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SALT LAKE CITY — October 5-12 is "Eat Local Week" in Utah. Josh Taylor, LDS Hospital's executive chef, said that the Downtown Farmers Market in Salt Lake City is a great place to find local foods to cook at home.
If you find unfamiliar produce daunting, you may be giving the farmers market a wide berth. But Taylor said that there is nothing to fear, and he offered a few easy guidelines to help you get started.
Taylor's first advice is to buy produce when it's in season, because that's when the product will be in its prime and have all its best nutrients and vitamins.
If iceberg lettuce is all you know, Taylor recommends talking with the vendor or farmer at the market. They will know exactly how to best use the product.
Taylor also said that you don't want to overcook produce, because then you will lose the vitamins and other nutrients in the product.
"If you look in the oven and your zucchini is just mush, that's too much. You want to get a nice color on it, but you still want to have it firm," Taylor said.
Taylor helped local resident and mother of five Ashlee Prisbrey buy and cook local produce, and Prisbrey now feels more confident and willing to cook with fresh ingredients.
"My cooking is going to change because I really want my children to be healthier eaters as they're growing. It's something I've been really worried about lately, so I'm excited to feel more confident in my ability to feed them fresh and healthy vegetables," Prisbrey said.
The Downtown Farmers Market is open until October 22 on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Tuesdays from 4 p.m. to dusk.
