Fresh, local and organic: a tasty experiment
My son calls me a hippie.
He calls me a hippie because of our switch to
”
greener
”
living, including the use of natural cleaners, CFL light bulbs
and low-flow faucets. I take canvas totes when I go shopping, and
we’ve recycled all of the plastic bags we had stored in the bottom
kitchen drawer.
Fresh, local and organic: a tasty experiment
My son calls me a hippie.
He calls me a hippie because of our switch to “greener” living, including the use of natural cleaners, CFL light bulbs and low-flow faucets. I take canvas totes when I go shopping, and we’ve recycled all of the plastic bags we had stored in the bottom kitchen drawer.
We eat healthier, and I’ve become a label reader, paying attention to things such as fats, sugar and sodium levels, fiber content, etc. We eat whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, beans and lean meats – things at which many teenagers would turn up their nose.
Last weekend, for the Pinnacle’s Earth Day edition, I volunteered my family for an experiment. Not only would we clean and live as green as possible, we would try to eat green also. I decided we would eat only locally grown produce and organic products. When I told my family what I had in mind, everyone was on board, except for the 17 year old. He asked if he could spend the night at his grandmother’s instead.
Before we went shopping, we talked about what we could eat during the experiment. We planned the basics of our meals – organic milk and cereal for breakfast, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches made with organic products for lunch, and grilled organic chicken breasts for dinner. We figured we’d come up with appropriate snacks and side dishes as we shopped.
We began our shopping at Water World, where we bought a ceramic jug and two 3-gallon plastic jugs to cut back not only on the number of plastic water bottles we were using, but the cost of buying bottled water. We easily spent about $25 a week on multiple cases of 24 individual 16 oz. water bottles. Now, we spend just $2 twice a week to fill up our jugs, and for some reason, the girls love the water store. Go figure.
Next, we went to Bertuccio’s, a small shop located on the corner of Airline Hwy. and Union Road that features locally grown produce, farm fresh eggs and lots of other goodies. It was the first time my girls, ages 10 and 12, had been to Bertuccio’s, and they loved it. If you haven’t been, I recommend stopping by. We bought a few pounds of locally grown asparagus, some locally grown garlic, strawberries and some fresh lemons, because the lemon tree in our backyard has been barren since last year’s frost. We also bought some eggs from Hollister’s Johnson Farms and a big jar of canned raspberry preserves.
From Bertuccio’s, we went to Safeway, which recently introduced its “O Organics” line. I have previously used a few “O” products; including cane sugar (I like it because it comes in a resealable bag), applesauce, bread, olive oil, peanut butter and pasta sauce, and they’re all quite good.
We bought organic 1 percent low-fat milk (at $3.29 a half-gallon, it was more expensive than the usual $6 I pay for 2 gallons of Dairy Glen 1 percent low-fat milk) and a box of “O” Oats and Honey Granola Cereal.
We picked up a loaf of “O” Seeds and Grain bread, which was $3.99. The Orowheat bread I usually buy was on sale two loaves for $5, and since it is whole wheat, I almost passed up the organic bread, especially after comparing the labels. They were almost identical.
We bought some “O” peanut butter and some organically grown carrots, celery and apples for snacking. The “O” brand includes fresh poultry, but Safeway didn’t have any this day, so we moved to Nob Hill.
My first stop was the bank, since shopping organically is a little more expensive than buying non-organic – although personally I think it’s because the organic stuff doesn’t seem to go on sale much. Often, when looking at shelf prices, the price of a traditional item and its organic counterpart were close, but sales made the difference.
Nob Hill has a rack of products from Hollister’s B&R Farms, one of my favorite stands at the Farmers Market. I bought a jar of apricot-chili topping to glaze the chicken and a bag of dried apricots for snacking.
We bought two packs of Coastal Range Organic chicken breasts (two breasts per pack) and two packs of their drumsticks. The chicken tasted great, especially glazed with the apricot topping; it was very tender and moist. But it was pricey – one pack of two breasts was about $8, and a pack of five drumsticks was almost $4. Considering I usually buy 10 frozen breasts for about $12 a bag, $24 for chicken seemed like a lot. But you could taste the difference. When the Farmers Market is open, I sometimes buy grass-fed beef from Morris Ranch in San Juan Bautista and Paul Hain’s chickens. Try these some time – this is the way meat and poultry are supposed to taste.
The kids did a taste test on the milk, and naturally, only the 17 year-old said he could taste the difference. But they all liked the cereal, and we’ll probably buy it again. The peanut butter and jelly sandwiches were very good – the bread was nutty and flavorful, and the raspberry preserves from Bertuccio’s were delicious.
For dinner, we cooked the asparagus with some fresh lemon juice and tarragon, and we bought a box of Seeds of Change certified organic seven-grain pilaf blend. It had brown and wild rice, along with wheat and rye berries, and we liked it, although it was a little firmer than the kids are used to, so if we buy it again, I might try adding a little more liquid. We grilled a loaf of sourdough bread from San Juan Bakery, using a recipe our publisher shared with readers a few months ago. We finished up with some fresh strawberries for dessert.
All in all, we spent a bit more money than usual, but didn’t have any problems coming up with meal ideas. The hardest part of the experiment was beverages – I like to have a soda or two, and by the end of the day, the caffeine withdrawal had given me a headache. The next day, I opened a soda around 10 a.m. Some hippie, huh?
Lemon Asparagus
(recipe courtesy of Taste of Home)
1 lb. fresh asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 tbsp. water
2 tbsp. butter, melted
1 to 2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
Pinch dried tarragon
Salt and pepper to taste
Place asparagus and water in a 1-1/2-qt. microwave-safe bowl. Cover and microwave on high for 4-5 minutes or until crisp-tender; drain. Add butter, lemon juice and tarragon; toss to coat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Grilled Apricot-Chili Chicken
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2-4 tbsp. Pompeian pomegranate infused red wine vinegar
2 tsp. sea salt
2 tsp. coarsely ground black pepper
1 c. B&R Farms Apricot-Chili Topping
Place chicken breasts in glass pie pan. Sprinkle with red wine vinegar, salt and pepper; cover and refrigerate 1 hour.
Spray grill rack with non-stick cooking spray. Light charcoal and let coals get white hot. Grill chicken, uncovered, for 3 minutes on each side. Baste with apricot topping. Continue grilling for 6-8 minutes or until meat juices run clear, basting and turning several times. Serve with remaining topping.
