Fruit and Veggie Power

Hola Bloggies:

How is your weekend going? I had Thursday and Friday off so it really feels more like a Sunday. Kind of like I should be getting ready to go back to work. Thankfully I still have one full day. Gotta love those extra long weekends!

For the last couple of weeks it’s been all about the World Cup here in the casa, so early this morning I settled down to watch Argentina vs.. Germany. After the elimination of Brazil and Ghana I was really hoping for an Argentinean win. But it wasn’t to be.

I’ve no idea who showed up to that game but it wasn’t the team everyone thought capable of winning the World Cup. Pobre Argentina. Pobre Maradona. Pobre Latinos. Since I was feeling kind of sad I thought it a great time to head to Zumba. Nothing boosts my mood like Zumba – but more on that on tomorrow’s post.

Before heading out I decided to try a new product sent to me by the nice people at Prairie Naturals – Berry Force.

Berry Force comes in a small plastic container. Similar to what you might find for a protein powder. Essentially, this product is meant to work as a supplement giving you all the vitamins, antioxidants (they are key in eliminating free radicals in your system), and nutrients found in organic apples, apple pectin, fruit and berry concentrate, organic blueberry, organic cranberry, goji berry, mangosteen, organic strawberry, pomegranate, organic raspberry, blackberry, blueberry complex, elderberry complex, and acai berries.

When I opened the bottle I was somewhat disappointed to see that it was only just about half full. Now while I confess I don’t know much about the economics of packaging this just seemed wasteful and misleading. I expect that if I buy a jar of something it will be mostly full. If it’s not mostly full than perhaps it would be better placed in another container. In the case of Berry Force they could even try using a pouch of some kind.

As per the instructions I mixed one heaping tablespoon of powder into my mixer bottle. I was surprised by how easily everything came together. No clumps. No mess. In fact it ended up looking just like juice.

I’ll have to do more research on the nutritional values of the product before I give you my full review but for now I’m impressed. It tasted subtly sweet and was perfect for a quick pre-Zumba drink. I could totally see this working well as an addition to a banana, ice, protein powder, and almond milk shake. I will have to try that soon and let you know what I think.

After finishing my drink I headed to Zumba. It was, per usual, a brilliant workout that left me dripping in sweat and feeling heaps better than when I worked out.

Near the end of Zumba I hiccupped. Now I know this is going to sound strange but I tend to hiccup when I’m really hungry! As my parents, it’s been that way since I was very little. Clearly my body was lacking in fuel. Luckily, the local farmer’s market was taking place just a few blocks from the dance studio so I made a bee-line towards food!

My local farmer’s market is just in its infancy. In fact, this is only the second year it’s been running. Last year it was quite modest featuring very little produce and instead concentrating on crafts. Not my cup of tea. This year, however, it has just blossomed! There were lots of people selling produce, fresh baked goods, sausages, and even local ethical farmers taking orders for organic grass fed beef and similar meats. I’m considering buying a 30lb sample pack from the good people at Kootenay Natural Meats. Sure, it’s not the cheapest meat but I love the fact that I’m supporting a local farmer in their no hormone, no antibiotic, grass-fed, ethically grown beef operation.

While at the market I inhaled (no really – I was starved) a delicious farmer’s sausage on a kaiser bun made by the nice people at Biltong Canada. I followed my main meal up with a (very) small Huckleberry muffin; it was incredibly fresh and simply lovely.

Since I got there near the end of the market, most of the produce was gone but I still managed to buy two bags of Fiesta Salad Mix, kale, a muffin for the Fiancé, and a funky curly thing that is supposed to be a type of garlic but tastes like a green onion. Or maybe the other way around. Either way it’s nice and crispy and I can’t wait to use some!

Do you see the bag? I bought it today to help support the market (proceeds go to cover the costs of the street rental and advertising for future market days). Truth be told I didn’t need another reusable bag but it wasn’t so much about the bag itself, instead I was voting with my dollar$! As a bonus the bag ended up being of fantastic quality. It’s made by local crafts people and it’s quite sturdy. Much better than pretty well every other reusable bag I own. Score.

On the whole I was pretty pleased with my market haul. Having said that, since they were low on fruit I may have to hit another local farmer’s market tomorrow.

Do you support local producers? What about if their product costs more than that at the grocery store?