Leave your umbrellas at home!

Sunshine. Sunshine. Sunshine. Sunshine. Sunshine. Sunshine. Sunshine. Sunshine. Sunshine. Sunshine. Sunshine. Sunshine. Sunshine. Sunshine!

Finally, after weeks of soggy Saturdays, we have a gorgeous blue-sky day to look forward to with temperatures that will have you wondering if November really is less than a week away. Perfect weather to decorate a pumpkin at the market  (we’ll supply the googly eyes!) and for all the Halloween activities planned this weekend. 

If the warm weather has your head spinning the produce bins will set you straight: pretty stacks of kabocha, butternut, honey nut and delicata squash in shades of fallen leaves. 

You can also expect leeks, cauliflower, cabbage, turnips, bok choy, kale and Brussels sprouts—and of course, sugar pumpkins which you should incorporate into your meals. Roast those sugar pumpkins to make mashed pumpkin with cumin and maple syrup or mashed potatoes with roasted pumpkin and greens. Find these and other pumpkin recipes here.

Try this golden glow soup recipe which lives up to its name. It’s made with bone broth, sweet potatoes, carrots, ginger, turmeric, lemon, and kale. Rice and chicken thighs round it up to a hearty and satisfying meal. Or, try this vegetarian crispy lentil and butternut squash soup. The lentils are an optional add... but why would you omit them?

Have you seen the giant leeks at the Morgiewicz Produce tent? I always keep leeks on hand this time of year to incorporate into any recipe that calls for more common onions. Their strong, yet delicate flavor enhances any dish. Careful, there is often dirt or fine sand tucked with the leeks' layers. It works well to slice them thinly and put all the slices into a colander to rinse well. Try this “elevated” leek and potato soup from Bon Appetit.

Once again, Harlem Valley Homestead is offering 20 percent off all of their gorgeous chicory (and radicchio). They will have chicory all winter long so you should definitely let yourself get hooked on these bitter and bouncy salad greens!

I recently heard that Jeff Miller, the chef at Rosella on Avenue A in New York City, a sustainable sushi restaurant known for using as many local ingredients as possible, is now using the rice from Great Joy Farm for his omakase menu. How cool is that? Their bok choy is sublime and the perfect side to the monk fish at Pura Vida Farm.

Monkfish, also known as poor man’s lobster, is so meaty it really begs to be roasted. My mom used to cut slits inside the fish fillet and slide a knob of garlic in each one, then top with thyme and lemon slices and slow roast. You can try this David Tanis recipe which invites olives, whole and/or mashed, to the roasting party. The fish is that meaty that it stands up to olives just as a leg of lamb would. This would be so delicious with steamed quartered fennel bulbs doused with lemon and a drizzle of Kontoulis olive oil.

Once those Jack-O-Lanterns start to shrivel, you know the holidays are right around the corner. Get a head start on your gift giving this year: Mermud Pottery Studio will be here as will Zstudio Zsa Zsa, featuring hand-sewn aprons in vintage fabrics and Paper Pigeon has all sorts of cool paper goods. 

Of course, anyone will be happy to receive the gift of good skin care. Ash & Hopper will also be here with their unique botanical soap bars and other skin products.

This sudden about-face in the weather means Sea Change Flower Farm can join us for one more week! Huzzah!

Thanks to all who contributed to the food pantry last week. We delivered a bountiful fall basket with lots of ground chicken and beef to local families in need. 

And thanks to Hibba for bringing her Central Park-themed umbrella to the market. It added a touch of whimsy to another dreary wet day. Hibba: come pick up your gift of a string bag. 

See you at the market!