Twice a month I get up at 5:00 am on Sunday morning and drive 45 min to my favorite place the Hartford Regional Market. There I buy lots of fresh produce at rock bottom prices. Last week I spent about $100 and here's a list of what I purchased along with prices.
50 lbs of carrots/$15
12 pints of fresh figs/$5
12 pints of grape tomatoes/$10
40 lbs of bananas/$12
12 pints of raspberries/$10
95 lemons/$32
25 huge portabella mushrooms/$10
10 mangos/$5
The carrots get juiced...fresh carrot juice is delicious and oh so good for you! A big glass of carrot juice in the morning along with a shot of wheatgrass juice gives me unbelievable energy for the day.
The lemons are used for making lemon aid...read my earlier post and see how this simple drink can change your metabolism and rejuvenate your liver.
The bananas....well I dehydrated about 5lbs which I store in the fridge they are so so good. Then I freeze about 10 lbs and I use them in smoothies. Freezing the bananas eliminates the need to add ice to a smoothie....take the peels of first. I didn't remove the peels first time I froze them and it was hard labor taking the peels off frozen. I make banana cookies in the dehydrator...yummy! Look for the recipe at the end of this post.
The figs didn't last long, there is nothing quite as good as fresh figs in my book. I searched the fridge this morning hoping to find one last container of those delicate treasures....none to be found maybe next time I'll buy 24 lbs.
Raspberries don't last long in my house. I made banana rasperry smoothies with some, recipe at the end of post. The rest well they disappeared quickly as a nutritious snack.
The portabella mushrooms are about the best I've seen anywhere. Last night I had 3 for dinner. Look for my recipe at the end of this post.
The tomatoes became a simple fresh sauce and I made some awesome salsa too.
The Connecticut Department of Agriculture (DoAG) operates this wonderful regional farmer's market in Hartford. Every Sunday morning at 5:00 the market opens and people from all around CT make their way to the market.
Address:
101 Reserve Road
Hartford, CT 06114-1612
(860) 527-5047
The Hartford Regional Market is the largest perishable food distribution facility between Boston and New York. It is operated by DoAG as a self-sustaining, non-profit venture funded through operational fees. The Connecticut Marketing Authority oversees its operation and planning. (info taken from DOAG web site).
If you don't live in CT check with your states Dept of Agriculture to see if your state has something similar.
RECIPES
Banana Cookies
Smash over ripe bananas as many as you want
add a couple of dashes of cinnamin
1/2 c more or less nuts of choice chopped
1/2 c raisins
Take a tsp full of mixture and place on dehydrator sheet until finished. Place trays in dehydrator and run at about 125 degrees for 24 hrs or until like a soft baked cookie.
I made these cookies today with raw cashews and added blueberries instead of raisins. I change this recipe constantly but this is the basic recipe.
Raspberry Banana Smoothie
1 pint of rasperries
2 frozen bananas
1/2 cup of non fat plain yogurt
1/2 cup blue diamond almond milk
Place all ingredients in your Vitamix and mix until smooth...you'll never crave a milkshake again...smoothies yum!
Stuffed Portabella Mushrooms
3 large portabella mushrooms
2 cups spinach
1 cup raw pecans
salt pepper
1/4 c parmesan cheese
2 tbsp on seseame oil
Wash mushrooms and remove stems. Chop stems, pecans, spinach and add salt pepper and seseame oil and cheese. Stuff caps and bake about 20 min. at 350 degrees....these are awesome!
Fresh Salsa
Tomatoes
Cilantro
Basil
Onion
salt
pepper
add the quantities you want and be prepared to eat the entire thing in one night. I make my own chips for this using Rice Tortias from Trader Joes...I toast them by placing the tortia right on the burner of my glass top stove....use a low heat, turn continually and in no time at all you have fat free rice tortias that taste way better than any store bought chip.
Fresh Tomato Sauce
Tomatoes as many as you want chopped
garlic pressed I like it garlicky so use what you like
basil chopped
extra virgin olive oil
salt pepper
Heat oil and saute garlic add all the other ingredients serve over sprouted pasta
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