From Feeding a Yen:
I'm aware that I tend to go on about pimientos de Padrón. They are on a list I keep in my head of the victuals that, despite being my favorite dishes in one part of the world or another, rarely seem to be served outside their territory of origin — a list I sometimes refer to as the Register of Frustration and Deprivation. I have always assumed that a lot of people have such a list, no matter where they live. Now and then, I try to comfort myself with the thought that, given the fact that I live in New York, my Register of Frustration and Deprivation is much shorter than it would be if I lived anywhere else. That doesn't seem to help much.
After a fruitless trip to the farmers' market this morning, where we saw plenty of flowers but not much else, this quote is clicking with us in NYC...
squashes and parsnips are scarce in these parts -- squashes are not carried out of season, and parsnips are just plain SCARCE. Last time I scored some parsnips at a local farmers' market, a little old lady asked me "what do you do with THOSE??!". I tried to explain the perfect chicken soup to her, but she just looked at me funny. This is pot au feu country.
That said, the most amazing French strawberries are just coming into season... they are long and narrow and very sweet (from Perpignon?)
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oh! and rapini -- haven't seen any since last June -- it used to be a staple for us
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I clicked on the pimientos de Padron link and found my comment. I'm happy to report that I was indeed able to try Pimientos de Padron (Gernika) peppers in San Sebastian.
I had them here in Chicago at Mercat and they were nothing like the ones I had here http://www.flickr.com/photos/art_chel/1457808001/
Even on the rare occasion a foreign delicacy may be found nearby, it may not translate well.
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