North Star's Asian Pears

I got an e-mail today from Katy Wich, Headhouse Market's Manager, passing on some info regarding North Star Orchard this Sunday at the Headhouse -

News flash:  We have Asian pears! Sweet and super-juicy, "Hosui" Asian pears are a big favorite.  Although it's always sad to see the peach and tomato season dwindle, it means that the Hosui are here!  We'll also have apple cider, and possibly Asian pear cider.

Not that I needed yet another reason to show up this Sunday...LOL

Ok, Check This Out!

From the Food Trust:

GreenFest Philly
What: The theme for Philly's 4th annual GreenFest is food! Shop the Headhouse Farmers' Market (10 a.m. to 2 p.m.) then explore the offerings of hundreds of green-friendly exhibitors, from eco-fashion to recycled art and, of course, sustainable foods.

When: September 13th, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Where: 2nd and South streets

I just checked out the GreenFest site and this looks like it's going to be awesome! Food symposiums, over 250 eco-vendors running the gambit from solar design to organic food, music, kids activities and all in the name of sustainability!  And the theme this year is FOOD!!!

From their website:

Highlighting everything from ORGANIC to BUYING LOCALLY to having a vegetarian or PASTURE-RAISED AND GRASS-FED diet, this year's event will allow us to educate others on the importance of supporting our local farmers' markets as well as how to make more conscious decisions at the grocery store. Come and try some of the eco-friendly foods available and learn about the impact our food choices have on the environment. Find out how easy it is for you to grow your own food - even if you are living in a studio apartment in Center City!  Come and learn the truth about food from the green leaders in the Organic Food Industry at our Food Symposium.

I am there! I better make some more cards. I AM SUPER PSYCHED ABOUT THIS!!! Now come on all you locavores and eco-warriors out there in Philly Food Feed land...(in my best Jim Breuer from Half-Baked) WHO'S COMING WITH ME???

Media Attention for the Vendors at Headhouse Farmers' Market

As most of you who frequent The Philly Food Feed already know, we usually spend our Sunday mornings perusing the local fare at the Headhouse Farmers' Market on Lombard Street in Philadelphia. While the freshness and taste of the food was validation enough for our weekly visits, a recent article in the August 5th edition of the Philadelphia Weekly has only added to the stellar reputation of the Headhouse. In an article entitled - Philly's 50 Must-Eats, four Headhouse market vendors are listed! This is quite an accomplishment that almost 10% of the list comes from the one farmers' market (Thanks Food Trust!). These vendors are -

Patches of Star - the PW has a penchant for the black raspberry pastured goat's milk ice cream dished out from Patches of Star. This is some of the Headhouse fare that we at the Feed have yet to try. You would think that after spending week after week here, we would have. Needless to say, we will be next Sunday!

Wildflour Bakery - PW highlights the sourdough from Wildflour. You can pick some of this up at the Headhouse. Wildflour is what I would call superlocal - right in Northeast Philadelphia!

Hilacres Pride - while Hilacres already offers Raw Milk at the market, PW pays special attention to their butter made from pastured cows. This is yet another of Headhouse's offerings we at the Feed have yet to try. It makes me wonder what we are doing there every Sunday! This is on our shopping list for the next time, that's for sure. PW compares it to Banana Ice Cream. Wow!

Three Springs Fruit Farm - Finally, kudos to Ben Wenk and the rest of the people at Three Spings Fruit Farm! The Philadelphia Weekly sings the praises of their cider. We at the Philly Food Feed have not yet partaken in this liquid bounty but will be sure to do so post haste. And not just because Ben mentions us on his website either...lol. We at the Feed are constantly snacking on Three Springs' peaches and nectarines. How we have not already tried the cider, I don't know. Thanks PW for turning us on to this...and thanks to Three Springs in advance for cider that, if it's anything like the donut peaches, will be nectar from the heavens!

I Love Being a Locavore!!!

On Sunday, Sarah, Ethan, and I once again made our way to the Headhouse Farmer’s Market on 2nd and Lombard in Philly. While I know I should be spreading the wealth and visiting different spots, something about Headhouse draws us back.
Perhaps it’s the cornucopia of vendors and choices. I always start at Blooming Glen Farm. Besides the fact that they are the first vendor on the right, they always have a huge selection of fruit that looks like it should be on the cover of Local Food Monthly. If only there was such a periodical! Maybe if this blog takes off…I digress. Blooming Glen supplied me with a couple of huge heirloom tomatoes which ended up on the grill later that evening. A little olive oil, a little salt and pepper, and a little basil – roasted on the barbeque. They were very tasty but I could have cooked them a bit longer. Good thing I will be buying more next week!
We also visited Ben Wenk and the gals at Three Springs Fruit Farm out of Aspers, Pennsylvania. These folks use IPM to control their pests which is great for you AND the environment. See, helping ourselves and the environment doesn’t have to be mutually exclusive! Ok, off of the soapbox…At Three Springs, I was introduced to the Italian Cucumber Melon which, if I would have been smart enough to bring my camera, you would be seeing here. They were a bit smaller in length than a regular cucumber but were fleshier and definitely sweeter. I know this because they adorned that night’s dinner salad as well as the rest of the vegetables from the day’s bounty. Before we departed from Three Springs we picked up yellow peaches as well. The family has been eating those all week. They are especially good peeled in oatmeal, believe it or not. We also blended a couple up for Ethan – they make terrific baby food!
When visiting Headhouse, we always make an obligatory stop at Natural Meadows Farms out of Mount Pleasant Mills, Pennsylvania. We picked up four pounds of pastured, ground meat which always makes the best burgers (sorry to my vegetarian friends). We made the first two pounds last night for my in-laws and after eating it, my mother-in-law said something that, as a burgeoning locavore, almost brought tears to my eyes – the taste was familiar to her and after trying to place it she said – “This is how food used to taste”. What a response!!! It validates everything I have been trying to do in regards to integrating local food into my family’s lives. It’s not just lip service! There is a difference between the Industrial Feedlot and the clover filled meadow! AWESOME!!!
Well, I think that is enough exclamation points for one post. Please, if you are visiting farmers’ markets, let us at The Philly Food Feed know. We want to hear all about your experiences. And if you haven’t yet, C’mon already. What are you waiting for?

