We spotted the first of the season’s melons at farmers tailgate markets this week, heralding the arrival of summer’s midpoint. Of course, melons of all types are ideal for eating fresh, but you can also incorporate them into your salads, cook them on the grill, or get creative with the rind.
Flying Cloud Farm (North Asheville and River Arts District markets) has baby watermelons now, while Lee’s One Fortune Farm featured their Japanese and Korean melons. The Japanese variety the Lees are growing is similar to honeydew and cantaloupe with smooth outer skin, soft green-orange flesh, and honeyed flavor. The Korean melon is canary yellow on the outside with pale flesh. Its texture is crunchy, like cucumber, with flavor somewhere between cucumber and cantaloupe—fresh and slightly sweet. Both varieties were a trial run for the Lees, so quantities are limited, but look out for them next year. Lee’s One Fortune Farm is at ASAP, Black Mountain, West Asheville, River Arts District, and East Asheville markets.
Try watermelon in place of tomatoes in a caprese salad with mozzarella, basil, and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar. Or toss it with cucumber, feta, olives, and red onion for a Greek salad. Combined with cilantro, corn, peppers, and lime juice, watermelon makes excellent salsa, especially over fish tacos.
You can also grill watermelon or other types of melon for a more savory result. Skewer cubes of watermelon along with pork, zucchini, and peppers for flavorful kebabs. Or grill thick slices of olive oil-brushed watermelon for about five minutes, then top with Monterey Jack cheese for a vegetarian burger substitute.
And don’t throw away your watermelon rind! You can pickle it, make chutney out of it, or even use it in an Indian curry. For the latter, peel off the dark green outer skin and cut the white part of the rind into bite-sized cubes (it’s okay if there’s still some red flesh). Heat a tablespoon of neutral oil in a heavy sauté pan over medium high heat. Fry one to two teaspoons each of cumin and coriander seeds until fragrant. Add one chopped onion and cook until translucent, then add a few cloves of garlic and knob of ginger, minced, and cook for two minutes. Add about 3 cups of watermelon rind along with a teaspoon of turmeric and salt, plus chili powder to taste. (You can also add powdered cumin and coriander at this step, if you don’t have whole spices.) Cook for about four minutes, then add a diced tomato and one-fourth cup of water. Lower the heat and simmer, adding more water if needed, and cook until watermelon rind is tender. Adjust seasonings and top with cilantro.
At farmers markets now you’ll also find tomatoes, okra, peppers, summer squash, potatoes, green beans, nectarines, peaches, blackberries, salad greens, mushrooms, and much more. Markets are also stocked with farm-fresh eggs, bread, cheese, pastries, drinks, and prepared foods. There are more than 100 farmers tailgate markets throughout the Appalachian Grown region. Find them, as well as farms and other local food businesses, in ASAP’s online Local Food Guide.
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ASAP Expands Appalachian Farms Feeding Families program
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ASAP is expanding the Appalachian Farms Feeding Families program, thanks to a $500,000 grant from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation. This program—started by ASAP during the pandemic—pays farmers to grow and deliver fresh fruits and vegetables directly to food relief sites and childcare centers in their own communities. We're now partnering with 56 sites and 47 farms, working in 22 WNC counties! (Pictured is produce from Tierra Fértil Coop, Tiny Bridge Farm, and Velvet Morning Farms at True Ridge's Abundancia Food Bank in Hendersonville.)
Thank you to Blue Cross NC Foundation and all of our supporters and partners on this program for continuing to make an impact in our communities and for our farmers!
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ASAP's mission is to help local farms thrive, link farmers to markets and supporters, and build healthy communities through connections to local food.
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The Laurel of Asheville talked to several of the farmers from ASAP's Farm Tour for its preview of the Sept. 18-19 event. "Folks that don’t live in a rural area get an opportunity to see a lot of different views of farm life," says Jeff Frisbee, a fourth-generation farmer at Addison Farms Vineyard and Winery. “It’s a great experience for somebody whose biggest interaction with food is at the supermarket. That cellophane-wrapped ribeye didn’t happen in the back of the supermarket; it’s happening out here at the farms."
Meanwhile, the NC Foothills Farm Tour is offering small group tours each month throughout the summer and early fall, reports the Mountain Xpress. “It is our hope to connect our local communities to our agricultural producers and showcase rural heritage and farms for our surrounding urban neighbors,” says Hannah Bundy, horticulture agent with the Rutherford Cooperative Extension.
The Mountain Xpress food news roundup also mentions an upcoming agritourism workshop from Empowering Mountain Food Systems, which will include speakers from ASAP, as well as the new u-pick season at Jeter Mountain Farms.
Read about Sarah Wickers of Well Seasoned Table in a feature story from the Asheville Citizen Times.
"Some of the ingredients that make up the rubs, teas, sugars and blends at Well Seasoned Table are grown on Wickers' farm in Hominy Valley, where her mother's side of the family has lived since the 1700s. She lives in a house her grandparents built."
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