Veggie Nirvana at the Boulder Farmers Market

From the moment I rounded the corner and saw my first organic farm vendor, Isabelle, I knew the variety of organic veggies available at the Boulder Farmers Market had reached a turning point of abundance. (As one vendor put it, "we're finally out of the fog of just lettuce.") There are now simply too many choices to be able to report on them all, yeah! To take Isabelle as an example, their big chalk board of offerings now boasts two long columns, too many to list, even for one stand. They of course had the beautiful greens we've been seeing this spring, including spinach, arugula, kale, chard, and collards, along with radishes and bok choi that have more recently joined the offerings. This week we now see heftier options like broccoli and snap peas ("sweet peas" in their parlance), and carrots, which add a welcome splash of color amongst all that greenery. The Isabelle stand was typical of what I saw further down the line with my favorite organic vendors, so no stand-by-stand list is needed anymore. But a few notes are in order for a few new observations. First, several stands had the most beautiful peonies I have ever seen. Back to the veggies, Full Circle looked to have the widest variety of organic peas, with English peas and snow peas, in addition to the snap peas that were widely available. Pea shoots were still available at the Red Wagon Organic Farm stand, and I noticed a new organic vendor option, Monroe Organic Farms from Kersey, which was offering strawberries and asparagus. So it's a glorious time for the Farmers Market - with so much in season, we now have plenty to choose from. But you might want to get there early, as I did, to avoid the crush of the crowds that come with the beauty of the market. Oh, and if you're looking for a bike to cruise your way to the market, there's a "vintage" bike sale going on at Boulder High School, practically next door.