Saturday Morning Marketing

It’s cold here today—what Katherine charitably calls “cooking weather.” Dad and I were inspired to visit two ethnic markets this morning and we’re thrilled with our purchases. We are really rich in food resources here.

At the Caravan Middle East Market, for $24, we bought:

a little jar of mastic (the pitch of pistachio trees, for Greek recipes)
yellow split peas
red lentils
frozen fava beans
canned fava beans “Palestinian style”
Medjool dates
little pears
Persian cucumbers
tomatoes
a bunch of fresh dill
bulk green olives with Tunisian seasonings
bay leaves
a dark chocolate Lindt candy bar named “Intense Pear”

Then we proceeded on to Food City, the Mexican grocery chain, and spent $22 on:

3 pounds freshly roasted green chiles
poblano chiles
jalapeno chiles
tomatillos
kiwis
a pineapple
5 cans salsa
a wedge of cotija cheese, sold in bulk
a piece of Oaxaca cheese
Gala apples
avocados

It’s hard to decide what to cook first, but I would like to use the mastic, which is wonderfully aromatic. Watch this space for details as they develop.