With all due respect to the market manager, I would cite lack of insight to local food and farmers. Though there is significant drop off in attendance at an outdoor market on the chilly days, I side with the idea that the demand is there and it will grow. There was little reason to cut back the existing schedule, even as the demand grows and the availability of produce would lean toward expanding the dates.

Dianna, you should go to localharvest.org and use the search tool. Just as a guess, California would be your place. Somewhere like Marin country. Plus fish is local, too. The great news (and this should be a coming post) is the rise of winter CSA and produce for more and more regions. Greenhouses are going up, high tunnels to extend the season. Lot of great things going on in all parts of the country.

Thanks, Amy. Good luck on the book! I'll look forward to seeing it get released. Have been wrapping up a manuscript myself for a family cookbook/real food eating handbook due out soon! It's a labor of love for sure. Many good wishes, the farm to school book looks intriguing as well. Looks worthy of a post!

Thanks, Wendy. It is a hard decision, not one we came to easily. The first years with that farm were amazing. My fear is that someone new to a CSA and eating local will have a bad experience, will give up on eating local based on one bad experience. The more I can do to help people have a great first CSA or eat local success, the better it will be for all of us, farmers included. I am so glad you like the posts and find them helpful.

Good question on why not to eat jack-o-lantern variety. These pumpkins are specifically developed for carving. So, thin rind and whitish, bitter flesh. They don't taste good and don't have enough flesh to rind to make them quality cooking and eating pumpkins. Also, despite some advice I have seen, NEVER cook your jack-o-lantern post carving and Halloween. By now, it has developed significant bacteria to make it good only for the compost bin.