Greenmarkety Goodness

My visit to Union Square last week yielded all I hoped it would. Magnificent sweet, fragrant, luscious local strawberries. Tender kuta squash. Silky fresh sugar snap peas. Baby white turnips with crisp tasty tops. Pretty golden chard.

Personally I'm not wild about chard, but it's leafy and green and unlike spinach or beets the stems are tasty when stringed and cut small and added to a pan of mixed vegs. I didn't get beets Friday as I didn't want to carry them and the turnips, but I'll get some Wednesday. Beet tops are tastiest in spring; we've found autumn beet roots are delicious but the tops can be unpleasantly metallic, even if parboiled with mixed greens southern-style.

Stir-fried random tonight will be a treat, as I'm still plowing through the bounty I brought home Friday. Jersey asparagus is just ending but Agata & Valentina's still has some, so that goes in the pan with the squash, peas, turnip tops and chard stems. Also sliced sweet onion.Then diagonally-sliced Chinese sausage, just 2 or 3. A handful of walnut halves. Garlic. Ponzu, sesame oil, sesame seeds to finish. Served over rice, or maybe I'll finish up the rice noodles I bought over the winter but keep forgetting to cook.

The strawberries are superb just as is. I'm finally making that coconut-streusel peach pie this afternoon and I might just toss in a few, along with some blueberries. Once that's gone I'll do a mixed berry pie with an oat-crumble topping. And muffins. O my yes.