Today was my farmers market (FM) day and I thought I’d post a picture of all the stuff I came away with. I could have gotten a lot more, but it was too hot and I wanted to get in and out. I stopped at only a few of the stalls at only one end of the market and that’s all I could handle.

Today we got: a small bag of tiny potatoes; a big bunch of red chard; 3 artichokes; half flat of strawberries; a random assortment of peaches, nectarines, and pluots; 3 melons (all different kinds); and a bag of baby spinach and salad mix. All for $36 and from only 3 different farmers. Everything is certified organic, except the melons. I’m not so strict on the organic title for fruits that are peeled, but I do wash them prior to peeling or cutting so that if there is any pesticide on the outside that it won’t come into contact with the part that does get eaten.

Storage:

I could smell that these melons need to be eaten quickly, so I stuck them in the fridge the minute I got them home. That’s pretty much all I did for those, the artichokes and the peaches. The guy who I get peaches from is pretty expensive at $3.50 per pound, but he will have “sortouts” available for $2 per pound (those that are really ripe or slightly bruised). I only buy from the sortout bin because I will inevitably bruise them on my way home anyway, and it lets my money go a little farther. His fruit is the most delicious too. I won’t buy from anyone else, even if their prices are cheaper. Also, he has at least 10 different varieties of peaches, nectarines, plums and pluots– his selection is amazing!



Strawberries: a random lady at the FM gave my this storage tip for strawberries and it really works! When you bring them home, put them in a large tupperware container (or glass food storage container, whichever your preference) and refrigerate. They will keep for at least a week this way. What I like to do is sort through them and only put the firmest ones in my tupperware. Ones that are soft or overripe I’ll refrigerate in one of those green baskets that they come in and eat those first. DO NOT WASH THEM prior to storing them– only wash right before you eat them.

Greens: this is a great way for washing and storing your greens and I have to give credit to Rachael Ray and my mom for these tips. To wash, fill a big bowl or your sink full of cold water. Put your greens in and give them a good shake. All of the dirt and bugs will sink to the bottom of the water. Remove the greens from the water and place onto a clean kitchen towel and arrange in a single layer. If you have more greens than what will fit in your towel in a single layer, put a paper towel on top and add another layer on top of that. When all of your greens are arranged, roll the towel up like a burrito. Store in a plastic bag in the fridge. They will keep for about a week this way, but be sure to check them every few days to make sure they aren’t wilting. If they do start to wilt, use a spray bottle to get them damp again or place a damp paper towel on top of the greens to rehydrate them.

How Long Will This Last Us:

I know this looks like a lot, but we are big fruit eaters around here and I suspect this will last us through next week. I think Emma and I eat 5 servings of just fruit in a day and I like to pack my husband a container of fruit to take to work in the mornings. The veggies will for sure be gone by next week, but we may have some fruit still floating around. Besides that, I could go into labor at any time and at least the house will be well stocked with fresh fruits and veggies if I’m not around for a few days.

Tips for a Greener FM Experience:

• Take your own bags: this goes without saying, but I’ll say it anyway since I see so many people who don’t do this.  I take my own cloth bags for carrying my haul, as well as several smaller produce bags for things that you pay for by weight.  You can see one of them in the lower left of the first photo above; it’s what is holding our potatoes.  Using those provided plastic bags is so wasteful, especially if you are using a separate plastic bag for everything you’re buying (i.e. potatoes in one, carrots in another, etc.)!
• Take back everything that you bring home:  what I mean by this is that I save all of those strawberry baskets, the 1/2 flat cardboard box and any rubber bands and take them back the next week.  Besides being less wasteful, it saves the farmer some money because they don’t have to continually replace these things and that’s when they can pass that savings on to you.  Speaking of savings, you can generally get some awesome deals if you hit the market near closing time.  The farmer would rather give stuff away at a discounted price than take it back, especially if it’s something that won’t last them until their next market day.

That’s all I can think of off the top of my head. Do you have any green shopping tips to share?

In the summertime, I usually plant at least a tomato plant.  This year, I’ve been so obsessed with the idea of making my own pickles that I planted 3 pickling cucumber plants in addition to my tomato and melon plants.  I also planted a bunch of herbs that are growing like crazy.  My problem is that I’m really short on space and there aren’t a lot of spots around my house that get full sun for a good part of the day.  On top of that, we have had the craziest summer and the weather has been extremely mild.  No hot sun means no harvest.

