Garden Goodies.....So long for now!

Well now that Labor Day weekend is here, it's time to say goodbye to summer garden produce.  Farewell to lots of fresh pico, cucumber salads, eggplant parmesan, squash and tomato saute, eggs cooked with lots of fresh veggies, and so many other delicious meals and sides that were created.

This picture shows a "big haul" from the garden after being away from home for a few days in July. The white cucumber in the front of the picture is called "white wonder".  It was a very prolific grower, but a little bitter to the taste. When I tell you that I had cucumbers coming out of my ears, I mean every word of that. It was unbelievable!! I have made a "note to self" for next year......don't plant so many cucumbers, don't plant more than one kind (they do cross pollinate....ugh), and don't plant white wonder.

This was my second garden ever, and it was a good one.  I started last year with 2 beds about 3' x 15'.  Then this year added 2 square foot gardens using the plan from the book titled: All New Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew. I loved the whole concept presented in the book. If you are looking for a way to get started, I suggest checking out this book.

Gardening is not only fun for the family, but you know where your food is coming from. Now that's something "pretty special". 

Happy Labor Day! Bye Bye Summer!

Get Out of the Supermarket, Whenever You Can!

Today's post comes from my new book: Food Rules, An Eater's Manual by Michael Pollan.  It is the "coolest" little book with short little rules to help you decide what to eat today, because as he says: "Eating today has gotten complicated." I chose this little rule, because I have really enjoyed going to the Farmers' Market this summer, and it's almost over until the fall. : (
Have you visited your Farmers' Market?  It's fun. There are nice people to meet and see, great healthy produce and other baked goods, music, fresh warm summer air, and lots of other things to make you happy.
This is what Michael Pollan has to say about this topic of staying out of the supermarket.

"You won't find any high-fructose corn syrup at the farmers' market.  You also won't find any elaborately processed food products, any packages with long lists of unpronounceable ingredients or dubious health claims, anything microwaveable, or perhaps best of all, any old food from far away.  What you will find are fresh, whole foods harvested at the peak of their taste and nutritional quality--precisely the kind your great-grandmother, or even your Neolithic ancestors, would easily recognize as food.  The kind that is alive and eventually will rot."

I don't know, but this seems like a good idea to me. You may also want to check out the book too. Michael Pollan gives some great advice in a short concise way, making it an easy read.
Stay away from over processed foods, because they are really bad for you. Eat more fresh vegetables and fruits, and try to do more of your shopping at the farmers' market and small produce stands. As he says, "Get out of the supermarket, whenever you can."