For years, the Bloomberg administration has tried to increase access to fresh produce in low-income neighborhoods across NYC. In 2007, the city promised 1,500 new permits to vendors who commit to selling fresh fruits and vegetables from carts in low-income neighborhoods, but results were somewhat disappointing. To make matters worse, community farmers markets—not to be confused with larger operations like the Union Square Market, which are run by the non-profit Greenmarket—face a tangle of red tape that has kept fresh produce out of under-served neighborhoods. With supermarkets steadily disappearing in low-income areas, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer wants the city to make it easier for farmers markets to thrive. more ›

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer is releasing a report today that proposes limiting the amount of fast food joints in the city, giving incentives to encourage healthier markets and mandating city agencies to purchase local produce. Stringer said, “Our foodshed is already broken and we need to fix it,” referring to the big picture of how food is brought, bought, sold, cooked and eaten in the city. Stringer thinks the city should give tax and zoning incentives to bring farmers' markets into areas lacking in healthy food outlets. He also called for schools, shelters and other agencies to be required to buy 20 percent of their vegetables and dairy products from sources within a couple hundred miles of the city. One food consultant said that the plan might be a bit unrealistic to the area's farmland geography telling the Times, “It’s a bigger picture than just apples and carrots.” Nutritional initiatives have been on the rise lately with the health-conscious mayor's calorie display requirements and the governor's talk of raising revenue through a "fat tax." more ›

• Ken Friedman, owner of the Spotted Pig, has been approved for a liquor license in a space between Craftsteak and Del Posto over on 10th Avenue, reports the NY Post. Not sure what it will be yet, but apparently it will be named after a different animal.
• Down by the Hipster reports that Danny Meyers' plan for a second Shake Shack in Central Park is a no go: "The sticking point was the lease term, with USHG wanting a long-term deal, but the parks department not willing to give any more than 5 years."
• Gridskipper brings us two excellent roundups this week for anyone looking to take a trip to the outer boroughs: Queens Eats under $10 (including Vendy Award winner Sammy's Halal, pictured) and Staten Island Eats -- sounds like a trip on the ferry is in order.

Here at What’s Fresh the goal is to throw the spotlight onto ingredients that are at peak ripeness right now in the short window that is their local New York metro area existence. Sure, you can get yourself plums during most times of the year from somewhere in the world, or asparagus year-round as the sourcing moves from California to Mexico and finally to Peru just before it comes up fresh for us again in springtime, but it just seems to taste better when you know it is fresh, from a person you feel good supporting and without contributing to the petrol burn of air lifted food. More reading about the last topic can be found here. more ›

More stone fruit abound this week at most farmers markets in the NYC metro area. Over at the Union Square Greenmarket, Locust Grove Farm had a wide variety of plums available with even more slated to come to market this week. While driving back from a Sunday farm visit, our friend Kate talked the car through her favorite plum recipe when the conversation came up. Simple, satisfying and always successful - here it is... more ›

Ah, the imperfect glory of colorful, divisive beets - so despised by some yet deemed utterly delicious by others. Few foods have such ardent fans and eaters willing to express their distain. In which camp do you sit? If you are the latter and it is based on an earlier canned experience, we now implore you to give them another try. more ›

For most people growing up there was little by the way of choice when it came to potatoes. Sure….out at a restaurant you might get your choice of fried, baked or mashed, but for cooking at home most folks knew only of the Idaho russet. Sometimes there was a choice of red potatoes also, but their low starch count limited their appearances to potato salads. Those lucky enough to live near Maine or California may have also seen small white potatoes labeled “new” in the supermarkets. more ›

Everyone loves a good caprese salad. The Italian delicacy is genius in its simplicity. It can be nothing more than sliced tomatoes topped with fresh mozzarella, garnished with basil and drizzled in olive oil. Anybody can make caprese as well as any Italian restaurant in town so long as anybody has access to high quality ingredients. Ay, there’s the rub: Where to find those ingredients. more ›

Asparagus -- where to start? It does not resemble any other food we eat, leaves a stink in our toilet bowls like none other, and often confuses buyers with its fat or thin conundrum. Yet despite all the easy attachable locker room humor that’s readily available, it has been beloved all world over for a very long time now. more ›

While not possessing the full favor punch of their final bloom, the delicacy of their essence is a welcome addition to the arsenal of a cook. more ›

Until recently, Gothamist had never seen purple carrots before, but apparently they have been around since the beginning of time. According to nutritionists, their purple pigments are high in anti-oxidants. Gothamist's lack of exposure to such interesting veggie varieties makes us long for the farmer's markets on the West Coast, where they have stands with a rainbow of carrot varieties. more ›

And since we're on the subject of Red Hook, today's New York Daily News profiles the Red Hook Farm, a 2.5 acre farm providing fresh organic produce to the neighborhood along with gardening, cooking, marketing, and teamwork skills to local teens. more ›

Girlynyc, Panty Blogger more ›