But It's Not Berry Season

Today we have a guest blogger, Chris Rosenbruch. Chris is a client of mine and during a recent session we were discussing the perception that it is hard to eat fruits and vegetables during the "off-season". I quickly realized that Chris is an expert in this area. Here is her advice for buying produce over the winter months. Also, check out the resources she lists at the end of the article. 

BUT IT’S NOT BERRY SEASON!

Last week I stopped in the local supermarket.  It was a clear, crisp fall day.  As I approached the store, I admired the colorful display of some of nature’s bounty of the traditional autumn harvest; pumpkins, gourds, and cabbages surrounded by chrysanthemums. My expectation was to find the continuation of that bounty inside.  Instead, front and center of the store’s produce section, I found….Berries? Yes, a full display of strawberries, blackberries, and red raspberries! They were labeled, ‘Made in USA’. Well, at least they didn’t say ‘Made in China’.  Even though the presentation was beautiful, I was suspect. How would they taste? After all, it isn’t berry season.  Not here anyway, in Bucks County. As it turns out, they had been shipped from California so there really was no telling just how fresh they were.  I hesitated only long enough to consider that their purchase wasn’t worth it.  I was confident that they wouldn’t taste like the ripe, sweet berries I had eaten this past June when they were abundant at the local farmer’s market.

The new government food pyramid guidelines suggest we now load our plates half with fresh fruits and vegetables…preferably locally grown. Why? Mainly, because fresh picked produce means the fruit or vegetable is ripe and ready for eating.  Ripe means not only will it taste and smell good, it also means that the plant food, picked at its peak, is the most nutrient dense.  

We now have access to a global multitude of produce. ‘Variety’ has greatly expanded to the point where we need a mobile dictionary to identify some of the uniquely shaped and textured food forms with the gourmet names found in the produce section of our supermarkets. It’s easy to get lost in the ‘cornfield’.

We live in an agriculturally rich area with an abundance of fresh, ready-to-eat produce grown by farmers who are happy to share their knowledge of each variety of fruit and vegetable. In our area, there are over 60 farms, orchards, and markets cultivating more than 45 different plant foods!

Even though we’re nearing the end of the 7-month fresh fruit and vegetable growing season here in the Northeast, don’t panic.  There are still plenty of choices.   Here are some of the delicious options:

Fruit:  Apples, Cranberries, Grapes, and Pears

Vegetables:  Beets, Broccoli, Cabbage (including Brussels Sprouts), Carrots, Cauliflower, Celery, Kale, , Mushrooms, Onions, Potatoes, Pumpkins, Radishes, Spinach, Squash (including Butternut, Buttercup, Delicata, Kaboucha), Swiss Chard, and Turnips (including Rutabaga).

ENJOY!

Sources:

USDA’s MyPlate – www.mypyramid.gov

BucksCountyTaste.com – great website for foodies interested in supporting local businesses

Fresh from Bucks County Farms- A guide to roadside Markets and PYO Farms – call 215-345-3283 for your free brochure.

Winter Sun Farms CSA – offers frozen produce during the 5-month winter season. www.wintersunfarmsgp.com

Cascadian Farms organic frozen produce – www.cascadianfarms.com.  Their produce is frozen 3 hours after it’s been picked!

In Defense of Food – an eater’s manifesto – Michael Pollan

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle – a year of food life – Barbara Kingsolver