Little Italy Mercato

September 17th at Amici Park in Little Italy
9am – 1:45pm, $5 Lunch Challenge @ Noon

Surprisingly, there is a a lack of access to fresh fruits and vegetables in this city and people are eating more fast food than home-cooked meals, thus increasing the rates of diet-related diseases. As a part of Slow Food USA’s campaign to take back the ‘value meal’, Slow Food Urban San Diego has partnered with SD Weekly Markets to host the $5 Challenge to encourage people to cook meals together using ingredients that are good for those who eat them, good for farmers and workers, and good for the planet.

On September 17th from 9am-1:45pm, join us at Amici Park, alongside the Little Italy Mercato to discuss questions and share recipes together. Jill Richardson, author of Recipe for America: Why Our Food System is Broken and What We Can Do To Fix It will be selling books and hosting a discussion about local food systems.

So get creative, get together with friends, and come out to the Mercato this weekend to support our local farmers and food system, and create your own, delicious and nutritious $5 meal! 

Watermelon Gazpacho

It's the last week of August, which means there are way too many melons rolling around. With dozens of varieties at this week's Little Italy Mercato, It's time to try on watermelon gazpacho this week and dazzle your friends at your next dinner gathering. You could make a watermelon salad, serve it up in standard, succulent slices, or use the whole fruit as a canteen for your favorite mixed beverage! (Even early world explorers like Magellan were smart on this trick, come on!)

Kawano Farms offers perfect, round red tomatoes to mix in to gazpacho and there are peppers and onions and basil galore at Sage Mountain Farms.Grab one or two sweet yellow watermelons from JR Organics or Tom King Farms to start. Dice the melon (sans rind) and add one medium sized Armenian cucumber from Suzie's Farm. Add freshly chopped red bell peppers, mint, and parsley from Vang Farms, a dash of aged balsamic vinegar from Gianni's Fine Foods and one minced shallot from Schaner's. Drizzle with olive oil from Marion's Olive Oil, and a hint of Salt Farms blended Tomato Spice Salt.

PS: Go ahead and make yourself a double batch- seems to run out quickly on these hot days!!
 

Prickly Pears Beware!

Now, when you pick a pawpaw or a prickly pear, take advice from the big brown bear and don't pick the prickly pear by the paw! For a limited time only, visit Rancho Mexico Lindo and choose from their supply of super ripe prickly pear fruit at the Little Italy Mercato! Native to California and Mexico, this cactus fruit tastes like a fusion of sugary guava and juicy watermelon. Bursting with magenta or golden hues, it's chalk full of essential minerals like calcium and magnesium. All in all, something hard to resist and not to miss!

Enjoy a refreshing summer salad by combining the fruit of 1-2 prickly pears, with a basket of fresh chopped, glistening strawberries from JR organics. To add some tang to your tongue, toss in a few yellow raspberries from Pudwill Farms and chunks of sweet valencia oranges from Paradise Valley Ranch. Drizzle with raw, organic honey from Heritage Farms and you've got all the pear necessities.
 

THAT'S JUST GRAPE

Aesop might have been mistaken when he boasted about sour grapes, because we have tasted and we have seen their sweetness at the Little Italy Mercato. Stop by Lone Oak Ranch, Smit Orchards or Terra Bella Ranch to grab some of the finest grapes of the first harvest.

If you're bored with plain jane grape salads and cheap grape popsicles, try your luck at making this surprisingly delightful grape and nectarine butter. It will surely turn any sour faces into smiles! Spread a dollop on a baguette from Bread & Cie, paired with a soft cheese like Minuet or even ripe Camembert from Taste Cheese. Or perhaps you'd like to enjoy it fresh with some rich, creamy peanut butter from Pacific Beach Peanut Butter on a slice of Sunflower Flaxseed bread from Belen Bakery. Mmmm.

Here's how you make it: Put 7-8 ripe nectarines, diced coarsely (no need to remove skins) and 4 cups of concord grapes in a large pan. Cover and simmer 20 to 30 minutes until the fruit gets soft. Strain seeds through a food mill (or mash and press through a fine strainers). Return remaining pulp to the pan. Boil gently, stirring constantly until reduced by half. Turn off the heat, add 1/4 cup of raw honey from Heritage Family Farms or Mikolich Farm and mix well. Pour fruit butter into sterilized jars, leaving some headspace. Check out Simply Canning for proper sealing/canning methods and tips..

SOVEREIGN STONEFRUIT

Decadent and evocative, this crimson queen. As the summer sun warms the earth in his elegant embrace, she emerges brazenly, a glistening jewel among other fruits. Her flesh-exceptionally juicy, intensely sweet. Her skin, bold and ostentatious, stealing the hearts of every foraging soul.

Yes, friends, the time has come to surrender to the mighty flavor of the Pluot. Often referred to as "dino eggs", the pluots are an elaborate cross species of Plum and Apricot, their skin variegated with hues of dark red wine, and vibrant amber sunsets. With names like "Dapple Dandy", "Flavorosa", "Emerald Drop", and "Raspberry Jewel", how you can you even resist!?

Here are a few tantalizing ways to play with the queen of summer stone fruits. Lone Oak Ranch and Smit Orchards have a stunning offering of just plucked pluots, which should still be somewhat firm when you select them.

1. Grilled: Half the pluots and brush with a little honey (from Robert Turner's amazing honey stand) and Dijon mustard. Grill until browned on both sides. If you're feeling really sexy, pick up a pound of pork or lamb chops from Da Le Ranch to serve alongside and you'll have an impressive dinner plate.

2. Brûléed: Spread sliced pluots in a shallow baking dish and sprinkle with brown sugar. Broil until bubbly and browned. Serve hot with vanilla ice cream or some delicious Lemon Quark from Spring Hill Cheese.

3. In salsa: Use chopped pluots instead of tomatoes in fresh salsa- mix with lime juice from Schaner Farms, chopped chiles from Suzie's, and onion & cilantro from Vang Farms

4. In salad: Adding sliced pluots to your tender greens makes for a dazzling salad. Toss in some crumbled goat feta from Nicolau Farms to a plate of greens from Sage Mountain Farm, and dress with a soft, sweet balsamic vinegar from Falcone- La Bella Olives.