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eating local

4 Ways you can help fight hunger in your community

EAT BETTER LIVE BETTER NEWSLETTER / November 22, 2017

Tips, hacks, recipes, stories, and the weekly special all help you eat better live better with fresh local food!

GIVING IS ALWAYS IN SEASON

On delivery day last week, the day before Thanksgiving, one of our neighborhood Market Managers, Nickie, posted this on Facebook:
“I’m volunteering with the 25 Project to provide meals to roughly 500 homeless living in shelters and tent cities in DC and Northern Virginia tomorrow. I reached out to the good people at Seasonal Roots to see if they could send some surplus veggies my way, and boy did they…

Continue reading about fighting hunger while eating local, below, or view this issue as a PDF with clickable links.

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eating local

Eating local means eating what nature provides

EAT BETTER LIVE BETTER NEWSLETTER / November 22, 2017

Tips, hacks, recipes, stories, and the weekly special all help you eat better live better with fresh local food!

THE MYSTERY OF THE MISSING GREEN BEANS

Green beans are a tradition on many a Thanksgiving table. So Sam, our Farmer Connector, always stocks our online farmers market with them for the holiday. This year, he scoured the whole region, but there was nary a green bean to be found.

The culprit…

Continue reading about eating local in spite of the weather, below, or view this issue as a PDF with clickable links.

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sustainable greenhouses

As temps drop, farmers keep farming

EAT BETTER LIVE BETTER NEWSLETTER / November 8, 2017

Tips, hacks, recipes, stories, and the weekly special all help you eat better live better with fresh local food!

WHAT’S ON TAP FOR THANKSGIVING, PLUS WHAT’S UP WITH THOSE PALE YOLKS?

Thanksgiving is com-ing, right about the time most traditional farmers markets are closing for the winter, or scaling back.

But not your online farmers market! We stay open year-round.

A little dip in the temperature gauge can’t stop our local farmers from…

Continue reading about local winter farming and what’s happening with your yolks, below, or view this issue as a PDF with clickable links.

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why local food tastes different

Why fresh local food tastes so different

EAT BETTER LIVE BETTER NEWSLETTER / November 8, 2017

Tips, hacks, recipes, stories, and the weekly special all help you eat better live better with fresh local food!

CASE STUDY: CELERY

It’s celery season out on the Flores family’s farm on Virginia’s Northern Neck. Gerardo and his son Omar are harvesting fresh, aromatic celery bunches from their fields. Then we deliver it straight to you within just a couple days. If you ever needed proof that freshly harvested local produce tastes better than the stuff you get at the grocery story (which is at least a week old), do a celery taste test.

When most people think about the taste of celery, they think of grocery store celery – bitter or, at best, blah…

Continue reading about local celery and why its so awesome, below, or view this issue as a PDF with clickable links.

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organic local sustainable

Organic vs Local vs Sustainable

EAT BETTER LIVE BETTER NEWSLETTER / November 1, 2017

Tips, hacks, recipes, stories, and the weekly special all help you eat better live better with fresh local food!

ORGANIC vs LOCAL vs SUSTAINABLE: WHICH IS BEST?!!

We get this question pretty much daily: “So are your farms Certified Organic?” When people ask that, we totally get where they’re coming from. We all just want to eat nutritious, safe, non-toxic, eco-friendly food. But who has time to research every item we buy? So the government’s “Certified Organic” label seems like a convenient shortcut to eating healthy without harming the planet. If only it were true.
Here at Seasonal Roots, we’re more concerned about sustainable and local than organic, so we don’t require our local farmers to be Certified Organic. Here are 5 reasons why…

Continue reading the 5 reasons why, below, or view this issue as a PDF with clickable links.

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seasonal eating fall foods

Seasonal eating optimizes good health

EAT BETTER LIVE BETTER NEWSLETTER / October 25, 2017

Tips, hacks, recipes, stories, and the weekly special all help you eat better live better with fresh local food!

MOTHER NATURE KNOWS BEST

Do you clean out your closets in the spring, enjoy more outdoor activities in the summer, and crave all things warm and cozy in the fall and winter? Your eating habits probably follow the same cycle. Science tells us this is natural, and…

Continue reading about seasonal eating, below, or view this issue as a PDF with clickable links.

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seasonal eating fall foods healthy eating

Seasonal eating: 5 healthy tips to get ready for fall foods

Mother Nature’s gift gives us what we need when we need it

– By the Veggie Fairy Team

Do you clean out your closets in the spring, enjoy more outdoor activities in the summer, and crave all things warm and cozy in the fall and winter? Your eating habits probably follow the same cycle. Science tells us this is natural, and nature supplies food perfectly designed to give our bodies what they need to stay healthy during each season. Mother Nature’s fall bounty is like a bouquet of good health — a gift for our bodies.

The foods we need change with the seasons

Seasonal eating means eating what grows naturally in each season. Now that it’s fall, you’ve probably noticed all the apples that our friends at Saunders Brothers are harvesting these days. Apples are high in fiber and pectin that help cleanse the intestines and support the digestion of fats.

