McClendon's Select

This beautiful organic Broccolini will be available at the Old Town Scottsdale Market this Saturday morning.  Quick to prepare and full of flavor, broccolini is the perfect side for any number of dishes.

SPECIAL NOTE:  We will be at the Old Town Scottsdale Market tomorrow; however, the Uptown Saturday market is canceled this weekend due to the APS light parade staging taking place in the parking lot at the North Phoenix Baptist Church.

We invite our Uptown customers to come to our Scottsdale market in Old Town Scottsdale at First Street and Brown for all of their organic produce and Noble breads.  We will be bringing a bigger assortment to Scottsdale to accommodate customers from both of our Saturday markets.

See you tomorrow in Scottsdale!

McClendon’s Select

Tomorrow at the Uptown Wednesday farmers market we will be bringing plenty of our just harvested organic Artisan Romaine.  Our romaine, and all of our lettuce varieties, were not in any way involved with the CDC warning that came out last week.  All Arizona grown Romaine has been cleared by the CDC as safe to harvest and eat.  While this doesn’t get as widely broadcast and reported as when there is a warning, you may read about it here on a linked article from The Produce News.

We can assure you that our McClendon’s Select greens are grown, harvested and packaged with the strictest of food safety compliance.  If you ever have a question about how we grow, pick or wash our produce, please feel free to contact us or talk to Bob at one of the markets.  We want you to feel confident always in our produce.

Have a great weekend!

We hope that you and your family had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday.  In order to give our employees some much needed time with their own families this holiday weekend, McClendon’s Select will NOT be a the Old Town Scottsdale Farmers’ market tomorrow.

We will still be at the Uptown Saturday market on Central and Bethany Home Road tomorrow morning and hope to see you there.  We will return to our normal market schedule next week.

Tomorrow McClendon’s Select will be at the Uptown Wednesday market bright and early and stocked with everything you need for your Thanksgiving feast (minus the turkey)!  This is always the busiest, and I think, the most fun market of the year.   Noble Bread will be with us with a great selection of breads for your Thanksgiving Day dinner, including their wonderful buttermilk dinner rolls.

Below is the cranberry recipe I make every year.  We can’t wait to hear what all of you are preparing.  We are always thankful for the wonderful customers who have supported us over the years.  You make what we do possible.  We love working with you and hope that you have a happy Thanksgiving!

Cranberry Sauce

1 lb organic cranberries
Zest two organic Mandarin oranges
Juice five organic Mandarin oranges
Zest an organic Meyer lemon
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar

Add all to a sauce pan and cook over medium to medium-high heat for 15 or 20 minutes.  You will hear the cranberries start to pop, which is normal.  Stir occasionally.  Remove from heat and allow to cool fully before serving or refrigerating.  It will thicken when refrigerated.

As it is the Saturday before Thanksgiving tomorrow, we will be bringing these beautiful herb bundles for your holiday cooking to the Old Town Scottsdale market.  These have been a hit in years past.  They have organic rosemary, thyme, sage all together, more than enough for one turkey.

We will also have all of your Thanksgiving essentials on hand including yams, French green beans, pecans, quince, potatoes, salad greens, Medjool dates and Meyer Lemons.  And of course, there will be plenty of organic cranberries.  Come early, as this is always a busy market for us!

See you tomorrow!

We began harvesting this beautiful organic Artisan Romaine last week.  It is as crisp as Iceberg lettuce, but with the sweetness and flavor of Romaine hearts. It is wonderful in a salad or even grilled.  It is hearty enough to stand up to all types of dressing, and is a nice with sandwiches, wraps or to use with dips.  We will have this at the Uptown Wednesday farmers’ market tomorrow.  See you then!

Our beautiful organic Artisan Romaine Hearts are being harvested as I write.  These are so crisp, with a lightly sweet flavor and beautiful color.  They will stand up nicely to even thick dressings, but they really don’t need much to accompany their flavor.

