Saturday, May 29, 2010

Farmstand Frenzy



Several days ago, I mentioned finding a farmstand that sells locally grown produce.  I can't stay away from that place!  The tomatoes are so delicious and actually TASTE like a tomato should.  The little grape tomatoes are so sweet...I've been popping them like skittles. 

I stopped by yesterday and bought zucchini, yellow squash, kirby cukes, yellow tomatoes, grape tomatoes, limes, grapefruit, canteloupe, sugar-baby watermelon, pole beans, bell peppers, cabbage, romaine lettuce, peaches and sweet onions.  I had to make two trips to the car for UNDER TWENTY BUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!

I eat enourmous amounts of raw veggies so you can imagine what a find this is for me.  I must say that the taste of food that's been on the vine until maturation beats ANTHING in the grocery store including the organic stuff.  Then again, the organic produce in the store is usually OLD. 

Do you ever just open up the fridge and make a salad out of everything?  I do it often.  In fact, some of my favorite salads were created that way.  Since I'm sitting on a veritable GOLD MINE of vitamins, minerals, antioxidents and phytonutrients, I've been making these huge bowls of chopped salad with different veggies combos.  Today's salad was particularly satisfying. 

I'm not a big fan of cooked cauliflower and broccoli.  I know...that's kind of wierd coming from someone who's largely a vegan right?  I like the taste of cooked broccoli (not cauliflower so much) fine but I can't get past that smell...kind of like a storm drain full of rotting grass clippings.  Raw on the other hand,  I just love them.  I eat them nearly everyday.  Tonight's salad takes advantage of the half head of cauliflower I had in the veggie bin.

I can't really call this a recipe...it's too simple for that.  I just chopped cauliflower and chucked it in a bowl; added petit carrots, sweet yellow onion, kirby cukes, celery, chopped radishes, diced tomato and some crumbled feta.  Feta and goat cheese are my two dairy splurges.  I never met a hunk of feta I didn't like!
Next, I just tossed it all up with some minced fresh parsley, raw apple cider vinegar, extra virgin olive oil and cracked black pepper.  I put it in one of my amazingly cool antique bowls (this one a vintage 50's piece) and served it with grilled burgers (for hubs and mom) and a homemade grilled veg burger for me.  What I liked most about this salad, other than how awesome it looks in my gorgeous bowl, was the CRUNCH!  I don't eat potato chips, pretzels and such so sometimes I really crave something crunchy.  This was perfect.  You could use anything you have in the veggie bin though.

Here are a few pics.......oh and sorry about the shadow.  It was close to 7 pm and the sun was casting a shadow across half the pic.  I thought it was kind of "artsy" so I used the pictures anyway.






I hat to step back and get a shot that shows off this incredible bubble glass bowl.

17 comments:

  1. what a perfect salad!! Isn't it a wonderful thing when we can get farm fresh veggies....what a difference they make

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  2. Thanks Dennis! Yes, it really is. This is definately the best way to eat.

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  3. That IS perfect and a perfect way to eat. Gotta love it - support our farmers and our health.

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  4. I agree Belinda. Florida's farmers have been very hard hit this year. we had one of the coldest winters on record. I get so excited over 'homegrown" produce because I grew up that way. My grandfather had a 2 acre "garden" on the banks of the little Tennessee River ((before TVA decided to dam it and that valley is now underwater). There weren't many veggies that I ate from the grocery store when I was a kid. Papaw grew just about everything we ate veggie wise. Bushels and bushels of veggies every week that my grandmother and my mother canned or froze...enough to feed an army. I was very fortunate to have grown up the way I did.

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  5. I live in farm country, although I don't have a farm, just a small garden. I love our local farmer's market.

    Wonderful salad!!

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  6. If only I had an affordable farm stand. Mine charges you 40 dollars for a tiny jar of honey. Not worth it.

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  7. I love a day in the sun at a farmers market or a working farm. What a great way to educate future generations about where their food comes from. Great post.

    Cheers!

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  8. thanks Everyone. It would be nice if everyone had access to produce fresh from the farm wouldn't it??

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  9. Love to visit the farmer's markets! This salad must be nice and crunchy.

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  10. Beautiful, healthful and delicious! Bravo!

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  11. Thanks ladies! Biren, I tried to leave a comment on one of your posts last night and it wouldn't go. Were you having blog issues or was it just my insubordinate computer??

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  12. Very yummy looking salad! I love some good fresh crunch during the summer months.

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  13. Hey JillyAn! I hope you had a good, long weekend. I have a question! Remember we were talking on F.B. one day, and you mentioned something about a flax egg. It involved putting a certain amount of flax seed in water overnight. Could you remind me of the the amount of water and flax. I want to do it tonight. If you see this (smile).
    Thanks, Stella

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  14. Oh, and this salad looks wicked awesome. I personally think this type of thing is the best food of all! People who don't like stuff like this have never had it made with farm fresh, organic vegetables. If they had, they would be sold!

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  15. Hi Stella,
    it's 2 T of flax seeds in about 8 ounces of cold water...in the fridge for 10-12 hours. It's the weirdest thing you've ever seen how that stuff turns out like an egg white!

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  16. Gorgeous salad and I love that plate! I wish I had farmer's markets around me, but the very few that exist here are actually rip offs and the selections are pretty pathetic. Good for you that you have a farmstand that is so accessable!

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  17. Hey Jilly, I just saw your answer. I'm going to make a flax egg tonight. Thanks so much...!

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Fort Myers, Florida, United States