Spring Celebration News

Hello Market Friends:

Maybe your home is better organized than ours. We haven’t gotten round to packing away our woolies yet, and now we’re searching for our shorts. In classic Toronto style, a week after griping about the cold, we are starting to complain that it’s too hot. But let’s pause to celebrate this glorious time of year. Have the blossoms ever been more beautiful? And the lean season for local food is officially over!

Among many new items coming in from our producers, Liz Foers of Essa Seedlings is offering edible flowers like the ones shown above, to feature in your very own spring party.

Amazing bumper crops of asparagus are on the way! Our dear friends from Wooler Dale Organic Farm have joined us with an abundant supply, and several of our other growers have lots as well.  It’s time to have a feast. It’s so good for you, and so good for our farmers to have a major early harvest like this.  We put the asparagus recipe below on www.dufferingrovemarket.ca, but it’s included here as well for easy reference.

You can grow your own local harvests, too. Don’t forget to visit Colette Murphy in the Urban Harvest shop, just west of Lansdowne on the north side of Bloor, for seeds and seedlings.  One of our new farmer friends, Derrick Greenly of Summergreen, has begun offering choice shrubs along with organically grown mushrooms. This week Haskap and Black Currant bushes are available. We strongly encourage pickup orders for these if you can manage, as we have to charge $10 extra delivery to cover the cost of getting them to you.

Good News: we have added another half-hour of pickup slots at the end of the day, so if you are back at work and need a slightly later time, we hope you will get one of these.

Don’t forget to join the Market Art Hive Popup every  Thursday 11am– 1pm through Zoom: 891 4366 8047 All are very welcome! Up to date details are available via ArtHivePopUp on instagram.

Enjoy the lovely week!

Anne Freeman, Peter Wills, and the Market Team

 

 

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Pan Fried Asparagus with Mushrooms and Green Garlic Hollandaise

(serves 4-6)

 

Ingredients

• two pounds of asparagus
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 cups assorted mushrooms, chopped

for the sauce:

• 4 stalks of green garlic, white parts only
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup olive oil

To garnish (optional):

• fresh-ground black pepper
• sprouts or edible flowers
• grated parmesan

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, wrap the garlic tightly in foil and roast until soft, about 15 minutes.
2. Let cool, and then discard any tough skin and press soft garlic into the bowl of a food processor or mixer.
3. Add egg yolks, lemon juice and mustard. Pulse or beat slowly, gradually adding oil a few drops at a time.
4. Add a pinch of salt and transfer to a double boiler or a heat-resistant bowl placed over simmering water.
5. Stir constantly until thickened, then remove from heat and set aside.

For the Veggies

1. Heat 2 Tbsp oil in large frying pan over medium heat.
2. Sauté the asparagus in batches, turning often, until just tender with a few brown spots.
3. Pat dry with a paper towel, and keep warm in the oven while you cook the rest.
4. Sauté the chopped mushrooms in the same pan, adding a little more oil and cooking until tender.

To serve:
Divide the asparagus among plates, add a sprinkling of mushrooms and/or other garnishes.