Making the most of your trip to the Farmers’ Market

Shopping for your food at a farmers market is a great way to reap the nutritional benefits of freshly harvested food.

Many farmers markets offer an array of pesticide free produce and beef from grass-fed cows or eggs produced by free-range hens – often sold by the very folk who grew them.

Buying locally grown food benefits your family’s health and as such, a trip to the farmers market is guaranteed to help you acquaint yourself with great finds other than fresh produce such as freshly picked herbs, homemade salsa and infused olive oil and freshly made whole-wheat pasta. Also look for cheese from grass-fed cows.

Freshly picked foods are more than just delicious sources of nutrition as you get health-boosting and disease fighting nutrients. Freshly picked fruits and vegetables continue to take in oxygen, break down starches, and realise carbon dioxide meaning more nutritional benefit for you and your family.

You will more than likely see apples at the farmers market which are a nutritional powerhouse. The skin of an apple provides you with 5 grams of fiber, which accounts for 20 percent of the daily recommended amount. Freshly picked apples at the farmers market give you the best flavor possible.

Furthermore, picking colourful lettuce adds nutritional benefits to your diet. Incorporating lettuce into your meals is a great way to add nutrients and water into your diet. Lettuce helps you you to fillup and it does so at a mere 20 calories per serving. Also crisp, crunchy lettuce is an easy way to get in the recommended five servings of fruit and vegetables everyday.

Cucumbers aren’t just for salads. We are used to seeing lemon slices in glasses of water at restaurants. But have you ever thought of adding cucumber slices to your water? Cucumbers add a fresh flavor to chilled water in addition to the fact that the vegetable is a good source of vitamin K and potassium. Wash the cucumber, cut it into thin slices and add a few pieces to your water.

You may find beets at the farmers market which are good for blood pressure. Beets are a great source of healthful, naturally occuring nitrates, which help support healthy blood pressure. All parts of the plant are edible, from the leafy stems which can be sauteed like spinach to deep reddish-purple bulbous root. While the purplish variety of beets is the most common, if your farmers’ markets carries more exotic varieties, such as golden beets, give it a try.