Sculpit or Stridolo is a treasured Italian green herb that is almost completely unknown here in America, which is a shame, gastronomically speaking. Its’ flavors have been compared to a blend of Chicory, Arugula and Tarragon, but milder and with its’ own unique flavor. A fast-growing annual, it is traditionally found on the edge of fields, forests and mountain pastures and is harvested in Spring before the first blooms appear. The leaves are the part used in cooking, most famously flavoring risotto, along with pasta, soups, salads and main courses including meat.
It really reminds me of Ramps- or more properly- Rampions in the East where there are huge multi-acre patches growing in forests and alongside old, established agricultural fields. They have a cult-like following, and are now becoming so popular that some of the native patches are being over harvested, causing a decline in recovery and a decreasing size of the patches.
Back to Sculpit, though. They are extremely popular in the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy, with Bologna as its’ capital. So popular, in fact, that they have their own festival at the end of April in the little mountain village of Galeata, in the Southeast of Emilia-Romagna.
Here is a classic Italian Sculpit recipe with Tagliatelle noodle pasta- as always, the fresher the ingredients, the better the flavors!
Heat pasta water in a large pot on high heat with salt added to water. Once the water just starts boiling, start cooking. Start the pasta cooking right after adding the pancetta to the pan.
Cook the sausages in a heavy pan on medium heat with a little oil for 3-5 minutes, then add the diced pancetta. Cook until light golden, then add fresh tomatoes and sculpit, reduce heat slightly to a simmer.
Cook the pasta in boiling salted water, drain it, and place the pasta in the pan with the sauce, frying it for a few seconds. Sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper and serve immediately with fresh bread. Optionally, add a very light sprinkle of grated hard Italian cheese- don’t drown out the fresh flavors with the cheese, though.
We were able to catch up and reconnect with an old friend recently- Dr. Gary Nabhan. He is one of those self-effacing geniuses that are as interested in learning from those he meets as he is in sharing his experiences for their benefit. An internationally recognized, award-winning chile-head, his eyes lit up when I handed him a seed packet of our Concho chiles and a baggie containing a few of these relatively unknown, wonderfully addictive chiles. We spent a few minutes discussing the convoluted history of the introduction of chiles to America, as well as catching up on news.
Gary’s curriculum vitae reads like a book in itself-
“Gary Paul Nabhan is an internationally-celebrated nature writer, seed saver, conservation biologist and sustainable agriculture activist who has been called “the father of the local food movement” by Mother Earth News. Gary is also an orchard-keeper, wild forager and Ecumenical Franciscan brother in his hometown of Patagonia, Arizona near the Mexican border.
He is author or editor of twenty-four books, some of which have been translated into Spanish, Italian, French, Croation, Korean, Chinese and Japanese. For his writing and collaborative conservation work, he has been honored with a MacArthur “genius” award, a Southwest Book Award, the John Burroughs Medal for nature writing, the Vavilov Medal, and lifetime achievement awards from the Quivira Coalition and Society for Ethnobiology.”
He works as most of the year as a research scientist at the Southwest Center of the University of Arizona, and the rest as co-founder-facilitator of several food and farming alliances, including Renewing America’s Food Traditions and Flavors Without Borders.”
For those that aren’t familiar with the term, here is the classic definition: Terroir: noun, the specific conditions of soil and climate of a place where a food is grown that imparts unique and special qualities or characteristics to that food. Also known as the “sense or taste of place”. Origin: French: literally, ‘soil, land’.
We had read the following article a few years back, and it wasn’t until we had started Terroir Seeds and were having a local grass-fed burger at Diablo Burger in Flagstaff that we crossed paths with the Terroir-ist’s Manifesto again; this time on the back of their menu. He has given us permission to use it “as we see fit” according to him, so here it is- possibly the best-written description of what we are about and why we do it.
A Terroir-ist’s Manifesto for Eating in Place
by Gary Paul Nabhan
Know where your food has come from through knowing those who produced it for you, from farmer to forager, rancher or fisher to earthworms building a deeper, richer soil, to the heirloom vegetable, the nitrogen-fixing legume, the pollinator, the heritage breed of livestock and the sourdough culture rising in your flour.
Know where your food has come from by the very way it tastes; its freshness telling you how far it may have traveled, the hint of mint in the cheese suggesting what the goat has eaten, the terroir of the wine reminding you of the lime in the stone you stand upon, so that you can stand up for the land that has offered it to you.
