Skinny Bitch_ Ultimate Everyday Cookbook - Kim Barnouin [15]
3. CHAT UP THE STAFF: Have a heart-to-heart with someone who looks friendly in the produce department. Quiz them on where the produce comes from, if it is in season, and if you may have a sample. A little flirting never hurt. It is your hard-earned cash and your right to make sure you are spending it on something that is well worth it.
4. BUY IN BULK: If you are feeding a large family or live to entertain, buy in bulk. At some specialty grocers, like Whole Foods, shoppers earn a 10-percent discount for bulk purchases.
5. STICK TO THE GROCERY LIST: The caramel apples subconsciously call to us, too. They call to everyone. You’re not that special. Put together a comprehensive grocery list before you leave that follows a detailed schedule of meals and snacks. Stick to it and you will save moolah.
6. COMPARE ORGANIC-TO-ORGANIC PRICES: Comparison shot, baby. Some major chains are stepping up to the plate and launching their own organic brands, while others still haven’t quite gotten with the program, and offer lame organic choices at spiked prices. If the price per pound jumps out at you more than gas prices, do your due diligence and make some calls or hit your local farmers’ market or corner produce stand.
7. CLIP ORGANIC COUPONS: Learn something from your mother’s coupon-hoarding days: save, save, save. Open up the Sunday paper and grocery circulars and cut out the coupons. You may feel like a dork but your wallet won’t.
Mother Earth’s Clock: BUYING SEASONAL
Mama Earth is no dummy. She knows just when her soil is right to grow the most delicious, sweetest, freshest, and highest-quality produce.
One of the key factors of buying local is making an effort to purchase fruits and vegetables when they are in season in your region. True, today’s commerce has made it simple to get whatever, whenever you want it. That doesn’t mean it’s okay. Eating seasonal foods in the regions we live in, and nearby, has a lower carbon count, and acts as a way of following nature’s cues to get in touch with our surroundings.
Best of all, seasonal produce gives you an opportunity to have some fun in the kitchen. Cooking should never be boring. Not in a Skinny Bitch kitch. Cooking with foods in season allows you to experiment with new foods and recipes and introduce some new flavor and spice to your meals. Many organic, seasonal suppliers take advantage of the season by selling wild and foraged produce along with other basic varieties of fruits and vegetables. Depending on the season, this gives you a chance to get crazy and wild! Who wants to cook with one tomato when you can sauté four different sub-varieties? Swap out the garlic powder for some fresh rocket or wild garlic. The opportunities are endless.
Lastly, there is no denying the difference in taste between a fresh, unprocessed, sun-ripened fruit and one plucked two weeks ago, unripe and tired from jet lag. Please, don’t take it from me. Try it for yourself.
Seasonal Foods Chart
Excuse me, but earth doesn’t exactly have a hotline. How do I know what fruits and vegetables are in season?
Follow this Seasonal Foods Chart and discover the real pleasure of cooking:
SPRING: artichokes, arugula, asparagus, avocados, beets, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, chard greens, cherries, fennel, kale, leeks, mint, new potatoes, peas, radishes, rhubarb, strawberries, turnips, yellow squash
SUMMER: apricots, arugula, avocados, basil, beets, blueberries, broccoli, carrots, chard greens, cherries, collard greens, corn, cucumber, eggplant, fennel, figs, grapes, green beans, kale, leeks, melons, mint, nectarines, new potatoes, okra, parsley, peaches, pears, peas, peppers, plums, radishes, raspberries, rhubarb, strawberries, tomatoes, yellow squash, zucchini
FALL: apples, artichokes, arugula, avocados, basil, green beans, beets, bok choy, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, carrots, cabbage, cauliflower, chard greens, chestnuts, collard greens, corn, cucumber, fennel, figs, grapefruit, kale, leeks, lemons, limes, mint, new potatoes, okra, oranges, parsley, parsnips, pears,