To Market with Basil's Cosa Basket & Vejibag

Basil NL Rear Cosa Basket and Vejibag shopping the Farmer's Market

Summer is the perfect time to take advantage of all of the in season, local produce on display at the Farmer's Market.  Even if you live in New York City, there is a program that allows local New York State growers to set up an open air market in the city limits. At our estate in rural New Jersey, farm stands and one of the largest Farmer's Markets on the east coast are all within cycling distance.  We also have a local Wegmans which carries a lot of fresh and organic produce.

To Market, To Market...
I really enjoy riding my bicycle and going to the farm market is just another excuse to take in the fresh air. That's why I have a Blackburn Rear Rack on my Nishiki Sport Touring Bicycle. It accommodates panniers, carry-alls, handbags and this super sized Basil Rear Cosa Basket. It slides on via a clamp system and locks on tight. The handles fold down and lock to keep the contents from flying out during the ride. Some people like front baskets but there is a lot less wind resistance having one like this on the back. The fact that it is mesh means that any tail lights you have will still be visible but I like to add a blinkie to the back of this basket for extra safety.

The Basil Cosa handles close down to keep your goodies from flying out.

Vejibag
The amazing editor of GaveThat.com treated me to a new bag of tricks this season.  There are a lot of vegetable storage bags for your refrigerator but the Vejibag is unique in that it is made of organic cotton.  Much better than plastic, it provides just the right amount of humidity for your vegetables to be totally slime-free until you eat them. I find the Vejibag is also a good idea for storing delicate fruits and vegetables, (berries, pears, carrots, etc.) en route from the market to your kitchen. 

My fruits and vegetables are all fresh and unbruised in the Vejibag

Summer Heat
This is especially so in the summer heat when your grapes can turn to raisins and your plums into prunes in the hot sun! The Vejibag is very simple to use.  Just wet it with cool water, wring it out and place your veggies inside for the trip home. A super way to keep them from bruising from the ride too. Given the right humidity, your vegetables will keep in the Vejibag for more than week with out going slimy.  This makes a lovely hostess gift for your next summer BBQ but be sure to buy a few for yourself before heading out to the Farmer's Market.

So chill!  Summer means the BEST fresh fruit and vegetable smoothies. VitaMix 5200 Power Blender

 

Secrets to Delicious Smoothies

My Vitamix Power Blender in action! Apples, carrots, cranberries & Acai Berry Blast Protein Energizer

Everyone has seemed to have gone smoothie crazy lately. Smoothies are somewhat of an off-shoot of the juice fast, raw food, gluten free & vegan lifestyles which I think are a step in the right direction.  It has already been noted that Americans eat far too much animal protein to be healthy. I remember having free range, hormone free chicken in Virginia (fried in lard no less) and noticed how little fat was actually on the fryer.  That was one lean bird! However, that's how most Americans ate up until recently.  Farms are more like factories today but I still remember what organic eggs from our free ranged chickens taste like as it wasn't that long ago.

So here I have some really good tips on making delicious smoothies that can start you on a healthier lifestyle, no matter how far you need to go.  I'm pretty experienced!  I got my first VitaMix nearly 20 years ago and began by serving my children whole fruit & vegetable juices back then....call them antique smoothies.

My first VitaMix.  It's still working but now it's in my son's family kitchen!

EQUIPMENT
There are all sorts of blenders and juicers on the market these days such as The Green Bullet, The Breville Juicer, The Juiceman II etc. When choosing one for making smoothies from raw ingredients you'll need three things:

Power: A 2 horse power motor will take care of most anything you can throw at it.
No Waste: Any machine that requires you to throw away or pre-peel your fruits and vegetables is not worth it. Pick one that offers whole-food juices. 
Easy to Clean: This is really important because if you have to take the machine apart to clean it each time, you are not going to use it often enough to make a difference.

You don't need to cut fruits & vegetables into tiny pieces before putting them in the VitaMix

INGREDIENTS
Another thing is that you shouldn't have to cut the fruit & vegetables up too much before processing them in your machine. I quarter my apples and break celery stalks in half but I use whole baby carrots and frozen produce with no trouble. In fact if that bunch of bananas is ripening too quickly to eat I simply peel and place them in a zip lock freezer bag. You can add them and other fruits and vegetables fully frozen to your machine.  You can use frozen blueberries, strawberries, peaches, kale, etc. which will be quite handy kept in your freezer.

PROTEIN POWDERS
My smoothies are actually a mini meal for me.  I usually drink one after my morning workout or bicycle ride as a recovery drink.  So to get the most out of my smoothie, I add a scoop of protein powder. I like berries a lot so if I'm making a smoothie with dried cranberries,(see lead photo), I'll add some Acai Berry Blast Protein Energizer by Rainbow Light.
Each scoop gives me 14 grams of brown rice protein (no bloaty soy), added fiber, digestive enzymes and antioxidants. It is sweetened naturally with Stevia so you only get less than 1 gram of sugar per serving. If I'm in a mocha mood, their chocolate version is so delicious and satisfying.  I often add some coconut and sunflower seed butter to some almond milk and add in a scoop of the Chocolate Protein Energizer.  Kind of like drinking a Reeses!  It makes a great after school snack or pick-me-up for the afternoon doldrums.

Chocolate and Acai Berry Protein Energizers can be added to whole food smoothies.

  
THE MIX
To avoid lumps and un-blended fruit and vegetable pieces, I load no more than two cups of water, ice and produce into the machine. I go from low then quickly blend up to the highest speed.  When it looks slushy but uniform in color, I add extra water and ice to get it to the drinkable consistency I want. If you store it in the refrigerator, use an air tight stainless steel water bottle and shake before drinking. The natural pulp will rise to the top after a while but shaking will mix it back in.

So these are just a few secrets I've learned to making nutritious, delicious blender smoothies every time.  It is easy to get your 5-6 serving of fruits and vegetables each day this way and as an added bonus, the VitaMix is self cleaning.  Just add a drop of dish detergent, fill with water, cap and whirl. A machine that is self-cleaning means you WILL use it, thus getting the full benefit of raw foods in your daily diet.