Grill Fest next Saturday ~ June 28

Two chefs will sweat it out behind a grill, vying for the title of Grill Guru in our Grill Fest grill-off! They'll each grill a vegetable, a fruit, and a cut of meat in a friendly competition judged by the farmers who produced the ingredients. We will also have handouts to help you brush up on your grill skills for that 4th of July barbecue. See the schedule (below) for details.

Local Food Guide launch party ~ June 26

Community Alliance with Family Farmers is celebrating the launch of the second edition of the Bay Area Local Food Guide with an evening of food and wine on Thursday, June 26, at Fort Mason. CUESA will be there with fresh, locally grown apricots. To learn more about the event and to purchase tickets, visit the Buy Fresh Buy Local website >

Slow Dinner at Perbacco ~ August 28

CUESA is partnering with Perbacco to host a Slow Dinner on the first day of Slow Food Nation. Slow Dinners illuminate the connection between food and community at restaurants renowned for good, clean, and fair food. The evening's special menu is handcrafted in Perbacco's Northern Italian style using the season's best local ingredients. The dinner will raise funds for CUESA's education programs. Click here to preview the menu and to buy tickets.

New lower parking rates nearby

Beginning June 21, there will be lower Saturday parking rates available at the Embarcadero Center (EC) lots across the street from the Ferry Building. The two lots, EC-4 and EC-3, will open at 7 am and cost $2 per hour the first two hours and $3 per hour thereafter with validation from the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market Information Booth. Click here to download a map of all Ferry Plaza Farmers Market Parking options.

The entrance to EC-4, the closer of the two lots, is on Clay Street. From the Embarcadero, turn west onto Washington, left onto Drumm, then left on Clay into the garage. The entrance to EC-3 is on Drumm Street between Clay and Sacramento. From the Embarcadero, turn west onto Washington, left onto Drumm, then right into the garage.

Pier ½ parking update

We are pleased that so many farmers’ market shoppers walk, bike, or take the ferry, bus or train to the building every Tuesday & Saturday. However, many shoppers, including those purchasing large quantities (who are critical to the survival our sellers' businesses), drive to the market and park nearby. Parking may soon become less convenient due to plans to close the Pier ½ lot adjacent to the Ferry Building in mid-September.

If this will impact you as a shopper, or if you have concerns for fellow shoppers who rely on adjacent parking, we encourage you to express your views to the Port of San Francisco Commissioners and the managers of the Bay Conservation & Development Corporation (BCDC), the two agencies that hold jurisdiction over the site. E-mail BCDC at info@bcdc.ca.gov. E-mail the Port Commissioners through the City of San Francisco website > (Select "Port of San Francisco" and request that your letter be forwarded to the Commissioners.)

Waste Wise tip of the week #5

If you come to the market on foot or by transit, reduce your consumption of plastic bags and make the journey home a lot less painful by investing in a rolling cart or a large backpack. Don't forget to bring previously used produce bags (or reusable cotton ones) and plastic containers to keep your groceries protected inside.

Saturday, June 21 ~ Market to Table

10:30 am - Farmhouse cooks
Father and daughter team Mark and Johanna Sorenson of Triple Delight Blueberries will talk about the family farm and demonstrate recipes using blueberries grown on their land. In 1997, Kimberly Sorenson and her husband Mark decided to diversify their grape farm and try something new. They leased five acres from a friend and planted four varieties of blueberries as an experiment...MORE >

11:15 am - Seasonal cooking demonstration
Yigit Pura of Taste Catering

Saturday, June 30 ~ Grill Fest

11:00 am - Grill-off!
Two chefs will vie for the title of Grill Guru in our Grill Fest grill-off!
Chefs: Chris Borges of Taste Catering vs. Taylor Boetticher of Fatted Calf
Three farmers will provide the meat, vegetables and fruit for the grill-off. They will talk about their farms and serve as our panel of judges to bestow the winner with the honorary title of Grill Guru.
Farmers: David Evans of Marin Sun Farms, Ana Catalán of Catalán Family Farm, and Tory Torosian of Tory Farms.
Master of Ceremonies: CUESA volunteer Earl Shaddix of All-Clad

Tuesday, July 1 ~ Easy Market Meals

12:00, 12:30 and 1:00 pm - Seasonal cooking demonstrations
Stephanie Rosenbaum, Food writer and cookbook author

All programs take place in CUESA's Dacor teaching kitchen, in front of the Ferry Building on the north side.

