Celebrating Healdsburg's Farmers Market: A Story Told Through Food

HEALDSBURG, CA — A new book tells the story of Healdsburg through the people who grow, cook, and gather around food in one of California’s most closely watched culinary towns. The book, released today, is tied directly to the weekly rhythms of the local market where those relationships begin.

Author and photographer Liza Gershman has released Farm + Market: Healdsburg, a 345-page hardcover that captures the agricultural and culinary identity of Healdsburg through chefs, farmers, vintners, and home cooks who shape its food culture.

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The book will debut at the Healdsburg Certified Farmers’ Market later this month, anchoring its launch in the same public gathering space that supplies its stories and ingredients.

Gershman documents 40 notable chefs alongside agricultural producers and local residents, pairing triple-tested recipes with personal essays and original photography that trace the movement of food from orchard rows to kitchen counters and long communal tables.

Farm + Market is organized by a narrative around relationships rather than restaurants alone, showing how growers and chefs depend on one another to sustain both seasonal menus and regional identity. Many featured chefs carry recognition from the James Beard Foundation and Michelin, underscoring Healdsburg’s standing in the national dining landscape.

Gershman, the author of 20 books, builds on earlier works that explore place-based food culture. Her previous titles include County Fair, named one of Smithsonian Magazine’s Ten Best Food Books of 2021, and Cuban Flavor, highlighted by National Geographic and honored with a Gourmand World Cookbook Award.

In this latest project, she turns her focus homeward, tracing how agricultural production and culinary innovation intersect in daily life. The book extends beyond recipes, adding historical context, profiles of local artists and characters, and a curated visitor guide for readers encountering Healdsburg for the first time.

“This book is about the people who plant, harvest, cook, and gather,” Gershman said. “It’s about what happens when a town protects its agricultural roots while welcoming the world to its table.”

Gershman designed the volume as a cloth-bound keepsake with specialty finishes and a ribbon marker, positioning it as both a kitchen reference and a coffee-table artifact.

Proceeds from sales will support the Healdsburg Certified Farmers’ Market, helping sustain and expand local food systems that connect growers directly with the community.

As Healdsburg continues to draw visitors for food and wine tourism, Farm + Market: Healdsburg frames the farmers’ market as the connective tissue between land, labor, and cuisine—where seasonal cycles shape both what people eat and how they gather.