Know where your food has come from by ascertaining the health and wealth of those who picked and processed it, by the fertility of the soil that is left in the patch where it once grew, by the traces of pesticide found in the birds and bees there. Know whether the bays and shoals where your shrimp and fish once swam were left richer or poorer than before you and your kin ate from them.
Know where your food comes from by the richness of the stories told around the table recalling all that was harvested nearby during the years that came before you, when your predecessors and ancestors roamed the same woods and neighborhoods were you and yours now roam. Know them by the songs sung to praise them, by the handmade tools kept to harvest them, by the rites and feasts held to celebrate them, by the laughter let loose to show them our affection.
Know where your foods come from by the patience displayed while putting them up, while peeling, skinning, coring or gutting them, while pit-roasting, poaching or fermenting them, while canning, salting or smoking them, while arranging them on a plate for our eyes to behold. Know where your food comes from by the slow savoring of each and every morsel, by letting their fragrances lodge in your memory reminding you of just exactly where you were the very day that you became blessed by each of their distinctive flavors.
When you know where your food comes from you can give something back to those lands and waters, that rural culture, that migrant harvester, curer, smoker, poacher, roaster or vintner. You can give something back to that soil, something fecund and fleeting like compost or something lasting and legal like protection. We, as humans, have not been given roots as obvious as those of trees. The surest way we have to lodge ourselves within this blessed earth is by knowing where our food comes from.
This was actually the second snow of this weekend, the first came in Friday night and was melted off by mid-morning Saturday. We got a second snowstorm Saturday afternoon that left the garden like this Sunday morning- April 10! Our normal direct sowing date is just under a month away- about May 7 or so.
By this afternoon the garden had returned to looking normal…
April’s Frosty Weathervane
I just couldn’t pass this up, much too charismatic! I love how the snow/frost has crystallized on the surface, making it look almost furry.
Fogbound snowy neighbor
1920’s Sears and Roebuck Craftsman style house, across our back horse pen. Moved here a few years ago from just a couple miles down the road when the alfalfa farm was sold for development. Originally built by a Russian immigrant family. Dad spent 11 years making the bricks to build the house, by hand, each and every day. Tastefully refinished with a nice wrap around porch and the original oak hardwood floors brought back to life.
Never has sold, was finished just before the market blew up. I love the feeling this has.
Hope you enjoyed some beautiful sights this weekend!
https://underwoodgardens.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/SpringSnow.jpg300500Stephen Scotthttps://underwoodgardens.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Survey-Header.jpgStephen Scott2011-04-10 19:21:082024-04-30 17:34:03Don’t Plant Your Garden Too Early…
One of the sure signs that Spring is near is the arrival of tender, young Asparagus.
Now I realize that some folks aren’t all that excited about this unusual vegetable, but it is something like Eggplant, or even Brussels Sprouts. Store-bought, it is not that appealing and is often rightly described as insipid. A lot of us grew up with mushy, steamed-to-death stalks of slightly slimy green yuck.
I thought much the same until encountering the young green stalks growing alongside the irrigation ditches as a pre-teen. Sliced off just below ground level to encourage next year’s growth, taken straight home, washed and lightly sauteed in butter before being drenched in eggs with fresh home grown tomato, basil and oregano in a classic frittata, I fell in love with that incredibly fresh, lingering taste of Spring. So much so, in fact, that I have been hesitant to buy asparagus from the store, preferring to get it from the Farmer’s Market or other fresh sources.
I have found that the sautee method keeps the crisp texture while concentrating the fresh taste, while steaming or boiling creates the mushy texture and drains the flavor out.
Here is a different approach to the presentation, that has a medley of fresh flavors that will make it memorable in a positive way!
Melt butter in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Stirring constantly, sautee the garlic and pine nuts in the melted butter until the garlic is fragrant and the nuts just begin to turn brown, about 2 minutes. Stir in the lemon juice.
Add the asparagus and prosciutto to the mixture and toss to mix evenly. Continue to sautee until asparagus is bright green, tender and still just slightly crisp, about 3-5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper; serve hot.
https://underwoodgardens.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Asparagus-with-Prosciutto1.jpg320320Stephen Scotthttps://underwoodgardens.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Survey-Header.jpgStephen Scott2011-04-07 14:50:542024-04-30 17:34:03Young Asparagus with Prosciutto and Pine Nuts
Fresh Veggies (and Fruit) For Less Than $1/Lb In 2011?
Is that even possible? Is it legal? How can I get in on that deal?
