Never judge anything solely by its cover. Why? Because you may become quite disappointed afterwards by initially evaluating something by visual impression only.

Check out all the pretty produce displayed in the market. The beautiful presentation of these products makes you think that everything would taste so delicious. That assumption is usually a big mistake. When it comes to fruits like an apple, melon, strawberry, etc. Colorful shiny faces paint a picture of health at the store but bring you to a mushy, tasteless, “why did I buy this?” while consuming the product at home.

Most produce is picked unripe like strawberries and tomatoes. Stored at low temperatures in warehouses to increase life span. Apples may be in cold storage for up to 12 months before being sold at supermarkets. Pineapples are another example that may be picked way before their sweetness maximum. Bananas are picked green and later gassed for ripening.

For apples, look for organic variety that have not been polished by wax. Yes, they still could have been stored for many months but the chemical contamination is substantially reduced. Another option is natural applesauce without added sugars or chemicals. There is also dried apples available for hydration. Add them to warm cereals and salads.

Tomatoes, even in season at the supermarket, could be a horrid choice. Always, look to local farmer markets to yield the best quality and taste for produce. If it’s an organic farm and co-op, better yet.

Off season, most tomatoes just taste nasty. They are a complete waste from a nutritional aspect. Go with canned or dried tomatoes which you may find packed in olive oil. Whenever possible, always try to stick with glass packaging rather than plastic. Tomatoes are highly acidic which tends to leach the plastic materials into the product. This is especially true when the product has been sitting on the shelf for a long period of time. Please check those expiration dates.

Once you decide not to purchase any of the embalmed produce, head over to the frozen fruit/vegetable freezers. Get into a behavior mode of visiting that section of the supermarket right before checkout. The nutritional quality and prices of frozen products far surpass anything out of season in the regular produce area.

You can make some incredible smoothies with the frozen berries. Flash frozen vegetables like corn and lima beans are excellent for making succotash. Rob will add corn to yield a sweet crunchy taste on my homemade pizza dough with other veg toppings.

Don’t miss out on this often overlooked area of the market. Stop purchasing fresh out of season produce that is lacking in both nutrients and taste. Call it what it is, “pretty poison” and walk away from this visually enhanced garbage.

Patronize whenever possible local farmers. Google farm co-ops in your area. Check out their prices for a share of produce for the season. That right off the field flavor, is one that can’t be topped!

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Categories: Food, Health, Nutrition, Science-Technology

Tags: conventional produce, farmer markets, pretty produce, produce