salmon

Look for fresh, sweet English peas from Maciel Farm at the San Diego Public Wednesday Farmers’ Market. Try them in a simple spring salad with fresh mint from Suzie’s Farm or sautee them in a succotash with sweet corn from Kawano Farms’ stand.

Add them to a seafood paella with local fish and shellfish from the Salmon Slinger, or puree peas with cilantro and limes from Gilbert Quintos Farm for this unique peacamole.

Like other legumes, peas are packed with protein and fiber, especially in proportion to their low total calories. But fresh peas also contain antioxidants called phytonutrients and a generous helping of omega-3 acids. The next time you think of a healthy green side dish, visualize whirled peas.

Get fresh with sprouts from Suzie’s Farm at the North Park Thursday Farmers’ Market. We like to mix onion sprouts with kale from J.R. Organics Farm plus avocado and a squeeze of lemon from Paradise Valley Ranch in this outrageously healthy salad.

Use spicy China rose radish sprouts to add crunch to a sandwich of Colby Jack from Spring Hill Cheese Company and cucumber from Valdivia Farms on sliced French bread from Belen Bakery. Wrap sprouts with smoked fish from Salmon Slinger and whipped garlic spread from Hani's Olives in a fresh tortilla from Don Tommy's, or add pumpkin sprouts to a slaw of cabbage and carrot from Kawano Farms.

There’s no doubt we love sprouts!

Fresh and aged goat cheeses from Nicolau Goat Farm at the San Diego Public Wednesday Farmers’ Market are the basis for all kinds of fantastic meals; stop by Suzie’s Farm and La Dona Tortillas to make red chard, onion and goat cheese tacos, or pick up smoked Alaskan fish from the Salmon Slinger and citrus from Gilbert Quintos for smoked salmon and goat cheese dip.

Try their amazing chevre filled ravioli and visit Maciel Farm and Bistro Blends to make this kale pesto to top them. Be sure to try the semi-soft, gouda-like Stanislaus Capream and the aged Stagionato Misto cheese as well. You can also find their great goat cheese topping fresh local seafood at Supernatural Sandwiches - try the Harpy.

It’s a baa-ad idea to miss out on Nicolau Farm goat cheese!

We can’t guarantee that ripe avocados from Gilbert Quintos Farm at the San Diego Public Wednesday Farmer’s Market are actually an aphrodisiac, but they can definitely be part of a romantic Valentine’s Day dinner. Scoop out a couple avocados, blend with a little vegetable stock, lemon and your favorite fresh herbs and serve chilled for a silky smooth soup.

Toss thick slices of avocado with chopped radicchio and lettuce from Maciel Farm and Bistro Blends’ Citrus Balsamic for a luxurious salad, or drizzle avocado puree over a grilled wild Alaskan filet from the Salmon Slinger for a satisfying entree.

Want a new way to serve this classic SoCal fruit? Check out this grilled avocado variation. Try Chef Trey Foshee’s avocado cheesecake for dessert - we used chevre from Nicolau Farms and it turned out fantastic!

The new nut at the North Park Thursday Farmers’ Market is California pistachios from Smit Orchards and Hopkins AG; they’re perfect on their own as a crunchy snack but also make a wonderful addition to all sorts of sweet and savory dishes.

We like to toss them into a smoothie of JR Organics’ strawberries and Smit Orchards’ apple cider, sprinkle them over a salad of Suzie’s Farm arugula drizzled with oil and vinegar from the California Olive, or stir-fry them with broccoli and mushrooms from Kawano Farms.

Try them in this pistachio-date pie with medjools from Morocco Gold Dates or pick up fresh fennel from Suzie’s Farm and fish from the Salmon Slinger for wild Alaskan salmon with pistachio pesto. Italians are fond of pureeing pistachios with honey and using it like butter - go to Meljess Bees and try it out for yourself!

Fresh California oranges from Smit Orchard, R&L Farms and Paradise Valley Ranch at the North Park Thursday Farmers’ Market are sure to brighten your day.

Pair them with pomegranates and fresh mint from Suzie’s Farm in this holiday punch or visit the Spice Lady and make a festive orange pomander. Roasted beets from Proios Farm co-star with the citrus in this winter salad (we couldn’t resist topping it with chevre from The San Diego Cheese Store), and wild Alaskan filets from the Salmon Slinger get a burst of brightness in this orange-fennel-salmon.

Try a new twist on broccoli from Kawano Farms with this recipe for roasted florets or just simply peel and eat your favorite orange on the go! Orange you glad you get year round citrus?

You’ll find Swiss chard at Suzie’s Farm, JR Organics and African Sisters’ Farm at the North Park Thursday Farmers’ Market throughout the winter, long after the fickle summer vegetables have left the market.

Pick up potatoes from Proios Family Farm and plenty of fresh parsley for this Mediterranean style, vegan stuffed chard recipe, or grab some Mountain Meadow mushrooms from the Kawano Farms stand for this simple, warm, earthy mushroom-chard soup. You could kick it up a notch by combining chard with organic jack cheese from Springhill Cheese Company in these enchiladas, or visit the Salmon Slinger and try this chard wrapped salmon - you’ll also need a couple oranges from Smit Orchards for that recipe.

Shop green(s) at the market this week - it isn’t that chard!

Celebrate Beer Week by pairing great local brews with fantastic produce from the Pacific Beach Tuesday Farmers’ Market. Find fuyu persimmons at Ranchito Rainbow, Lone Oak Ranch or Smit Orchards, and combine them with fennel from Suzie’s Farm and Nicolau Farm’s chevre in this salad; pair it with Alesmith Li’l Devil, a bright, fruity and spicy Belgian-style ale.

Roasted winter squashes from JR Organics or Proios Family Farm go great with amber ales; we especially liked this kabocha squash recipe with Green Flash Hop Head Red. San Diego brewers are best known for their India Pale Ales, but you’ll need a bold dish to stand up to their strong flavors - try throwing wild Alaskan salmon filets from the Salmon Slinger on the grill with a glaze of pureed guavas from Gilbert Quintos Farm.

There’s some tasty ideas brewing at the market this week!

It's the last weekend, for a while, to catch Bristol Bay and their amazing sockeye salmon at the Little Italy Mercato before they return to the great outdoors of Alaska.

Right about now, the salmon are retuning to cold waters, the last stop on their yearly migration. And each year, around this time, Bristol Bay Salmon Company must leave us here at the Mercato and venture back up to the cold waters of Alaska - Bristol Bay to be exact - to procure more fresh wild salmon. There really is nothing quite like freshly caught wild salmon, so we bid adieu for a month or two to let these guys return to their ship "Vortex" and do what they do best, fish. The salmon they catch is filleted, vacuum sealed, and flash frozen within hours of harvest ensuring you get the very best omega-3 packed fish you know and love. Offering only what's been harvested from the current season, Bristol Bay does salmon the right way.

From the chipotle smoked salmon dip, to the smoked and fresh fillets, come and get it while you still can on Saturday, then start the countdown to their return.

THEY'RE BAAACK

You say po-tay-toe, we say hooray! Potatoes have finally returned to the Little Italy Mercato and we couldn't be happier. Just as the weather warms, so do our hearts now that Polito Family Farms - yes, your trusty citrus vendor - recently cross certified with Weiser Family Farms to bring the little spuds to the masses every Saturday. Delicate little fingerlings in banana tones and rosy hues, ready to become your next market staple. We see a future full of potato salads, potatoes roasted and served next to a nice steak from Son Rise or Da Le Ranch, and blanched minted peas from Suzie's Farm or potatoes scattered on our plate of salad nicoise. What will you be making?