Week 12: Farmer's Markets
Most of you have been visiting my website long enough to know how much I adore
farmer’s markets. I am a long-time devotee to organic produce and just as big a fan of
buying locally, so farmer’s markets are a gastronomical nirvana for me. People ask
how I can afford it, and I’m never sure how to respond. You see, I’ve visited farmer’s
markets all over the West Coast, as far south as San Luis Obispo and as far north as
Washington state, and I’ve never failed to find a week’s worth of good deals. In fact, I
suspect that I spend much, much less at a farmer’s stall than at Safeway, but I’m
always too busy stuffing my face with Saturn peaches to keep track. This week, I
chronicled what I bought at the farmer’s market, what we ate, and what we spent.
There is an art to shopping a farmer’s market, especially with small children. First, you
want no more loose preschoolers than hands. Depending on the size of your family,
this may necessitate the use of a Snugli or a stroller (or both), although I highly
recommend leaving as many munchkins with Dad as he can handle. You also should
bring a large cloth bag unless you are really into the waste and general inconvenience
of schlepping twenty different plastic ones. Last, plan on buying with cash, preferably in
small bills as some vendors will have limited amounts of change.
Once you are packed, assess your family’s needs. What do you eat, and how much?
Instead of listing specific items, I like to look for general categories—for example, about
ten pounds of fruit for breakfasts, lunches, and snacks, plus five pounds of main dish
veggies and a few meals’ worth of salad ingredients. This leaves me with flexibility to try
new things and hunt for bargains.
So you have your list, your tote, a wallet full of ones and heavily restrained children if
any. Now what? First you circle the market and look around. Circle twice or thrice if you
must and buy what looks fresh and cheap. Don’t be afraid to ask vendors for advice on
preparation and storage; chances are a zucchini farmer knows eight million ways to
cook it and exactly how long it will keep in the fridge. Depending on how much food your
family eats, you may need to make a few trips back to your car to unload. When you
have finished, reward yourself with a treat. If you’re at the Yakima farmer’s market,
search out the Buhrmeister Bakery table—their chocolate chip cookies are second only
to my own.
Now that you know the general plan, it’s time to plan the finances. You definitely can
blow your grocery budget to smithereens at a farmer’s market, but you don’t need to.
Take that list we made a few paragraphs ago and compare it to your budget. Say you
need twenty pounds worth of food and you plan to spend forty dollars. That puts your
budget at about two dollars a pound, which is highly doable at ever market I’ve visited. If
you're willing to spend more, you can try more unusual goods like wild huckleberries
and exotic Japanese greens. The rest of us will stick to peaches, zucchini, cucumbers,
tomatoes, and whatever else is in season in our particular areas on that particular
weekend.
Once you have bought everything on your list, you will probably have money left. Your
choice now is to buy more food or pocket the money. I’m a gourmand, so I usually take
the surplus cash and head back toward the wild huckleberries. Consider your family’s
financial situation as well as their willingness to try new things.
This week I ended up with one cantaloupe ($1), one huge yellow honeydew ($2), a
watermelon with yellow insides ($2), four pounds of Saturn peaches ($8), a pint of
blueberries ($2), a large bunch of fresh spinach ($1), a large head of Romaine lettuce
($2), 8 large zucchini ($2), 2 bunches of carrots ($3), 4 huge cucumbers ($1), 3 pounds
of Roma tomatoes ($2.25), three large onions ($1), and 3 bell peppers ($1).
My total was under $29, which seems like a lot of money for produce. Now I was stuck
with a trunk full of melons and more tomatoes than most families can eat in a summer,
especially families with a few tomatoes plants in their own backyard. So what did I do?
First, I replaced meats and cheeses with veggies. I’ve found that Mediterranean dishes
lend themselves well to this treatment, especially pasta dishes. You can also try
roasted veggie sandwiches on a substantial bread like ciabatta, or Mexican dishes with
black beans and peppers instead of meat fillings. In our case, we ate three vegetarian
dishes this week: black bean tacos with bell peppers, zucchini and spinach pizza, and
lasagna with veggies instead of ricotta and meat. For another dinner, we had chicken
wraps that needed only a tiny bit of chicken because they were so stuffed with
vegetables. For side dishes, we ate huge salads, sliced fresh tomatoes, sautéed
zucchini, and melon. We ate really well, but only saved about five dollars.
So where are our savings? In what I didn’t buy! If you add up the ingredients of the
meals I listed, there was still a surplus of produce. We weren’t just eating them at
dinner; we were having zucchini bread for breakfast, veggie omelets for lunch, and fruit
for snacks. That means we ate less cereal, less sandwiches, and less of those
overpriced snack foods. Even though I spent almost $30 at the farmer’s market, I only
needed a few pounds of meat, a pound of mozzarella, some tortillas, and the most
basic staple foods like flour and eggs. In all, we consumed just under $70 on food this
week for a large family and still ate a balanced, healthy, and mostly organic diet.
Farmer's market shopping is healthier and cheaper, but the benefits don’t stop there.
Fresh, organic vegetables and fruit actually taste better. Fresh tomatoes are red from
actual flavor-producing nutrients, not a spritz of carbon dioxide, and if God wanted
peaches to ripen in a warehouse, they would spring from the ground next to the tree.
We also take in more vitamins and less calories, which is better for my postpartum
waist and my big American backside. Plus, I find that I actually eat less. It’s hard not to
devour a whole bag of Cheetos, but who can munch through a pint of blueberries?
Amount Saved: About $30
Difficulty on Scale of 1-5: Without children, 1. Add another
difficulty point for every child you bring.
Time: One hour plus driving... but you already shop for
groceries, right?