But today when I went out, I saw that my very first cucumber is nearly ready to be picked!  And I have one tomato that is on the verge of ripeness.  Eeek!  Here’s some photos:

You’ll notice that my garden is entirely planted in large pots.  I used tomato cages to keep them growing up instead of out.  Just goes to show you that you can grow your own fruits and veggies even with very limited space.  Even if you just had a small balcony, I bet you could pull off a new plants.  The plants themselves are cheap and, aside from watering them every day or two, they require very little effort on my part.  I’m so excited about my pickles.  I’ll be sure to let you all know how it goes.

I’ve long known that strawberries are one of the most contaminated fruits and to avoid non-organic ones at all cost.  A friend sent me a link to a news article explaining why and, upon doing my own research on it, I’m pretty freaked out about eating any non-organic strawberries or products made with them.  It’s important to keep in mind that I’m talking about strawberries in whole fruit form and also to anything that contains them– jam/preserves, yogurt, etc.  What the government allows to be sprayed on these crops that feed us is really disturbing. (Not to mention how disturbing it is that a human being applies these chemicals and then works the field that they were sprayed in.  It’s so sad that these people are then coated in these carcinogenic pesticides that will probably give him/her cancer one day when they don’t have health insurance and don’t even make a decent wage for their efforts.  This little tangent is besides the point, though.  But seriously, if you live near me in California, take a little drive down highway 101 near Salinas and head over to towards the coast and you’ll see what I mean.  This is where my local strawberries come from.)

Strawberries were treated with a seriously hazardous pesticide called methyl bromide.  Methyl bromide has been banned for a few years now because it is found to deplete the ozone layer.  That’s bad news right there… so enter it’s equally as hazardous-to-our-health cousin methyl iodide.  Methyl iodide does the same thing methyl bromide does (kill every living organism in the soil) without the ozone depletion.  Still, exposure to methyl iodide has been found to cause thyroid toxicity, neurological damage and fetal loss in lab animals.  The U.S. EPA has classified methyl iodide as Group C: Possible human carcinogen, while the State of California has determined under Proposition 65 that methyl iodide is a carcinogen.

So why would the federal government who thinks methyl iodide is possibly a human carcinogen allow it to be used on our food?  Well– and I need to point out that I’m not much of a conspiracy theorist– it wasn’t too difficult to find out the reason:

According to Treehugger.com, “the chemical will be manufactured by Arysta LifeScience Corp. (under the catchy name “Midas”) – whose former chief executive is now the EPA’s chief administrator for the northwest region – for use on fields growing tomatoes, peppers, trees and strawberries (amongst others).”

(Incidentally, this is not the first instance I’ve heard of the government being in bed with private companies.  The above is just one example and it’s all got me questioning everything– from food to vaccines.)

Guys, I’ve barely scratched the surface here.  I spent a few minutes poking around and found all this information.  If you’re buying non-organic strawberries (and tomatoes, peppers, etc), chances are really good that it’s being treated with methyl iodide.  And since it’s a fumigant (I think that means it’s a gas?), does this mean that all those stalls at the farmer’s markets or places along the highways that advertise as being “no spray” are using this stuff?  Sure, it’s not a liquid that is being sprayed onto the crops, but would they intentionally deceive people concerned enough to ask?  I get it that it’s hard and costly to become “certified organic,” but if I ask the person selling the fruit if they are organic and they reply “no spray,” I personally take that to mean it’s semi-organic.  Like organic without the government stamp “certified organic.”  NOT ANYMORE!

Are you reading this, husband of mine?  This is why I’m so picky/neurotic over the food we eat and what we feed our kids.  And this is just about strawberries– I haven’t even researched in depth any other fruit or vegetable.  For me and my family, our new rule is all organic all the time.  No exceptions.  I encourage you all to take yourself to your favorite search engine and type “methyl iodide strawberries” and quickly glance over the results.

My husband’s cousin had some dental work done and now she can’t eat anything that isn’t soft and pureed. I thought I’d whip up something tasty for her, since she mentioned being tired of the stuff she’s been eating lately.

It was the perfect opportunity for me to use up the apples in my fridge that weren’t quite right for eating raw.  I’ve been telling myself for a while now that I needed to either juice them or make some applesauce, so I was happy to have an opportunity to put them to use.

