What’s in Season?

Winter

Shop our 99%+ Certified Organic Produce Department.

At BriarPatch Food Co-op, supporting organic local and regional farms is at the heart of what we do. We are a community-owned cooperative and understand the importance of direct farmer relationships to build a resilient food system. At the Patch, you’ll find a colorful array and diverse selection of beautiful, fresh and delicious fruits and veggies all year long. We take great pride in knowing our farmers by name. See where our local farmers are located.

Japanese sweet potato at the Patch

Japanese Sweet Potatoes

Like chestnuts, with a deep magenta skin, and white flesh that turns champagne gold as it cooks. Great elevation to standard sweet potato fries. Have them as a snack at one of the many roadside vendors or dig for your own outside central Toyko next time you’re in town.

celery root at the Patch

Celery Root

Keto-ers delight! It has fewer carbs than many of its tuber fam. Contrary to its name it’s a separate vegetable, but related to “regular” celery. Grate it into a slaw with those parsnips and Nantes carrots or make a creamy-like vegan soup. It’s mild and is top-notch mashed.

Nantes carrots at the Patch

Nantes Carrots

Just stop right here. The perfect carrot is right here. Named for the French coastal city, they are smooth, cylindrical and brilliantly orangey-red. Very sweet and mild, keep your peepers pried for a sneaky Bugs Bunny over your shoulder in the Produce Department when shopping for these.

parsnips at the patch

Parsnips

Not often does one hear “pretty please with parsnips on top” with anything but mild derision, but sceptics, open your hearts. Part of the parsley family and sweeter than carrots, and a bit more distinctive, their starchy texture works in lots of tuber applications.

fresh tumeric at th the Patch

Turmeric

Will add depth and a touch of spiciness to any dish. Comes from the ginger family, so you can often add it into recipes calling for ginger. Grate into salad dressing or tuna or chicken salads or deviled eggs to get your dose of curcumin, where the power antioxidant lives.

winter beets at the Patch

Beets

So many beet puns, so little space here. You have strong opinions about them. For those on the “thanks-but-no-thanks” side, try beet purée in your next chocolate cake, to add extra richness, or hummus — for pretty color and a touch of earthiness. There, that wasn’t so awful, right?

Starry Night Squash

How many squash have a name that’s also the name of a cocktail? A new variety of acorn squash, it has speckled skin (flecked with “stars”) and a smoother, less-stringy texture than its traditional relative. This one has a short storage season, so be sure to grab ‘em when you see ‘em!

daikon radish at the Patch

Daikon Radish

Their spicy brightness of the root and greens is a bit bolder than their smaller cousins, making them a fun pop raw, pickled or cooked. Shave some slices on your avocado toast (oh, yes you do!) and cook some greens with sesame oil, mirin, soy sauce and sugar. Sprinkle with furikake. Rad.

purple top turnips at The Patch

Purple Top Turnips

They can be pretty, yet intimidating, right? Related to broccoli and Brussels sprouts, the sweet cabbage-y root and spicy greens are edible. Treat them like any other root veg and sauté those greens like you would other dark leafies. Easy peasy.

Local = Watershed

Our definition of local Flows as we grow

We’ve recently redefined what local means to us. For many years, we’ve defined local relative to our flagship store in Grass Valley. As we grow, our definition expands, too.