In this Issue:

Upcoming Events About Organic Foods, Part 2 From Our Market New Recipes Essay Contest Winners

UPCOMING EVENTS

Martinez: Music: Paulette Rene Managers: Janice Faust & Karen Stiles. E-mail: mmarket@cccfm.org From Karen Stiles, Co-Manager: The weather has been good to the farmers lately. The Alhambra Valley Pears are still going strong, but for how long depends on the weather, get them while you can. Ibarra-Cruz Farm sure has had some good corn! Rose Lane Farms of Brentwood, still has the heirloom tomatoes they are famous for. Daisy Ortiz Berries has very sweet blackberries as well as strawberries. J & J Farms are still putting out some good nectarines and peaches. Cauliflower from Calderon Farms is very good mashed like potatoes. Yumm! Anna's Ruvalcaba Flower Farms have flowers that give your home a nice fresh feeling from flowers that lasts a week or more. Uppercrust Bakery of Davis is now selling fresh tortillas (as well as their staples, bread, tarts, cookies ect.) in many flavors and they do have flavor, not just colored tortillas, Jeanine, our resident baker will be at the market with her delicious flavored scones. I like the maple. What's your favorite? Fleur De Lourds Orchids are beautiful and at this price make a wonderful hostess gift. Our music will be by Paulette Rene who has a lovely voice and it is a delight to hear her sing. Come on down to the market and enjoy all we have to offer. For more info Orinda: Music: Legends of Martinez Manager: Janice Faust. E-mail: omarket@cccfm.org From Jan Faust, Manager: Hi Orinda Shoppers, If you haven't been to the Orinda Farmers' Market recently, I would like to issue you a personal invitation to come down this Saturday. We miss you. I know you're busy and there are a million things that need to get done on a Saturday morning. Perhaps you have simply gotten out of the habit, or maybe you are shopping at another Farmers' Market nearby. Whatever the reason, I urge you to come down and support not only our local growers and producers, but your own community as well. You see, Orinda schools, Orinda community organizations, even your Mayor come to the Farmers' Market to reach you, to get their important message to you, to seek your support. The Orinda Farmers' Market is your own community's Farmers' Market and we need your support, too. So arrange your downtown errands to include a stop at the Farmers' Market. We will be happy to see you, and you will be glad you made the extra effort because you know the produce is the freshest, the best, and the highest quality you will find anywhere. Please stop by the Manager's stall and say "hi". As always, thank you for shopping at the Orinda Farmers' Market. And why not bring a friend?! For more info Pleasant Hill: Music: Bryan Harrison Band Manager, Karen Stiles. E-mail: pmarket@cccfm.org Cooking Demo: Late summer vegetable cooking demo with market chef Lesley Stiles 11 am to noon. Free yoga with Sugi Studios 9 am to 10 am in the Community Room at Pleasant Hill City Hall adjacent to the Farmers’ Market. From Karen Stiles, Manager: Hope your week went well. If you didn't get a chance to get out and enjoy the weather, this Saturday will be a good day to come to the market and enjoy your shopping experience. Our Market Chef Lesley will be having a cooking demonstration and will have recipes to hand out. I don't know what she will cook up for us but at the last demonstration, Fatush salad was excellent. Lesley's food inspiration is quite a blessing as sometimes I get in a rut with my recipes and she comes along with a quick, easy dish that tastes great. Wonder what surprise we have in store for us. Cooking demonstration is from 11 AM to noon. There will be a free Yoga class in the Pleasant Hill Community Room, located by the pond from 9 AM to 10 AM. If you have never tried Yoga this is a good opportunity to experience the effects after just one class. I think if we taught Yoga starting in kindergarten we would have fewer physical ailments as we age. Yoga wakes us up to our body. After the class stop at the market and pickup some fresh fruit and veggies. See you there! For more info Walnut Creek: Music: Susanne Holland Manager: Keith Farley. E-mail: wmarket@cccfm.org From Keith Farley, Manager: Bakesale Betty will be out for the next 2 weeks. If you need to contact her email her directly at alison@bakesalebetty.com For more info.

