Visit to farmers market and three pepper salad

Farmers markets give me a feeling of going to Mandai/Sabji Mandi in India. I went to mandai with my mom since I was baby. My mom remembers couple of times I just disappeared in the market while she was paying the vendor. We both laugh at the memories now but, although I do not remember much, I can imagine it must have been a very scary moment for both of us. After a while I learnt to go to mandai alone. Vendors would recognize me by face and give special treatment as any girls of my age would rarely go to the mandai alone. I really enjoyed bargaining for the price while picking best possible tomatoes, okra, carrots and all the favorite sabjis. I used to be a weekly chore that I enjoyed. Later my brother started going too and then we would go alternate weekends and compare prices :)

I had been planning a trip to San Francisco Farmers Market for a while now and recently managed to go and spend entire morning there. I love the ferry plaza area, love watching people jogging, tourists taking pictures. One can easily spend few hours just watching old piers, Bay Bridge, Seagulls. Farmers market was an added attraction. I got some lovely pictures of various vegetables, fruits and flowers and picked up heirloom yellow eyed beans from Rancho Gordo, fresh berries, fresh garlic and also squeezed in a visit to Sur La Table, although I did not buy anything ;)

Here are couple of pictures -

Ferry Building

A vendor was selling variety of peppers and rhubarb. I bought all the varieties of bell peppers and sweet peppers he had. Here are some of them -

Colored peppers

Lets move on to this simple recipe -

Three pepper salad

1 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
1 purple bell pepper
1 mango
1 small avocado (optional)
1 cup garbanzo beans
1/2 lemon
1 tsp Chat Masala
salt and sugar - per taste

Preparation -
Soak the garbanzo beans for 6-7 hours. Add pinch of salt to the beans and pressure cook them just enough, do not overcook. Add salt while cooking the beans. Let the cooked beans cool down to room temperature.
Wash and halve the peppers, remove seeds and dice them in 1/2" pieces. Peel mango and cube the flesh in 1/2" pieces. Dice Avocado in 1/2" pieces as well if you are planning to use it. Squeeze few drops of lemon juice on diced avocado to prevent it from turning brown.
In a large bowl, mix diced peppers, mango, garbanzo beans, avocado. Add remaining lemon juice, salt, sugar, chat masala and mix it together.
Let it sit for 10-15 minutes before serving.

Salad in my favorite bowl


Tips -

1. Watch the following link to see how to cut avocado - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAAMx_R523o&NR=1
2. This salad can be partially prepared ahead of time. Mix everything except mango and avocado few hours or even a day in advance. Add mango and avocado at the last moment.
3. You can use any other fruit like apple, pear, peach, plum instead of mango.
   
4. You can use canned garbanzo beans but drain and rinse them before adding to the salad.