Healthy Blogger Thursday: Sarah Learns

Happy Healthy Blogger Thursday!

This week I am going to introduce you to another Madison blogger, Sarah from Sarah Learns.  We met online when she commented on one of my posts mentioning that she was from the area. A few weeks later, we met in person at a Madison blogger outing.

I have been keeping up with Sarah through her blog and I really admire what she does. Sarah is a graduate student studying Nutritional Science. I love reading her posts to check out her amazing recipes and just reading her perspectives on fitness and life. She is grounded and inspiring. You should definitely check her out!

And without further adieu,

heeeeerrrreeee’s Sarah!

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hi badger girl learns to cook readers! i’m sarah from sarah learns and i blog about food, recipes, running, and life in general. i was thrilled when kimberly invited me to post on her awesome blog.

one my favorite things about kimberly is her love for veggies. i think that’s because i feel the same way about them! i am especially passionate about easting locally and seasonally when possible, so today i wanted to share my three favorite ways to eat high-quality, fresh, seasonal, and local produce!

1. shop at farmers’ markets. farmers’ markets are a great place to find fresh and local fruits and vegetables, meat, eggs, dairy, baked goods, and other products. the people selling the products are usually the same people who grew them, so you have the opportunity to get to talk to them and find out exactly how and where your food was grown!

i know we’re very lucky here in madison to have the wonderful dane county farmers’ market on saturday mornings, but even my small hometown has its own farmers’ market now!

some larger markets have even made it possible for people to use government assistance money to purchase items at the farmers’ market. i think that’s an awesome way of making fresh and seasonal produce more available to everyone!

also, farmers’ markets aren’t just on weekends! there are several markets around the madison area that take place during the week. if you’re interested in finding a market near you, local harvest has a great search option.

2. join a csa. i know kimberly is a fan of csa’s, and i totally understand why! csa stands for community supported agriculture, and consists of a farmer selling shares of their harvest to people to purchase. after you buy your share, you receive a box of fresh seasonal produce every week during farming season.

my husband and i purchased a csa share from wholesome harvest this year. we also got a spring share, which started a month before the regular season and includes lots of early crops that are usually done by the time csa’s in wisconsin begin.

another great thing about our csa experience is that some health insurance plans offer a healthy choices reimbursement. we were able to get about half of the cost of our csa share covered by our insurance!

there is some risk in csa’s, however. you purchase your share before growing season, so if for some reason, your farmer has a poor yield of a crop, you won’t receive it in your box. this is fine with me because i like to be surprised by what we receive each week and then find creative ways to use those foods, but i know this might not be ideal for some people.

again, local harvest has a great search function to find csa’s near you!

3. grow your own food! this is my favorite option since it allows you full control over how your food is grown!

i grew up with a mom who always had a huge garden and i think that really helped me fall in love with gardening as an adult. if you own your own home and have space in your yard for a garden, i encourage you to start with a small plot and plant your favorite vegetables!

since my husband and i live in an apartment and i don’t get to plant my own huge garden, i volunteer at a local youth farm every week during the summer and help elementary school children garden.

it’s so much fun to be out in the garden and it’s a bonus to see children getting so excited about gardening and trying new foods that they helped grow.

if volunteering at a garden isn’t an option for you, don’t let lack of space stop you from growing your own food.

i use our tiny porch to  grow herbs, vegetables, and flowers in planters! if growing your own food is a priority, you can make it work with whatever resources you have!

i hope you enjoyed my tips on finding local produce! if you have any questions about gardening on a budget or with limited space or how to use a certain item from your csa, feel free to visit my blog or email me at learningsarah [at] gmail.com.

thanks again, kimberly, for letting me be part of your blog today!

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Thanks Sarah! 

Have any of you tried any of these great methods for trying new veggies?