Before setting off on my travels there is one organization close to home in San Francisco, CA, U.S. that deserves a moment of recognition. 

Free Farm Stand is an all volunteer run organization that operates a free farmers market that shares fresh and local produce with neighbors in the community. When I first heard about Free Farm Stand, I imagined a single table setup with someone handing out apples, pears and bananas on the weekends. I’m not sure where this vision came from given that California isn’t exactly booming with banana production but even sans bananas, this organization is much more than I ever expected. 

-Photos above show everything from a meal cooked with Free Farm Stand food, to a community member playing drums during market hours, to a beautiful compost bucket.-

Every Sunday from 12pm-3pm volunteers show up rain or shine to hand out produce to local community members. Most Sundays 100+ neighbors come through the line. Many depend on Free Farm Stand for fresh food that they wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford; while others just show up for the nourishing community that Free Farm Stand has created in a quiet park tucked in the Mission District.

I have learned so much from my fellow volunteers and neighbors in the community. With a melting pot of cultures descending upon the market every Sunday, I have learned the name for certain vegetables in 3+ languages, I have laughed with community members even when there is a language barrier between us, and I have seen how food can truly build a community. 

Below are a couple of my favorite fruit/veggie/herb discoveries that I have started eating over the past 8 months because of the knowledge that has been shared with me from this community. There are so many environmental and health benefits in eating a more diverse diet. The Free Farm Stand has helped me discover more foods. It is amazing that 75% of our food comes from just 12 plants and 5 animal species when there are so many diverse, and delicious foods out there.

Five Free Farm Stand Favorites:

• Lemon Verbena: Not quite a food, but an herb, I became spoiled with getting fresh Lemon Verbena leaves to put in my water bottle throughout the week. It can also be used to make tea to treat digestive disorders.

• Fresh Coriander Seed: Did you know cilantro and the spice coriander both come from the same plant? Even if you don’t like cilantro, I encourage you to try out fresh coriander seeds. When I get a bundle of fresh coriander I typically use the seeds when they are still bright green and put them in salads, or beans. If you have a garden, the flowers on this plant also attract multiple types of pollinators!

• Pineapple Guava: This fruit is a recent discovery of mine that has a truly unique flavor. It is hard to find when it is at its pique ripeness but if you do come across this fruit in the market or grocery store I encourage you to try it! It has a strong flavor and some describe it as a mixture between pineapple and papaya. If it is too tart for you to eat, try peeling off the skin, which is typically the most tart part of the fruit. 

• Cranberry Beans: These beans are amazing both because of their looks and their taste! You can get fresh cranberry beans in the late summer and early fall. Because they are fresh they have a quick (~20 minute) cook time. My favorite way to prepare them is to shell them, boil them for 15-20 minutes and then saute them in olive oil with garlic, salt, pepper and rosemary. 

• Daikon Radish: The daikon radish is an asian variety that can be eaten cooked or raw. While I haven’t done much cooking with daikon myself, I wanted to highlight this vegetable for a couple of reasons. First, daikon is a perfect example of a vegetable that is foreign to my everyday cuisine but is a staple for many cultures. This radish is particularly rad because it represents the diversity and culture that is a huge part of food. Daikons are also interesting because they are commonly used as a cover crop across multiple growing regions in the United States. More farmers are planting cover crops rather than leaving their fields barren in between main cash crops to promote carbon sequestration and soil health. Most farmers do not harvest the radishes, but rather till them into the earth to raise organic matter in their fields. This little known fact raises an interesting discussion about how to create a market for some of these lesser known foods that are highly nutritious and staples in other cuisines.

Free Farm Stand is an amazing example of how food creates community and brings people together.