Market Day…

Yesterday was market day in Laguna Beach. Artichokes are in season, so they were plentiful and relatively cheap. Lemons are mostly done for now. Strawberries have picked up a bit, but not so much that the price has come down, yet. The weather has been cool, so leafy vegetables, lettuces, and peas are also abundant, as are carrots.

As I was coming home after shopping at the market and making a stop at Pavilions grocery store for a few things, I got to thinking about Michael Poulan’s oft-quoted mantra from his book In Defense of Food: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”, and more to the point, his instructions to “Shop the peripheries of the supermarket and stay out of the middle”, and to “Get out of the supermarket whenever possible.” We have, almost without thinking about it, ended up following this advice pretty religiously. A few photos will make the point:

This is what I bought at the market yesterday, I got carried away a little…

This is what I bought from the “peripheries” of the supermarket…

And this is what I bought from the middle of the supermarket – except the yogurt.

Of course, the point is to avail oneself of “real food”, sometimes called “whole food”. The stuff in the middle of the store is “processed food”. We try to stay away from these things, or at least stick to food that is somewhat less processed: canned beans, tomatoes, fish, broth; yogurt, simple baked crackers; nuts; and so on.

As I have said before, we are fortunate to live in a place where this kind of food shopping is readily available. I think (and hope) that shopping and eating the way we do will keep us healthier. In any case, it makes for delicious meals.

What you don’t see here is the meat and fish we buy. I go once a month or so to Bristol Farms in Newport Beach to buy meat and fish. They have actual butchers, and a good supply of organic and sustainable sourced meat, poultry, fish, and seafood. Next time I make a trip, I’ll post about it.