ellen_datlow | Union Square Greenmarket

Not sure why I went over there today but I wanted to get out a bit and am glad I did. During the week (especially Monday) it was looking a bit sparse and I figured the summer harvests were over and winter was closing in...but today. Wow! I bought a bunch of gladiolas for $7 (I could have bought 2 for $12 but couldn't have handled two bunches), yellow-orange tomatoes, a bunch of carrots (for carrot juice), some chestnuts (from an American tree, pretty uncommon nowadays), and some bosch pears.

I would have bought more but that was about all I could carry. I was tempted to buy more succulants and/or cacti-I'm always tempted but realized I'd have to be more careful about what I put in my carry bag if I did so. Another time.

There were wildflowers and domesticated flowers for sale all over the market. Tomatoes of all types (although my favorite, the little sungolds have just finished their season), rasberries (I was hoping for blueberries, but I guess that season's over), watermelon, which I always want but can't carry home--too bulky--pumpkins, cauliflower and the broccoli/cauliflower mix apples, potatoes, cheeses and meat and fish and eggs. Breads of all types...and crowds. It was so crowded that it was a little uncomfortable, but I know that everyone--like me-- was enjoying the last lush greenmarkets of the season.

Although they run all year round now, by winter, pickings are pretty slim and usually it's mostly bread, eggs, turkey sausage, honey, wine, jam, pretzel, and maybe an apple stand or two that are there regularly.

I adore New York.

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*whimpers*

Not that I dislike where I am right now, but there are days I really, really miss Manhattan outside my door.

Well, when you come to town, let me know and we can go to the greenmarket--or whatever else you want to check out!

About half my freezer has tupperwares of blueberries I froze to eat in winter. They won't last that long, of course, but I have to put other things in the freezer, too.

I love fresh blueberries. I've been eating them with greek yogurt and honey over the summer. Fresh peaches were great that way too. And I currently have some leftover strawberries and bananas. The strawberry and peach season seem to be over so it'll be bananas. I tried fresh figs in the yogurt but wasn't wild about that.

I have a texture problem with yogurt, it just makes me cringe.

But when you freeze blueberries the way I do, when they're defrosted*, they taste just like fresh. It's not like the things in bags. Those aren't so good.

*run under water for a few seconds

I used to hate yogurt and still can't stand American yogurt. In Germany in the early 70s I discovered what yogurt should be like and it was a revelation. What I buy now if Fage from Greece. And with honey (from Australia--thank you Anna!) it's grand.

Try Skyr. It's the Icelandic version of yogurt, but uses a completely different culture. Whole Foods carries it.

I get my Fage from there...I'll try it next time I go there and see if I like it.

I assume it would be in the yogurt section?

Some of my favorite snacks in hot weather are frozen blueberries, not defrosted, but eaten one at a time. They are like the smallest popsicles in the world.

Now that DOES sound good.

When I was a kid we were stationed for four years close enough to spend summers with my mother's parents. My grandmother was a health nut back when people thought it was lunatic and she would have us get parsley from the garden, wash it, and put it in the freezer wet. When we came back in hot, the parsley was so cool and refreshing both in taste and state.

I have hulled sunflower seeds for the birdfeeder (the hulls make good mulch, but the condo org won't go along with that) and every time I open the metal bin I keep it in, I think of that grandmother -- she would give us a handful of sunflower seeds for a snack.

I've had friends here putting my new bedroom furniture together the last few days and one was surprised by a rainbow on the living room wall. That's from the same grandmother -- she hung crystals in the kitchen window which faced east so there were rainbows all morning. I only have north and west windows, but the west window is in the kitchen and we get rainbows part of the afternoon when the sun is out. Just as well, I usually get up at noon.

I love the little Greenmarket behind The Bull at the very southern tip of Broadway, in front of the Smithsonian. I used to work on projects involving the Staten Island Ferry or at 2 Broadway and I shopped there every Wednesday. *sigh* I miss it still.

You mean down near Wall street? I don't know most of the little ones, although there's one a couple of blocks from me open on Saturdays.

What's the Smithsonian?

The Cooper-Hewitt is a Smithsonian museum, maybe she's thinking of that.

I hope she comes back to let us know :-)

Hi, Ellen. Sorry I missed the chat this morning: slept in. Bloody time zones.

Hi Stephen, there should be a transcript posted at some point...
For those who have no idea what we're talking about I did a chat with Australians tonight (it was morning for them)...I didn't post it any place 'cause you had to be a member of their group. Perhaps when it's posted, though, I'll be allowed to link to it.

@ our local farmers' market this past Thursday & was suprised- I thought raspberry season was finished months ago- or is there a second crop? It's also the start of apple season up here. Minnesotans are SERIOUS about their apples, probably because we've only had locally grown ones available for a decade or so. Not as many pumpkins @ the market as there usually is by this time, but the stores seem to have plenty. & I got some FABULOUS baking potatoes the other day. Mmmmm, such wonderful flavour they had.

OK, now I'm hungry....

Yes! We had raspberries all over the place, too. I'll start buying baking potatoes when it's a little colder here. I love a good baked potatoe.

In Virginia, both our apple and pumpkin crops are suffering from the drought.

Union Square Greenmarket

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I saw raspberries EVERYWHERE...

Re: I saw raspberries EVERYWHERE...

Re: I saw raspberries EVERYWHERE...