Easy Applesauce

5-6 apples peeled, cored and chopped

Juice of 1/2 a lemon (or lime– I was all out of lemons)

1 TB maple syrup

2 cinnamon sticks

pinch of whole cloves

Put all ingredients in a large saucepan and pour in enough water to cover the apples.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes or until apples are tender.  When cooked, remove the cloves and cinnamon stick and puree or mash.  If there is a bunch of water left at the bottom of the apples, drain them before pureeing.  The water in mine had all evaporated during cooking.  This made about 3 cups of applesauce.

In the other jar is my Butternut Squash and Apple Soup, which I haven’t made in a really long time.  I LOVE it, but it’s not my husband’s favorite and I just never think to make it.  Thankfully, this batch made 2 quarts of soup, so that’s what we’re having for dinner too!  Since I wanted this batch of soup super smooth (didn’t want to risk any chunks getting stuck in her stitches), I used my food processor to puree it.  If you opt to use a blender or food processor to puree instead of an immersion blender, let the soup cool a little beforehand to be sure you don’t burn yourself.  Yummy!  I can’t wait for dinner tonight!

I got a great book for Christmas that is all about green smoothies (Green Smoothie Revolution: The Radical Leap Toward Natural Health) and have been on a smoothie kick lately.  I try to have one quart of green smoothie per day and I also make sure to rotate my greens for maximum nutritional benefit.  For example, if one week is kale week, the next week is chard week (or spinach or collard greens).  Any kind of dark leafy green is perfect for smoothie making.  When combined with yummy, sweet fruits, the “green” taste of the vegetable can’t be tasted at all.  Really, give it a try!

When making smoothies, I like to add in a couple superfoods.  To expand my knowledge, I decided to read Superfoods: The Food and Medicine of the Future by David Wolfe.  His book is very informative, but also easy to read and it contains several recipes for each superfood.  I highly recommend it and it’s only $10 on Amazon (or check your library to see if they have it).  For this post, I will focus on the superfoods that I use most (there are 10 outlined in the book).  If you want more information on superfoods, I guess you’ll just have to read the book.  Here are a couple of videos I was able to find where he is discussing superfoods and how awesome they are (I couldn’t find Part 3):

Part I

Part II

Superfoods are something that you should try to eat a little of every day (thus adding them to a daily smoothie is a great way to make sure that you do).

Goji Berries

Goji berries look like fiery red raisins.  To me, they taste sort of like a dried apricot, but are much smaller.  Goji berries can be eaten straight up, but I prefer to add a handful to my smoothies.  My blender is not fancy and it is able to blend them just fine.  When buying goji berries, or any superfood for that matter, go for the organic and Raw option.  They are superior in quality and nutrition.  Goji berries are a complete protein source, containing 19 different amino acids and all 8 essential amino acids.  They typically contain 2-4 times the amount of antioxidants found in blueberries.  Goji berries also boost the immune system, support adrenal glands, improve eyesight and deliver anti-aging compounds.

Cacao (Raw Chocolate)

When you hear about the antioxidant properties of chocolate, this is what they’re talking about!  Not Hershey or Ghirardelli or some other chocolate that has been roasted and combined with tons of sugar and sometimes dairy.  Just so we’re clear that processed chocolate really has no nutritional benefit.

Raw chocolate, cacao, on the other hand does!  It contains the highest concentrations of antioxidants of any food in the world.  It’s also high in minerals and contains Omega-6 fatty acids.  Be sure to buy cacao that is Fair Trade or that is labeled as not being harvested by slave labor.  Nibble on a handful, or add some to a smoothie.

Hemp Seeds

I add at least 2 TB to a quart of smoothie.  Sometimes I add a little more if I’m planning to share the smoothie with someone else.  Hempseeds are one of the best sources of plant protein and fat.  They contain significant amounts of Omega 3 (ALA) and Omega 6 fatty acids, as well as a variety of vitamins and minerals.  If you’re currently using flax seeds in your smoothies, I suggest switching to hemp; likewise if you are using flax oil.

Coconuts

Most pe0ple avoid coconut products because they are high in saturated fat.  Yes, they are, but their kind of saturated fat is good for you.  Unlike saturated fat from animals, coconuts are comprised primarily of medium chain fatty acids which help to protect against heart disease.  Medium-chain fatty acids=good.  Saturated fats from animals=very, very bad.  According to the American Heart Association, saturated fat is the main dietary cause of high blood cholesterol.

