Yesterday my son, Ryan and I went to the neighborhood farmer’s market. We decided we were going to be very European and cook meals out of what we could find fresh from the market, I personally love that idea. I have always found the notion of going to an outdoor market and buying fresh ingredients for the days meal, very romantic. How refreshing to go find fresh fruits and vegetables and seeing what the local vendors have to offer for the market this week. We even found fresh cheeses, meats and fish for this weeks dinners.
We talked to a bunch of local farmers and asked them questions about their practices, got ideas on what to do with the food and asked what was coming in the near future. We talked to a local chef and had a wonderful conversation about using zucchini flowers and how to use them in recipes. I can not wait to experiment. We even decided to put in an order for next week of smoked brisket from a local organic farm that offers grass fed, grass finished beef for next week’s dinner.
I try to feed my family fresh, organic foods whenever possible. At the market, if it is important to you that your family eats organic, please ask. Not all food at the farmer’s market is organic. There is one farmer at our local market who got very snippy with me when I asked if he used chemicals on his fruits. I am guessing that more and more people are starting to eat organic foods when they can. I must have been that “just one more person” at the end of a long day, and judging by how much he had left, it was not a very good one for him.
My family is very conscientious and we are big believers in supporting local farmers and about buying from small business. As long as the practices they use line up with our beliefs, we will go out of our way to support them. It is important that in our busy lives and the onslaught of immediate gratification and availability that we step back and try to help our local businesses when and if we can.
I also know that some farmers will cut you a break on fruits and vegetables that are not perfect. It is the ugly fruit box, the food is the same, just not as pretty.
We came home and created a wonderful breakfast taco from the farm fresh eggs we bought from a local farm. We found fresh, organic tomatoes and onion sets, picked some cilantro from our garden and made pico de gallo. It was truly wonderful. For dinner, we had steak with fresh rosemary and garlic from a lady who sells meat and cheese. Tomorrow, I have Bok Choy and some hot peppers that I will be figuring out what to do with. It reminds me of the show on the food channel where they give you a basket and you have to make something out of it. I will keep you posted on what we create.
For me, that is living the dream.
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