Siena Farms, one of my favorite farm stands in all of Boston’s farmer’s markets, just ended its last week of production for the season.  Named after the farmer’s daughter, Siena Farms is a 50-acre expansion in the Sudbury River Valley 25 miles outside of Boston.  The farm’s owners also head up Belmont’s Sofra Bakery and Oleana restaurant in Cambridge, where the farmer’s wife, Ana is head chef.  Both the restaurant and bakery are of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern influence and utilize the fresh ingredients from the farm.  I have yet to dine at Oleana, but Sofra Bakery is among my favorite lunch spots in Boston– and I hear they are beginning to offer cooking classes.  The quaint café offers an array of traditionally inspired yet modernly executed hummus’s, tzatziki’s, and the like.  Order their beet tzatziki or the Moroccan goat cheese atop a homemade crispy falafel or their yeasty steam bun-like pitas.  The bakery also offers a tantalizing assortment of Lebanese, Turkish, and Greek pastries– it’s like having to choose between Jimmy Choo and Manolos to pick just one dessert out (which is why I usually get at least two).

Many of the bakery’s delicious creations can also be found at the farm’s market stand.  Along with my weekly vegetable purchasing, I have attempted to try a different Sofra creation each visit.  At the top of the list is their homemade granola with its toasty sesame seeds, moist dates, and crispy oats which makes for a perfect topping on yogurt and fruit or simply as a bowl of cereal.  My other favorite is their pumpkin jam, which was a recent autumn addition that provokes the very essence of fall.  Close your eyes and eat this jam spread over their soft pitas and you will be awakened into a delightful world where Halloween and apple picking are perpetual affairs.

Also, in lieu of their imminent closing for the season, I wanted to purchase some of the last bounties of the season.  Although I don’t prefer radishes over many of Siena’s other offerings, these tiny root bulbs spoke to me.  Each one a different shape, size, and color I hand picked a sample that would showcase these varying characteristics.  Because I don’t absolutely adore radishes as much as other root veggies, I thought it might be interesting to pickle them instead of eating them raw.  I found a quick and simple recipe to do so and added fennel to the concoction as it too would soon escape along with the markets themselves.  I’ve been munching on these sweet and crunchy pickled beauties ever since.

Pickled Fennel and Radishes

2 bunches of radishes, sliced into thick wedges

1 fennel bulb, cored and sliced thinly

1 cup water

1 cup sugar

1 cup champagne vinegar

2 sprinkles of tumeric root

¼ cup salt

In a colander placed over a bowl, toss the salt with sliced radishes and fennel.  Let sit for 1 hour.  Meanwhile, in a saucepan, bring the water, vinegar, sugar, and tumeric just to a boil then turn off the heat and stir to dissolve the sugar.  Set aside to cool.

Rinse the radishes and fennel and pat dry.  Arrange the veggies into two sterilized mason jars, strain the cooled liquid through a cheesecloth or coffee filter evenly into each jar.  Refrigerate and enjoy for up to two weeks.