Carine Hines sells lettuce from her Sun Tracker Farm at the Napa Farmers Market
This title is a little misleading as salads are always part of my husband Steve’s and my diet no matter what time of year it is. Even on the coldest days we often have a salad as part of our dinner meal, and salads are a frequent lunch option.
One of my favorite luncheon salads is a simple, but healthy apple salad. Our apple salad is two cut-up apples, salad greens (usually romaine), walnuts (from JJ Ramos), and olive oil. If we have blue cheese in the house, some crumbles go on top.
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This is a surprisingly filling lunch and is obviously easy to prepare. When pears are in season, we love to substitute the Comice pears from Arceo Ranch for the apples, but neither pears nor apples are in season at the Napa Farmers Market right now.
What is in season at the Napa Farmers Market: lettuce, radishes, snap peas, fennel - all delicious ingredients for a salad.
A few weeks back, we bought a prepared salad from The Fatted Calf for lunch. The Fatted Calf salad was named Little Gem Salad with Fennel, Radish & Snap Peas with herbed crème Fraiche dressing. This was such a tasty dish, I wanted to recreate it in my kitchen. I made it a couple of times and have included a recipe for my version below.
We are much less likely to enjoy a dinner salad in the cold months. When it’s chilly out, we typically crave a hot entrée. However, in summer this changes. Having a dinner salad when it is hot out has so much appeal. No need to heat up the kitchen with cooking. One of our favorite dinner salads is Salad Nicoise. There are many recipes and variations on this salad and it is a perfect way to use green beans when they start coming in. Another favorite is Chinese Chicken Salad.
We love to buy a chicken from Roadside Rotisserie at the market and have it hot the first day, but make a dinner salad the second day. The Napa Farmers Market has all you need for Chinese Chicken salad: Napa cabbage, snap peas, carrots, radishes, green onions. It turns out we also have some cashews in the house and I know they will be delicious in Chinese Chicken Salad.
Before the recipe, a little discussion on washing produce from the Napa Farmers Market. Since the produce you buy at the market comes straight from the farm, it needs to be washed. This is not the pre-washed, boxed/bagged produce from the grocery store and we are grateful for that.
However, getting everything clean takes some water. Since we are in drought, we like to use a system where all the wash water goes into our garden and onto our plants. We use a salad spinner and empty it in the garden. After the final rinse for the lettuce, we use that water to wash the radishes. I also use this water for my orchid. Once you get into the habit of using the water to irrigate your plants, you won’t dump it down the drain again.
Cindy Deutsch’s version of Fatted Calf’s Little Gem Salad with Fennel, Radish & Snap Peas with Herbed Crème Fraiche Dressing
3 cups Little Gem Salad Greens, torn in bite size pieces (available from Sun Tracker Farm)
½ cup radishes, sliced (Suntracker, Avila, J&M Barra)
½ cup sugar snap peas, sliced thin diagonally (Avila, Long Meadow Ranch, J&M Barra)
½ cup fennel, sliced thin (Esquivel, Long Meadow Ranch, J&M Barra, Avila)
2 tablespoons crème fraiche
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
½ teaspoon chopped tarragon (I used tarragon because it compliments the fennel, but feel free to use other herbs such as basil, mint or chives. In fact, a mixture of these three would be delicious)
Squeeze of lemon
Combine the dressing ingredients and adjust the quantity if it’s too thick (add more olive oil). Put all the salad ingredients in a bowl and gently toss with the dressing.
Looking for a sustainable way to grow a lettuce crop? Here's some advice.
Photos: Tuesdays at the Napa Farmers Market
Farmers Market
Raspberries from Rodriguez Farms in Monterey County are one of the offerings at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
Farmers Market
White corn from G&S Farms in Brentwood is one of the offerings at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
Farmers Market
Squash varieties from The Patch in Sonoma are some of the offerings at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
Farmers Market
Heirloom tomatoes from Big Ranch Farms are some of the offerings at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
Farmers Market
Rhubarb from Big Ranch Farms is one of the offerings at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
Farmers Market
Grafitti eggplant from Long Meadow Ranch is one of the offerings at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
Farmers Market
Seedless scarlet grapes from R. Schletewitz Family Farms in Sanger are one of the offerings at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
Farmers Market
Dahlias from Aztec Dahlias from Petaluma are one of the offerings at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
Farmers Market
Striped Armenian and lemon cucumbers from Big Ranch Farms are some of the offerings at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
Farmers Market
O'Henry peaches from Bera Ranch in Winters is one of the offerings at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
Farmers Market
Plums from Hamlow Ranches in Turlock are one of the offerings at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
Farmers Market
Muffins from Alexis Baking Company are one of the offerings at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
Farmers Market
Islander bell peppers from Long Meadow Ranch is one of the offerings at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
Farmers Market
Suga Rainbow cookies by Annie the Baker are one of the offerings at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
Farmers Market
Flowers from Devoto Gardens and Orchards at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
Farmers Market
Maitake mushrooms from Far West Fungi in Moss Landing are one of the offerings at the Tuesday Farmers Market in south Napa.
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Cindy Deutsch is a member of the board of the Napa Farmers Market.
Find the Napa Farmers Market at 1100 West St. (at Pearl Street) in downtown Napa, on Saturday (year-round) and Tuesday (April to December), from 8 a.m. to noon. Face coverings are required for entry (no exemptions) for everyone over 2 years old. Check www.napafarmersmarket.org for and follow the Napa Farmers Market on social media for updates.
May 25, 2021 at 09:10AM
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Napa Farmers Market: Salad season is here - Napa Valley Register
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