Seasonal Produce

Local farmers teach cooking with fresh ingredients

Maybe you want to learn to cook with in-season produce, but with so many options available – some of which you’ve probably never seen before – where do you start?

One of the benefits of buying directly from the grower, either at a farmers’ market or from the farm itself, is that you can ask questions, says Jamie Moore, manager of the Dublin Farmers’ Market and owner of Wayward Seed Farm in Marysville.

“I always recommend people ask me as many questions as it takes for them to fully understand what they’re buying,” Moore says. “I love when people are humble enough to come to the farmers’ market and say, ‘I have no idea what this is.’”

“Ask questions and get ideas,” says Kerry Sullivan, manager of Jacquemin

Farms in the Dublin area. “If you have no clue what to do with it, ask the farmer first and then go home and Google it.”

If you want to plan your menus ahead, seek out information on the vendors’ websites.

“On our website, I’ve put together a calendar of generally when certain crops are available” at www.jacqueminfarms. com/product, Sullivan says. At Jacquemin, strawberries and peas start in June, but in Ohio, the majority of the produce comes into its own in July and August.

In June, Wayward Seed starts to see summer squash, early-season greens, baby turnips, baby carrots, beets and swiss chard. July might yield eggplant and, toward the end of the month, tomatoes and sweet corn.

“Those sorts of things depend on how warm it is and what things are ripe,” Moore says.

Because the fruits and vegetables are hand-picked for market, once cucumbers or corn show up there, chances are they’re going to be ripe and taste wonderful.

“Everything I take to a farmers’ market should be ripe … and be of a great quality,” Sullivan says. Consumers can take their pick based on their own personal preferences and on what they’d like to do with their produce. Choose a larger zucchini or summer squash to hollow out and stuff with breading and herbs or meat and cheese. Choose smaller ones if you’d rather sautee them, because large summer squash are more starchy, Moore says.

Once you get your produce home, almost everything should be stored in the refrigerator, unwashed. Tomatoes are one exception; leave them on the counter, Sullivan says. “Leave (the produce) dirty until you’re ready to use it, and then wash it before you cut it,” she says.

Since the produce was grown locally and harvested shortly before you bought it, it will stay good for longer than fruits or vegetables that have been shipped in from other states – from three or four days up to several weeks, depending on the item, Moore says.

If you know you won’t get around to eating it before it goes bad, you can always freeze it. One of Sullivan’s favorite vegetables to freeze is Ohio sweet corn. “If you have a good ear of corn and you freeze it, it’s amazing the way it holds its flavor,” Sullivan says. “I think the flavor beats anything you can buy (frozen from) the store.”

To freeze sweet corn, Sullivan husks the ears and blanches them by cooking them in boiling water for 2-3 minutes, then dropping them in cool water to stop the cooking process. Then, she uses a steak knife to slice the kernels away from the cob, after which she places them in a resealable freezer bag and lays flat to store. Corn will keep for up to two years this way, Sullivan says.

The process should be completed as soon as possible after purchase, because as soon as corn is picked, its sugars begin turning to starch and it begins to lose its sweet flavor, she says.

When cooking with a new kind of produce, Moore tells her customers to first eat a piece raw.

“I like when people try something raw at least once to know the honest, true flavor profile of it. … I think it’s good to understand what it tastes like,” she says.

Then she’ll give suggestions on how to cook it – usually one that takes a short amount of time, one slightly longer and one if you have plenty of time to cook. For summer squash, she suggests slicing it thin and eating it like a Carpaccio or dicing it and eating it with vegetable dip. If you have a medium amount of time, slice it into thick rounds and grill it. If you have a little longer, slice it thin and use it in place of pasta in a noodle dish.

To avoid becoming overwhelmed, Moore suggests that those new to the farmers’ market scene take it slow.

“Try to control those urges to purchase everything that looks good to you (all at once),” she says. “Start small. Buy a few things, talk to people and learn as you go.”

Moore makes a point to send out a weekly newsletter for Dublin Farmers’ Market patrons with information about seasonal produce and recipes contributed by vendors. For more information and to sign up for the newsletter, visit www. dublinfarmersmarket.com

Lisa Aurand is editor of Dublin Life Magazine. Feedback welcome at laurand@pubgroupltd.com.

2012 Dublin Farmers’ Market has a new, more visible location

The market, in its fourth season, is now located in the parking lot of Oakland Nursery, 4261 W. Dublin-Granville Rd.

“We started in 2009, and we started in the parking lot of the Dublin Community Church,” Moore says.

As owner of Wayward Seed Farm in Marysville, Moore had been looking for a midweek farmers’ market at which to sell her produce.

“We connected with a couple other farmers … there was a group of about eight of us,” Moore said.

The City of Dublin was unable to officially support the market, but with the help of Whole Foods, the group was able to move forward and start the market. The move to Oakland is intended to allow for greater exposure and expanded parking.

The market has added some new vendors this year as well.

“We have a really diverse group of vendors,” Moore says. “We have everything from fruits, vegetables and meats to gluten-free products and dog food this year.”

The market is held from 3:30-6:30 p.m. Wednesdays May through September, excluding July 4.