3 Local Farmer's Markets & Fruit/Veggie Buyer's Beware List

Photo Courtesy of Sherwoodmarket.blogspot.com

This tidbit of info came into my email today from LIFamilies.com today and I just HAD to share this with you.  I shop at 5 different grocery stores in search of fresh, organic fruits and am usually disappointed.  My husband is very big on making sure our kids eat fruit daily.  They love strawberries, apples, grapes, and bananas.  Three out of four of these fruits are on the dirty list. Do you even know what's on the "Dirty List?"

At the end of the post, I have listed a few local Farmer's Markets that pop up during the summer through the fall.   Hopefully this produce has less, if not any, pesticides on them since they do not have to travel from outside of the country before showing up on grocery stores shelves.  There has GOT to be a better, healthier way to feed America.




Buyers Beware: Fruit and Veggie Contamination

Americans are trying to get healthy and are turning to fruits and vegetable to help do so. In the process they may be putting themselves, and their families, in greater risk. This year's results of the most contaminated fruits and vegetables are out, and you may be surprised by the outcome.

An apple a day was always supposed to keep the doctor away, but instead it may be the cause of future visits. Apples have moved up three spaces this year to become the number one most contaminated fruit/vegetable, trumping celery.

Governmental research is done every year on 53 different fruits and vegetables. After peeling and washing produce, they test them for pesticides and fungicides. The Environmental Working Group, a public health advocacy group, then takes the findings and publishes a list of the cleanest and the dirtiest.

Simply washing and peeling the fruits and vegetables is not enough to get them clean. Their plants absorb the toxins when the fruit or vegetable is still growing, infecting the produce.

One way to avoid your family ingesting more pesticides is by trying to buy organic options when available. If organic is too expensive, or inaccessible try alternative options; such as replacing apples with pineapples. By choosing your five daily servings of fruits and vegetables from the "clean list," you will avoid pesticide exposure by up to 92%.

Clean List:
1. Onions
2. Corn
3. Pineapples
4. Avocado
5. Asparagus
6. Sweet peas
7. Mangoes
8. Eggplant
9. Cantaloupe
10. Kiwis
11. Cabbage
12. Watermelon
13. Sweet Potatoes
14. Grapefruits
15. Mushrooms

Dirty List:
1. Apples
2. Celery
3. Strawberries
4. Peaches
5. Spinach
6. Nectarines
7. Grapes
8. Sweet bell peppers
9. Potatoes
10. Blueberries
11. Lettuce
12. Cucumbers

Local Farmer's Markets 

Elmont Farmer's Market

Every Thursday - 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Alva T Stanforth Sports Complex

700 Hempstead Turnpike, Elmont

Lynbrook Farmer's Market

May 24 - November 15th

Every Thursday - 7 a.m. - 1 p.m.

Forest Avenue (off Sunrise)

Rockville Centre Farmer's Market

June 3 - November 18th

Every Sunday - 7 a.m. - 12 p.m.

Long Beach Road & Sunrise Highway

Click here for more Long Island Farmer's Markets in Nassau and Suffolk Counties.

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Pink Slime: Is It In Your Child's School Lunch?

My kids don't eat school lunch.  One is in nursery school, and the other goes to a school where the Kindergartners  have to eat lunch in their classroom and aren't allowed to purchase lunch from the cafeteria.  I had a problem with this in the beginning because I felt she and her classmates were being cheated out of an authentic school experience, but now I'm okay with it.  Especially after all of the talk about how unhealthy school lunches can be.  I also know that the Valley Stream school lunches appear to be pretty healthy from what I can tell on the digital copies of the school lunches posted online.

However, some schools aren't as lucky.  What is Pink Slime? It is the scraps from beef containing ammonium hydroxide-treated ground connective tissue and meat scraps.  Here is Wikipedia's definition of the stuff.  Above is Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution on the pink stuff.  All I can say is, yuck! 

I was able to access only two of the four elementary school lunches in Valley Stream School District 13 and I only found 3 servings of beef on the calendar for the month of April.  I have to view the video on chicken nuggets as I do see a number of days in April chicken products are served.  At a glance, it does appear that the kids are being served healthy food in the district.  However, by the time my daughter hits 1st grade and gains access to school lunches I will have done my due diligence.  Chances are pretty high that I will continue to pack her lunch.  It is a parents first responsibility to make sure their child eats a healthy meal.

Oy....

Seven Million Pounds of Pink Slime Beef Destined for National School Lunch Program

Disctrict 13 Lunch Calendar
District 30 Lunch Calendar
District 24 Lunch Calendar
Central High School District Lunch Calendar

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50 Great Side Dishes + Printable

There's something about cooking side dishes that sends me pretty close to anxiety attacks.  Let me be clear. I can cook. Everyday, my mom who worked outside of the home, would call home at 3 p.m. to tell me and my two sisters to 1) peel the potatoes 2) cut the potatoes 3)boil the potatoes 4) mash the potatoes.  I don't quite know what happened after that.  I do know that to this day I have not mastered the art of mashed potatoes the way my mom makes them.  Lumps and all.  I know it's taboo to have creamy mashed potatoes with lumps, but there's something about those lumps that makes the dish yummy.  My mom is known for her lumps in Toledo.

