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Just as we expected, the recent New Amsterdam Market was a another huge success, one that saw thousands jostling, sampling, smiling, asking questions, and buying good food from good-natured farmers, foragers, cheesemongers and even — it was true — popsicle vendors. A brief downpour did little to dampen the mood. Our friend Severine was in high-voltage promotion mode, with her Greenhorns stickers and young farmer message (only a savvy young agrarian promoter would think to bring along one of her rabbits). Annie Meyers wrote up a gorgeous piece about the day (are you listening, New York?) on her blog, Thoughts on the Table, and word on the NAM site is that Senator Clinton sent a last minute congrats and good luck — could it be that, in spite of her ties to Monsanto, she shares in our local food vision?

As for me, the Wild Foods folks (who offer wild food CSA memberships — check out their site and join me in envying people in Vermont) did not disappoint. I picked up some cattail hearts (which, by the time I cooked them, were a little tough, but it’d been a few days and I sauteed them, instead of grilling them as suggested) as well as some bracken ferns (which really were even better than fiddleheads, just sauteed in olive oil and a little salt), wild ginger and wild chervil.

That last I incorporated into this salad (with greens from Whole Foods and nasturtiums from my back porch). The chervil was an incredible addition to the salad and brought back a fuzzy childhood memory of somebody — my aunt, I think — picking some in a field and teaching me that it was edible. Do your homework before you go foraging, though — Les Hook mentioned that wild chervil looks a lot like wild hemlock, and you do not want to get those two confused.

I also got a sirloin tip roast from St. Brigid’s Farm, which turned out not to be too local for the New York crowd, but is right down the road from me, here in Maryland. Even though I overcooked it a little, it made for a great dinner one night, several sandwiches over the following couple of days, and finally, as a tasty addition to a local-ish stir-fried rice (with cattail hearts, wild ginger, farm-fresh eggs, onions and chard).

Sometimes the market love lasts for days. Here’s hoping for a permanent New Amsterdam Market.