These are some of the questions that were going through our minds when we read about Bountiful Baskets Co-op in an article by Molly Beverly, the chef at Prescott College. The approach is very unique, being “This is a grass roots, all volunteer, no contracts, no catch co-operative.”
The offering is open from noon on Mondays MST to Tuesday 10PM MST. You select the basket of the week, which is about 50% mixed veggies and fruit, then choose if you want one of the special weekly packs. Then you pay the $3.00 First Time Basket fee, with a $1.50 transaction fee to cover the costs of the website and credit card fees. From there Sally and Tanya- the ladies responsible for making this incredible operation work- spring into action, buying the produce and getting the transportation arranged in time for everything to show up at your local pick up location by 7AM that Saturday. You have a 20 minute window to pick up your basket, so make sure to be on time. They are extremely efficient, with our local pick up having about 100 baskets that fly out in less than 20 minutes. There was a short wait time the first week, as we arrived about 10 minutes early, but they were open early the second week, with us being in and out in less than 10 minutes. That included picking up a total of 3 baskets (for family and a friend) and 10 Lbs of Organic Heirloom Tomatoes! Try for that time at your local grocery store!
Weekly Bountiful Baskets offering
The weekly basket is $15.00 and is aimed at providing you with about $50.00 worth of grocery store quality produce. There is often the option to upgrade to all organic for $10.00 extra. Any special weekly packs are priced separately, but carry the same great deal as the baskets. Our first week we had a hard time trying to keep up with the extra fruit and vegetables, and finished most, but not all of it before the next Saturday. You don’t have to get a basket every week, and some couples are on an every other week schedule as they don’t eat all of it in one week.
Our first week we got the weekly basket, an Italian pack and a box of Asparagus. The basket had a great selection of crisp, fresh greens and fruit. All of it was a much better quality and flavor than we have been seeing in the grocery store at better prices. The Italian pack had several fresh herbs- generous quantities of Rosemary, Thyme, Basil, Oregano, Flat Leaf Parsley as well as garlic, a couple of onions, baby portabello and regular mushrooms- all for $7.50. 15 pounds of fresh, crisp, young and tasty Asparagus for $22.00 is a screaming deal! We shared the bunches of Asparagus with friends and family, enjoyed it in frittatas, pickled it, sauteed it in butter, and still had some left over at the end of the week.
For our second go round, we chose the basket and split a 10 Lb case of Organic Heirloom Tomatoes from Mexico. Living in Arizona, that isn’t too bad, considering the time of year. The quality and amount of absolutely fresh veggies and fruit was amazing, from the crisp leaf lettuce, spinach, bananas, another bundle of young Asparagus, carrots, apples, fresh ripe Mangoes, vine tomatoes, celery, sweet potatoes, zucchini and a ripe cantaloupe. The heirloom tomatoes were ripe and ready for use, which is impressive. The second week’s basket weighed in at 21Lbs, for a cost of 71.4 cents a pound for fresh, crisp, ripe and tasty produce. I believe our first week’s basket was 20 Lbs. Please show me a better deal on fresh food!
Box from Bountiful Baskets
Bountiful Baskets is in 10 states helping over 70,000 families get higher quality food at great prices each week through a unique business model. Just in Arizona there are about 80 locations. There is a volunteer coordinator at each location who is the driving force. Everyone is a volunteer, no one gets paid. This is a co-operative effort to source better food at better prices for all who participate.
In order to get started, go to Bountiful Baskets, and register for a free account. Do this before you want to get your order in, to save time and find out where your local pick up is at. Then from noon MST each Monday to 10 PM MST each Tuesday, log in and see what is on offer for the week. Make your choice, pay your money and show up at the pickup location at the proper time to get you basket of goodies. It is best to bring a basket to carry all of it in- trust me, you’ll need it! Take your treasure home and amaze your friends and family at the fresh taste and flavors you found with Bountiful Baskets.
This is just one of several similar programs around the country that give you other options to the usual grocery store stroll. Your local Farmer’s Market is one, but is usually seasonal, and isn’t a supermarket. Azure Standard is another well established program that not only delivers fresh, organic produce at less than conventional grocery store prices, but also acts as a supermarket, selling dishwasher detergent, parchment baking sheets and apple sauce along with organic avocados and apples.
