Tableau Vivante

This is the point when the season begins to transition into a schizophrenic sort of time. In this bridge between summer and autumn, heirloom tomatoes, corn, eggplants, cucumbers and zucchini all share space with new pears, winter squash, grapes of every shade, and even pomegranates. Today’s market had me on the tippy toes of anticipation. The firsts of fall were everywhere, which means my home chow is going to be a peculiar amalgamation of bi-seasonal dishes. Nectarine and pomegranate salad. Plum and grape tartlets. Fresh sweet corn and butternut squash étouffée. Summer goods will dry up eventually. But right now, it feels like this seasonal cook has a window of interesting opportunity.

These embarrassingly large piles of summer corn won’t be around for much longer. You could sense it in how people were tearing through the ears, even in the early hours of the day. I grabbed a set of ears from Underwood Farms (who were recently featured in the LA Times for their U-Pick operations) – a sweet bi-color that has been ridiculously consistent in its greatness. They’re JUST starting to go a teensy bit starchy. It’s not a bad flavor. In fact, it adds a nice complexity to the hyper-summery sweetness we’ve been enjoying. But it’s one of those flavors that tells you summer is about to kiss you on the cheek and wave goodbye.

And here we have one of the eye stoppers – organic butternuts from Weiser Farms. Calendar says August still. But no one told the squash. After I left the market, I went shopping and couldn’t help but fondle sweaters and scarves. It was 90+ degrees out, but in the back of my mind were these squash. Fall – she comes.

And then the pears appeared. These bartletts need some shelf time to reach their buttery smooth, honey-like yumminess. But that only takes a few days, and by then it’ll be past Labor Day, making the experience seem more appropriate, like putting away the summer whites and unearthing the thicker parts of your wardrobe.

Yes. Pomegranates. From Walkers. I blinked. They’re still edgy and tart – good for a daring pomegranate hollandaise or as a counterpoint to sweet caramelized onions on a bed of peppery arugula. I could say I’m holding out for the sweeter seasonal sisters that are just a few weeks away, but that would be a lie.

I had these at lunch today. They’re Autumn Royals from Walkers. Don’t let the dark orbs fool you – they aren’t the musky, juicy concords. These are seedless table grapes with a firm, snappy flesh that reminds me of Thompsons. Not overly sweet, but not terribly complex either. Lunch fruit to be eaten while watching USC knock the stuffing out of Virginia (apologies to the V folk - JJ is a Trojan).

The above picture is somewhat representative of this transitional period – the last of the stone fruits with the primes of the grapes. Plus, it’s pretty.

I closed my market trip with a visit to the sprout lady. She had an aromatic blend of onion, radish, and alfalfa sprouts that I ended up putting in my sandwich later on. She has them separate and in other combinations (onion-alfalfa seems to be her most popular).

Pasadena Farmers’ Market
Saturdays - year round
8:30AM-12:30PM
Sierra Madre Blvd. at Paloma St., in the Pasadena High School parking lot.