It’s the wee hours on a Saturday, and in just a little while farmers will be driving in from upstate and tents and tables will be set up and piled with fruit, vegetables, flowers, herbs, breads, meats, jams and cheese. Everyone, from professional chefs to budding cooks, shops at the Greenmarket year-round, but if you ask me, August is the best time to go.

Why? Well I’m all for supporting local farms and eating fresh, organic produce, but to be honest, I enjoy the little dose of sensory overload I get here. The variety of produce at this time of year is stunning: exquisitely sweet yellow peaches (watch for bees), a couple dozen strains of heirloom tomatoes (check NYmag for suggestions), sweet corn, watermelon, sunflowers, bunches of fragrant basil, plump blackberries, as well as perennial staples (garlic, shallots, kale).

The prices aren’t always cheap, but the quality is usually great–one of the aforementioned heirloom tomatoes will make that vine-ripened Jersey-grown cluster from Whole Foods taste like a shadow of a tomato.

While looking for one thing, I usually spot it in a form that I’ve never tried before. While looking for salad greens, I picked up some purslane; while shopping for mushrooms, I decided to try oyster mushrooms. I once asked a man selling jam what the difference was between the raspberry and black raspberry jam and he was flummoxed. “That’s like asking the difference between steak and lobster,” he said. I went with the lobster.

The reason for all this Greenmarket love is that I’ve been cooking at home for the first time in forever. Yes, I’m a rarefied beast who largely subsists on takeout, leftovers, supermarket buffets, and beer. That is, until lately. Stay tuned for more on this story.

Greenmarket
Union Square West, between 14th St. and 17th St.
Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat 8am-6pm
A guide to what’s in season