Interestingly, coconut water is nearly identical to blood plasma. During World War II, it was used as a substitute for intravenous plasma.

In smoothie making, you can crack open a young coconut (pictured above; the ones you can purchase at the store generally shaved down like the white one on the bottom right) and add the water to your smoothie.  You can also add the flesh, if you want.  Blending the flesh together with the water to produce a “milk” would be tasty and would produce a creamier smoothie.  Please note that I am not referring to any kind of canned or otherwise preserved and pasteurized coconut product.  Something that is processed and canned does not have the same nutritional benefits of fresh, living foods.  The brown mature coconuts are good too, but the flesh is tougher and not as digestible.  The many benefits of coconuts are listed here.

And here is an easy way to open coconuts:

The most interesting part of this book, for me, is that several of these superfoods support and help restore thyroid function.  I have been on thyroid medication for almost half of my life to treat my hypothyroidism.  (Interesting tidbit:  fluoride is thought to impair thyroid function, which is why I really want a water filter that removes fluoride from my drinking water.)  I have thought many times of trying to get off of the medication (seriously, who wants to take medication for something that can be fixed through a natural means… okay, nearly all Americans do, but that’s not the point).  For the remainder of 2010, I’m going to thoroughly research this topic and talk to my doctor about it.  I may even seek the advice of a naturopathic doctor.  Then next year, if I feel that I can successfully do it and if my doctor is behind me, I’m going to attempt to come off my medication.  I do not recommend this for everyone and I’m not a doctor or nutritionist, but I do firmly believe that most medical conditions can be improved or cured through a plant-based diet.  If you are tired of taking medications for all that ails you, start researching.  I was thinking the other day that I don’t know anyone in my parents generation or older who is not medicated for something.  When Emma is my age, I hope that my husband and I are two people she knows who don’t need medication for everything under the sun.  I guess that would be another blog topic for another day, though.

Here are some tips for yummy smoothies:

• If you are new to smoothie making, try using juice as a base (or half juice, half water) since it does produce a sweeter smoothie.  I only use fresh squeezed and find this to be a good tactic to getting Emma to drink the smoothie too.  When I’m making a smoothie just for me, I generally just use water.
• Add the liquid first, then add the goji berries on top of that while you are preparing or adding the other ingredients.  This gives your goji berries some time to soften up a bit, making it easier for your blender to blend them smooth.
• Use frozen fruit and/or add ice.  Cold smoothies always taste better.
• Bananas are the best fruit I’ve found to use in green smoothies.  Their sweetness masks the bitter “green” taste from the leafy greens.  If you make a smoothie and find that it is too “green” tasting or not sweet enough, add some ripe banana.

Or smovie as Emma calls is. 

This is one of my favorites!  It’s best when made with soy milk, but since we eat a lot of soy foods (like tofu), I don’t really use soy milk for anything anymore.  For this smoothie, I use frozen bananas, unsweetened vanilla almond milk, and a generous helping of flax seeds (depends on how much smoothie you’re making, but I generally add no less than a heaping tablespoon).  For an extra kick, you can add some pitted dates or agave nectar and a drizzle of vanilla extract.  This is so good, so filling and so good for you!

Okay, I’m sure I’m not the first person to come up with something like this, but it was so darn easy and tasty that I couldn’t help but blog about it.  We don’t have any vegan bread in this house and I’ve been too lazy (and it’s been too hot) to make any.  Even just using the bread machine heats up the house.  Anyway, what I did have were some tortillas left from last night’s burrito fest, so I made a PB&J-dilla.  And it was SOOOOOOO good!!

Spread some natural (organic) PB on one side of your tortilla.  Top with J of choice (I used strawberry).  Add some fruit, if you want.  I added some sliced banana and green apple.  Fold.  Place in a hot skillet and toast about 2 minutes per side.  Remove from pan and enjoy!

Yesterday was Emma’s birthday party and man, was it hot!  Perfect weather, actually, since there was a bit of a breeze.  She seemed to enjoy herself; although, every time I ask her if she had fun, she tells me that it was too tiring.  I agree.  Next year, she seems down for a trip somewhere in lieu of a big party.  The theme was garden/spring/bugs.

