Fresh, colorful food is full of vitamins. Eating delicious, pesticide free food is what life is all about. A juicy peach picked that morning is what a peach should taste like.

Eating locally grown food is nothing new. A hundred years ago 95% of Americans lived on farms. Food from nearby farms brought in by horse and cart was how city dwellers survived. In the 1800’s Brooklyn was an expanse of farm land – the highest producing county in America. By the 20th century the farms moved west. By the 1970’s New Yorkers complained of brown lettuce and hard tomatoes while local farms went bankrupt. In 1976 on an empty lot, twelve farmers started the first farmers market. Now NYC has the most thriving network of green markets the country has to offer.

Find your local farmers market. Make a point to meet the farmers and ask questions about the food. They will always have a great tip for you or recipe.

Here are some pictures from one of my recent trips to the market

Peach- Tomato Salsa Recipe

Ingredients: 3 Firm Peaches, 1 Tablespoon of Lemon Juice, 2 Ripe Tomatoes, 6 Scallions, 2 Jalapenos, Small handful Chopped Cilantro [optional], 3/4 Cup Olive Oil, 1/4 cup Sherry Vinegar, 2 Tablespoons Honey

Cut peaches in cubes. Chop Scallion and Jalapeno into small dice. Coarsely chop Cilantro and mix all above in bowl.

Blend lemon juice, olive oil, vinegar and honey with salt and pepper. Add to bowl and mix well.

Let stand for 20 mins. Delicious with tortilla chips, even better on grilled fish.

A cook’s favorite spring green? Tarragon.

Its fresh green color and delicate leaves are the essence of spring. It conjures up tender young shoots pushing up through the earth. Since spring is a time of renewal, why not consider sprucing up your nest with a coat of green paint? Tarragon’s soft green is a great start for any color scheme.

Consider Benjamin Moore’s ‘Liberty Park’ or ‘Shades of Spring’. They are neutral back drops for every color on the wheel, from pastels to brights, as all of spring’s blossoms will attest.

The light licorice flavor has just enough bite to chase away winter’s last chill. Tarragon Chicken is a delicious way to use this herb:

Tarragon Chicken

Preparation – 10 minutes Marinate – 2 hours Cook – 20 minutes

1 tbsp. olive oil
½ sweet white onion
¼ cup fresh tarragon leaves (or 2 tsp. dried)
1 tsp. kosher salt
6 limes (or ½ cup bottled key lime juice)
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Lightly grease a 9 x 12, oven-proof, baking dish with 1 tbsp. olive oil.

Coarsely chop ½ of a sweet white onion.

Cut fresh tarragon into slivers to loosely fill a ¼ cup.

Toss chopped onion and slivered tarragon leaves with 1 tsp. kosher salt, in greased baking dish.

Squeeze the juice from 6 limes into a separate bowl.

Pour lime juice over the onions and tarragon making sure to strain out any seeds.

Add 1 tbsp. olive oil and stir.

Submerge the 6 chicken breasts in the lime juice mixture.

Cover the dish and marinate in the refrigerator for 2 hours.

Set the oven to 500 degrees.

Remove the chicken from the refrigerator.

Let stand for 5 minutes while the oven warms up and the oven-proof dish comes up to room temperature.

Bake chicken, in marinade, for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes the chicken will be tender and the marinade will have thickened slightly to form a fragrant, flavorful sauce. I like to serve Tarragon Chicken on a bed of brown rice to absorb the tangy sauce spooned over the top. A crisp salad or steamed green vegetable rounds out this simple, yet elegant meal.

What dish signifies spring to you?

Caron shares my love of gourmet food, cooking and of course, color! I knew I had found a kindred spirit when Caron started talking about how color serves as both an inspiration and visual gauge for her when preparing a meal.

In ‘How green is your bean? Or, how color teaches us how to cook‘, Caron reminds us that when it comes to cooking it’s all in the timing and shows us how color can be our guide to perfectly prepared meals.

Ready to find out how you can use color when cooking? Great, click here to go to Caron’s article…

Resources:

• Visit Caron’s site San Diego Foodstuff
• Listen to Caron online on “Gourmet Club” on Fridays at 1 p.m. Pacific (or podcast the show) at signonradio.com.

I knew that abalone is one of the most sought-after sea ingredients in Chinese cuisine, but didn’t know that it is judged by its color – until today.

According to Michael Au Kam Wo, the award-winning chef who has spent almost a lifetime researching this mollusk, “Fresh abalone is graded according to the color.”

“The best is the green-lip abalone from Australia, followed by the yellow-lip and then the black lip. The color comes from the seaweed that the abalone feeds on.”

“And green seaweed is found in clear, unpolluted waters, so naturally, the abalone is also of better quality.”

But, having said that, Au maintains that he is dedicating his life’s work to creating cooking methods that will make cheaper abalone taste as good as the expensive stuff.

Are you a fan of this tasty mollusk ?

More on abalone at GoodBites.com

The “Purple Haze” carrot is one of the 2006 winners recognized by All-America Selections as “a flower or vegetable for significant achievements, proven to be superior to all others on the market.” With a deep purple exterior and bright orange interior, it is sure to be a hit with gourmet chefs.

Where might purple turn up next?

See all of this year’s winners.