ASAP | From Here | Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project

The weather continues to defy autumn’s arrival, but cooler-weather crops are arriving at farmers tailgate markets, including fresh root vegetables like radishes, beets, carrots, and turnips.

Watermelon radishes are a particularly fun find right now, spotted at both Ten Mile Farm (Asheville City Market, River Arts District Farmers Market) and Headwaters Market Garden (Asheville City Market). These heirloom varieties of the daikon are all business on the outside and party on the inside, with fuschia cores rimmed in white and lime green, reminiscent of their namesake. You can snack on them or use them as a dipper as you would other varieties of radish, but their bright centers beg for a pretty presentation. Here are a few suggestions.

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With the bouts of sunshine and rain we’ve seen through the past week, farmers tailgate markets should be popping with produce and blooms this week. Mother’s Day is Sunday, so make that part of your Friday afternoon or Saturday morning shopping plan. Even if you’re a mid-week market-goer, our guess is that Mom would be happy to be showered in local food love any day of the week.

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More harbingers of spring showed up at markets around the region this past weekend. One such pioneer is sorrel, which Jake’s Farm at Asheville City Market-Winter has had for the past two weeks. Read the rest of this entry »

Fruit can be hard to come by in the winter if you’re shopping locally in Western North Carolina. Apples are a rosy-hued exception, and they continue to be available from storage through most of the season. Creasman Farms (Asheville City Market-Winter, Transylvania Farmers Market) usually has ten or so varieties, ranging from the crunchy-tart Arkansas Black to the sweeter, juicier Pink Lady. Read the rest of this entry »

Can you give your loved one a locally grown Valentine’s Day bouquet, even in midst of winter? Yes, you can!

Carolina Flowers returned to Asheville City Market-Winter a few weeks ago and has anemones, hyacinths, paperwhites, and amaryllis. The farm offers vases of flowers as well as bulbs, which means your gift will last longer than a traditional cut-flower bouquet. Enduring living-plant gifts can also be procured from Finally Farm, which has an assortment of potted succulents in many sizes. Read the rest of this entry »

The belief that the winter months are a time of culinary asceticism has certainly been debunked by the early markets of 2019. An abundance of produce has lined the booths, including assorted lettuces and salad greens; darker greens like Chinese broccoli, spinach, kale, collards, and bok choy; jewel-toned radishes and sweet potatoes; buckets of apples; and more. With such a wealth of options, there is opportunity to branch out and try a few meal-time variations.

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There’s no better meal than the feast on Thanksgiving to stuff your dinner dishes with local produce and ingredients. This year, area farmers tailgate markets have an abundance of appetizing foodstuffs to be thankful for, perfect for every component of the big meal. This Thanksgiving, get local!

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We love hearing (and tasting!) how area Appalachian Grown partner restaurants embrace our Get Local campaign. This month, many of them are going whole hog when it comes to the feature foods: local meats, including trout! Get ready for your mouth to water.

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This week, scoop up your summer favorites from area farmers tailgate markets before they’re gone and store them away for winter. After all, fall will officially take summer’s place in about a month. Try freezing fresh okra so you can warm up with a pot of local gumbo once the cool weather arrives. Pickle beans and peppers together for dilly beans; they’ll serve as a crisp summery reminder. Or, freeze berries and can peaches to enjoy more than apples next season. We hear McConnell Farms had three types of peaches at last weekend’s Asheville City Market!
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