Farmers markets are stepping up to the plate | Let’s Eat

The “farm” side of our region’s farmers markets is going strong in these days of coronavirus. As for the sampling and socializing side? Not so much, as The Inquirer’s Jenn Ladd describes.

Jenn also describes one of the many sobering sides of the crisis: The region’s distilleries have switched from making booze to hand sanitizer. Jenn tells you where you can get it. And while you’re at it, pick up the vodka, rum, gin, and spirits they usually sell.

Also this week, critic Craig LaBan shares the makings of two fine Italian dishes from local chefs.

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– Michael Klein

Philadelphia’s farmers markets are no longer venues for leisurely post-brunch strolls. Gone are the free tastes of cheese and bread, the gulps of wine and swigs of local cider. And no more picking through produce; many farmers instead pre-weigh their product in an effort to speed shoppers along and minimize touching.

“Just like everything else, [the market has] undergone a pretty dramatic transformation,” one customer told The Inquirer’s Jenn Ladd. "But I think totally appropriate for the time we’re going through.”

After hand sanitizer evaporated from store shelves and the internet last month, distilleries all over the country started brewing makeshift substitutes with various formulas. Then, as Jenn reports, the federal government stepped in with the World Health Organization’s guidelines, which call for a mix of ethanol, glycerol, and hydrogen peroxide. Small distilleries have been quick to get into the act — at least 12 of them in the Philadelphia area, including New Jersey, are offering them to consumers. Cheers!

Good food on its own cannot solve the biggest problems, but it can help us cope. After canceling a family trip to Italy, restaurant critic Craig LaBan cooked Italian pasta as comfort for the lives, restaurants, and plans impacted by the coronavirus shutdown. Craig shares insights into preparing the fazzoletti with lamb ragu that Joe Cicala serves at Cicala at the Divine Lorraine and the spaghetti alle vongole that Michael Vincent Ferrari does at Res Ipsa.

Anndee Hochman shares the story of a group of friends in Mount Airy who’ve gathered weekly for dinner, through all kinds of life’s up and downs. Though coronavirus has puts a hitch in their weekly gatherings, the spirit of sharing remains.

Inquirer photographers talk to the owners and employees who are serving customers in a new way. Take Rich Cusack, who opened the lovely June BYOB last year on East Passyunk Avenue. It’s not a destination these days. He’s now cooking for the neighborhood, and the food is dispensed through the front window.

Can I get infected from the mail? What if the person who makes the food is sick? Could a sick delivery person transfer the virus to me? Good news: The risk is small. As the virus has spread across the globe, newspapers, mail, and food delivery appear to be generally safe. Even better news, writes reporter Jonathan Lai: There are steps you can take to minimize that risk even further.