Eating Local, Organic, Seasonal & Sometimes Going Without

Image Posted on May 2, 2011 Updated on May 2, 2011

I crave strawberries. I crave them sliced and on top of a waffle, with creamy, thick Greek yogurt and maple syrup. So last year I went through withdrawals, as Summer was winding down  it was getting harder and harder to find organic strawberries, and by November it was impossible.  I will not buy conventional strawberries, since they are one of the most  pesticided fruits grown, not to mention, most non  organic strawberries are genetically modified to grow larger and become more resistant to disease and bugs. Strawberries plus fish genes? No thanks!  This was my first lesson in eating seasonally. Personally, this was a very hard lesson to learn, but I did learn it. I went the rest of this past Winter without them, and when they reappeared from their long hiatus in February at $6.98 per container, I held out still. The price was ridiculous.  I vented on Facebook, uploading a picture and questioning if the grocery store had lost their minds.  I managed to wait a few more weeks and organic strawberries for $3.99 were much easier to find. I was much happier.

Probably the most important take away about eating seasonally is price. Eating seasonally means you  pay less for fresher produce. Fresher produce, that hasn’t been genetically modified and pesticided until it vaguely resembles and tastes like the idea of what you think it should taste like. Eating seasonally also gives you the opportunity to support local business, since you can often shop for seasonal produce at local farmers markets or though a  CSA or Community Supported Agriculture. I will get more into that in a bit, here’s the recipe for the strawberry waffles, I don’t really have a name for the recipe, so I suppose that is what I will call them.

Strawberry Waffles with Greek Yogurt:

1-2 Organic whole wheat waffle (preferably with flax and 5-6 grams of protein and fiber or)

1/2 cup of Organic Strawberries sliced

1/4-1/2 cup of Fage Greek yogurt 2% (I have tried this recipe with several different Greek yogurts and I find Fage has the highest protein and has the best consistency)

1-2 Tbs Maple syrup (It’s important to get pure maple syrup, many syrups only contain maple flavoring)

About 300 calories

It is important to me that the foods I put  in my body most of the time,  serve a purpose other than for flavoring. Both the protein in the yogurt and the fiber in the waffles help to keep me fuller longer and are sources of  long-lasting energy.  I try to eat fibrous foods at every meal, I really think it is key to losing and maintaining your weight. The flax-seed in the waffles is a great source of omega-3  fatty acid, which is great for the skin, and heart, I try to eat sources of omega-3 everyday.  I used to use agave syrup instead of maple syrup until I read  that  100% pure maple syrup can benefit your health because it contains trace minerals such as Zinc and Manganese  and in some studies has shown  to contain antioxidants that may have anti-cancer properties. The strawberries in this recipe are also great for the skin because they contain high levels of vitamin-C!

I really love this breakfast, to me it tastes like a dessert.  I’ll admit I  have eaten it for lunch, as a snack,  and I am almost certain I probably have eaten it for dinner. Simple, quick, delicious.

Ok, back to information and tools to eat seasonally. Check out the website http://www.sustainabletable.org , under the “Shop Sustainable” tab you will see another tab for “Eat Seasonal”. At the bottom of the page you can enter the state that you live and a season to see what is in season near you.

iTunes also has a great iPhone application called “Fresh Fruit”  http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fresh-fruit/id323895540?mt=8  . This application allows you to browse fruits by month and read a brief description, nutritional facts and seasonality of each.

If your interests were piqued by joining a CSA, Community Supported Agriculture please check out http://www.locarharvest.org  . Once again you can search by location and find CSAs near you. All CSAs are operated a little differently but the majority of them offer sell small shares of the farm and in return you get fresh organic produce. I happened to run into the owner of a CSA here where I live, who actually sells his produce to the Whole Foods here in Austin. I can’t remember what his normal fees were but when I joined last summer for $7, I was getting a bag of organic eggs, organic peaches, several different types of organic heirloom tomatoes and other produce such as cucumbers and squash, even basil! Anyone that cooks with basil knows I was getting a steal considering a cup of fresh basil is around $5 at the grocery store! I really did love being part of a CSA, at the time we had little money (and I mean very little money) and it was a way to get organic produce cheaply. The downside for me was the amount produce I was getting. Many weeks I wasn’t able to use even half the stuff  in my CSA goodie bag and it was rotting. Guilt set in quickly as did frustration. A family of 4 I feel would be better suited for a CSA

My latest discovery to make eating organic and eating seasonally easier and better is a business called Greenling. Greenling is a service that partners with Whole Foods,  local bakeries and farmers and delivers the groceries you choose straight to your front steps. How exciting, groceries now come to me! Greenling has been a true blessing for me. Until recently I was driving into  Austin to buy groceries after getting fed up with our local HEB. This would work most weeks, however as my semester progressed my Anatomy class got increasingly harder and some weeks I would be stuck studying all week practically, leaving no time for a 30 mile round trip to the grocery store. Some nights during my week-long study sessions my poor boyfriend, Travis, would have to scrounge for dinner. Sometimes I would simply have no other choice but to go to the grocery store or face starvation. It was stressful, annoying and time-consuming.  Greenling has really eliminated that for me. Every week about a day and a half before my delivery day, I go to their website and then pick and choose what I need for our weekly meals. Greenling really has changed my life.  I also like that it makes organic, local and seasonal produce more easily available.  Did I mention there is no delivery fee, how great is that?! For now their services are only available in the Austin, San Marcos, New Braunfels and San Antonio area. Check out their website http://www.greenling.com and their Facebook page.

I hope you enjoy the strawberry waffle recipe as much as I do!  Be healthy! And once again, if you like what you read please subscribe to my blog in the upper right corner of this page.