Rip City Recipes: A Farmer's Market Surprise!

I'm finally back in Portland after a three week stay on the East Coast. I woke up this morning and walked to the Farmer's Market, my weekly tradition. Portland's PSU farmers market it consistently ranked among the best in the country. It only makes sense that a city devoted to green living and eco consciousness would have several Mecca's for local farmers to gather and sell nature's bounty. Not to mention, the Willamette valley has some of the most fertile soil on earth.
I'm a firm believer in buying local food, especially after reading "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" by Barbara Kingsolver (per the recommendation of the lovely Shay Hallock). If you haven't read it GET IT, it will (hopefully) change the way you buy food. Some things are meant to be enjoyed only when they're in season. If asparagus from Mexico tasted as good in December as the fresh organic kind I bought today, picked this morning from a farm 20 miles from where I live, then it wouldn't be as special. Plus, when buying directly from farmers, I know exactly where my money's going.

"Easter Egg" radishes. I'm going to try these next week! No room in my bag this time around.

One of my favorite food stands at the PSU Market, Tastebud, offers wood fired pizza. This was absolutely one of the best slices I've EVER had! With shaved asparagus, bacon, and ricotta, it's cooked right at their stand in a wood fire oven on wheels!

This week I picked up onions, spring mix, basil, zucchini, yellow squash, cucumber, asparagus, shiitakes, portobellos, butter ball potatoes, a baguette, ground buffalo, hummus, and cider.

I normally would pass right by the hard cider stand ($10 per bottle, seriously!?), but I spotted the words "Wickson Cider" printed across a bottle and I flocked straight to the vendor. My great great grandfather, Edward James Wickson was a horticulturist who invented such varietals as the Wickson plum and the Wickson apple. Always searching, I've never found either fruit sold in grocery stores or markets. I was amazed to see that a local brewery was using the Wickson crabapple to make cider! I'm going to try this bottle tonight. A proud day to be a Wickson!