Baby Bok Choy
In Cantonese, the word bok choy translates to “white vegetable” — a common vegetable that is incorporated into a host of Asian-inspired dishes.
Excellent both raw and cooked, the white base portion tends to yield a crispier texture while the upper green leaves are more tender and are similar to spinach.
This week I prepared sautéed baby bok choy with white sweet potato and sugar snap peas for the Fix of the Week, below.
Bok choy is an excellent source of vitamins A and C, as well as a good source of vitamins B6, K and E, magnesium, iron, calcium, potassium and manganese.
You can currently find freshly harvested baby bok choy at the Saturday Santa Barbara and Sunday Camino Real farmers’ markets. Price averages $5 per pound.
Bacon avocado
While you can still find a few hass avocados here and there, the season for the winter varieties has just begun, with one of them being this bacon avocado.
Unlike its Hass counterpart that turns black when ripe, bacon avocados remain green but still have the same slight give to the touch when ready. The skins are quite smooth, shiny and thin, and the fruit inside is a bright green.
The flesh delivers less oil content than hass.
Use the avocados as the base of guacamole, a sandwich spread, a salad topper or in any other preparation that calls for avocado.
Grown and harvested by several local farmers, bacon avocados are available at the Saturday Santa Barbara, Sunday Camino Real Marketplace, Tuesday Santa Barbara and Wednesday Solvang farmers’ markets. Price averages $1 each.
Chicken sausages
Produced from pasture-raised chickens thanks to Jeronimo Brown of Casitas Valley Pastures, these locally made sausages are quite incredible. They’re available in an array of flavors that includes mild Italian, hot Italian, garlic-basil, jalapeño-cheddar, salt and pepper, breakfast and French apple, It is often difficult to make a selection.
Excellent when grilled or sautéed, the sausages are also nice when simmered at a low heat in a tomato sauce, soup or stew preparation until super tender. They also make for a great topper for a homemade pizza once cooked.
They’re available at the Saturday Santa Barbara, Sunday Camino Real Marketplace, Tuesday Santa Barbara and Thursday Carpinteria farmers’ markets. Price is $13 per pound.
