Friday, August 22nd: Bag-O-Fish Returns, More Sweet Corn, Perfect Potatoes, Gorgeous Carrots & More!

Whole coho salmon from Wilson Fish. Copyright Zachary D. Lyons.

Hey kids! Bag O’ Fish returns today to your Madrona Farmers Market! Yes, this is the annual celebration of the Washington coastal Coho salmon fishery from Wilson Fish. Coho season on the coast is short, and Wilson catches them, cleans them, bags them, and offers them to you at a great price for a late summer feast! Oh, and Chef David Mitchell from Luc Restaurant returns today, as well, with another great cooking demonstration at 3:30 p.m.!

Basin ‘R’ Yellow Sweet Corn. Copyright Zachary D, Lyons.

The sweet corn just keeps on rolling this summer. This is Basin ‘R’ Yellow sweet corn from Lyall Farms. This is one of those super-sweet varieties with big kernels, and even bigger ears that will feed two. It is a corn developed to thrive in the Columbia Basin, and that it does!

Fresh basil from Growing Things Farm. Copyright Zachary D, Lyons.

It is time to get your pesto on, folks, or whatever you like to do best with fresh basil from Growing Things Farm! Their basil is so beautiful and fragrant right now, ready for your caprese salads, that fish, that perfect dessert with peaches and more. I had the good fortune of visiting Michaele and her crew on the farm yesterday in Duvall, and to see their robust basil fields. This is food grown with love!

Fortune plums from Collins Family Orchards. Copyright Zachary D, Lyons.

We are getting into serious plum season now, with such deeply sweet and complexly flavored varieties such as these Fortune plums from Collins Family Orchards from Selah. They are big, juicy and ready to eat, and you have to admit, they are also gorgeous, eh?

Sweet Snax carrots from One Leaf Farm. Copyright Zachary D, Lyons.

Meet Sweet Snax carrots from One Leaf Farm. Beautiful, aren’t they? They are sweet and crunchy and delicious. These are just the babies, as they are thinning their fields to allow the rest to grow even longer and bigger.

Blueberries & raspberries from Hayton Farms. Copyright Zachary D, Lyons.

Just in case you missed the memo, raspberries are back in full force now from several farms. These are from Hayton Berry Farms, up in Skagit Valley. They’ve also got these lovely blueberries currently, as well as their most prolific blackberry harvest in years. Yes, this continues to be an epic year for berries folks. Make sure you take advantage!

Rio Grande russet potatoes. Copyright Zachary D, Lyons.

Sure, there are plenty of more colorful potatoes with sexier names, but there is just something about a russet potato that comforts the American soul. These little fellers are Rio Grande russet potatoes from Olsen Farms. They are, like any russet, a great baker, masher and chipper. They’re are nice on the grill, too!

Eggplant from Tani Creek Farm. Copyright Zachary D, Lyons.

These stunning eggplant is from the good folks at Tani Creek Farm over on Bainbridge Island. They are an excellent example of how beautiful everything they grow is. They collect the best varieties of crops from all over the world, find the ones that work best where they are, and then save the seeds to grow year after year. That means that much of what they offer on their tables is in fact unique to them. So ask questions about what you see. The stories behind their crops are almost as delicious as the crops themselves!

Raisin Pumpernickel bread from Snohomish Bakery. Copyright Zachary D, Lyons.

Have you been on the lookout for a nice raisin pumpernickel bread around Seattle, but been frustrated in your search? Snohomish Bakery has you covered! So grab a loaf today, and enjoy the toast you’ve been missing for Saturday brunch tomorrow!

Zinnias from Yeng Garden. Copyright Zachary D, Lyons.

Complete the perfect weekend mood with some flowers from Yeng Garden. Lots of spectacular late summer varieties are in season right now, including dahlias, asters, and these colorful zinnias. Grab one of their pre-made bouquets, or have them make a custom bouquet just for you!

Remember, there is plenty more to tantalize your taste buds today at your Madrona Farmers Market. For a fuller accounting, see What’s Fresh Now!

Please remember to bring your own bags today, and please take note of our new green composting and blue recycling waste receptacles throughout your Madrona Farmers Market, and please make an effort to use them correctly. Each container has what’s okay to put in it pictured right on the lid. Please do not put the wrong materials in, because that drives up the cost of recycling and composting, and it can result in the entire container being sent instead to a landfill. Your understanding and cooperation are appreciated.

Friday, September 9th: Fish In A Bag, Fresh Edamame, Thumbelina Carrots, Lipstick Chili Peppers & Colorful Cauliflower!

Coho salmon in a bag from Wilson Fish. Photo copyright 2011 by Zachary D. Lyons.

It’s fish in a bag season at Wilson Fish! That’s when you can pick up an entire, whole coho salmon for just $30! That’s a lot of fish for a little money. But they go fast. Get here early!

Edamame from One Leaf Farm. Photo copyright 2011 by Zachary D. Lyons.

Here’s another late-season treat: edamame from One Leaf Farm. You enjoy it as a snack when you go out for sushi. Why not enjoy it at home, too! Just boil them, salt them and serve them! Oh, yeah, baby! That’s what I’m talkin’ about!

Thumbelina carrots from Full Circle Farm. Photo copyright 2011 by Zachary D. Lyons.

Thumbelina carrots are those stubby little orange carrots that Full Circle Farm grows every year. Indeed, Full Circle grows more varieties of carrots than any other farm in the area, from yellow to white to purple to regular old (well, historically speaking, new) orange carrots. So enjoy the carrotliciousness now at Full Circle!

