Stunning Colors In A Rainy Day Farmers Market

Purple Kohlrabi from Paffenroth Gardens

Last Wednesday, I managed to get caught in the rain no less than 5 times. The one deliberate drenching, though, was a trip to the Union Square Greenmarket.

Fall fruits and vegetables generally bright and colorful. But the diffused light and shadowlessness of a rainy day made them practically glow. I took these images with just my iPhone.

We were so enchanted by the rainbow of colors that we purchased bunches of beautiful, delicious ingredients from the Hudson Valley’s Paffenroth Gardens and Tamarack Hollow Farm in Plainfield, Vermont.

Over the weekend, I simply cut everything into same size chunks and mixed them in a bowl with olive oil, salt and pepper. I spread them mix on a jellyroll pan and roasted everything at 425°F for an hour until the onions were caramelized, the beets were tender, and the potatoes were soft on the inside and crispy on the outside. We ate it out of bowls for dinner, and it was splendid.

So, with apologies to Skittles, go your local greenmarket and taste the rainbow. If you don’t know what to do with something like kohlrabi or tatsoi, just ask your farmer.

In addition to learning that we’re having the best onion season in 18 years, I also learned that [SPOILER ALERT] tatsoi is the new kale. You heard it here.

~Karen Seiger, Markets of New York City