Gardening in March

Believe it or not, spring is just around the corner. And along with the return of warmer temperatures comes the time to plan for that summer garden. Imagine having fresh veggies all summer long. Imagine having delicious blueberries on top of homemade vanilla ice cream. Imagine sharing your ripe, juicy home grown tomatoes with your family and friends. Well, now is the time to start!

Don't know where to start? Well there are a ton of resources online. First start at the LSU Ag Center website. The experts there will be able to help you get the most out of you South Louisiana garden. Next, check out BackyardGardener.com for more advice regarding your backyard garden.

And, of course, the Camellia City Market is an excellent resource. Our wonderful farmers are always willing to help out a fellow locavore.

Now you have no excuses...so get planting. Well, ok, if you have a brown thumb, you can always get your fresh produce from the Camellia City Market. We always have the season's best!

Talk to Us

The Camellia City Market was created by Slidell residents who responded to the needs and wants of their fellow residents and we couldn't be prouder of the results. Of course, our work is far from over. We recognize that we are in partnership with you, our friends and fellow Slidellians, to make the Camellia City Market the best farmers market possible. So please, let us know what we are doing right and let us know how we can improve. You can contact us through Facebook , Twitter or by email. And if you have some pictures or stories or recipes that you want to share, by all means - SHARE AWAY!! We are all part of the community of Slidell!

February is Creative Romance Month

The Chocolate Gourmet will be selling 1lb. box of chocolates or 1lb box of chocolate-covered strawberries, a mylar Valentine balloon and a stuffed animal - all for $30.00. Also available, for only $5.00, is a single chocolate-covered strawberry rose with a small stuffed animal (The perfect Valentine's gift for Mom from her little hearts). And check out her beautiful and delicious chocolate-covered strawberry roses bouquet - a great Valentine's Day gift your sweetheart will savor!

Greens are Back at the Market This Weekend!!

I love greens and I am very excited that Mr. Edward Lenoir will be back this weekend with greens picked fresh from his garden - beautiful greens. But, I have always wondered - what is the difference between collard greens, turnip greens and mustard greens? Of course, I guess that I could just get a bunch of each, cook them and then eat for a "side-by-side" comparison, but, honestly, I don't want to do all the cooking and, inevitably, the cleaning that would involve. So, I decided to do the next best thing - go to the Internet.

First came the technical info:

Collard greens are members of the cabbage family, turnip greens are the tops of the turnip plant and mustard greens, surprise, are the leaves of the mustard plant.

OK, but that didn't help me figure out the difference in flavor. So, back to the search button.

Then I stumbled upon this:

Collard greens: It's a little bitter. Eat the light green leaves for the best flavor.

Mustard greens: Usually peppery. Look for newer leaves.

Turnip greens: A little sweeter.

I also found this great information which encourages supporting your local farmer's market:

A note about nutrient density - food grown on today's commodity farms are not as nutritious as they were 25 years ago. The soil has been drained by years of use and the addition of petroleum based fertilizers. If you can buy locally you have a better chance at improving nutritional quality for a couple of reasons. Nutrition declines from the moment a plant food is harvested. It continues to decline until eaten. Also, small farms are learning about remineralizing their fields along with adding typical amendments. Food should do more than fill our stomachs and satisfy our taste buds - it should be giving us the nutrition we need to stay healthy.

And then there was this great recipe that made me hungry just reading it:

Mustard Greens Recipe

Ingredients:

1/2 cup thinly sliced onions

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 pound mustard greens, washed and torn into large pieces

2 to 3 Tbsp chicken broth or vegetable broth (vegetarian option)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon dark sesame oil

In a large sauté pan, sauté onions in olive oil over medium heat until the onions begin to brown and caramelize, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add the minced garlic and cook a minute more, until fragrant. Add the mustard greens and broth and cook until the mustard greens are just barely wilted. Toss with sesame oil. Season with salt and pepper.

Serves 4.

So with all of this information, I can't wait to go to the market this weekend and get me some delicious, fresh, beautiful mustard greens.

Do you have a favorite greens recipe? Share it with us.

hattip: Simply Recipes and City-Data