Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Getting the most out of your veggies

In choosing vegetables for our family I try to buy a large variety of frozen vegetables. I do buy some fresh produce, but overall the frozen is a better option for us. Commercially canned vegetables have lost a lot of their nutritional value in the canning process, and they tend to have additives like salt and sugar that I just don't want. Fresh produce in your grocery store can be from anywhere in the country,or other countries, which means it was picked, sorted and trucked to wherever you are. Every day it is out of the ground it loses nutrients, and you really don't know how old it is.
With frozen vegetables they are picked and very quickly frozen so their nutritional value is still viable and the cost is usually low. I can usually find one pound bags of vegetables for less than a dollar each. The things I buy fresh are in season and local. This cuts the cost and shipping time, and supports local agriculture. The big money waster when it comes to vegetables is not using them before they go bad. Menu planning and frequent stops at a produce stand or farmers market can help to alleviate food loss.

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