We have also started harvesting our organic broccoli.  Broccoli is one of the most nutritionally dense vegetables that we grow, high in fiber, antioxidants, Vitamins C, B6 and A, potassium, and protein.  It is a powerhouse in helping the immune system, digestion and filled anti-inflammatory properties.

Come pick some up at the markets tomorrow!

Quince have made their return this season.  We will be bringing our organic quince to the Uptown Wednesday market tomorrow.  Quince take a little time to properly prepare, but they are well worth the effort.  Here is our favorite recipe for them below…

Cooked Quince with Raisins
4 quince
1/2 lemon
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. cinnamon
10 whole cloves
1 crystallized or regular piece of ginger (cut into small pieces)
1/2 cup raisins

Rinse off the quince, it isn’t necessary to peel them. If they are too hard to cut through raw, put them in a pot of water and allow them to simmer on low heat covered for 25 minutes to soften them up. Allow them to cool a bit before cutting, and then you can cut into bite size pieces and remove the seeds, like you would with an apple.  Put them in a pot and squeeze half of a lemon over them, and then cut up the juiced lemon half and add the rind to the pot. Add the sugar, cinnamon, ginger and cloves. Cook over a low heat for another 20 minutes or so. When quince are done cooking they turn a pinkish, cranberry color and you can add the raisins if you like.

Enjoy!

My personal favorite has come back in season.  We just started harvesting our organic Meyer Lemons and will be bringing them to the Old Town Scottsdale Farmers’ Market tomorrow.  I use Meyer Lemons daily when they are in season, sliced into water, juiced for brines or salad dressings, zested to mix in with roasted vegetables and pastas.  I use them with fish, poultry and even squeeze over berries for dessert.  They are somehow incorporated into my cooking daily when in season.

Marsha and I also preserve jars of them every winter so they can be used throughout the rest of the year.  (The instructions and a recipe are included here.)  This recipe can be used for either Meyer Lemons or Lisbon Lemons, both preserve nicely.  Meyers are not as tart, but still have a nice tangy flavor.  I use the preserved Meyer Lemons when roasting, or chopped finely into salads.  Either way, preserved or fresh, you will find that Meyer Lemons add an incredible flavor to your cooking.

McClendon’s Select Market Schedule

Uptown Wednesday Farmers’ Market
Wednesdays from 8:00am – 1:00pm
Located on the southeast corner of Central Avenue and Bethany Home Road. On the grounds of the North Phoenix Baptist Church.

Old Town Scottsdale Farmers’ Market
Saturdays 8:00am – 1:00pm
Located on the Southwest Corner of 1st Street & Brown in Scottsdale. Brown is one block East of Scottsdale road. 1st street is two blocks South of Indian School road.

Uptown Saturday Farmers’ Market
Year Round Every Saturday 8:00am – 1:00pm
Located on the southeast corner of Central Avenue and Bethany Home Road. On the grounds of the North Phoenix Baptist Church.

Tomorrow at the Uptown Wedenday market we will have this beautiful organic Curly Kale (above) freshly picked today, along with an several types of organic winter squash (below) including Acorn, Delicata, Butternut and Spaghetti.  We also have an assortment of organic mixed color carrots and organic Ruby and Rainbow Chard, Spigariello, and Tucsan Kale.

We look forward to seeing you tomorrow!

McClendon’s Select Market Schedule

Uptown Wednesday Farmers’ Market
Wednesdays from 8:00am – 1:00pm
Located on the southeast corner of Central Avenue and Bethany Home Road. On the grounds of the North Phoenix Baptist Church.

Old Town Scottsdale Farmers’ Market
Saturdays 8:00am – 1:00pm
Located on the Southwest Corner of 1st Street & Brown in Scottsdale. Brown is one block East of Scottsdale road. 1st street is two blocks South of Indian School road.

Uptown Saturday Farmers’ Market
Year Round Every Saturday 8:00am – 1:00pm
Located on the southeast corner of Central Avenue and Bethany Home Road. On the grounds of the North Phoenix Baptist Church.