My "from scratch" repoitoire consists of green beans seasoned with smoked turkey and an occasional potato (cut up of course), and....well, I guess that's all I can think of right now.  My family likes it which is why I continue to make it.  Other side dishes I have mastered are sweet corn on the cob (boil and serve), spanish rice (Goya - boil and serve), and seasoned red skin or baby white potatoes (Lipton Onion Soup seasoning). 

I happened upon Lovely Little Snippets blog while cruising my FB feed.  I am in love with this blog even if I don't read another post.  I'm sure I will though if this is what I'm going to find on a weekly basis.  I already printed this list of 50 great side dishes and plan to print off another copy to place in my handbag for easy access while visiting the grocery store. Personally, I don't consider items 41 - 50 "side dishes" because they're not vegetables, but 40 out of 50 ain't bad.





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Veggie Acorn Squash...If You Like That Sorta Thing

Veggie Acorn Squash

I love my former Miss Brooklyn, Keelie-turned-Sweat=Success blogger, but she eats/makes things I don't think I would ever want to sample. Her recipe for Veggie Acorn Squash got her featured in yesterday's Healthy Living Daily Food Blog so you may want to check it out.  Let me know how it turns out.  I don't think I'll be making it.  No offence Keelie.

Keelie will also be one of the features in the Fitness Friday series that starts this Friday.  I'm excited to see how others "lose it."  Aren't you?

-2 small acorn squash (appx 1.25 lbs each)
-3/4 cup cooked millet
-appx 6 cups raw spinach
-1/2 white or yellow onion, chopped
-1 tbsp peanut flour
-3 tbsp almond milk (or soy, or dairy, or whatever)
-1/4 cup lowfat greek yogurt
-1/2 cup texturized soy protein
-1 tbsp nutritional yeast
- sprinkle of cumin, curry powder and garlic powder
- 4 tbsp panko breadcrumbs
-1/4 cup shredded asiago


Cooking Directions



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Creamy Apple, Pumpkin and Delicata Squash Soup

I'm not a fan of squash but my friend Keelie from Sweat = Success has an awesome recipe and suggestions on what to do with the mushy vegetable.  Hop on over to her blog and check it out.

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Are You A Dipper or a Douser?

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The hot topic of the day in the world of children's health is ketchup or catsup, however you say it or spell is your business.  The French are basically saying that it's not healthy.  Or are they really trying to get the Americans back for dousing the #1 food amongst kids (in my house anyway) with the red sauce covering up the natural taste of the food?  What's the real motive?  When you think about it, it's already an unhealthy food before one drowns it in ketchup.  It's fried people so how about the French talk about that?  I personally only use ketchup when I'm at home.  I don't use it nor do I allow my kids to use it while driving in the car.  Don't judge me as I know I shouldn't eat on the run, but if Panera Bread or Boston Market had a drive through that's where I would be.  But they don't in my neighborhood.

My kids eat the sauce more than I do and just yesterday, my son elected to eat hot dogs for lunch.  While my husband chooses to cover his food with the sauce, it appears as if my children have adopted my dipping gene.  Maybe I influenced them, I don't know.  As I glanced over to make sure my son was eating, I caught him putting what appeared to be a glob of ketchup in his mouth.  It was actually a hot dog covered in ketchup.  Yuck, but whatever it takes to finish your meal I'm all for it.

There are healthier types of ketchup now and I have actually purchased a few.  I don't taste much difference.  Try these healthier options and stay away from the Gayle King method (hear her say it on her show this morning) who uses ketchup and mayonnaise.  Double yuck.

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Fresh Direct Comes To Valley Stream (Finally)

For a few years now, I have complained about the lack of organic and farm fresh food available to my family.  After walking the aisles of the local grocery stores, I repeatedly found myself disappointed with the quality of fruits and vegetables, not to mention how difficult it is to find organic milk.  I remember doing an online search for stores carrying organic products only to find that many of them had either moved or gone out of business.  I do shop at Trader Joes but I have to travel 20 minutes to do so to another community.

Prior to moving to Valley Stream, my family lived in the Fort Greene section of Brooklyn where there was an abundance of organic food.  We were customers of Fresh Direct as were our fellow neighbors.  Naturally, when we moved to Valley Stream, the first place I turned to for food was Fresh Direct.  I was pregnant and didn’t feel like walking the aisle of the grocery store.  I was extremely disappointed to learn that Fresh Direct did not deliver to Long Island at the time. To this day, I have yet to find green grapes as fresh and juicy as the grapes offered by Fresh Direct. Every day, someone on our street would receive a delivery of food from 45 local and family-owned growers.  Well, a new day has arrived and Fresh Direct is making its debut right here in Valley Stream! 
The list of items available include appetizers, dairy, fruits, vegetables, desserts (yum!), meats, seafood, and cleaning products.  The menu includes cool meal for kids, food made to order, heat and eat, ready to cook, organic and natural food items, health and beauty, and so much more!  Minimum order is $30 with a delivery fee of $6.79.    That’s nothing if you think about how much time you will save in driving to the store, walking the aisles, standing in line, waiting for the lady ahead of you to write out a check.  Who does THAT these days?  Your items arrive in a perfectly packed cardboard box complete with ice packs if needed.  You can also schedule the delivery time to fit your schedule in 2-hour time blocks.  How cool is that?  Place your order by 10/21 and receive 20% off of your first order by using the promo code listed in the letter mailed to Valley Stream residents last week. 

Question:  Do you buy organic?  Why or why not? Where do you shop for your organic foods?
*Send in a photo of your delivery to be featured on an upcoming post.