varieties I’ve seen at Chicago markets, including some rare artisanal varieties.
Lodi apples, like most summer apples, are tart (though with a slightly sweet aftertaste). According to the Specialty Produce website, Lodis were developed about 100 years ago at the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva, New York and they are best known for their use in cooking (e.g. applesauce) and baking (e.g. pies), though they can certainly be eaten out of hand.
The other good news from Green City is the rapid rebound for Froggy Meadow Farm (Beloit, Wisconsin). As we’ve written before, farmer Jerry Boone was at risk of losing a whole year’s harvest — and possibly retiring — because of a drought-induced water crisis on the farm. A coalition of chefs to whom Jerry sells his beautiful produce rallied to create a GoFundMe campaign that raised more than $40,000 over just a few days, enabling Jerry to have a deep well drilled. And as the water flowed again into his field, the farm came back to life.
Walking up and seeing Froggy Meadow Farm’s table packed with fresh produce just made my day.
Eggplant and SunGold cherry tomatoes from Froggy Meadow (center right) came home with me along with (counter-clockwise) gooseberries, Lodi apples and my first local green beans of the year from Nichols; eggs from Finn’s Ranch (Buchanan, Michigan); astoundingly delicious smoked Great Lakes whitefish from Massey Fish Company sold by Jake’s Country Meats (Cassopolis, Michigan); cremini mushrooms from River Valley Ranch (Burlington, Wisconsin); cinnamon raisin croissants and sourdough bread from Bennison’s Bakery (Evanston, Illinois), and apricots from Mick Klug Farm (St. Joseph\, Michigan).
I also received a delivery order from Three Sisters Garden (Kankakee, Illinois) that included (from right) onion flowers, Cherokee Sweet Mint, sorrel, popcorn, and raw garlic (N.B. when you order a pound of garlic, it’s actually a LOT of garlic).
Hopefully this whets your appetite to buy a bunch of locally produced food this week. Here’s the weekly regional farmers market schedule.