A Visit to the Philadelphia City Hall Farmer's Market

When Ben posted about the opening of a Farmers Market being held every Wednesday at Philadelphia’s City Hall I was instantly intrigued. I immediately commented practically begging Ben to go and report back on what it was like. Ben's response was that I should go and report on it and I will be forever grateful for that suggestion.
If you are a Philly resident like me getting to City Hall is easy enough. There is always the option of the bus and El, but I opted for hopping on the R8 since the station is so close to my house. Cash in pocket and stylish city casual clothes on I embarked on my adventure with my friend Dana. Once we got to the Market East station at the Gallery we hopped off and went in search of promised good fresh food and fun times. Downtown here we come!
After grabbing an eye opening cup of coffee we navigated Market Street like a couple of pros and headed straight toward City Hall. Even if you have lived in Philadelphia your whole life approaching City Hall can be thrilling. You look straight up at William Penn’s statue beckoning you to the seat of city government and feel a sense of pride to be close to the action. However the city-pride in my veins quickly stopped pumping when we walked into the courtyard. I was surprised to see only four tables set up. Surely I thought that couldn’t be it and I felt a sudden sense of panic having dragged my friend here for nothing. “C’mon,” I said to Dana, “Let’s make the most of it!” and smiling I led her over hoping that I wasn’t wrong about the fun. And oh what fun it became!
The main stand that caught our attention was representing the McCann Farm from Elk Township, New Jersey. Dana and I looked over farm fresh corn, plump peas still in their pods, baskets of broccoli, and other great looking vegetables. I spotted the two owners, Anita and Nancy McCann, chatting with various customers and I waited for an opening to introduce myself. After warmly shaking hands I discovered that these two farmers were friendly and full of great stories. One story included Anita driving her tractor into a ditch as she tried to drive closer to a wi-fi signal to update her Facebook status. Once I heard this I was hooked since I am a die hard Facebook addict myself.
The best part of the McCann stand was the honey. I’m not talking plain old honey, instead there were honeys of varying flavors, like blueberry, and crystallized honey. We were given some to sample and my taste buds were treated to an explosion of flavor. The texture was an added treat. It was like tasting the nectar of the gods. Seriously, it was that good. I'm not kidding. I could easily picture myself spreading some on toast sans butter because with this honey there would be no need for any extra condiments.
The other stands at the market included a freshly brewed coffee area and a wonderful assortment of baked goods from a New Jersey baker. We took some pictures and since it was only 12:00pm Dana and I decided to step out and enjoy some of the action the city had to offer and get lunch. Before we headed home we came back to stock up on the McCann Farm vegetables and some baked snacks to fortify us for our trip home. I can honestly say that the trip was a rousing success. We had the opportunity to support regional growers and see some city sights. If you have the opportunity and a free Wednesday I would highly recommend you taking the time to visit the City Hall Farmers Market.

Happy Father's Day Locavores!

Today was my first Father's Day! I called my own father last week and asked if he wanted to have a BBQ at his house and he obliged. My contribution to today's fatherly festivities was some local, pastured, ground beef burgers. My father has read this blog and for some reason refers to me as "The Green Grocer" so I wanted to school him a bit on buying local and there was no better way to start than with the taste buds. I stopped over at the Headhouse Farmers' Market to pick-up the meat, as well as the upcoming week's fruit and vegetable haul for my family. While there are more than a couple vendors at the market that have pastured ground beef, I knew where I was going - Natural Meadows Farm. I have purchased pastured ground beef from Natural Meadows before and made some juicy delicious cheeseburgers with so I knew if I wanted to impress my family, I wasn't going to buck the system.
I made 12 burgers with a mixture of three pounds of the meat with added salt, cracked pepper, a couple of pastured brown eggs (also from Natural Meadows), a couple of good squirts of Worcester sauce, and some chopped red onion (also locally grown and purchased at Headhouse). My father and I barbequed them together (a couple of fathers sharing a Father's Day moment) and shared one before we brought them in for the rest of the family to enjoy. He was impressed and my father doesn't easily impress. I'm the liberal of the family so sometimes I am the butt of some good-natured ribbing about my local eating habits but he could only compliment the food. In fact, EVERYBODY at the barbeque was impressed and it gave me the opportunity to explain the benefits of pastured animals over the usual corn-fed-crap. And there it was. My family and I on my first Father's Day digging in and enjoying some local food and discussing it along with the environment and omega-3s I couldn't have asked for a better Father's Day gift!