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• Vote with your fork- Pollan

  My wife was a fan of an afternoon television show in which a doctor talked with women in the audience about health issues.  Occasionally, when I walked through the room, I would pause and listen to what he was covering for that day.  A frequent topic of his was to discuss the health benefit of a spice or nut or dried fruit.  He always concluded the segment with something like, “Just put a little on your cereal each morning.”  After about the dozenth time hearing him say that, I commented to my wife, “If we followed his advice, we would need to eat cereal from a barrel and it would take all day with all the toppings he recommends.”  I think I ruined the show for her as she has not been watching it since, but that’s another matter.             Following health advice gets complicated.  Recently, I read an article in which the author attacked the holiest of holies – fruit.  He wrote that fruit should not be eaten alone because of sugar content, but paired with protein or with ...

• Sustainability - Pork Chops and Peaches

  Sustainability Buzzwords enter our language and usually live a short life before returning to the original context of the word.  Currently, one such buzzword is “sustainability” and it can be found in many areas – environment, urban planning, economics, non-profit agencies, businesses, and just about anywhere.  Farmers have always understood the concept of sustainability perhaps better than anyone.  They understand the need to live beyond a single growing season, they understand the need to sustain their crops year after year and even generation after generation.  In many cases, they understand that their farm still produces because of the practices their great grandparents implemented.  [Note: the next five paragraphs contain information I shamelessly plagiarized from the internet about farmers’ markets.  I re-worded the text in a few places, deleted superfluous verbiage, and wrote some original thoughts.  I share these ideas because of the importance our farmers are to us.] Behind the rows of produce, busy vendors, and eager customers, farmers’ markets are a bustling hub of sustainability. Local farmers deliver fresh, local food to a growing number of consumers demanding food that is not ...

• Simon & Garfunkel Chicken

  Have you met Barbara McDonald?  She is the founder of Prim and Primal that began with a desire to make a healthy deodorant for friends and family. A couple of months later she decided to share it at the local farmer's market.  From her website she writes, "About a year later when repeat customers were regularly making me promise that I will never stop making it, I decided to branch out further."  She continues, "I’ve always been about finding the healthiest products. When I can’t find any I make them myself and I love being able to share my passion with others."  She’s an incredibly nice person and a fascinating person with whom to converse.  I’ve quoted author, Sophie Patrick, before as I find her writing about healthy lifestyles to be challenging to some of my thinking and to some of my long developed habits that may not be the best for me.  “The idea of … (a healthy) lifestyle overhaul can seem like a gargantuan task … leaving you feeling overwhelmed and defeated before you’ve even begun.”  [Patrick, Sophie ...

• Chicken Cacciatore

  Bob's kitchen boasts Coastal Alabama Farmers and Fishermens Market as well as our onsite retail store Forland Family Market's fresh food. Dedicated customers like Bob fall in love with fresh and support local farms. Dedication of our customers is realized as local farm numbers rise. This week 7 new farms will be at the market. Summer season is ramping up quick as we see blueberries, blackberries, peaches, strawberries, squash, zucchini, beans, new potatoes, sweet corn, lettuce, vegetable transplants, flowers, herbs, and so much more that is new to the season. Gulf Seafood, especially fresh shrimp is always here as well as eggs, chicken, beef, pork and lamb. Fresh baked is a treat as well as locally roasted coffee. Food staples are plentiful! Include fresh to your kitchen this week! Here's Bob..    Recently I had the opportunity to meet an author online through Facebook and we friended each other. Her name is Sophie Patrick and she specializes in writing books about healthy living. One of her books is entitled, Healthy Eating Made Easy: 50 Simple Tips for Healthy Living Through Clean Eating.  A ...

• What Exactly Are Microgreens?

  What Exactly Are Microgreens?   Statement about Microgreens from Heather Pritchard:  Part of what a farmers’ market can do for farms or other businesses is product introduction. With direct access to the public, vendors can “test” an item and quickly learn what the public likes, which also helps diversify market products.  Microgreens have only recently been introduced to consumers at Coastal Alabama Farmers and Fishermens Market and the response is amazing. Knowing how super nutritious they are coupled with the many flavors and uses, it is no wonder they are popular. Furthermore, it is an example of alternate ways of growing in the home or small spaces.  With all of the stress and uncertainty in folks’ lives, I believe that purchasing and feeding yourself something like this is a reward that most can afford and enjoy.   What are Microgreens? Microgreens are tiny edible plants with an intense flavor, usually vegetable garden plants, that are grown in quantity and harvested while they are still juvenile plants, generally around 10 days.  (www.growingmicrogreens.com) Popular microgreens are red cabbage, cilantro, radish, sunflower, kale, broccoli, amaranth, Bok choy, arugula, ...

• CSA Community Supported Agriculture

  Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)   For more than 25 years, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has become a popular way for consumers to buy local, seasonal food directly from a farmer. Here are the basics: a farmer offers a certain number of "shares" to the public. Typically, the share consists of a box of vegetables, but other farm products may be included. Interested consumers purchase a share (aka a "membership" or a "subscription") and in return receive a box (bag, basket) of seasonal produce each week throughout the farming season.  This arrangement creates several rewards for both the farmer and the consumer. In brief:   Advantages for farmers: ·         Marketing their produce is simplified ·         Guarantees a cash flow ·         Learns directly what consumers are wanting Advantages for consumers: ·         More fresh food and fresh food = greater nutritional value ·         Exposed to new vegetables and new ways of cooking ·         Develop a relationship with the farmer who grows their food and learn more about how food is grown   Tens of thousands of families have joined CSAs, and in some areas of the country there is more demand than there are CSA ...