There are probably several others that we are just not aware of, but the point is that there are plenty of options to eating fresh, tasty food at better prices than what you are used to seeing in the grocery store. It does take a little planning, but if you are saving 50-75% on your weekly food bill, isn’t it worth a bit of your time? With fuel prices and food prices headed only upwards, finding ways to save on your food without eating junk is becoming increasingly important. Planting a garden will pay you about 10 times the cost of the seeds you plant. If you spend $100 on seeds, the average garden will save (or pay) you about $1000 in the cost of the same quality fresh produce from your grocery store and taste better. Using one of these afore-mentioned co-operatives for the weekly veggies is yet another way to save money and increase the quality of your food, especially on things that don’t grow well in your garden.
Eating much better for much less is something that most people will be very interested in!
Post Formats is a theme feature introduced with Version 3.1. Post Formats can be used by a theme to customize its presentation of a post.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit. Aenean commodo ligula eget dolor. Aenean massa. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus- more onWordPress.org: Post Formats
00Stephen Scotthttps://underwoodgardens.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Survey-Header.jpgStephen Scott2011-03-28 21:13:112024-04-30 17:34:03Post Formats is a theme feature introduced with Version 3.1. Post Formats can be used by a theme to customize its presentation of a post.
Tagliatelle with Sculpit
Sculpit or Stridolo is a treasured Italian green herb that is almost completely unknown here in America, which is a shame, gastronomically speaking. Its’ flavors have been compared to a blend of Chicory, Arugula and Tarragon, but milder and with its’ own unique flavor. A fast-growing annual, it is traditionally found on the edge of fields, forests and mountain pastures and is harvested in Spring before the first blooms appear. The leaves are the part used in cooking, most famously flavoring risotto, along with pasta, soups, salads and main courses including meat.
It really reminds me of Ramps- or more properly- Rampions in the East where there are huge multi-acre patches growing in forests and alongside old, established agricultural fields. They have a cult-like following, and are now becoming so popular that some of the native patches are being over harvested, causing a decline in recovery and a decreasing size of the patches.
Back to Sculpit, though. They are extremely popular in the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy, with Bologna as its’ capital. So popular, in fact, that they have their own festival at the end of April in the little mountain village of Galeata, in the Southeast of Emilia-Romagna.
Here is a classic Italian Sculpit recipe with Tagliatelle noodle pasta- as always, the fresher the ingredients, the better the flavors!
Tagliatelle agli Stridoli
2 Mild Italian sausages, sliced 1/8″ thick
2 slices of pancetta
4 ripe tomatoes- Italian Plum such as Principe Borghese or the San Marzano tomatoes.
5 oz Sculpit, coarsely chopped
7 oz Tagliatelle pasta
Extra virgin olive oil
Freshly ground salt and pepper, to taste
Heat pasta water in a large pot on high heat with salt added to water. Once the water just starts boiling, start cooking. Start the pasta cooking right after adding the pancetta to the pan.
Cook the sausages in a heavy pan on medium heat with a little oil for 3-5 minutes, then add the diced pancetta. Cook until light golden, then add fresh tomatoes and sculpit, reduce heat slightly to a simmer.
Cook the pasta in boiling salted water, drain it, and place the pasta in the pan with the sauce, frying it for a few seconds. Sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper and serve immediately with fresh bread. Optionally, add a very light sprinkle of grated hard Italian cheese- don’t drown out the fresh flavors with the cheese, though.
Terroir-ist’s Manifesto for Eating
We were able to catch up and reconnect with an old friend recently- Dr. Gary Nabhan. He is one of those self-effacing geniuses that are as interested in learning from those he meets as he is in sharing his experiences for their benefit. An internationally recognized, award-winning chile-head, his eyes lit up when I handed him a seed packet of our Concho chiles and a baggie containing a few of these relatively unknown, wonderfully addictive chiles. We spent a few minutes discussing the convoluted history of the introduction of chiles to America, as well as catching up on news.
Gary’s curriculum vitae reads like a book in itself-
“Gary Paul Nabhan is an internationally-celebrated nature writer, seed saver, conservation biologist and sustainable agriculture activist who has been called “the father of the local food movement” by Mother Earth News. Gary is also an orchard-keeper, wild forager and Ecumenical Franciscan brother in his hometown of Patagonia, Arizona near the Mexican border.
He is author or editor of twenty-four books, some of which have been translated into Spanish, Italian, French, Croation, Korean, Chinese and Japanese. For his writing and collaborative conservation work, he has been honored with a MacArthur “genius” award, a Southwest Book Award, the John Burroughs Medal for nature writing, the Vavilov Medal, and lifetime achievement awards from the Quivira Coalition and Society for Ethnobiology.”
