Local

Wow! There's so much I'm learning lately about food, that it's going to take me a while to break it all down, but for today I did something different, I took the definition of "local" literally. Buying locally grown foods is important for a number of reasons, like freshness, seasonality, support of local farming, and the farmers that work so hard to provide us food. And the best places to buy locally grown foods, (not just "grown" foods, but locally prepared foods, like breads, cheeses, oils/spreads, etc.) is at our neighborhood Certified Organic Farmers Markets.

Well, Mark and I live in an area of San Jose known as Japantown. Japantown is located on the northside of our downtown area, and has a main street with a strip of small businesses ( a fresh tofu company, Japanese market, Sushi resturants, etc.) in fact we live on the same street, just one block away, from the Buddhist Temple. Every Sunday Japantown has a small farmers market....one which I almost never shop at! Why? Well, if you asked me that question before today, I would of said, "Because it sucks!". Why? It's too small, and it doesn't have near the selection that the "trendier" Campbell Farmers Market has on the same day.

Well, too bad for me! If I want it to get any better, then I better start supporting it! Besides, what do I need? I'm lucky in the fact, that I have at least one farmers market to choose from Wednesday thru Sunday, most days I can chose between 2 within driving distance. So why not shop in my own neighborhood, 2 blocks away on Sunday? Done!
I'm doing a great job not overshopping, but it's going to take me a while to really get it down. My CSA box gave me, it seemed, like all green things! (besides the strawberries) So I needed some color. I ended up only buying baby yellow squashes, watermelon radish, (pictured below), carrots (only 5!), red and green onions, strawberries, cherries, and yes....a head of romaine lettuce, lol! I made a warm salad that I shared with Mark using the chard and baby lettuces from CSA, green garlic and watermelon radish from the FM....I put bleu cheese on mine, dressed with oil and lemon. The pictures show sliced chard stems, spring garlic, watermelon radish (in skillet) and chard leaves.

Two things I was hoping to get, but I didn't find were asparagus and leeks, for soup. I made an overabundance of chicken stock last week! More on that next time!

Sunday

8:00am Bikram yoga

2:00pm KB

Menu

coffee/cream

small oatmeal w/milk

strawberries/cherries

warm salad w/radish, chard, baby lettuces, bleu cheese, oil and lemon

small mango/papaya fruit smoothie w/fiber

Saturday

demo swings w/clients

12noon 1 hour walk

Menu

coffee w/cream

apple/strawberries/apricots (farmers market in Palo Alto)

roamaine, celery salad w/egg, mustard dressing and chicken

sprouted rye bread w/almond butter and raisins (5 slices!)

large pasta w/arugula roasted peppers and cheese

vanilla yogurt w/jam

Saturday was a high calorie day, but not high sugar! I only used about 1 teaspoon of almond butter, and about 10-12 raisins scattered on top, per slice of sprouted rye bread...but I did have 5 slices! Lots of sweeness in the fruit, and I finished the day with sweetened yogurt.

I'm still in the habit of not eating after 6pm, a habit that I haven't been taking seriously enough, but I've changed back to making that a priority. I'm currently weighing myself once a week, maybe twice, I haven't decided. Possibly Mondays and Thursdays.

Life is great, and the fruit season has started in full force! Woo hoo!