Moving Beyond Cancer in NOLA: This Week at the Crescent City Farmers' Market

Fall Welcomes back Seasonal Markets | September 23, 2019

Fresh & Local:

Fall Welcomes back Seasonal Markets

With summer coming to a close, we welcome the return of our seasonal markets which run for the calendar months of October through July:

Ochsner: This Wednesday market restarts on Wednesday, October 2nd and runs weekly from 3-7pm. With almost 20 vendors on our opening roster, you’re sure to find what you need at the Ochsner Rehabilitation Center located at 2614 Jefferson Highway.

Rivertown: This Saturday market runs weekly from 9am-1pm and is located at LaSalle’s Landing, where Williams ends at the levee on the River and returns Saturday October 5th.

Bywater: Stay tuned for updates.

As always, our rain or shine, producer only markets prioritize fresh local produce, and feature live music and other activities. Keep an eye on our social media for special incentives for opening day(s)!

Picks of the Week:

CCFM Backyard BBQ

The Crescent City Farmers Market Backyard BBQ is back for round two. Join us at Central City BBQ on Sunday, October 13th from 4-7pm for this family-friendly fundraiser benefiting the Crescent City Farmers Market. The Backyard BBQ will feature over 20 local farm-supporting restaurants, a whole pig roast, local beers, garden-to-glass cocktails, live music, silent auction, and fall-themed kids activities.

Enjoy small plates featuring local, seasonal ingredients from: 12 Mile Limit, Aglio, Bacchanal, Barracuda, Carmo, Clancy’s, Cochon Butcher, Del Fuego Taqueria, Gabrielle, Jack Rose, LUVI, Marjie’s Grill, Max Well, Mosquito Supper Club, Saba, Turkey and the Wolf, Toups South, Seven Three Distilling Co. and more.

Your support will help to sustain the mission and programs of the Crescent City Farmers Market and preserve and grow our local food system.

Tickets are on sale now! Tickets start at $60 for adults and $5 for children and include all the eating, drinking, and dancing you can do! Don’t sleep on our Patron Party tickets, which offer one hour early entry, special acknowledgement and thank you gift!

We are currently seeking volunteers for our fundraiser. Support the Crescent City Farmers Market by lending your time and hands with event set up, kids’ activities, run of show, chef assistance, and break down. Reward yourself with FREE ENTRY to our all inclusive event! Check out our calendar of available volunteer opportunities and sign up for a spot directly through the calendar.

If you are interested in participating or donating a silent auction item please contact us here.

Thanksgiving in September?!

Fall is finally here! Is it pumpkin pie time yet?! It could be be. Considered to be one of the South’s hardest to find best kept secrets, the cushaw squash is at the market! The cushaw, also known as juirdmon in these parts, is a winter squash with a crook-neck, bulbous bottom and can weigh as much as 10-20 pounds. Packed with Vitamin C, this big and versatile variety has a meaty but tender light orange/yellow flesh with a sweet and mild flavor. Simple to break down and puree, it makes a delicious substitute for traditional pie pumpkins plus its silvery seeds are great for roasting. Stop by Fekete Farms or Point Coupee Minority Growers Co-op and pick one up, or two (they can be stored up to 4 months!). Not ready to turn on the oven? Stop by Mrs. Chauvin’s and pick up one of her famous cushaw pies.

Groundbreaking at the Bucktown Harbor

A Friday the 13th celebration at the Bucktown Harbor celebrated the completion of two new pavilions and the groundbreaking for the Lake Ponchartrain educational boardwalk and marsh overlook which will provide a scenic pedestrian promenade over Lake Ponchartrain and its adjacent 3.5 acre man-made Bucktown Marsh and nature preserve. The one thousand linear foot boardwalk will allow students and neighbors to experience the coastal environment in a safe, immersive setting, complete with resting spots, bird blinds, and informational signage. Our weekly Friday farmers market is excited to welcome these new improvements, and we look forward to the other planned improvement projects that are part of the Bucktown Harbor Vision Plan, the result of a comprehensive community planning process.

Food and Climate

While local food is more nutritious and delicious, and purchasing it supports local growers and the local economy, there are other reasons to eat local. Here are some things to keep in mind when considering your menu:

Resilience - When a supply chain is made up of lots of smaller growers, we are more resilient to food system impacts. If one large grower experiences weather or market events that impact yield, the system loses all of that production. Smaller operations are more nimble, and less susceptible to big system disruptions so can bounce back more quickly.

Fewer inputs - Large monocultures (factory farms) require inputs of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides as they are disproportionately more attractive to pests and use up more soil nutrition. But small family farming operations typically grow many crops on less acreage, which allows for crop rotation, fallowing and integrated pest management, all sustainable farming practices that reduce the need for fertilizers and pesticides. This is especially significant for us in Southeastern Louisiana - it is the nitrogen and phosphorus runoff from agriculture upstream in the Mississippi that creates the dead zone we experience in the gulf every year.

Meat - Small scale meat production is not only more humane with animals living large portions of their lives outside and eating foods they are meant to eat, but the overuse of antibiotics required in CAFOs is not necessary and waste disposal is not the burdensome ordeal with serious food safety implications at the smaller scale.

Knowing your food producer and helping these food businesses stay economically sustainable is also important for environmental sustainability.

Vendor of the Week:

Compagnon Bakery

Compagnon Bakery is an artisanal bakery operated by Andrew Roth and Quinn Berger. After years of baking experience around the country, most notably in Austin and San Francisco, the pair decided to move their craft to the Crescent City. Their expertise and passion comes together to make up the foundation of Compagnon. The bakery operates on the guiding principles of integrity and sustainability. All grains are regionally sourced from Texas through Barton Springs Mill, and Andrew and Quinn stone-mill the grains used for each delectable pastry or bread. All other ingredients, such as apples featured in their slow roasted apple croissant, or the juicy tomatoes baked into their Focaccia, are locally sourced or foraged. Swing by the Uptown, Mid-City, or CBD markets for some fresh baked goods. Do not miss the naturally gluten free, pecan financier!

Tuesday’s Green Plate Special:

Congregation Coffee Roasters

You can catch avid market shoppers - Congregation Coffee Roasters at the Green Plate Special tent this month. Congregation Coffee Roasters is a small start-up company conceived in the back of a shotgun house in New Orleans, April 2015. Congregation Coffee Roasters' (whose name is inspired by the collective noun for a group of alligators) mission is to provide New Orleans and the Gulf Region with quality roasted whole bean specialty coffee. In addition to serving some of the best coffee in NOLA, Congregation Coffee Roasters also features a seasonal, rotating menu of breakfast and lunch items at both of their brick-and-mortars. Come check out what they are cookin’ every Tuesday in September!

Recipe of the Week:

Ready, Set, Bake!

Despite temperatures still reaching the upper 80s, the arrival of the autumnal equinox has us pumpkin spice dreaming. Ready for those warm and cozy, savory fall flavors? The elusive cushaw squash, a harbinger of autumn, is now available at the market and is the perfect vehicle for those spice-laden flavors you crave. Try out this traditional cushaw pie recipe and feed your need!!

What’s your favorite dish to make after visiting the Crescent City Farmers Market? Share your recipes with us on Instagram or Facebook or even Twitter and it might be featured in our weekly newsletter!