Pollen-induced spring allergies have seemed particularly high in our region this year. Many of us are searching for miracle cures to stop the sneezing. Farmers markets right now offer a few traditional herbal or food-based remedies for allergic reactions that might just work for you. (And even if they don’t, they’re delicious!)
It might seem a little counterintuitive that an herb that causes a painful contact rash is also a powerful antidote to allergic reactions. But stinging nettle is a well-established anti-inflammatory herb that reduces allergy symptoms with continued use. Bear Necessities Farm has nettle plant starts, so you can start to grow your own. Wild Goods has wood nettle, a different variety than the more common stinging nettle (though it also stings). Thicker stems gives wood nettle a more vegetal quality that compares somewhat to asparagus. Find Bear Necessities at Asheville City and West Asheville markets; Wild Goods is at East Asheville Tailgate Market.
Cooking nettle deactivates the sting and makes it safe to handle and eat. You can boil, sauté, or even dehydrate it. Just make sure to wear gloves prior to cooking. Nettle tea is the most common medicinal use, but you can also use nettle in pesto, soup, smoothies, quiche, and more. Try blending blanched nettle leaves with yogurt, lemon juice, mint, and green garlic or garlic scapes for a creamy dip for raw veggies. Green garlic is available from Lee’s One Fortune Farm at Asheville, Black Mountain, West Asheville, River Arts District, and East Asheville markets. Highgate Farm has the first garlic scapes we’ve seen this season at Black Mountain, West Asheville, and River Arts District markets. (Garlic is also useful as an anti-inflammatory, decongestant, and immune booster.)
Local honey is another farmers market product said to alleviate allergies. Evidence is mixed on whether the pollen it contains can act as immunotherapy, making your immune system less likely to produce a strong reaction. Regardless, honey can help soothe a sore throat and suppress a cough, and is certainly a tasty addition to your spring allergy medicine box. Find local honey vendors at every market in the area. You can also try jun, a fermented drink made from green tea and raw honey, often blended with nourishing ingredients like ginger and turmeric. Shanti Elixirs sells jun at Asheville City and North Asheville markets.
At farmers markets now you’ll also find an abundance of veggies, including asparagus, carrots, turnips, radishes, sweet potatoes, potatoes, mushrooms, and greens like lettuce, arugula, chard, kale, spinach, bok choy, and mustard greens. Strawberries are the first fruits of the season and available widely. Markets are also stocked with a variety of meats, cheese, rice, pasta, bread, drinks, and prepared foods. Find more details about farms and markets throughout the region in ASAP’s online Local Food Guide.
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ASAP's Has a New Website!
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ASAP's new website is live at asapconnections.org! The redesigned site makes it easier to locate and use ASAP's many resources, whether you are a farmer, local food enthusiast, educator, farmers market manager, chef, visitor, or one of the many other members of our community.
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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 Mountain Xpress talked to ASAP's executive director Molly Nicholie as part of its Spring Nonprofit Issue. "Nonprofits are a labor of love," says Molly. "We [in Asheville] definitely have a very rich and thriving nonprofit community. A lot of folks that come to this work are mission driven and really wanting to be able to not just have a job, but something that aligns with their values and the type of work they want to see happening in their community."
Molly was also interviewed for the Xpress about nonprofits planning for climate change and ASAP's Appalachian Grown Farmer Resiliency Project working group. "[Tropical Storm] Fred significantly impacted a good number of farmers with some horrible flooding that wiped out crops and literally washed away homes or barns," says Molly. "When you're looking at that from a business model, you're not only losing all of what you've invested in that particular crop that gets washed away, but you've got all that infrastructure cost, cleanup, and damage moving forward.
Edible Asheville features chef and farmer relationships forged and strengthened during pandemic-era industry shifts. “The pandemic really just served to bolster my philosophy behind using local as much as possible,” says Ian Griffin of Griff's Kitchen & Bar in Candler. “Sourcing locally has insulated me from most of the supply chain issues the pandemic has affected.”
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