This Week at Smart Markets Reston Farmers' Market

12001 Sunrise Valley Dr. Map

We have great jazz music for you this week and hopefully a much nicer afternoon than we had for a concert last week at our Lorton market. Joe Herrera and his trio will be with us again, and it looks like we will have another gorgeous fall day. Plan to bring a blanket, sit on the grass, listen to the music, and have dinner too. Uncle Fred will bring hot dogs for the kids, and you can enjoy some brisket or a burger from Taste of Local. This will be our last concert for this year at Reston, so come and chill out with some cool jazz.

We will soon have a full selection of meats at the market, just in time for the braising season. Doug Linton at Angelic Beef has plenty of roasts already, and Heritage Farm and WInfield Farm will soon bring lamb and pork to meet the demand for locally raised and pastured meats. In the coming weeks I will talk more about the slow braise that enables you to use larger, less tender (and cheaper) cuts of meat to cook comfort food that can be eaten over many days or weeks. Soups and stews are even better when reheated, and they freeze beautifully.

In the meantime, let’s focus on the fruits and vegetables that we are losing and those that are coming in. At Tyson Farms we have pears—Asian and red and green Bartlets—and new apple varieties every week, it seems. Early Fujis have joined the Honey Crisp, Galas, and other early varieties. Peaches are hanging around for a few more weeks, and many of them are now better for canning and freezing than for eating out of hand. Max is offering boxes of peach and tomato seconds for preserving—ask if you do not see the sign.

Ignacio is still picking tomatoes, summer squash, peppers, and melons, but his stand is also turning greener. Kale, collards, and mustard greens are arriving, and winter squashes too. Shenandoah Seasonal and Shade Farm, our two sustainable farmers, are also transitioning to cooler-weather crops while still offering heirloom tomatoes and gorgeous peppers. Curt may have his Pepper Jelly this week too—ask about the schedule if you do not see it on his table. And come early for the cauliflower at Heritage Farm. It is the prettiest, whitest cauliflower I have ever seen, and so sweet!

Whim Pops should have fig pops, Kylie should be making candies soon, and Georgetown Barkery will be back this week with treats for precious pets.

As we move into the time of year when everyone’s skin takes a beating from the dry heat in our homes and offices, it is time to try the handmade soaps at Liz Soaps. You will never go back to using commercial, chemical-laden soaps again after one good week of bathing with Honeysuckle or the new Kiwi Tangerine (my personal favorites). There is a fragrance and a soap just for you.

See you at the market!

From the Market Master

If someone has something to say about a subject dear to my sensibilities, and probably yours, I am happy to refer you to that other source of wisdom rather than try to pick and choose what I think is important for you to know. Read this revealing firsthand account by Joel Salatin of a meeting that took place in Virginia about farm policy in the state. I figure anything he takes away from any learning experience is well worth knowing. The fact is that what he heard in that meeting is something I have never considered and frankly do not really agree with either. Read and draw your own conclusions.