Today is officially the first day of summer, but here at the Ferry Plaza Farmers' Market, so-called "summer fruits" have been abundant for over a month. We saw the first raspberries, peaches, apricots and blueberries in May. We'll continue to have peaches and raspberries throughout the summer and early fall. The 'cots and blues, though, are fruits to enjoy passionately and hungrily when they come, for their presence in the market is fleeting. Today we share recipes, demonstrated in our kitchen last Saturday, that will help you get the most out of the short blueberry and apricot seasons. These aren't just any old recipes, though: they come from farmhouse cooks. Who could better know how to bring out the best flavors of special summer fruits than the people who live, breathe, and eat them?

California blueberries don't last long once summer hits. Triple Delight Blueberries, located in the Fresno area, is bringing its last harvest to the market this week. Sierra Cascade Blueberry Farm, located in the Sierra foothills east of Chico, has a later season and is in the market now through early to mid-July. Armen Carlon of Sierra Cascade loves to eat their organic blueberries in a simple pie. Her family recipe is not too sweet, to bring out the blueberry flavor. Armen enjoys freezing the blueberries in the summer for pie in the fall!

Click here for the Carlon Family Blueberry Pie recipe >

Apricots are abundant in the market right now, but will probably only be around for a couple more weeks. Rebecca Courchesne of Frog Hollow Farm, a talented pastry chef whose husband, "Farmer Al," grows stone fruits in Brentwood, knows that apricots are wonderful in desserts and also add a powerful, sweet tang to savory dishes. She prepared roasted, stuffed apricots and a salad with an apricot vinaigrette.

Click here for the Mesclun and Goat Cheese Salad with Apricot Vinaigrette recipe >
Click here for the Roasted Stuffed Apricots recipe >

Another farm famous for its apricots, John Driver's CandyCot Fruit Co., was featured in the New York Times this week. The article highlights the super-sweet apricot varieties John brought back from Central Asia and is now selling at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market. Click here to read the article >

You can't stop the seasons from changing, but you can stop to enjoy them! See you at the market.

This is the most up-to-date information about which sellers will and won't be attending the market as of Friday, when we send this letter. If there are no changes to a seller's status, they will not be listed. To find out which farmers regularly attend each market, click here. Please understand that there are often last-minute changes--it's the nature of farming!

Saturday, June 21

In/returning: Apple Farm; last week for Paoletti Farms
Out: Critical Edge knife sharpening

Tuesday, June 24

In/returning: Snyders Honey; last week for Triple Delight Blueberries

Returning this month (weather willing): Nectarines, donut peaches, cucumbers, tayberries, ollalieberries, boysenberries, figs, cherry tomatoes, peppers, shelling beans, okra, haricots verts, hydrangeas, corn, tomatillos, new potatoes, wax beans

Plentiful: Cherries, peaches, strawberries, summer squash, raspberries, lettuces, basil, herbs, radishes, peas, onions, carrots, nopales, garlic, rhubarb, fennel, leeks, lilies, sweet williams, pastured eggs, arugula, apricots (will be winding down by the end of the month), blueberries (may be winding down by the end of the month)

Winding down/limited supply: Hothouse tomatoes, sweet pea flowers, artichokes, sugar snap peas

Farms that may be coming in this month (weather willing): Candy Cot, Sierra Cascade Blueberry Farm, Hunter Orchards, G&S Farms, Payne Family Farm, Glashoff Farms

Seasonal vendor items not to be missed: Brochettes and coiled sausages from Fatted Calf, apricot galettes from Downtown Bakery, rhubarb and blood orange conserve from June Taylor, arugula and parsley pesto from The Pasta Shop, prepared raw horseradish from Happy Girl Kitchen Co.

Recipes for June

Zucchini and Mint-Stuffed Squash Blossoms from Brian Streeter, Cakebread Cellars

Shaved Cucumber, Radish & Bottarga Salad with Zinfandel Vinaigrette from Chris Consentino, Incanto

Top Sirloin on Grilled Herb Slab with Almond Crème Fraîche, Greens and Spring Onion Jam from Stephen Gibbs, Hands On Gourmet

Rhubarb-Almond Bars from Aïda Mollenkamp, Food Editor, CHOW

Cocktail ~ Basil Gimlet from Greg Lindgren, Rye