Where can you eat one of the best vegetable dishes you probably ever tasted surprisingly at the most acclaimed meat purveyor you have ever visited that is among an array of beautiful "bests" you will have munched on within steps of each other in an hour? I recently did it at Los Angeles' Grand Central Market, a downtown fixture since 1917, and have had comparable adventures at Los Angeles' Original Farmers Market, operating since 1934, as well as other similar stall-filled marketplaces across the country and the world.

I would suggest such visits in your own hometown or during your travels as one of the easiest ways for savvy home cooks to quickly taste and collect multiple food prep ideas. In a completely different league than mall food courts, such marketplaces usually have counters and scattered tables for eating, and often feature some of a city's most unique vendors, with experts on hand eager to explain the excellence behind their goods.

My most recent excursion began at the Grand Central Market's Belcampo Meat Co., a praised butcher shop and food counter stemming from their own sustainable farm, which provides organic and compassionately raised meat. Wanting to include a vegetable in addition to burger toppings in my quick lunch, I asked if they had a side salad. They did not have salad, but mentioned that broccolini was among their few sides. I've eaten the tiny floret-long, thin stalked broccoli-like vegetable before and liked it, but little did I know that, for me, it would be the cooked broccolini that took center stage.

The sizzling plate arrived within minutes with its crispy tiny florets attached to the glittering tall stalks and from the first bite was one of the best dishes I'd ever eaten. I heard a server describing a meat rub recipe in detail to an enamored customer and afterward I asked him how the broccolini was prepared. The simple ingredients he noted are below.

Just as modest and delectable a treat (as in the best frozen pop I ever tasted) came my way as I strolled a few footsteps to the Press Brothers Juicery, a Los Angeles family owned and operated business started six years ago by transplanted Kansas famers. They use locally sourced fruits and vegetables in innovative cold-pressed juice blends.

Like my own take on the broccolini, I've since made my own version of the striking frozen pop at home. Part of why we ventured downtown that weekend was to visit a new, large heralded park. Even after our fitness walk in the park with a view of the L.A. skyline, the marketplace, which was a short drive away from there, was the more memorable and fun part, and proved to me once again how such gems can be recipe treasure troves for curious home cooks.

All ingredients are to taste.

BROCCOLINI AT ITS BEST

Sear broccolini (cooking in a pan very quickly at a high temperature for the tiny florets to char slightly and reach a crispy state, but without burning). Turn heat to low and carefully add fresh lemon juice and small pieces of samba (or other pepper) and dashes of crushed red pepper flakes and dried sage. Heat until stalks are tender and not overcooked.

FROZEN POP TO MELT YOUR HEART

Gently mix pineapple juice, apple juice (preferably fresh Fuji apple juice), fresh lemon juice, finely chopped fresh mint and agave. Pour in frozen pop molds, and freeze until hard.

Additional frozen pop combinations sold at Press Brothers Juicery and noted on their menu board:

—Fuji apple juice, kiwi juice, strawberry juice, lime juice and agave.

—Pineapple juice, cucumber juice, kale juice, small amount of fresh peeled ginger and agave.

AFTER-WORK GOURMET COOKBOOK SHELF

Anya Fernald, founder and CEO of Belcampo Meat Co., teaches a lot more than how to cook meat in "Home Cooked: Essential Recipes for a New Way to Cook." The book serves as a primer leading to quick everyday meals as well as deeper skills. Fernald is a sustainable food expert and teaches how to preserve meat and produce. The cooking style is based on "cucina povera," the simple ways of Italian peasants. Broths may be prepared with leftover bones. Tougher cuts of meat may long simmer into being delectable parts of stews and sauces. Flavor is built within a dish and results in hard-to-forget specialties, like Chicken Braised in Vinegar and Aromatics; Lemon-Cured Anchovies; and Rhubarb Bitters.

Lisa Messinger is a first-place winner in food writing from the Association of Food Journalists and the author of seven food books, including "Mrs. Cubbison's Best Stuffing Cookbook" and "The Sourdough Bread Bowl Cookbook." To find out more about Lisa Messinger and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com