Food: The land of odd

Can we interest you in a bite of Mr. Ugly Tomato?

How about a plate of Chioggia, or a sliver of Music Pink?

If you have no idea what we’re talking about, you’re not alone. Farmers are bringing unusual fruits and vegetables from their fields to local farmers markets, and a lot of people — ourselves included — need an education in these odd-sounding (and sometimes odd-looking) foods.

Why the sudden cornucopia of foods on the fringe? Farmers and gardeners are like anyone else who digs those alluring seed catalogs. In the nongrowing months of winter, they flip through the pages, checking out new things to grow.

Plus, consumers have become increasingly willing to try new foods, thanks, in part, to more daring and playful chefs who love to add out-of-the-mainstream items to their menus. And let’s not forget the influence of the many TV cooking shows and high-end culinary magazines, which revel in unusual ingredients.

As Colorado’s harvest season picks up steam and more regionally grown produce comes to market, it seems like a good time to shine a little light on these newer foods. Many of them are not going to be something from another galaxy, but mere variations on old standbys such as squash and melons. Each variation, however, will have a slightly different look and taste from its more familiar siblings.

That’s the joy of farmers markets: You can experiment and broaden your culinary palette. After all, why be happy with just one variety of kale when you can choose from four?

Here’s a look at some of the more unusual foods we bought at recent markets and how to use them. Bear in mind that produce is seasonal, so some things we found may not be available until next year. But most of what we found — kale, beets, garlic, beans, fennel and melon — should be in stock.

- Beets. The booth shared by the Hobbs Family Farm and the Javernick Family Farm offered a rainbow of colored beets. We bought Chioggia and golden beets.

Chioggia beets are an Italian heirloom variety that are deep red on the outside. Inside are alternating rings of white and red — very pretty.

“They have a very sweet flavor and can be eaten raw,” says Laura Parker, who was running the booth.

Golden beets have a deepgold color instead of the traditional red.

“They don’t bleed like red ones when they are cooked,” she says. “I think they have a more buttery flavor.”

In her cookbook “Local Flavors — Cooking and Eating from America’s Farmers’ Markets,” Deborah Madison suggests getting a variety of colored beets and making a sort of beet caviar.

“They look like jewels,” she writes. “I like to keep a supply of beet caviar in the refrigerator, especially during the summer.”

Be sure to buy the beets with their greens.

“They are great to eat steamed with salt and pepper,” Parker says. “I had a lady tell me about how she dried the beet tops in the oven and made chips. She drizzled them with olive oil and sprinkled on some salt, then spread them out on cookie sheets to dry in a 300-degree oven.”

- Garlic. “There are probably 400 varieties of garlic,” says Larry Stebbins, education coordinator at the Venetucci Farm and a garlic aficionado.

The Venetucci Farm sells three varieties: Georgian Fire, Inchelium Red and Spanish Roja.

“Depending on what you’re cooking, pick the right garlic,” he says. “For instance, when my wife makes lasagna, she uses the Spanish Roja. I can smell it two houses away, it has such a bold aroma. And the flavor is great. I like to use the Inchelium in fresh salsa since it has a very mild flavor. The Georgian Fire is moderate to hot flavored and good for general cooking uses.”

Parker is a big supporter of buying garlic fresh at farmers markets.

“The garlic that is sold in the store is from China,” she says. “It doesn’t have the long shelf life of garlic that is grown locally. It will go bad in a couple of months. Garlic from Colorado fields will last a year.”

She was selling Music Pink, German Extra Hardy and Purple Glazer.

“The Music Pink has a milder flavor and is delicious roasted,” she says. “Purple Glazer is spicier, and I like to use it in salsa. The German variety is a lot like the Music Pink.”

All the garlics look pretty much alike, except the Purple Glazer, which has a decidedly purple hue. To be sure what you’re buying, ask the farmer.

MELONS

Sara Smith was selling one of the most popular farmers market items — Rocky Ford melons. But she also had a small box of what she called Orange Melons, which were new to us. The skin of the melon was smoother than regular cantaloupes and was bright orange. But the orange stops there.

“They are white inside and supersweet,” she says.

And she was right. It had to be one of the best melons we have tasted.

KALE

The Hobbs and Javernick family farms grow three to four varieties of kale. The day we shopped they had only a bunch of black kale left.

“Most kale in the store is curly,” says Laura Parker, who helps run their farmers market booth. “This black kale has a flatter, softer leaf. It’s more tender to eat and easier to clean.”

Other types of kale to look for include the more familiar ruffled gray-green variety; Red Russian kale, which has purplish leaves and red veins; and Redbor, which is purple-red.

No matter which kale you get, you have to prep it the same way. “All kales have ropy stems that run down the center of each leaf,” Deborah Madison writes in her cookbook. “They’re too tough to eat, so just strip the leaves from the stems by sliding a sharp knife along the stem and letting the leaves fall away.”

Parker’s favorite way to prepare kale is braised in olive oil with garlic and topped with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese just before serving. She says the black kale cooks in five to 10 minutes.

FENNEL

Laura Parker was offering baby fennel the day we shopped.

For the uninitiated, the white bulbous base can be used like any vegetable: Slice it thin and eat it raw; braise or saute it; use it in soups. Its feathery, graceful greenery can be used as a garnish or snipped like dill and used as a lastminute flavor enhancer. The greenery is especially good baked with fish.

“It has a really fresh licorice flavor,” she says. “I like to use it in potato salad for an amazing zip to the flavor.”

BEANS

Alongside regular green beans we found Purple Rain Beans, which have such a deep-purple color, they look almost black. “I call them magic beans because when they are cooking, they turn green, just like regular green beans,” Laura Parker says. “But they have a sweeter flavor.”