The last of the trailing hurricane rains left the Hudson Valley on Saturday, and Sunday dawned a classic, sunny October morning. After a quick stop to see what was happening at the Beacon Flea Market, (open Sundays through November 15) my companion and I headed to the Beacon ferry dock to the farmer’s market. Our favorite farm, Common Ground Farm, was there, and so was our favorite farm manager, CGF’s Suan Paykin, who was presiding over a cornucopia of fall vegetables brought to fruition by her and her crew, Erika Brenner and Sarah Simon.
We choose some carrots, turnips and squash for the week, and Susan reminded us not to forget to eat the turnip greens as well as the turnips.
Despite sitting in the sun for 4 more hours while parked at a birthday party, an ice bath in the fridge restored the turnip leaves to a vigorously crisp state. Shown in the bowl is less than half of what you get from one $4 bunch of turnips–I ate the rest earlier at lunch time.
The turnips were peeled and cut up, then sauteed with oil for about 20 minutes until tender. The greens are added and cooked until wilted. Salt, pepper, a squeeze of lemon, and a Piggery hot dog from Beacon Natural Market on the side, and there you have a delicious fall dinner.
Barring an early frost, Susan expects to have spinach and other greens through the end of the month, with squash and other winter offerings available into November. The beautiful flower bouquet poking out from the panniers is from Diana Mae Flowers, which will soon be featuring dried arrangements at the market.
On the way to the birthday party we stopped for a quick shot from one of our favorite vantage points to take in the view of Mt. Beacon.
Feature photo: Common Ground Farm manager Susan Paykin talks squash with a customer.
Very nice. Is this a guest post by little beacon blog?
Just kidding. Love your blog and keep up the good work!
Thank you. Wigwam occasionally serves up a bit of respite from the many quandaries of our times. For instance, check out the Photo Galleries category.