He works as most of the year as a research scientist at the Southwest Center of the University of Arizona, and the rest as co-founder-facilitator of several food and farming alliances, including Renewing America’s Food Traditions and Flavors Without Borders.”
For those that aren’t familiar with the term, here is the classic definition: Terroir: noun, the specific conditions of soil and climate of a place where a food is grown that imparts unique and special qualities or characteristics to that food. Also known as the “sense or taste of place”. Origin: French: literally, ‘soil, land’.
We had read the following article a few years back, and it wasn’t until we had started Terroir Seeds and were having a local grass-fed burger at Diablo Burger in Flagstaff that we crossed paths with the Terroir-ist’s Manifesto again; this time on the back of their menu. He has given us permission to use it “as we see fit” according to him, so here it is- possibly the best-written description of what we are about and why we do it.
Don’t Plant Your Garden Too Early…
…and here’s some reasons why!
This was actually the second snow of this weekend, the first came in Friday night and was melted off by mid-morning Saturday. We got a second snowstorm Saturday afternoon that left the garden like this Sunday morning- April 10! Our normal direct sowing date is just under a month away- about May 7 or so.
By this afternoon the garden had returned to looking normal…
April’s Frosty Weathervane
I just couldn’t pass this up, much too charismatic! I love how the snow/frost has crystallized on the surface, making it look almost furry.
Fogbound snowy neighbor
1920’s Sears and Roebuck Craftsman style house, across our back horse pen. Moved here a few years ago from just a couple miles down the road when the alfalfa farm was sold for development. Originally built by a Russian immigrant family. Dad spent 11 years making the bricks to build the house, by hand, each and every day. Tastefully refinished with a nice wrap around porch and the original oak hardwood floors brought back to life.
Never has sold, was finished just before the market blew up. I love the feeling this has.
Hope you enjoyed some beautiful sights this weekend!
Young Asparagus with Prosciutto and Pine Nuts
One of the sure signs that Spring is near is the arrival of tender, young Asparagus.
Now I realize that some folks aren’t all that excited about this unusual vegetable, but it is something like Eggplant, or even Brussels Sprouts. Store-bought, it is not that appealing and is often rightly described as insipid. A lot of us grew up with mushy, steamed-to-death stalks of slightly slimy green yuck.
I thought much the same until encountering the young green stalks growing alongside the irrigation ditches as a pre-teen. Sliced off just below ground level to encourage next year’s growth, taken straight home, washed and lightly sauteed in butter before being drenched in eggs with fresh home grown tomato, basil and oregano in a classic frittata, I fell in love with that incredibly fresh, lingering taste of Spring. So much so, in fact, that I have been hesitant to buy asparagus from the store, preferring to get it from the Farmer’s Market or other fresh sources.
I have found that the sautee method keeps the crisp texture while concentrating the fresh taste, while steaming or boiling creates the mushy texture and drains the flavor out.
Here is a different approach to the presentation, that has a medley of fresh flavors that will make it memorable in a positive way!
Sauteed Asparagus with Prosciutto and Pine Nuts
Melt butter in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Stirring constantly, sautee the garlic and pine nuts in the melted butter until the garlic is fragrant and the nuts just begin to turn brown, about 2 minutes. Stir in the lemon juice.
Add the asparagus and prosciutto to the mixture and toss to mix evenly. Continue to sautee until asparagus is bright green, tender and still just slightly crisp, about 3-5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper; serve hot.
Serves 6 as a side dish.
Bountiful Baskets- A Hidden Treasure
Fresh Veggies (and Fruit) For Less Than $1/Lb In 2011?
Is that even possible? Is it legal? How can I get in on that deal?
These are some of the questions that were going through our minds when we read about Bountiful Baskets Co-op in an article by Molly Beverly, the chef at Prescott College. The approach is very unique, being “This is a grass roots, all volunteer, no contracts, no catch co-operative.”
The offering is open from noon on Mondays MST to Tuesday 10PM MST. You select the basket of the week, which is about 50% mixed veggies and fruit, then choose if you want one of the special weekly packs. Then you pay the $3.00 First Time Basket fee, with a $1.50 transaction fee to cover the costs of the website and credit card fees. From there Sally and Tanya- the ladies responsible for making this incredible operation work- spring into action, buying the produce and getting the transportation arranged in time for everything to show up at your local pick up location by 7AM that Saturday. You have a 20 minute window to pick up your basket, so make sure to be on time. They are extremely efficient, with our local pick up having about 100 baskets that fly out in less than 20 minutes. There was a short wait time the first week, as we arrived about 10 minutes early, but they were open early the second week, with us being in and out in less than 10 minutes. That included picking up a total of 3 baskets (for family and a friend) and 10 Lbs of Organic Heirloom Tomatoes! Try for that time at your local grocery store!
