Farmers' Market Goodies and Babies!

Wednesday was a busy day for me.  I got up before the sun, dropped Andrew off at work, and caught up on some reading while working out at the gym.  Sweaty gym clothes and all, I went to the farmers' market in the center of town.  The weather was simply gorgeous -- we've been suffering through super cloudy skies and a constant drizzle for the past few weeks, so everything looked bright, fresh, and new in the sunlight.  I did my usual walk through, checking out what everyone has...and then I bought some babies.  Baby seedlings, that is!  The main family who I work with as a teacher has been kind enough to offer to share their garden space with Andrew and I this summer, which is going to be awesome in coordination with our CSA share!  Looks like it'll be another local-eating summer, which I'm so excited about.

Scallions that smell delicious already!

Enough kale to last through the month of July, when our CSA will be starting their new crop, and some baby escarole

The escarole is cozying up with the baby spinach!

One of my favorite things to make with escarole is Vegan Italian Wedding Soup...definitely a recipe I'll share with you this summer!

More kale!

Some awesome storage onions for the winter

Since I bought so many seedlings, the farmer gave me a great deal.  This meant that I had a little more money to spend, so I bought some full grown scallions and some basil, which to me was like a fragrant bouquet of freshness.

I also had the pleasure of finding Kennebec Cheesery, where they had the best tasting goat cheese paneer I've ever had, plus some goat milk yogurt.

 

About a month or so before Andrew and I first met, I read Plenty, which inspired me to attempt to commit to a 100% local diet.  I didn't know that I'd be lucky enough to meet Andrew and that we'd spend a lot of time cooking, eating, and thinking about food together.  Early on, we decided to eat locally, together, from June through October, in a way of making up for the gas that we'd use on a vacation to Spain (where he proposed to me!).  June was hard -- we ate lots of salads -- but we had so much to choose from -- Maine is wonderful for having local produce, milk, eggs, cheeses, beans, and grains.  I learned a lot about Maine and its farmers, and felt a since of pride in the state that I now call home.  It's been a while since we've been able to feel like we were in a good place to commit to eating a mostly local diet, but I think this summer, between our CSA and garden, that we'll be able to have a summer full of local food.  Even with our gluten-free diets, I think we'll be able to make this happen, even if it means holding off on the quinoa and almonds for a while.  We're still in the process of figuring how how local we want to be, or if we're going to make exceptions for certain things, like almond milk, which I seem to drink in large quantities.

Are you planting a garden this summer?  Have you made a commitment to eat more local foods this season?