Brett and I thought we hit the jackpot as far as farmers markets were concerned, when we moved here last July in the middle of winter. We had no idea what was in store for us when summer arrived! We spent the summer munching our way through fresh local produce, the volume of which we had never seen before. There were cherries, peaches, plums, stawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, nectarines, grapes (all kinds), avacados, grapefruits, you name it, we ate it! There were also fun new Chilean discoveries that we had either not tried or never heard of before: chirimoya, tuna (not tuna as we know it, but a little green cactusy fruit, which reminds me a little of kiwi), fresh figs, fresh dates, the list goes on and on! There are also several tasty fruits that we eat from time to time that we still don't even know the name of. There is some type of fruit that is orange and looks like a blown-up puffer fish, complete with spines. I keep asking the name of it, but my brain can't seem to remember what it is called. I think perhaps it's because I really just want to keep on calling it puffer fruit.
As fall is winding down and we're starting the long, cold march into wintertime, we are enjoying checking out the new array of produce. We've switched from eating many fruits to eating many vegetables. We've been eating lots of fresh beets (my favorite) and zapallo, a type of squash (Brett's favorite). We've also been buying monster butternut squashes...one of them could feed a family of 5 for a week! We've been making lots of tasty fall soups. (And by "we" you all know that I mean Brett, of course! I can't cook to save my soul.)
As a part of the Shaw tradition, Brett's mom makes a killer persimmon pie every year for Thanksgiving. I just noticed at the market last week that they had a mountain of persimmons, which I have never used before. I might not be able to cook, but I do fancy myself a baker. If I can manage it soon, I'll be sure to post a photo...
These shots are from our favorite local market, where we buy our produce every Sunday. The merchants are lovely, and always inquire where we've been if we don't make it each week. There is also another market nearby, La Vega Central, which might just be the biggest farmers market in the universe. It is housed in an enormous warehouse and spills out into a continual hodge-podge of vendors for blocks. It is open daily and sells everything you can possibly imagine. It is an incredible place to buy your goods, but we prefer our local little market where we can chat with the vendors.
We saw quite an extraordinary sight at the market just last week...there was a little old granny who I would guess to be about 90 years old. She was just a tiny little thing who was maybe 4'9"or so. She was thin and was peering from behind her big specs on a chain at the zapallo, the squash that grows to about the size of the Great Pumpkin. The vendors set a huge zapallo on a chopping block for the day and when you tell them how much you want, they pick up the big machete and hack off the amount you've requested. Granny didn't have time to mess around with the vendors. When she had decided how much squash she wanted, she went over, picked up the huge machete (which looked like it weighed more than she did) and she hacked vigorously at that zapallo until she had her little hunk. I had to pull Brett out of the danger zone, since he was standing right next to her when she started swinging. Go Granny!