ABOUT ORGANIC FOODS by Keith Farley, Manager, WC

Is organic food safe? Yes. Organic food is as safe to consume as any other kind of food. Just as with any kind of produce, consumers should wash before consuming to ensure maximum cleanliness. Organic produce contains significantly lower levels of pesticide residues than conventional produce. It is a common misconception that organic food could be at greater risk of E. coli contamination because of raw manure application although conventional farmers commonly apply tons of raw manure as well with no regulation whatsoever. Organic standards set strict guidelines on manure use in organic farming: either it must be first composted, or it must be applied at least 90 days before harvest, which allows ample time for microbial breakdown of pathogens. Is organic food really a significant industry? Approximately 2% of the U.S. food supply is grown using organic methods. Over the past decade, sales of organic products have shown an annual increase of at least 20%, the fastest growing sector of agriculture. In 2005, retail sales of organic food and beverages were approximately $12.8 billion (Natural Marketing Institute, Health & Wellness Trends Database, March 2006). Organic foods can be found at natural food stores and major supermarkets, as well as through grower direct marketing such as CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture) and farmers' markets. Many restaurant chefs across the country are using organic produce because they desire superior quality and taste. Organic food is also gaining international acceptance, with nations like Japan and Germany becoming important international organic food markets. Why does organic cost more? The cost of organic food is higher than that of conventional food because the organic price tag more closely reflects the true cost of growing the food: substituting labor and intensive management for chemicals, the health and environmental costs of which are borne by society. These costs include cleanup of polluted water and remediation of pesticide contamination. Prices for organic foods include costs of growing, harvesting, transportation and storage. In the case of processed foods, processing and packaging costs are also included. Organically produced foods must meet stricter regulations governing all these steps than conventional foods. The intensive management and labor used in organic production are frequently (though not always) more expensive than the chemicals routinely used on conventional farms. There is mounting evidence that if all the indirect costs of conventional food production were factored into the price of food, organic foods would cost the same, or, more likely, is cheaper than conventional food. Cost, however, is very dependent upon market venue and consumer product choice. It is possible to consume a moderately priced diet of organic foods by purchasing directly from farmers at venues such as farmers markets, and by choosing unprocessed organically grown foods at the grocery store. Keith Farley can be reached at wmarket@cccfm.org

FROM OUR MARKET by Chef Leslie Stiles

With all the bizarre weather patterns we experienced this summer I was not really sure that I could count on this amazing run of fall climate that is my favorite time of the season around these parts. The air has a heavier element to it that has the effect of making everything seem sensuous and thick, the colors, the smells, the tastes of long awaited fall produce. Pomegranates and persimmons are hanging from the trees as the leaves fall to create an autumn collage of abundance everywhere. My mom gave me her mom's Persimmon Pudding recipe when I was barely old enough to bake and it is one of my favorite desserts to prepare. When we were kids and our mom made it she always steamed it in a coffee can in a big pot on top of the stove. I will admit that I put it in the oven to cook but it still is one of the most decadent desserts of all times. Serve it with a dollop of unsweetened but vanilla flavored whipped cream. This is for the pudding by the way. If you can not wait for the ripened Hachiya persimmon, just freeze it for 24 hours and let it thaw. This gets rid of all those nasty tannins and makes it very soft and mushy, perfect for baking with. The Fuyu is great out of hand or sliced into salads. I have even mashed them into potatoes and loved it. Just slice and boil along with the potatoes or better yet along with some cauliflower and mash like you would potatoes. Pomegranates are back and the little jewel seeds are great for added flavor and fiber in salads and the fresh juice is probably one of the best antioxidants you can ingest. Grace has it at the Walnut Creek market. Grapes are at their peak right now and basil is still in and that means that it is possible to make one of my favorite salads of all time. Peter Chastain from Prima turned me on to this a few years ago when he was doing a cooking demo at the Walnut Creek market. Take a bunch of green and red grapes, wash and slice in half. Toss into a bowl with some sliced basil, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix it up and shave some parmesana reggiano over it or if you can find it, some fresh asiago. This is asiago that has not been aged like a parmesan but is soft like a jack cheese. I have found a really good goat Gouda at the Trader too that would be excellent in this salad. I know that I preach it all year, but this is the time to hike if you were ever going to. All the reservoirs around have waterfowl that have not taken off for the winter and are busy getting ready so there are a lot of them hanging out to see. The lagoons in Briones are full of creatures to get intimate with and the Lafayette reservoir is really beautiful this time of year. It always reminds me of Italy. We are truly fortunate to have all this in our backyards. Lesley Stiles can be reached at chef@cccfm.org or on the market hotline 925 431-8361