Check out the Frugal Habit of the Week Archives
Most of you have been visiting my website long enough to know how much I adore
farmer’s markets. I am a long-time devotee to organic produce and just as big a fan of
buying locally, so farmer’s markets are a gastronomical nirvana for me. People ask
how I can afford it, and I’m never sure how to respond. You see, I’ve visited farmer’s
markets all over the West Coast, as far south as San Luis Obispo and as far north as
Washington state, and I’ve never failed to find a week’s worth of good deals. In fact, I
suspect that I spend much, much less at a farmer’s stall than at Safeway, but I’m
always too busy stuffing my face with Saturn peaches to keep track. This week, I
chronicled what I bought at the farmer’s market, what we ate, and what we spent.
There is an art to shopping a farmer’s market, especially with small children. First, you
want no more loose preschoolers than hands. Depending on the size of your family,
this may necessitate the use of a Snugli or a stroller (or both), although I highly
recommend leaving as many munchkins with Dad as he can handle. You also should
bring a large cloth bag unless you are really into the waste and general inconvenience
of schlepping twenty different plastic ones. Last, plan on buying with cash, preferably in
small bills as some vendors will have limited amounts of change.
Once you are packed, assess your family’s needs. What do you eat, and how much?
Instead of listing specific items, I like to look for general categories—for example, about
ten pounds of fruit for breakfasts, lunches, and snacks, plus five pounds of main dish
veggies and a few meals’ worth of salad ingredients. This leaves me with flexibility to try
new things and hunt for bargains.
So you have your list, your tote, a wallet full of ones and heavily restrained children if
any. Now what? First you circle the market and look around. Circle twice or thrice if you
must and buy what looks fresh and cheap. Don’t be afraid to ask vendors for advice on
preparation and storage; chances are a zucchini farmer knows eight million ways to
cook it and exactly how long it will keep in the fridge. Depending on how much food your
family eats, you may need to make a few trips back to your car to unload. When you
have finished, reward yourself with a treat. If you’re at the Yakima farmer’s market,
search out the Buhrmeister Bakery table—their chocolate chip cookies are second only
to my own.
Now that you know the general plan, it’s time to plan the finances. You definitely can
blow your grocery budget to smithereens at a farmer’s market, but you don’t need to.
Take that list we made a few paragraphs ago and compare it to your budget. Say you
need twenty pounds worth of food and you plan to spend forty dollars. That puts your
budget at about two dollars a pound, which is highly doable at ever market I’ve visited. If
you're willing to spend more, you can try more unusual goods like wild huckleberries
and exotic Japanese greens. The rest of us will stick to peaches, zucchini, cucumbers,
tomatoes, and whatever else is in season in our particular areas on that particular
weekend.
Once you have bought everything on your list, you will probably have money left. Your
choice now is to buy more food or pocket the money. I’m a gourmand, so I usually take
the surplus cash and head back toward the wild huckleberries. Consider your family’s
financial situation as well as their willingness to try new things.
This week I ended up with one cantaloupe ($1), one huge yellow honeydew ($2), a
watermelon with yellow insides ($2), four pounds of Saturn peaches ($8), a pint of
blueberries ($2), a large bunch of fresh spinach ($1), a large head of Romaine lettuce
($2), 8 large zucchini ($2), 2 bunches of carrots ($3), 4 huge cucumbers ($1), 3 pounds
of Roma tomatoes ($2.25), three large onions ($1), and 3 bell peppers ($1).
My total was under $29, which seems like a lot of money for produce. Now I was stuck
with a trunk full of melons and more tomatoes than most families can eat in a summer,
especially families with a few tomatoes plants in their own backyard. So what did I do?
First, I replaced meats and cheeses with veggies. I’ve found that Mediterranean dishes
lend themselves well to this treatment, especially pasta dishes. You can also try
roasted veggie sandwiches on a substantial bread like ciabatta, or Mexican dishes with
black beans and peppers instead of meat fillings. In our case, we ate three vegetarian
dishes this week: black bean tacos with bell peppers, zucchini and spinach pizza, and
lasagna with veggies instead of ricotta and meat. For another dinner, we had chicken
wraps that needed only a tiny bit of chicken because they were so stuffed with
vegetables. For side dishes, we ate huge salads, sliced fresh tomatoes, sautéed
zucchini, and melon. We ate really well, but only saved about five dollars.
So where are our savings? In what I didn’t buy! If you add up the ingredients of the
meals I listed, there was still a surplus of produce. We weren’t just eating them at
dinner; we were having zucchini bread for breakfast, veggie omelets for lunch, and fruit
for snacks. That means we ate less cereal, less sandwiches, and less of those
overpriced snack foods. Even though I spent almost $30 at the farmer’s market, I only
needed a few pounds of meat, a pound of mozzarella, some tortillas, and the most
basic staple foods like flour and eggs. In all, we consumed just under $70 on food this
week for a large family and still ate a balanced, healthy, and mostly organic diet.
Farmer's market shopping is healthier and cheaper, but the benefits don’t stop there.
Fresh, organic vegetables and fruit actually taste better. Fresh tomatoes are red from
actual flavor-producing nutrients, not a spritz of carbon dioxide, and if God wanted
peaches to ripen in a warehouse, they would spring from the ground next to the tree.
We also take in more vitamins and less calories, which is better for my postpartum
waist and my big American backside. Plus, I find that I actually eat less. It’s hard not to
devour a whole bag of Cheetos, but who can munch through a pint of blueberries?
Amount Saved: About $30
Difficulty on Scale of 1-5: Without children, 1. Add another
difficulty point for every child you bring.
Time: One hour plus driving... but you already shop for
groceries, right?
Check out the Frugal Habit of the Week Archives
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