That’s important, because with the onset of winter our bodies need more fats and protein from meats, fish, nuts, seeds, legumes, root vegetables, and winter squashes. Winter’s cold, dry weather can dry us out and foods that are rich in protein and fat restore moisture to our bodies and make us less susceptible to colds and flu.

In the spring, Mother Nature provides bitter greens like arugula to help clean out our livers. We need to detoxify after processing all those fats and heavier foods that we ate all winter.

Next up: summer. Since we’re outside more in the summer, and more active, we need the extra energy we get from carbohydrates and sugars in warm weather fruits like peaches and strawberries. Produce like cucumbers and watermelon help us hydrate, more, too.

Get ready for fall foods: 5 healthy tips

Now it’s fall, and winter will soon be upon us. So here are 5 healthy steps you can take to make it easy to cook and eat fresh, local fall foods, the way nature intended.

1. In the winter we eat less cold, raw food and more hot, cooked food. Clean your oven so you can start the season without setting off your smoke detectors.

2. Start eating fruits and vegetables that are high in vitamins A and C. They boost your immune system so it’s good and strong for fighting off the germ attacks of cold and flu season. Add greens like kale and collards to smoothies, soups, and pasta dishes. Other A and C rock stars of our fall-season local produce include apples, cabbage, carrots, sweet potatoes, beets, parsnips, hard winter squashes, celery, celeriac, broccoli, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts. Many of these contain more vitamin C than oranges!

3. You’ll get some of the fat your body needs when you snack on nuts and seeds, which contain healthy fats. Cook with healthy fats like coconut oil, olive oil, flaxseed oil, and walnut oil. Don’t throw away those seeds you scoop out of butternut and acorn squashes! Toss them in olive oil (don’t waste time picking out those strands that come with them, the strands will shrivel in the heat), spread them on a baking sheet loosely covered with foil, then roast them at about 400 degrees until they start to pop. (The foil keeps them from flying around inside your oven.) Stir them and keep an eye on them. Once they’re brown, take them out, sprinkle with salt, and start snacking.

4. Eat whole grains such as brown rice, quinoa, millet, barley, and whole wheat breads. Their dietary fiber aids healthy digestion. Whole grains are also full of iron for healthy blood, antioxidants to keep your cells healthy, and B vitamins to give you energy.

5. Make a homemade, nutritious stock or broth to use in soups, stews, and sauces. Here’s how to make bone broth, which is both immune boosting and good for bone and joint health. And here’s how to make a healthy vegan broth.

ABOUT SEASONAL ROOTS

Since 2011, Seasonal Roots’ online farmers market has connected Virginia families with local family farmers who use sustainable, humane practices. Our veggie fairies – mostly moms who believe in living better through scrumptious, healthy eating, being kind to animals, protecting the environment, and spreading joy – home-deliver freshly harvested produce, pastured eggs, grassfed dairy and meat, plus artisan fare. We empower our members to eat better and live better with more nutritious, flavorful food that’s good for us and good for the planet. More info at seasonalroots.com.

slow cooker

Too busy to cook? Try a slow cooker

EAT BETTER LIVE BETTER NEWSLETTER / October 18, 2017

Tips, hacks, recipes, stories, and the weekly special all help you eat better live better with fresh local food!

HERE’S HOW YOU CAN COOK FRESH LOCAL FOOD WHILE YOU DO SOMETHING ELSE

Too much fresh local food and not enough time to cook it? Try using a slow cooker! It gives you control and convenience – safely. Throw in the ingredients, set the heat and cooking time, then walk away and forget about it for hours… without burning down the house. When you come back at the end of a busy day or after a good night’s sleep, a complete meal is waiting for you.

Slow cookers are …

Continue reading about slow cookers, below, or view this issue as a PDF with clickable links.

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slow cooker

Too busy to cook? Try a slow cooker!

Here’s how you can cook fresh local food from scratch while you do something else

– By the Veggie Fairy Team

Too much fresh local food and not enough time to cook it? Try using a slow cooker! It gives you control and convenience – safely. Throw in the ingredients, set the heat and cooking time, then walk away and forget about it for hours… without burning down the house.

When you come back at the end of a busy day or after a good night’s sleep, a complete meal is waiting for you. Done right, it’s like the veggie fairies came in and worked their magic while you weren’t looking.

How to pick a good slow cooker

Depending on the recipe, you can fill a slow cooker and hit start in about five minutes, just enough time to listen to this fun interview with Top Chef judge Hugh Acheson while you chop and toss in fresh local ingredients. He’s got a new slow cooker cookbook and a some great advice.

Slow cookers are relatively inexpensive, and paying more doesn’t necessarily get you a better piece of gear. All you need it to do is cook slowly and steadily and keep the food warm when it’s done. Most new slow cookers these days are designed to automatically switch to a warm setting after they’re done cooking, which will keep the food at a safe temperature until you’re ready to eat.

When you’re picking one out, the most important part to consider is the insert pot. A heavy, ceramic insert is best for even heat distribution. Other than that, just pick one with a control panel that’s simple and easy to use.

