The Farmers’ Market at Your House (Almost!)

In this column, I’ll be writing about different ways you can eat local. Basically, eating locally grown produce helps support your local economy, allows you to eat super fresh produce a day or two after it was picked, and minimizes the miles your food travels to get to you. I also love the idea of supporting our local farmers. For ten reasons to eat local, check out this entry from the Life Begins at 30 blog.

One of the ways you can eat local in South Florida is to participate in Community Supported Agriculture. Our local CSA is operated by Redland Organics, which is a cooperative of South Florida farms that delivers to Broward, Miami-Dade, and Monroe. It’s double bang for your buck, because you get to support local farmers and you also get organic food.

You pay up front for either a half ($360) or a full-share ($600). A half-share box definitely provides more than enough vegetables for a household of two. Then, for 19 Saturdays from November to March you get a box chock full of fresh produce harvested from Bee Heaven Farm and other local farms. That comes out to about $19 a week for a half-share and $32 a week for a full share. You can check on the Redland Organics FAQ to see if there is a pickup site near you. 

I belonged to the CSA for three years. I took a break last year because I missed the subscription deadline. Half the fun was discovering what veggies awaited me every Saturday, and the other half was figuring out how I was going to cook them.

The veggie box is best for those who cook often and who enjoy trying new foods. At first, it takes some research to learn how to use all of the veggies. Mustard greens anyone? However, you may discover that you love mustard greens, simply prepared with curry powder, garlic and salt.

The volume of new veggies may also take some getting used to. It becomes manageable, especially since the vegetables are so fresh. You can keep some of the greens for a whole week before they show any sign of wilting. Making vegetable stock is a quick, low maintenance way to get rid of any stragglers from the previous week’s veggie box. You can also blanch and then freeze a lot of the leafy greens for later use. When I was getting the veggie boxes, I felt like I was eating much healthier, since so much more of my weekly calorie intake was coming from vegetables. Of course, it’s possible to eat healthfully without a CSA, but getting a huge box of vegetables each week most definitely shifts the proportions of your diet.

Rebecca (of greenerMIAMI) and Tere of (A Mom, A Blog and the Life In-Between) both recounted their veggie box learning curves last year. The newsletter that comes with the box always has a recipe or two. Margie Pikarsky of Bee Heaven Farm writes the newsletter. She keeps an archive of them online which is an excellent source of recipes for exactly the vegetables you’ll be getting. In the future, I’ll be writing more on Miami Dish about seasonal produce and how to prepare it.

If you’re interested, sign up soon; the spots sometimes fill up before the Sept 1 deadline. Later on in the season, you can also sign up to receive a share of farm fresh eggs and local honey. Before you sign up, read the Redland Organics FAQ. Again, this is a great way to eat local, but it’s not for everyone. A disclaimer: You are making an investment in the farms and paying forward to allow them to buy supplies and seeds. That means if a hurricane or any other natural disaster comes our way, some or all of your veggies may be out the window. I did the CSA for three years without a hitch, but it is something to consider. If you’re excited but still tentative about the CSA, you can also get a January trial share.