As the Diet Turns...

When we set out on this path we determined to eat locally and seasonally to the extent that was feasible.  Whenever possible we visit the local farmer's markets to see what that means exactly and to avail ourselves of the local goods.

As the season goes on we find our diet moving with it.  In the spring when we started this diet we feasted on fresh greens, lettuces and cabbages, small early summer squashes and root vegetables; as they came ripe we had cherries, apricots and strawberries.  Now as the summer comes to a close the choices have changed and our diet with them.

Yesterdays farmer's market was notably devoid of greens, turnips and parsnips.  Cabbages are current but apparently lettuces are not.  Carrots are still to be had but the babies are long gone along with the cherries and strawberries.  Yams and sweet potatoes were not conspicuous if they were present; I suspect that we are between crops rather than out of season.

What we  did see was a bounty of sweet peppers and chiles.  Brocolli and cauliflower were still well represented as were tomatoes. Apricots and plums are going strong and the first of the apples and pears are in.  Walla Walla Sweet onions and other varieties are plentiful as well. The small early summer squash have swelled to three times their springtime size and were also there in good numbers.  Eggplant has made it's appearance.  Raspberries and blueberries are in in large quantities but sadly were priced out of our budget.  No worries, we can and have been making up this lack from the predatory Himalayan Blackberries that have eaten our backyard.  No doubt we'll make a good harvest of them when I cut my way through them to reach our own plums.

Speaking of our plums there's something odd there. When we moved here about 14 years ago the tree grew Italian Prunes.  We went several years without harvesting the tree and now the plums are a lovely golden color when ripe- and quite a bit tastier.  Not sure what is happening there.

So last night we had a small roast beef cooked with sweet onions and summer squash; tonight it's elk stew with sweet onions, tomatoes and red cabbage.  If that turns out well I'll share the recipe; it should adapt well to beef or very lean pork.

Speaking of recipes... among the many other current writing projects I'm putting together a cook book!  I'm not sure at this time if it will be all Primal Diet recipes or simply have a 'primal' section; we'll see how that comes along.  I have a LOT of good recipes of all kinds that have stacked up over the years... Hmmm...

At any rate we were able to come away from the market with summer squash, onions, eggplant, a couple of lovely tuscan cantelopes and about 8 pounds of fruit for under $40.  In total we payed less than $2 a pound for fresh, mostly naturally grown produce.  Who says eating well has to be expensive?