We're still in autumn mode here in Prescott, though there are only a few more days that I would be entitled to post these pictures. As the years have gone by, I've noted increasing emphasis on farm produce that is symbolic and/or decorative rather than edible. Or, at least the current use is symbolic. I'm pretty sure that, in a pinch, a good cook could make a decent pie from those baby pumpkins and that the decorative Indian corn could be ground into a meal suitable for muffins, fry bread or porridge.
On the other hand, I don't know about all those cute gourds. I think they serve better as a centerpiece than hollowed and dried to use dipping water from a spring. Too dang small. Still, a music group might like them fashioned into colorful rattles for the rhythm section. All very authentic, you know.
(Above) among the more unusual gourds spotted at a Prescott Farmer's Market this fall...and among the more usual (below).
Also making an appearance in the market this week -- brightly polished pomegranates. This fruit from ancient times is enjoying a mini boom, thanks to the food faddists having recently discovered some new magical nutritional value. My own memory of pomegranates from childhood is that because of the seeds, they are frustrating to eat (though tasty) and that my mother hated the stains on my clothes.Linkage: Those of you with a divine itch that requires a luxurious scratching will empathize with (and envy) the little owl in this YouTube video. And here's another video for those of you who love old cars. And don't overlook the Moscow Cat Circus.
What beauties! I think the gourds really are inedible, perhaps nasty to eat. The pomegranates are wonderful, must be selected to look that rosy and pretty; there are various ways to make accessing them easier, but there's still that seedy crunch... They work well as a kind of garnish really, to bejewel a salad, rather than to eat in any quantity.
ReplyDeleteThe best pomegranates that I've ever eaten are from my childhood, when a neighbor had a bush right by the road and we could snitch some :)
ReplyDeletelucy -- I suspect you're right about eating gourds. I like your prescription for salads...
ReplyDeletelady -- my memory of pomegranates is similar, involves being barefoot on a dusty street down in Phoenix in the heat...
I have a mini pomegranate tree growing in my sunny window. Like your farmers market goodies, my little poms are mostly for decoration. Man! That fruit is sour...
ReplyDeletekate -- like so much wild fruit!
ReplyDeleteMy grandmother had a pomegranate tree in her yard. The week before irrigation (LOL - remember that?!) we would dash over to her house and pick them all. Once they got that much water at once, they would all split. We would eat tons of them, seeds and all, and be a total mess with the juice. Fun, though!
ReplyDeleteframe -- how could I forget irrigation day. That was the day my little bro and I "went swimming", either in the ditch out back or, at my grandmother's, in the circle surrounded by her red cannas.
ReplyDeletealso, my grandmother had date palms, fig trees, a grape arbor -- and acreage in citrus. But no pomegranates.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful fall photos!
ReplyDeletesandy -- welcome! And thank you for your comment.
ReplyDelete