Lulu Meyer brings us the best of the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, every week!

This Saturday, Knoll Farms will return to reclaim their little corner of the market with a bounty of winter crops and flowering spring branches. Rick and Kristie Knoll’s Brentwood farm is home to an astonishing array and variety of crops. They are well known for their juicy summer figs but have also become notorious for what Kristie has dubbed, ‘the green garlic.’ Each week while it’s in season, they offer samples of this fresh-tasting spicy treat mixed with Cowgirl Creamery fromage blanc on a slice of Acme baguette. With a teaser so tantalizing, it’s almost impossible not to want to bring home a few stalks for yourself. This week, in addition to ‘the green garlic,’ they will also have a few of my favorite veggies on hand including:

Baby onions Perfect for roasting or stewing
Leafy greens arugula, rapini, nettles, fava greens, and (my favorite!) pea shoots
Baby bok choy and tatsoi rosettes for a tasty and easy week-night stir fry
Horseradish root It might be an ugly-looking root but when grated and pickled in some vinegar it really packs a punch
Cardoons A cousin of the artichoke that makes for a great soup or gratin

In case you find yourself stumped by what to do with something unusual at their booth, the staff at the Knoll Farm stand are all knowledgeable, avid cooks with great ideas. You could also ask one of the many chefs—like Mark Sullivan of Spruce and Bruce Hill of Picco and Bix—what they plan to do with those rapini greens or fava leaves, as the Knoll’s stand is known to be a real hot-spot for chef sightings.