You Can’t Beat Beets! October 13, 2016
Posted by nrhatch in Food & Drink, Health & Wellness, Vegetarian Recipes.trackback
The Farmer’s Market started up again on Saturday, October 1st, after a summer hiatus. The Market, which runs from October to May (instead of May to October), includes artisans, musicians, bakers, butchers, fishmongers, and farmers.
I love seeing how far our veggie dollars go at the Market. Last visit, we spent a grand total of $18 and came home with this:
kale * cucumbers * iceberg lettuce * broccoli * romaine * green peppers * zucchini * baking potatoes * sweet potatoes * beets * beet greens
What bounty!
Once home, I process the produce so that it’s ready to use at a moment’s notice:
* Wash and spin the lettuce
* Chop and sauté the beet greens and kale
* Steam or blanch the broccoli (or just cut it into florets for roasting)
* Store the potatoes and sweet potatoes in our “root cellar”
* Stash most of the cukes, peppers, and zucchini in the fridge
Last week, before leaving the kitchen, I made a pot of wheat-free Minestrone soup, using millet instead of macaroni.
By the time I finished chopping and dropping, the robust and hearty harvest soup included onions, peppers, zucchini, beets, beet greens, broccoli, carrots, celery, and tomato sauce.
Aah . . . that’s yummy!
Do you frequent Farmer’s Markets in season?
Comments
Sorry comments are closed for this entry
Spirit Lights The Way 
That is a beautiful bounty!
Isn’t it? It took us more than a week to get through it all, so we didn’t go to the Farmer’s Market last Saturday. We’ll go this week and stock up again.
I’ll be down in a few hours! Sadly, our local Farmer’s Market is a complete mob scene, proof that we need more than one.
Come on down!
A too crowded market would discourage me too. Our market is “well attended” but not mobbed. Very little jostling for position since lines are short and bargains abound.
I had to look up “spinning” lettuce. Looks like a good idea for pre-preparing the chopped leaves for quickly and easily making daily salads. Why do you saute the beet greens and kale?
We keep lettuce “at the ready” for salads along with a container of washed celery, peeled carrots, de-seeded green pepper, and washed cucumber.
I saute greens because I don’t like them raw.
As your farmers’ market begins, ours ends. Will miss ours, but will live vicariously through yours!
Well, then, I shall have to post periodic pics!
Wow!!! What a haul!
We have some good farmers markets here. We had to go there for tomatoes. (They were pretty sad looking at the grocery store.)
Tomatoes aren’t local quite yet . . . soon. The best tomatoes we’ve gotten down here are ones we pick ourselves at Hunsader Farms when they’re getting ready to close for the summer.
Here’s a link:
We have a lot of farmer’s markets around here Nancy. Love going to them. Got some magnificent sweet potatoes the other day.
The sweet potatoes we got at the Farmer’s Market were FABULOUS! Next time we’ll get a few more.
Our big farmers’ market is indoors and year round but does not have bargains. In fact, it’s more expensive than the regular markets but the food is good and fresh since it’s only open 3 days.
Good and Fresh = GOOD!
The Farmer’s Market in Sarasota operates year round but we don’t go often in the summer because it’s too warm to enjoy wandering around for long. I tend to stick with air-conditioned stores during the summer months.
You are really the epitome of healthy, Nancy!
Going wheat-free has made me more mindful in the kitchen ~ it’s definitely given me a boost of healthy. And it’s been fun creating new dishes and combinations.
You go to the market to buy beets and lettuce and an artisan, a musician, a baker, and a butcher. What, no artists for sale? And why get the veggies if you can buy a farmer? 🙂
Elementary, my dear Col . . . I’m a vegetarian, not a carnivorous cannibal. 😉
Looks good. I love iceberg lettuce. What did you do with yours?
We use iceberg and romaine in salads and sandwiches, along with other veggies, nuts, beans, and fruit.
That week my lunchtime salads included: iceberg, romaine, cucumber, celery, carrot, cabbage, cashews, almonds, peanuts, sunflower seeds, raisins, pepperoncini, and chia seeds . . . dressed with a balsamic vinaigrette.
We also love Greek Salads with cucumber, kalamata olives, pepperoncini, and feta cheese.
What do you do with yours?
Yummy! Salads too 🙂
Salads are so refreshing . . . especially in H~O~T weather.
When it’s cold, we eat more soup!
I love the farmers markets, Nancy. What a great way to get to meet people and buy a load of yummy fresh fruit and veg! 🙂
This year the Farmer’s Market includes new vendors and old favorites . . . my favorite place to get fresh locally grown veggies.
Great bounty. It’s hard to plant, water, weed, and fuss with a garden when you have such good farmer’s markets nearby. I try to buy huge amounts and chop and freeze for quick meals. (I’t’s all that chopping I hate because it takes so much time.) So neat packages line the freezer and when i go to get one…they’re all gone. (My son, Scout, has been busy cooking and using up my hard work). Grrrrrr.
Keep supporting those local farmers, girlfriend.
Scout owes his love of cooking to you ~> his own personal sous chef who does the prep work for him.
That said, I hope he shares some of his creations with you!
That’s a beautiful bounty, Nancy! I think when we can make a purchase like that, we are rich indeed. My kind of purchase, for sure. 🙂
We got another haul this week ~ new potatoes, cukes, zucchini, carrots, green pepper, broccoli, and celery. But when we got home, we realized the carrots came from Michigan!
So not everything at this market is grown locally. I’ll have to be more aware in the future.