For real, summer, you make me love you.

Now that I'm back into posting action, and it's summer, get used to me blabbing on and on about local, farm-fresh produce. I just can't help it! Last Saturday I had off, which is unusual after working every weekend. I roused myself early and made a trip to the Glass Shop, a darling coffee shop at which a friend works. We shared ice coffees and a chocolate-cinnamon sticky bun, a breakfast treat even stickier than and as rich as it looks, but worth every bite!!! Then I left, and headed to the Grand Army Plaza farmers market. This market is the second largest market in NY, a stat that meant and still means nothing to me. But what really stood out to me was the good vibes that filled this market. In NY, people talk about how the Union Square greenmarket is the best in the state, maybe even in the US. I've always thought this was nonsense. Visiting the Grand Army Plaza market confirms my hunch that this claim is hullabaloo. Fooey. That's right! Nonsense!

The Grand Army Plaza market just felt right! Not hustle and bustle and overwhelming garbage one encounters while in Union Square. This market had tons of variety, great options, friendly vendors, and good deals to be had all around. I bought a ton of things, staying within my self-imposed $30 budget, including greens, nightshades (my favorites), cheese, plums, and berries.

I want to share with my readers my mid-evening meal. Tonight, feeling peckish after a snack of jerk chicken from Peppa's, I roasted some of my leftover market treasures in some olive oil in a cast iron in the oven, set to 400: cloves of spring garlic, a whole sweet pepper, three sliced 2-inch baby eggplants, and halved heirloom tomatoes. The veggies cooked for 20 minutes, till juices were bubbling from each, and I ate the platter, with bread and cheese. Just fantastic. New York, summer, you do make me love you.