Austin is lousy with Farmer’s Markets. And by lousy I mean in that Holden Caulfield way that they’re all over the place. According to the United States Department of Agriculture website, there are ten. Last Saturday morning, I went to the South Austin market, as well as the downtown farmer’s market.

I was surprised to find that there were only two vendors at the South Austin market. Located in the El Gallo parking lot on South Congress, the vendors were extremely small-scale. No chicken, beef, or eggs. One was organic, one was not, both were within 40 miles of Austin. They did have yummy-looking produce. I bought fresh figs, which were picked that morning and were insanely delicious, a pint of jalapeno peppers (yes, I’m wondering how I’m going to use all of them too), some banana peppers, tomatoes, onions, these really cool green squashes with a yellow stripe in the middle, and the big kind of eggplant. The reason I say the big kind is because I got a whole bunch of other kinds, including Japanese eggplant, Chinese eggplant and um…the white, round kind.

I picked up a cantaloupe on the advice of a fellow patron, whom the vendor knew by name. She said to pick one that was yellowish and smooth, that you could smell from the stem crater. You know — where the stem used to be. The figs (pictured below) really were very good. You’re supposed to eat them when they are mushy, and apparently they have a shelf life of about 20 minutes, which is why they aren’t usually available in grocery stores. Not very cost-effective and don’t stand up well to shipping. Lucky for me, according to this helpful website that lists what foods are in season in Texas right now, I can likely get these delicious suckers through August. The tomatoes I bought were not uniformly red like the ones in the grocery store — they were more orange and had some yellowish streaks in places. I did notice that when I picked them up they were soft. Not mushy, but soft like ripe fruit ought to be.

Although I was very happy with my produce purchases, I really wanted some meat and some fresh herbs, so I drove several blocks to the Downtown Farmer’s Market. I bought some ground Piedmontese grassfed beef (of which I had a most excellent free sample several weeks ago) from Farmer Russell, some sausage from Peach Creek Farms. While looking for their website I did find this review in the Austin Chronicle, which raves about the freshness of the pork as well as the convenience of ordering online and picking up at the market. And I did grill some of their effing incredible Italian Hot Sausage, which was unlike any sausage I’ve had in my life. It was so damn good, I think I could even bring myself to make it personally. According to their website, these Berkshire hogs are not hindered by “artificial restraints or industrial type enclosures.” I would love to get out there to visit this summer and take one of their tours.

I stocked up on basil, grape tomatoes, and another (big) bottle of Round Rock honey. I spotted some gorgeous oyster mushrooms and picked up a handful of those, along with some baby bellas. Notice the closed gills which indicate freshness. I learned this from someone I was dating who liked to cook a lot, not the vendor. I bought some more rosemary from the somewhat shy students of Garza High School. The huge bunch of basil and the grape tomatoes were from Tecolote Farms. That’s the farm that has a year-long waiting list for their CSA boxes. I confirmed this with the person working the stand, who indicated that it was in fact true, but that she could sign me up right now if I’d like. I don’t know though. First of all, I don’t think I’ll be in Austin much longer than a year, and also, I am somewhat skeptical of the whole CSA thing. Now before everyone gets all fired up, I agree with CSA boxes in principle, it’s just that I don’t really see the advantage of a CSA box over going to the market myself and picking out my own food. Not that they’re mutually exclusive, I just don’t really see the point. Seriously, I really want to know – is it a time/ convenience thing? It isn’t cheaper, I don’t think. Do you get “special” produce? Is it just sexier? What?

I came home, took food porn pictures, and immediately set to work preparing food. I made Baba Ghanouj, which I have never made before. The recipe I used was a bit heavy on the tahini, I think, but other than that, quite good. I cut up the extremely delicious cantaloupe, which actually inspired me to make a yummy sound upon first bite. I then used half of the enormous bunch of basil to make pesto, for which I just so happened to have the ingredients on hand. A sample proved the pesto (and therefore me) to be awesome.

I have to say that I don’t really get the whole eggplant thing yet. I roasted the li’l skinny ones, and I think I didn’t roast them long enough. They were mushy in parts and rubbery in others. Any help here would be greatly appreciated, as I still have eggplant out the wazoo. I whipped up a quick chicken couscous thing and we ate it all up. The chicken was S/O/L/E-less, leftover from Costco, I’m afraid. Speaking of Costco, I’m letting my membership go. First of all, there is a lot of waste involved in buying the stuff I’ve been buying there. My born-again eco-warrior hubby (E. Ho) and I are making a switch from using massive amounts of paper towels to using rags or cloths. Except that we also have a bajillion individually-wrapped paper towels to use or possibly donate to someone who for sure has to use them. Also, the food at Costco does not fit in with my newfound foodiness. Farmed salmon that is also artificially colored? To hell with that! I don’t need you, Costco. I can get my twenty-six bottles of ketchup somewhere else – one at a time.

Did I mention how much I love fresh figs? I felt like a country girl, like a Roman emperor, like a thieving peasant as I ate them. It’s nice to know that I can be conscientious about my food and still feel naughty eating it.