Weekly Bountiful Baskets offering
The weekly basket is $15.00 and is aimed at providing you with about $50.00 worth of grocery store quality produce. There is often the option to upgrade to all organic for $10.00 extra. Any special weekly packs are priced separately, but carry the same great deal as the baskets. Our first week we had a hard time trying to keep up with the extra fruit and vegetables, and finished most, but not all of it before the next Saturday. You don’t have to get a basket every week, and some couples are on an every other week schedule as they don’t eat all of it in one week.
Our first week we got the weekly basket, an Italian pack and a box of Asparagus. The basket had a great selection of crisp, fresh greens and fruit. All of it was a much better quality and flavor than we have been seeing in the grocery store at better prices. The Italian pack had several fresh herbs- generous quantities of Rosemary, Thyme, Basil, Oregano, Flat Leaf Parsley as well as garlic, a couple of onions, baby portabello and regular mushrooms- all for $7.50. 15 pounds of fresh, crisp, young and tasty Asparagus for $22.00 is a screaming deal! We shared the bunches of Asparagus with friends and family, enjoyed it in frittatas, pickled it, sauteed it in butter, and still had some left over at the end of the week.
For our second go round, we chose the basket and split a 10 Lb case of Organic Heirloom Tomatoes from Mexico. Living in Arizona, that isn’t too bad, considering the time of year. The quality and amount of absolutely fresh veggies and fruit was amazing, from the crisp leaf lettuce, spinach, bananas, another bundle of young Asparagus, carrots, apples, fresh ripe Mangoes, vine tomatoes, celery, sweet potatoes, zucchini and a ripe cantaloupe. The heirloom tomatoes were ripe and ready for use, which is impressive. The second week’s basket weighed in at 21Lbs, for a cost of 71.4 cents a pound for fresh, crisp, ripe and tasty produce. I believe our first week’s basket was 20 Lbs. Please show me a better deal on fresh food!
Box from Bountiful Baskets
Bountiful Baskets is in 10 states helping over 70,000 families get higher quality food at great prices each week through a unique business model. Just in Arizona there are about 80 locations. There is a volunteer coordinator at each location who is the driving force. Everyone is a volunteer, no one gets paid. This is a co-operative effort to source better food at better prices for all who participate.
In order to get started, go to Bountiful Baskets, and register for a free account. Do this before you want to get your order in, to save time and find out where your local pick up is at. Then from noon MST each Monday to 10 PM MST each Tuesday, log in and see what is on offer for the week. Make your choice, pay your money and show up at the pickup location at the proper time to get you basket of goodies. It is best to bring a basket to carry all of it in- trust me, you’ll need it! Take your treasure home and amaze your friends and family at the fresh taste and flavors you found with Bountiful Baskets.
This is just one of several similar programs around the country that give you other options to the usual grocery store stroll. Your local Farmer’s Market is one, but is usually seasonal, and isn’t a supermarket. Azure Standard is another well established program that not only delivers fresh, organic produce at less than conventional grocery store prices, but also acts as a supermarket, selling dishwasher detergent, parchment baking sheets and apple sauce along with organic avocados and apples.
There are probably several others that we are just not aware of, but the point is that there are plenty of options to eating fresh, tasty food at better prices than what you are used to seeing in the grocery store. It does take a little planning, but if you are saving 50-75% on your weekly food bill, isn’t it worth a bit of your time? With fuel prices and food prices headed only upwards, finding ways to save on your food without eating junk is becoming increasingly important. Planting a garden will pay you about 10 times the cost of the seeds you plant. If you spend $100 on seeds, the average garden will save (or pay) you about $1000 in the cost of the same quality fresh produce from your grocery store and taste better. Using one of these afore-mentioned co-operatives for the weekly veggies is yet another way to save money and increase the quality of your food, especially on things that don’t grow well in your garden.
Eating much better for much less is something that most people will be very interested in!
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit. Aenean commodo ligula eget dolor. Aenean massa. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus- more onWordPress.org: Post Formats