At our house we have a large vegetable garden and although I am still learning how to get the most from our space we produce about 25-50% of our veggies in our backyard. I am a firm believer in eating fresh, local, and in season. Veggies just taste better and are better for you when they are picked fresh and not transported hundreds of miles. For this reason I am also a huge fan of farmer's markets for those who do not have the space or the sun for a backyard garden the farmers market is the perfect place to get in season veggies. If you are unable to make it out to a local farmers market a CSA may be just right for you. Often with a CSA you prepay for a season of veggies and then every week you get a box full of your share of the farms crops.
All too often we expect what we want to be immediately available. No one wants to wait till the summer to enjoy a fresh tomato, why wait when there are tomatoes on the grocery shelf? Well if you have ever eaten a tomato fresh off the vine then you know there is a big difference. The fresh one has so much more taste and texture. I read about eating wasted calories once and it stuck with me. In this instance wasted calories did not just mean those high in sugar non nutritious calories but also those calories that came from tasteless food. If you are not going to enjoy every bite why eat it? This is why we eat only in season food. It just taste better and it is not a waste of calories.
Getting back to my recipes. Most everything I make calls for veggies. I do not like to be specific because the veggies I choose change from one month to the next. Most of the time the veggies I choose are the ones that are growing fresh in the garden or something I picked up at the Farmers Market. If those are not available then I head to the freezer where I stock up extras from my garden.
