Catching Up, and Borman's Farm Lovin'

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Why, hello there. It's been a couple of weeks since I've posted anything fresh, hasn't it? I've been very busy this month, what with learning a new job, working two other jobs, and practicing scale after scale on my lovely Ibanez acoustic guitar. I've also been going to life-changing concerts (reviews to come), baking, and writing a terrible short story in which I hide too much information from the reader.

I'll get to all those posts before October is over, I swear, but enjoy these photos in the meantime. Yes, I have a Picasa account and a Flickr account somewhere, but since October is still the Local Food Challenge month (remember that?) I thought I'd show you some of the fresh, local produce I bought down at the Borman Family Farm. The farm has been running since Ron Borman's grandmother decided to open it back in the 30s. Ron's granddaughter actually helped him weigh the squash.  Isn't it cool that the next generation is training to take over? Well, it's Amherst, OH. She *might* want to make her living off her family's farm...

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Lovely apples from the Borman orchard.  See those little pears to the right? A delicious pear bread recipe featuring ten of those babies is up next. Yes, ten. 

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Not shown: delicious, crisp bunches of basil for only $1.00. I made a very disagreeable pesto; my family would be ashamed. 

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Oh, butternut, acorn, and spaghetti squash: you remind us that winter is a-coming.

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Great peppers. I made a sofrito with them.  To the right of the eggplant: say goodbye to the last of the sweet summer corn. Bye!

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Spring Resolution

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One of the perks of living in Ohio is that the seasons change. I am experiencing my first intermittent bouts of Spring, and what I've seen so far is so lovely that I'm inspired to change my eating habits.

With that, I resolved to increase my intake of fresh fruits and vegetables. What's more, I've resolved to purchase mostly seasonal, organic, and locally-grown foods whenever possible (and take part in as many gastronomic festivals northeast Ohio can throw at me!).

April is when Spring starts to slowly threaten Ohio. The temperature hovers around 40 to 50 degrees, it snows a few times, and every plant and tree lets its flowers free.

With all those visual delights surrounding me, I wondered: What delights might be in store for a seeker of fresh, seasonal produce?

Asparagus and rhubarb, apparently, according to OurOhio.org.

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I'm skipping the rhubarb.

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The site gets "technical" and breaks down fruits and vegetables' "seasonality" by month.

It seems like I should have decided to go "local and seasonal" around July, as that's when most of the good stuff is ripe and ready. Raspberries won't be perfect until late June - but the sweet flavor of a perfectly ripe berry is something wonderful to look forward to, at least. Being a good sport, however, I went out and bought a pound of thick asparagus spears.

Asparagus is more versatile than you might think, as the people of Sierra de Yeguas (in Andalucia, Spain) already know. They celebrate their Spring asparagus harvest with a festival, preparing asparagus tortilla and asparagus paella, along with my favorite asparagus dish: sautéed asparagus topped with poached egg.

I didn't remember to buy eggs, so I improvised and pan-roasted some asparagus with salt, black pepper, chili powder, and chopped parsley, drizzled with a mix of olive oil and lemon juice. I tossed in a few portabella mushrooms (because I had them) and let everything soak up the flavors quite nicely.

It wasn't much, but it was a tasty start to a year of exploring fresh, local produce!

Oberlin Surprise

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I'm fresh off a plane into Miami from Oberlin, Ohio, and I'm pretty optimistic about the food situation there.

I was a bit worried that I wouldn't have any good restaurant options, but how wrong I turned out to be!

The restaurants along Main Street (right in the thick of the college) rely on locally-sourced produce. The Black River Cafe, for example, offers local beefs and bacons which are delightfully free from any chemical flavorings, and the proof of using truly fresh ingredients is right there. I ate a BLT and didn't feel heavy or bloated. It was like heaven, except with more hippies than I thought they'd let in.

Similarly, the Feve - a very "accepting" bar that makes up 50% of Oberlin's nightlife - also puts local growers to good use. I put a serious hurting on a half-pound bacon cheeseburger and another half-pound of tater tots there, and didn't feel that "I can't believe I ate the whole thing" feeling I get from fast-food and chain restaurants.

There were other treasures as well, from Gibson's candy shop to Java Zone's Frankie Pizza, but that will all be waiting for me after my move. I can't wait!

C & D Produce Outlet

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If you've never been to a Latin American country, this little market on Military Trail in Palm Beach Gardens is a good way to get a feel for one of those places without spending on a ticket or getting sick.* I mean, aside from all of the strange (and run of the mill) cheap fruits and vegetables fresh off the farm truck (pictured damn near everywhere on this post), C&D sells PINATAS (!!!), my favorite foreign soda, Inca Kola (Peru's delicious, bubble-gum flavored national soft drink) along with a rainbow of sodas from Costa Rica and Colombia, coconut water, votary candles with every Santeria saint, soft cheeses from Honduras, cleaning detergents that will burn a hole in any white woman's hand, and basil plants with leaves bigger than my fist. That's a small sample of their selection, and you get English speaking people and clean air!

As you can see, I went camera-mad with the colorful and weird fruits and veggies available. Like these fuzzy green things to the right, and those green stalks with white flowers on them in the first photo. I clearly don't know all of the names for the vegetables (fruits?) but I went ahead and bought a bit of everything with the abandon of someone who does not know how to use them in recipes. It's a refreshing approach, and affordable at this place. I wouldn't have gotten away with paying so little for the same amount of produce at Whole Foods.

All sorts of cars are parked in front of this little shed: AMG Mercedes, Toyotas, Dodges, Mustangs. I crossed a small German woman rooting through the cherry pepper basket. She commanded me to buy them now ("Zey are $1.29 a pound this week! Sixty cents cheaper!) and gave me her recipe for pickled peppers: vinegar, water, and salt . Simple enough, right?
An Indian woman carrying a basket full of ginger, cinnamon, bags of habanero and thai chili peppers agreed with her. I'm not arguing with her.

I bought my first tomatillos here and I'm very excited. I also bought fennel for a light salad, anjou pears, bananas, strawberries, tiny eggplants, ancho chiles, quinoa, cherry peppers, and zucchini. I bought two weeks' worth of vegetables and goods for under $22.00.

I wish I'd known about this place when I was making my chili last October. I didn't have the right source of heat for it, and it came out very bland. There's a whole section at C&D for dried poblano, chipotle, ancho, and serrano chili peppers.

I'm moving to Ohio in June if everything works out with my boyfriend. I wonder if I'll find anythiing up there that's neat in this way: a mish mash of goodies from around the world in one spot. My boyfriend says all places are the same, especially by major interstates. Usually that would be a turn off, but having found quite a few great little food places here I find myself hoping he's right.

You can visit C & D Produce Outlet on your own:

C D Produce Outlet Inc
7243 N Military Trl
West Palm Beach, FL 33410
(561) 842-3345
Need a map?