This week's feature is purple eggplant. The first thing that comes to mind when I think of eggplant is classic eggplant parmesan. But eggplant is a versatile and filling vegetable that works as both the star of the recipe or the supporting ingredient. It's also a wonderful vegetarian substitute for meat too! When eggplants are cubed and cooked in a sauce they become tender, creamy and flavorful. Here's a great recipe for a Greek Style Eggplant dish where all of the fresh ingredients are in season and available at the market this week! Cook up this one pot meal, grab some hummus, baba and baklava from Aladdin and invite some friends over for some delicious and easy comfort food! One pot meal means less dishes and more fun too!

In addition to eggplant, other new veggies in the line-up this week include: celery, red onions, red potatoes, leeks and green beans.

Those luscious WHITE peaches arrive this week along with the season first cantaloupe, bell peppers, and sugar plums! There are still plenty of yellow peaches and sweet cherries to be had. But this is the LAST week for SOUR CHERRIES so don't miss out. Summer isn't summer without a homemade cherry pie!

It’s the first week of green beans at Cabbage Throw Farm. Supply is limited so first come, first serve. Lots of slicing and pickling cucumbers and green & yellow zucchini will fill the tables along with a fresh harvest of red and yellow onions. Other offerings include Summer lettuce, spring mix, escarole, beets, carrots, kohlrabi, fennel, rainbow chard, herbs, garlic and more.  

The first of the season field-grown cherry tomatoes are here! Other new items at Phillips this week: blackberries, cantaloupe, bell peppers, okra and jalapeños. Also available: blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, currants, green beans, eggplant, zucchini, cucumbers, squash blossoms, garlic, radishes, tomatoes, beets, leeks, carrots, cauliflower, lettuce, kale, swiss chard, fresh herbs and much more!

The selection at Holy Cow Flowers this week will be HUGE! They'll have bunches of sunflowers, zinnias, snapdragons, feverfew, rudbeckia, yarrow, and so much more. And the market bouquets will be bursting with a variety of colorful blooms. Remember, each bouquet comes with a sleeve of water so they can travel with you for the day, and Holy Cow accepts cash as well as all forms of electronic payment. What better way to celebrate the EFM's 270th birthday than with flowers!

Social Still's featured canned craft cocktail this weekend is too cool not to share - tropi-cool to be exact! The Tropi-Cooler is vodka, mango, pineapple, orange, lime and simple. Their crushie of the week is yet to be revealed, but another great option for cooling off on a hot summer day. Grab your favorite and sit by the river or enjoy our live music.

Pie+Tart is back after an unintentional vacation last weekend and we're happy to report that Anne's son Wyatt is recovering nicely. Look for Ginger-Lime Blueberry Pies, Lemon Ricotta Tarts, Apple Turnovers, Super Fruity Pop Tarts, Quiches, vegetarian Lucknow Chili Dinner Pies, and fresh Chicken Pot Pies!

You may think of Roastwell Coffee Roasters as all things coffee. But have you checked out their selection of custom blended teas? This week Roastwell will be serving cold brewed teas Moroccan Mint (a classic blend of Chinese gunpowder tea with spearmint & peppermint) and Root Beer. Yes! a tea that tastes like an old-fashioned root beer soda! Your tastebuds will be tickled for sure. Try either of these teas to keep you refreshed while you're browsing the market. Be sure to grab a bag of their loose tea to brew your own cold brew at home. So easy to do!

Pre-order your coffee or tea online and Roastwell will have it bagged, tagged & waiting for you at the market!

Mattie's is holding a summer special this week: Buy 3 strudels, get the fourth one for 50% off!

This week's features are: Meatball Parm and a new Pot Roast strudel. Mattie's strudels are great for easy summer suppers, and perfect for packing in your vacation cooler! Heading to the shore? Treat your family members to something new and different!

This weekend Apple Ridge will be featuring their No Salt Added - 'Liquid Gold' Chicken Stock. Not just for soaps and stews. Use it to add extra flavor to your favorite recipes, vegetables, or grains like rice and quinoa.

