It was a beautiful morning this past Saturday. There was a warm breeze wafting between the trucks and tents of the vendors as they were setting up for Saturday’s market in downtown Farmington. This week, all the stars of summer and fall came together. You could find everything from eggplant and cayenne peppers to heirloom tomatoes, acorn squash and corn. This was the last week for peaches, but the beginning of pumpkin season.
Now, really, there is no comparison between the perfect summer peach and the perfect fall pumpkin. Peaches are lush and juicy, dripping a sugary trail of nectar down your arm. Pumpkins will yield a comforting, velvety puree to warm you on a cold night.
The CSA basket from Fusilier Family Farms weighed about ten pounds and contained corn, acorn squash, tomatoes, broccoli, sweet peppers (yellow, orange and green), onion, plums and peaches (I eschewed the apples for a last blast at summer’s stone fruit), carrots (with tops!) and eggplant. I picked up some gorgeous shiitake mushrooms and an arm roast of beef, too.
I steamed the broccoli so it is ready to go for lunch or dinner. The peaches and plums are ripening on the counter. So, you ask, what’s on the menu? How about a slow stew of an arm roast of beef with carrots, onions, garlic, shiitake mushrooms and some red wine, finished with chopped peaches? Just the thing for dinner and for the freezer.