First Days of Farmers Market

Last Thursday marked the first day that Cooperative Extension had a presence at city Farmers Markets. Teams of about 6 people set up at both the Harlem Hospital and 175th Street markets. Linda Ameroso (my direct supervisor) and Erika Ichinose (a CUSP alum!) have been working months to establish their volunteer base, supplies, and resources. Being at Farmers Markets is kind of like going camping. By that I mean, Linda and Erika have had to make sure that we have fresh, running water with which to wash dishes and vegetables, a place to store supplies, and all the many necessities of taking a cooking demonstration on the road. It is of utmost importance to be "food-safe." This means that every kitchen utensil (from knives, to graters, to sponges) must be washed and bleached on site. (The bleaching is done using a 1 tablespoon bleach: 1 gallon of water ratio-- in order to sanitize)
At market, the teams prepared tossed salad. The salads were different at each market, as the produce varied a bit in regards to what the farmers had donated. The farmers are extremely generous. They provide heads of lettuce, bunches of carrots, beets, even interesting vegetables like "verdelago" that are new to me. They are in partnership with Cooperative Extension. They know that when the CCE volunteers prepare beautiful, appetizing food it highlights the fruits and vegetables they have worked so hard to grow. Conversations, led by a designated Cooperative Extension Community Educator, invite market customers to explore new ways of preparing foods, or introduce them to foods they might not have known. Of course there are the people who will have nothing to do with vegetables, even free ones! At Harlem Hospital one lady said "the only vegetable I'll eat is corn!" When she voiced dissatisfaction that she couldn't get corn at market that day I attempted to suggest that it was too early in the season for it. She disagreed and said that she could always get it at the store. The conversation was instructional for me in that it's always necessary for me to remember to try to meet people where they are when it comes to ideas about food and eating.
Saturday was really fun, as I went to Red Hook to assist with a demonstration at Added Value's first farmers market. We got to dance and jive to drumming music (thanks to Emma, who organized it!) while we cooked zucchini that we picked right from the farm. I had a great time giving out free samples of farm-fresh food. Encouraging people to eat more local, fresh vegetables and giving them free ways to try new things seems like a positive endeavor all-round. We had quite a few people come back for seconds, and even some of the kids admitted that they liked the zucchini!