Blueberries and raspberries from Sidhu Farms. Photo copyright 2011 by Zachary D. Lyons.

We’re into bonus time for our berry season now, just like with our weather. Check out these blueberries and raspberries from Sidhu Farms, and keep the berry love going as long as you can! Heck, freeze ’em, and enjoy ’em all winter.

Five kinds of cauliflower from Growing Things Farm. Photo copyright 2011 by Zachary D. Lyons.

Growing Things Farm grows so many different kinds of cauliflower, and it is all outrageously good this year. You’ve got white, green, galactic purple, yellow cheddar and romanesco in this photo alone! Grill it. Roast it. Steam it. Soup it. Love it!

Mixed cherry tomatoes from Billy's Gardens. Photo copyright 2011 by Zachary D. Lyons.

Just can’t decide which kind of cherry tomatoes you want to bring home today? Then pick up one of these mixed cherry tomato baskets from Billy’s Gardens, and enjoy a little taste of everything! Problem solved.

Lipstick peppers from Alvarez Organic Farms. Photo copyright 2011 by Zachary D. Lyons.

Alvarez Organic Farms grows over 150 kinds of chili peppers, and they are at their peak right now. These lipstick peppers are as spectacular, and delicious, as they come. They are sweet and amazing, and they turn a brilliant lipstick red when fully ripe.

Fresh artisan bread from Tall Grass Bakery. Photo copyright 2011 by Zachary D. Lyons.

And don’t forget a nice loaf of artisan bread from Tall Grass Bakery. Above, you’ll see their oat & honey, pain levain, hominy and Baker Street sourdough. And that is just a sampling. They have many more varieties — one for every palate!

Remember, there is plenty more to tantalize your taste buds today at your Madrona Farmers Market. For a fuller accounting, see What’s Fresh Now!

Chicken, Corn, Coho & Cucumbers

Certified organic, pasture-raised chickens from Growing Things. Photo copyright 2009 by Zachary D. Lyons.

These gorgeous, and delicious, chickens from Growing Things are certified organic and pasture-raised. They were just recently slaughtered and quickly frozen to preserve their freshness. Eat one of these chickens, and you won’t be able to by any chicken from a big box grocery store again. But if you missed the Madrona Farmers Market on July 10th, you missed these. Fear not. Growing Things assures me they will bring more to the next market.

The first sweet corn of the season from Family Pepper. Photo copyright 2009 by Zachary D. Lyons.

The first sweet corn of the season arrived at the Market on the 10th. Family Pepper, which farms the fertile soil of the warm Yakima Valley in Wapato, won this year’s sweepstakes to see which farm would have corn first.

New Girl tomatoes from Oxbow Farm. Photo copyright 2009 by Zachary D. Lyons.

Tomatoes are now available from many farms, from both sides of the Cascades. An early tomato season means we get to enjoy delicious heirloom tomatoes, ripened on the vine, that much longer this year. Just look at these beauties from Oxbow Farm.

Fresh, whole coho salmon from Wilson Fish. Photo copyright 2009 by Zachary D. Lyons.

Wilson Fish had these magnificent, fresh, whole coho salmon at Madrona Farmers Market on the 10th, too. Coho is a great eating fish at a great price, and buying it whole provides you with an even better value.

Chef Sabrina Tinsley of La Spiga showing off her pan-tossing skills with Tonnemaker squash on July 10th. Photo copyright 2009 by Zachary D. Lyons.

Chef Sabrina Tinsley, owner of La Spiga, performed a cooking demonstration for us on the 10th. She showed us wonderfully simple and delicious preparations of squash, Treviso radicchio, and cauliflower with romanesco and bacon — recipes to be posted here soon.

Schmidt's Blueberry Farm rejoined the Madrona Farmers Market for the 2009 season on July 10th. Photo copyright 2009 by Zachary D. Lyons.

The 10th marked the return of Schmidt’s Blueberry Farm for 2009. What a spectacular berry season this year has seen. I do hope you are making the most of it. And if you have yet to succumb to the power of berries, this next image, of the mixed berry flat at Jessie’s Berries, will surely break you.

The mixed berry flat at Jessie's Berries. Photo copyright 2009 by Zachary D. Lyons.

Of course, we’ve got more fruit than just berries at the Market. How about these first-of-the-season Arctic Star nectarines from Tiny’s Organic Produce?

The first nectarines of the year, brought to you by Tiny's. Photo copyright 2009 by Zachary D. Lyons.

And here’s one of my favorite fruits, the Sungold cherry tomato from Local Roots:

Sungold cherry tomatoes from Local Roots are sweet, with low acidity and a nice round flavor. Photo copyright 2009 by Zachary D. Lyons.

I know. Some of you are wanting to make the argument that tomatoes are vegetables, not fruits. Indeed, we list them on the vegetable page in this blog. But the bottom line is that when the food is wrapped around the seeds, in it technically a fruit, which also makes these Tonnemaker cucumbers fruits, too.

A mix of slicing, English and pickling cucumbers from Tonnemaker. Photo copyright 2009 by Zachary D. Lyons.

If you aren’t kicking yourself right now for missing the Madrona Farmers Market on Friday, July 10th, there may be no hope for you. And if you miss it again, rest assured, we will be mocking you here next week. Don’t risk it. We’ll see you at the Market.