Being a Local Foodie

This past weekend I popped into the Union Square Greenmarket for a look around and to pursue a short list of foodie pleasures. It was my first visit, and I was a little surprised to find that a Falun Gong celebration (World Falun Dafa day) was being held right at the spot the market was supposed to be. I made my way along the edge of the park through a long row of artists and Chinese women with protest fliers before I finally found the beginnings of the market.

I was surprised to note that the market is more than just edible items. In fact, the first stalls had rows of brightly blooming flowers for New York gardens. Since I get approximately zero light in my shadowy apartment, I moved on past to the goodies.

The first item on my wishlist was some artisan cheese. I found a stall offering sheep's milk rounds, and after trying a bite of the blue cheese, I got a slice wrapped to go. Somehow it managed to make its way back to my apartment in New Jersey without being too destroyed.

Even though I was almost overwelmed by the stalls of every type of green imaginable, I also managed to find a place selling ramps, a type of wild leek and a sign of Spring that I wasn't sure would be on offer. I'm still trying to figure out what to cook with them.

I managed to resist the stalls selling fresh baked bread, but couldn't resist the fresh honey, still in the comb, from a New York farm. The man behind the counter was telling another shopper that he used to love giving tours of his bee farm, but due to those individuals that make a living from filing lawsuits, he can no longer let anyone on his property in case of bee sting. Such a shame!

After my little excursion to the Greenmarket, I also hopped the subway to the upper east side to visit a little shop called Kitchen Arts & Letters. This tiny place offers an array of cookbooks unmatched in any other store I know of (except maybe Amazon.com). And it's cute. And it's independently owned. If I lived in New York City, I would soon be broke from trying to acquire the entire collection, but this trip I settled for Pie.