I bet you’re all wondering what was on the menu so without further delay, here you go:

Fruit:  pineapple, watermelon, grapes, strawberries, cantaloupe and blueberries (and a special thanks to Nana Sally for contributing the best tasting blueberries I’ve had all year– blueberries are one of Emma’s favorite foods).  I used the top half of a pineapple as the centerpiece of the fruit tray.  Then I cut some melon flowers and put them on skewers into the pineapple.  I used green leaf lettuce around the edge for a little something extra.  Turned out cute.

Snack Tray #1:  cherry tomatoes, edamame, spring rolls with Quick Peanut Sauce from Vegan Lunch Box.

Snack Tray #2:  mini pitas, crackers, baby carrots, bell pepper slices, cucumber slices and falafel.

For the kiddos:  PB&J flowers.  Centers are strawberry and grape halves secured with a toothpick.

Cake:

A cupcake tower of strawberry, chocolate, vanilla, chocolate mint, lemon and coconut.  The cupcakes were topped with fondant ladybugs, butterflies, caterpillars, and flowers.  On top of the tower was a “cake” with a candle for Emma to blow out.  I didn’t have time to make an actual cake, so I used styrofoam and covered it with homemade chocolate fondant.  The decor at the top is all made from gum paste and fondant.  Extra embellishments– i.e. the ladybug spots, etc.– are all done with a vegan royal icing (sub Ener-G Egg Replacer for egg white).

I know all of this looks like it took a long time to prepare, and it did, but the great thing about it is that a lot of it can be done ahead of time.  The faux “cake” I made about two weeks ahead of time.  The fondant decorations for the cupcakes were done about a month ago, as with the decorations for the faux “cake.”  All of the cupcakes have been leftovers from the various batches I’ve made over the last month, except for the chocolate and vanilla ones.  I cut up and arranged all the fruit the day before.  The falafel was cooked the day before and reheated the day of.  Yes, it was a lot of work, but breaking it up into more manageable parts made it much easier.

…is that???

My husband brought this little gem home from work for me to try.  One of his coworkers passed by with a big box of them and offered him one.  He thought I’d enjoy the new adventure.  I was pretty excited because I’ve wanted to try tamarind for a long time and I actually knew what it was when Emma brought it over to me.  I’ve never had it in it’s raw form before.  It comes in a big pod turd-looking thing.

You crack all that outside stuff off, which is almost bark-like, and you’re left with an even funkier, worm-looking inside.  Peel away all the stringy bits and there are little segments with seeds inside.  As I expected it to be, it was very sweet, with the taste and texture very close to a dried apricot.  I have to say it was a pretty tasty little snack.

I’ve been trying hard lately to eat more Raw dishes; salads obviously being the easiest way to accomplish this goal.  I get tired of the same salads with the same dressing.  In fact, I find myself getting tired of salads altogether if I eat them every day.  So, I try to change it up a bit and give each it’s own uniqueness.

A few days ago, I tried this Fennel Orange Kale Salad from Kristen’s Raw.  In place of the hemp oil, I used cold-pressed organic flax oil.  I also didn’t have any kalamata olives, which was SOOOO depressing because I bet they’re awesome in this salad, so I used some cherry tomatoes.  My salad base was a mix of romaine lettuce and chopped kale.  Raw kale in a salad is a bit much for me, so I had to mix it up a bit with some crunchy lettuce.

Yesterday for lunch, I whipped up this salad using romaine lettuce, fennel, raw beets and cherry tomatoes.  I made this Sweet Dijon Dressing to go over it and it was AWESOME!  I found it to be a little thick, so I thinned it out just a tad with a TB or 2 of water.  This dressing is seriously good.  I think I’ll even try a ranch style version using the raw zucchini as a base and incorporating some of the herbs found in ranch dressing.

Today’s lunch was the same salad from yesterday, except I used a box grater to grate some carrot, beets and fennel.  Once I put the dressing on, I squeezed some fresh lemon juice over the top, which really made it super delicious.  I’ll have to remember to do that from now on.  Today, I had my salad with a banana and some coconut water.  Fresh coconut water is so delicious.  If you’ve never tried it, you’re seriously missing out.  I put mine in the fridge right when I bring them home from the store so that the water is nice and cold when I am in the mood for having some.  And, I’ve found that Asian markets have the best prices on coconuts, about 20 cents cheaper than my Whole Foods.  Be sure to buy the young coconuts (they have white all the way around).  The brown ones are older and don’t have the water inside.  Intimated about opening up a fresh coconut?  Here’s a video to help you: