Ripe Now! Radicchio I Celebrating Black producers this month and beyond

Put your reusable shopping bags by the door – the rain is expected to take a break for us all to step out and enjoy the Downtown Berkeley Farmers’ Market!

Bernie and Lifefood Gardens are snowed in at their farms, but aside from their absence you'll still find an abundance of offerings at the market. Pick up something you’ve been meaning to experiment with while you're stuck indoors again, like a bright head of radicchio. This bold variety of chicory is thinner and more tender than cabbage, with a bold, bitter flavor that is well-balanced with sweet fruit or rich olives, nuts, and cheeses. It also mellows when sautéed and roasted. Find them at Dirty Girl Farm, Riverdog Farm, and Happy Boy Farm.

Easy Eating: For breakfast, make Bagna Cauda Toasts with Radicchio, Egg and Avocado. For dinner, warm yourself up with Pasta with Radicchio, Bacon, and Walnuts, made with bacon from Stepladder Creamery.

Ingredients

¾ cup fresh bread crumbs
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3 anchovy fillets, chopped
1 large shallot, minced
¾ teaspoon fine sea salt, divided
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 medium heads radicchio
2 hard-boiled eggs

Shredded Radicchio Salad

From Zuni Cafe, a frequent Berkeley Farmers' Market shopper

Instructions

In a large serving bowl, stir together the shallot, anchovy, and vinegar. Let sit while you prepare the breadcrumbs and radicchio.
Warm 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium-high heat in a small frying pan. Add the breadcrumbs and ¼ teaspoon of the salt and cook, stirring frequently, until golden brown.
Remove any wilted outer leaves from the radicchio. Wash, dry, quarter, and core each head. Slice each quarter crosswise into ⅛-inch slices.
Into the bowl with the shallot mixture, whisk the remaining two tablespoons of olive oil, ½ teaspoon of salt, and the pepper.
Add the radicchio and the breadcrumbs to the bowl.
Over the bowl, press the eggs through a mesh sieve or grate them on the small holes of a box grater. Toss salad and serve right away.

Donate to help keep our farmers' markets going strong!

This Week's Vendors

Saturday Downtown Berkeley

Achadinha Cheese Co.

All Things Sharp

Andy's Thai

Avalos Farm

Bariani

Beber Almond Milk

Bolani

Big Little Bowl

Brokaw Ranch

Bun Bao

Cafe Zambala

Coracao

Flying Disc Ranch

Four Sisters Farm

Frog Hollow Farm

Gattonelli

Good Faith Farm

Golden Rule Organics

Happy Boy Farms

Higher Land Coffee

Joodooboo Tofu

Kaki Farm

Kashiwase Farm

Laguna Garden Bakery

~~Lifefood Gardens~~

Little Fish

Massage

Morell's Bread

Obour Hummus

Phoenix Pastificio

~~Pomo Tierra Orchard~~

Primavera Tamales

Queen of Sheeba Honey

Riverdog Farm

Smit Farms

Solano Mushroom

~~Soul Flower Farm~~

Stepladder Creamery

Tamales La Oaxaqueña

Three Stone Hearth

Tony's Kettle Corn + Crepes

Your Granola Garden

Tuesday South Berkeley

All Things Sharp

(every 2nd & 4th week)

Andy's Thai

Avalos Farm

Basecamp Bakery

Brokaw Ranch

Bolani

Blossom Bluff Orchard

Donna's Tamales

Dirty Girl Produce

Flying Disc

Frog Hollow Farm

Full Belly Farm

Good Faith Farm

Joodooboo Tofu

Kaki Farms

Kandarian Organic Farm

Kashiwase Farm

Lifefood Gardens

Little Fish Co.

Massa Organics

Massage

Oya Organics

Phoenix Pastificio

Queen of Sheeba Honey

Riverdog Farm

Roadside Rotisserie new!

Sea to Sky Farm

Solano Mushroom

Soul Flower Farm

Smit Farms

Stepladder Creamery

The Fruit Tree

Three Stone Hearth

Thursday North Berkeley

All Things Sharp

Big Little Bowl

Blossom Bluff Orchards

Donna's Tamales

E&H Mushroom Farm

Farm Chocolate new!

Frog Hollow Farm

Golden Rule Organics

Happy Boy Farms

Little Fish

Massa Organics

Morell's Bread

Phoenix Pastificio

Riverdog Farm

Roadside Rotisserie new!

The Fruit Tree

Seasonal Vendor Breaks

Blue Heron: away until April

Billy Bob Orchards: away until August

Lou Vue: away until April

Pomo Tierra Orchard: away from North Berkeley market until August

True Grass Farm: away until March

Vang Family Farm: away until April

Uplands Apiary: away until April

Learn More About the Berkeley Farmers' Market

Celebrating Black Producers This Month and Beyond

Land cultivation and food sovereignty are critical to the fight for Black liberation. Taking the time to learn about systematic racism in agriculture through books like Farming While Black, or delve into Black culinary culture through Bryant Terry's Black Food: Stories, Art, and Recipes from Across the African Diaspora is one way to honor the African American experience this month and beyond.

Another is to celebrate and support black-owned businesses. Soul Flower Farm, Lucero Organic Farm, and Your Granola Garden vend at the Berkeley Farmers' Markets, and products like Avocurl, Black Joy Paper, and the above mentioned books are all available at the Ecology Center Store.

Recycling Education Pop-Up

Saturday, February 25th

Downtown Berkeley Farmers' Market

Ecology Center Recycling Education Coordinator Leo Mendoza will be at the farmers' market tomorrow. Stop by with your specific questions or to learn the basic recycling rules so that your good intentions aren't wasted.

Watch Now: 11th Annual Seed Library Summit

It's not too late to check out the Annual Virtual Seed Library Summit. Click the link to find a recorded presentation that speaks to you — everything from indigenous, community-based seed revitalization to selecting seeds to reduce your climate impact.

Watch Now

BEEP BEEP! Apply to the Berkeley E-Bike Equity Project

Ready to start biking to the farmers' market? As a part of the City of Berkeley's Pilot Climate Equity Fund, the Berkeley E-Bike Equity Project (BEEP) will be providing e-bikes to income-qualified Berkeley households for their long-term use.

If you meet the requirements and are selected, you'll receive an e-bike to use for a year, along with safety classes, bike maintenance, and the possibility of keeping the bike when the program is over. Approximately 50 participants will be selected via the lottery system. Applications open until March 8th.