This week Breakaway is eager to introduce their newest creation; Dried Beef! That’s right, 100% grass-fed and finished, clean, wholesome dried beef! Farmer Nate and the butcher shop crew have been carefully preparing this recipe and it's ready to share:

Breakaway's dried beef is made the old-fashioned way. It takes 3 weeks to complete & it cannot be rushed. First, they only use lean beef sirloin for just the right ratio of meat to fat, which is brined in a salt & sugar cure for over a week. Afterward, it’s hung in the walk-in cooler to allow the cure to equalize in the meat before being smoked with hickory hardwood. From there, it’s again hung in their walk-in cooler for 1-2 weeks to allow it to “dry” (this is the dried part in dried beef). And finally, it’s sliced and packaged and ready for your enjoyment!

Click HERE for a simple recipe featuring Breakaway's Black Pepper Bacon and their dried beef - for the perfect blend of smoky, peppery, comfort food. Serve warm over toast, potatoes, or biscuits any time of day. 

Order ahead at breakawayfarms.net. ...it’s quick and easy!

Try some of Zekraft's ready-made, organic and locally-sourced salads: Thai Peanut Chicken, Roasted Beet, Vegan Quinoa Apple, Southwest Chicken, Cherry Chicken, Turkey Maple Pecan, Greek Chicken, and Vegan Roma Chickpea.

They will also have 2 soups this week: Summer Veggie w/Parm Broth and Salmon Corn Chowder.

And for the sweet tooth: Chocolate Peanut Butter Mousse, Vegan Coconut Panna Cotta w/Fresh Fruit, or Butterscotch w/Maple Pecans!

Don't forget about

It's not all about the pickles. Jersey pickles has a great selection of olives for your summer picnic trays (or your martinis). Their Peppadews are great on burgers or grilled chicken and can really add some zip to your potato or macaroni salad. Sun dried tomatoes are nice in a chickpea salad or with fresh pasta. And the marinated mushrooms are another great find!

This week's B.O.D. is BLEACH (blueberry peach)... tis the season!

Read about Pheasant Hill Farm's and Portch Tea in the summer issue of Edible Philly! Local food writer Carrie Havranek did a fabulous job covering Don's inspiring kombucha journey. FYI- there are lots of kombucha companies out there but few that grow their own ingredients.

Frozen Pupsicles are all the rage with our furry shoppers. Your doggo can choose from pumpkin, local honey, homemade peanut butter or slow-roasted, organic chicken mousse mixed with homemade Greek yogurt. The perfect cool treat on these hot summer days. 

One of Teels Hill's most popular soaps this time of year is their Poison Ivy soap. The magic ingredient in this bar would be the jewelweed that Susan harvest herself. Jewelweed is a wild plant that grows here in North America in wet marsh areas. A lot of the time you will find it growing right next to poison ivy. It is said that the American Indians used jewelweed for rashes and itching.Susan infuses the jewelweed into the olive oil and distilled water and then adds white clay, fine oatmeal, glycerin and Vitamin E to create this healing soap. But remember it may keep you from getting poison also. The essential blend she uses is noted to be an anti-bacterial and anti-itching. Remember poison ivy does not go dormant! Handling the vines in the winter you could still get the oils on your skin and get poison ivy. 

Local potters Kevin and Sam are back this week with their beautiful spoon rests, flower frog (bud vases) and other functional home decor. Consider it 'Christmas in July' and start your holiday shopping!

The Bubbly Goat's ultra moisturizing soaps and lotions are what's needed this time of year - when your skin really starts drying out from the summer sun, sand and chlorine. All products are made from the Bubbly Goat's own goat's milk. Happy goats = amazing skincare products!

Join Easton Cycle for another outdoor cycling pop-up on the riverfront at EFM!

Choose your time: 9:45 am, 10:45 am, 11:45 am

and BOOK YOUR RIDE