Farmers' Market: The World's Favorite Purple Vegetable

The eggplant, a fruit of the nightshade family, can be sautéed, baked, roasted, stir-fried, deep-fried, stuffed, steamed, grilled, or pureed into a dip or as a stuffing.

Growers at Sunday's farmers' market will be selling the large Italian and American varieties and the longer, thinner, purple Thai or Indian varieties (hint: they're best used fresh, as the skins grow bitter with age). And the market chefs have made recipes available for dishes including jambalaya, ratatouille, aubergine bruschetta and more.

This month, shoppers can enter to win a new backpack for school.

Count on the Old Dudes Rock ("We're Not Done Yet!") to live up to their name: "This isn't background music," said market manager Keith Wall. "They're awesome -- vibrant and boisterous."

The weather is expected to be an ideal 69 degrees. Shoppers will find an abundance of fruits, vegetables, and flowers, which runs from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.:

• Unfiltered honey, honeycomb and bee pollen from the San Mateo Beekeepers Co-Op
• Stone fruits (apricots, peaches, plums and nectarines)
• Strawberries
• Blackberries
• Honeydew melons
• Cantaloupe
• Artichokes
• Avocados
• Tomatoes
• Spinach
• Orchids
• Dried almonds
• Homemade jams from Kitty's Kreations

There's plenty to eat on the spot, too: Vendors include Michell's Golden Brown Breads of Manteca, Gold Rush Kettle Korn of Benicia, Hummus Heaven of  San Leandro, Perfect Batch cookies, and Quick -N- Ezee Indian Foods of Hayward.

“Extra 5″ offers farmers’ market customers an extra $5 when they spend at least $10 on their CalFresh (food stamp) cards at selected farmers’ markets operated by partners at the Pacific Coast Farmers’ Market Association. The goal of this project is to encourage CalFresh recipients to take advantage of fresh, locally-grown fruits and vegetables.

Related Topics: Downtown, Farmers Market, and Produce