Chef Aric Attebery, a Los Angeles native who returned to LA after a stint at Blue Hill in New York, recently opened Fountain Grains & Greens on Fountain Ave., a few blocks west of Vermont Ave. To stock his seasonally-driven bowls and salads, he heads to the farmers market.
In his bowls, he typically uses five to six different grains, all sourced from local farmers. They're not only delicious and nourishing. "Many times, these small farmers that are growing organically are growing their grains in a rotation," Attebery says, "so by featuring all those different grains, you're tasting the entire rotation, the entire system of agriculture that produces those grains."
Gillian Ferguson (left), Good Food's market report correspondent, chats with chef Aric Attebery at the Wednesday Santa Monica Farmers Market. Photo by Simran Malik.
Grain bowls are also a great canvas for seasonal produce. Attebery likes celtuce, a lettuce variety that's prized for its stem. He sources it from Coleman Family Farms in Ventura. He also grills wax beans and dragon tongue beans, which he gets from 2 Peas In A Pod in San Luis Obispo County. When he uses sunchokes, Attebery leaves the skin on, cuts them into bite-size pieces, tosses with brown butter, honey, thyme and garlic, and roasts them until they're caramelized.
2 Peas In A Pod currently has several kinds of fresh beans, including baby wax beans and dragon tongue beans, at the farmers market. Photo by Gillian Ferguson/KCRW
2 Peas In A Pod offers dried beans year-round but right now, they also have fresh ones, including both wax and dragon tongue beans. White with purple stripes, the dragon tongue beans are striking.
"They're beautiful," says Lori Heal, proprietor of 2 Peas In A Pod. "I love to eat them raw. A lot of people are doing cheese boards, pizzas, and salads with them. They're delicious. They're kind of similar to romano beans."