While a lot of bells and whistles aren’t needed, a programmable option may be a useful convenience. It lets your meal start cooking at a predetermined start time for a predetermined length of time.

Planning ahead makes it even more convenient

If you want to start your slow cooker first thing in the morning and your mornings are pretty crazy, just start the night before.

Chop up the fresh local ingredients, measure out the dry ingredients, and prepare any sauce, putting each group of ingredients in its own container. Don’t refrigerate them in the slow cooker’s insert pot. If the insert is chilled, it will take too long to heat up. That will lengthen cooking time, reduce the cooking temperature, and could make your food unsafe.

So in the morning, add ingredients to the cooker according to the recipe. Reheat any sauce to a simmer before you add it to the mix.

When you set the heat level, here’s a general rule of thumb: Cooking on the low setting (170 degrees for most models) takes about twice as long as cooking on high (usually 280 degrees).

If you won’t be home close to the end of the cooking time, this is when it’s good to have a slow cooker that will automatically switch to the warm setting when the cooking is done.

7 easy ways to boost slow cooker flavor

Slow cookers are admittedly a bit glamour-challenged, mostly because they’ve got a reputation for producing pots of bland mush. But it doesn’t have to be that way. You don’t need help from a Top Chef to make sure your slow cooker meals are satisfyingly delicious.

1. Use fresh ingredients, never frozen. If you want to include some of your fresh local produce that you preserved in the freezer, let it defrost before adding it. That way it won’t interfere with the slow cooker’s ability to get all the ingredients hot enough to kill any harmful bacteria that might thrive if the temp is too low.

2. If you’re cooking meat, choose the right cut. Fatty, tougher meats like chuck roasts, short ribs, pork shoulders, and lamb shanks will melt in your mouth after all those hours in the moist, low heat of a slow cooker. Leaner cuts like tenderloin tend to dry out. Same with chicken — dark meat thighs and drumsticks will remain juicier than white meat breasts.

3. If you have a little extra time, brown meat before you add it to the cooker. For a thicker sauce, dredge it in flour before browning. Then use some of the liquid called for in the recipe to scrape up and pour all the savory, brown, caramelized bits from the pan into the cooker. You’ll get a richer flavor that you can’t get from slow-cooking alone.

4. One more bit of meat advice: Trim the fat and skin the chicken to avoid an oily, greasy cooking liquid. By limiting the excess fat, you’ll wind up with delectably silky sauces and gravies.

5. For even cooking, cut everything into uniform-size pieces. Place firm, slow-cooking root vegetables like potatoes and carrots at the bottom and pile more tender veggies and any meat on top.

6. Definitely use spices! But watch the wine. The slow cooker is sealed so the alcohol can’t escape and evaporate like it would from a normal pot. A splash goes a long way.

7. Don’t overfill. The insert pot should be only one-half to two-thirds full, or whatever your cooker’s owner’s manual recommends. It’s okay to slow cook roasts and whole chickens, but make sure the lid still fits snugly.

8. Never lift the lid while it’s cooking — at least not until 30 to 45 minutes before it switches to low to check for doneness. Each peek lets heat escape and adds 15 minutes to the cooking time. Usually there’s no need to stir, either.

9. Add dairy last. Sour cream, milk, and yogurt tend to break down in the slow cooker, so stir them in during the last 15 minutes of cooking.

10. At the end of simmering, a sprinkle of fresh herbs or squeeze of lemon juice brightens flavors and cuts through all those rich slow cooker flavors. You can also finish off with hot sauce, citrus zest, grated Parmesan, good-quality olive oil, or even sauteed garlic.

Cooking from scratch with fresh local food ends in a meal that’s full of more flavor and nutrients than you get from processed foods out a box, bag, or can. And with a slow cooker, it’s almost as easy. Thanks to slow cookers, you can be busy and still enjoy healthy eating!

ABOUT SEASONAL ROOTS

Since 2011, Seasonal Roots’ online farmers market has connected Virginia families with local family farmers who use sustainable, humane practices. Our veggie fairies – mostly moms who believe in living better through scrumptious, healthy eating, being kind to animals, protecting the environment, and spreading joy – home-deliver freshly harvested produce, pastured eggs, grassfed dairy and meat, plus artisan fare. We empower our members to eat better and live better with more nutritious, flavorful food that’s good for us and good for the planet. More info at seasonalroots.com.

local gluten free bakery

Local gluten free bakery

EAT BETTER LIVE BETTER NEWSLETTER / October 11, 2017

Tips, hacks, recipes, stories, and the weekly special all help you eat better live better with fresh local food!

FOOD ARTISAN SPOTLIGHT: MEET ANNA B’S GLUTEN FREE

We’re excited to welcome Anna B’s Gluten Free Bakery to our year-round online farmers market! Together we’re helping more people to eat better, live better.

Gluten free food is trendy these days, but for people suffering from Celiac disease, going gluten free isn’t a choice – it’s a life-changing requirement. Gluten is …

Continue reading about gluten, below, or view this issue as a PDF with clickable links.

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