The Saturday Santa Fe Farmers Market is the happiest,and most diverse market HG has ever encountered (and HG has made it a point to visit public markets in such food oriented cities as Vancouver, B.C.; Barcelona, Paris, Rome, Florence, Venice among others). No, you won’t find the array of seafood you’ll find in Barcelona and Venice; the roasted chickens and cheeses of Paris and the parade of pasta that is a glory of Italy. But, what you will find in Santa Fe is a feast for people watchers. There are past and present movie stars (Shirley McClain; Robert Redford; Gene Hackman; Sam Shepherd; Ali McGraw and on and on). There are artists working in every conceivable media (many world famous). Eccentrics in fabulous costumes. Ex-hippies. Present day hippies. Native Americans. Latinos. Tourists. Lots of active and attractive older folk. (Santa Fe isn’t a place where oldsters sit around bewailing their failing organs. They’re out and about, populating the art galleries and museums, cinematequës, concerts, restaurants and cultural events). And, of course there are the young people, many accompanied by babies. There’s very good live music at the market (HG presumes they’re vetted by management since there are very few clunkers). On their visit this Saturday, HG/BSK split up. HG bought tiny Ratte potatoes, eggplants and Holy Chipotle (this is a locally made goat cheese spread of cheese and chipotle peppers which makes a happy marriage of heat and flavor). James Romero, a handsome, smiling guy, was perfuming the air with the roasting green chile peppers from his farm. (“This is what you do if you never went to college,” he shouted). BSK bought a big variety of peppers from him (there will be much lush green chile sauce in HG/BSK’s culinary future). BSK cruised the various stands and bought oyster mushrooms, leeks, fresh garlic and radishes. Shishito peppers are now in season.and BSK selected the best. BSK will fry them in olive oil and garlic with a dusting of sea salt (HG/BSK first tasted this treat in Madrid and became addicted). BSK was lucky. BSK got to Gary and Natasha Gundersen’s stand before these premier organic farmers (HG/BSK neighbors) sold out of their delicious wares. BSK snared a big bag of salad greens, cauliflower and other good things from the carefully tended Gundersen earth. A day of sheer fun under the omnipresent bright sun and blue skies of New Mexico.
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