How to Add Your Homegrown Food into Your Diet
As the Summer growing season is winding down, gardeners everywhere are likely inundated with tons of fresh homegrown produce. I know I am! Whether you’re a first-time gardener or a seasoned one, it can become overwhelming to figure out what to do with it all. You are working hard for this produce and you don’t want it to go to waste. Sure, you can preserve some of it but you don’t have a ton of time to dedicate to that and you’ve run out of ideas on what to make with your bounty. Not to worry friend, I have a few suggestions and tips that may help!
How to Incorporate Homegrown Food into Your Diet
Benefits of Growing Your Own Food
You do not have to be a self-sufficient, off-grid homesteader to enjoy the benefits of growing your own food. Even if you have a small apartment balcony with a few planters or even a small herb garden on your windowsill, you can enjoy delicious homegrown food! Here are a few benefits of growing your own produce:
Save Money
It’s no secret that the cost of everything has gone up in the last few years. Consider that the average price for a head of lettuce is around $1.50 at the grocery store. But for between $0.50 to $1 more you can get a lettuce seed packet and have a garden full of lettuce. If seed starting isn’t your thing, even lettuce starts can be more economical from a garden center! Herbs are another great example. The price for the fresh ones in the produce section is astronomical but growing them at home could not be easier or more cost-effective!
Tastes Better
There is literally no good in the world that I love more than a homegrown tomato. The taste can’t be beat! That goes for other homegrown veggies as well. There is nothing more fresh than being able to go out to my backyard garden and pick a squash and bring it in to roast for dinner.
Convenience
A trip to the grocery store for dinner ingredients can’t beat a trip out to your garden for dinner ingredients.
Supporting Pollinators
Our pollinator friends need all the support they can get. Your lovely garden will help them by providing food while they help your garden produce food for you!
You Can Ensure it’s Organic
This one is pretty self-explanatory. You never know what has been used on the produce at the grocery store but you do know what you use on your garden at home.
Mental Health
My garden is my happy place. It is my favorite hobby. The mental clarity and pride I feel when working in the garden has supported my mental health in ways I never expected! Being outside in the fresh air and working with my hands allows me to clear my mind. Along with therapy, it is the best thing I have ever done for my mental health.
Tips to Incorporate Your Fresh Produce into Your Diet
Use Your Herbs
Most herbs in your garden are available year-round (Thyme, Rosemary, Sage) or they come back every year as a perennial (Oregano, Chives, Mint). You can also plant annuals such as basil & tarragon to enjoy in the Summer months. Parsley is great from Spring to early Fall and couldn’t be easier to grow. Fresh herbs add next-level flavor to your cooking.
Add chive flowers to your salads or omelets in the Spring or Rosemary to your rolls at Thanksgiving. Make your own fresh mint tea or add basil to your tomato salad! Finish any dish with some fresh parsley or make a homemade herby dressing for your salad. The possibilities are endless so get out there and enjoy them!
Salads & Soups
These are probably the easiest ways to incorporate your veg throughout the growing season. I do like to get creative though instead of always having a green salad or vegetable soup.
Try incorporating different pantry staples in with your salad leaves or maybe a pasta salad sounds better. I love a Greek-style orzo pasta salad using tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers from my garden with a simple lemon vinaigrette and herbs from the garden.
For soup, try roasting your vegetables beforehand. Nothing compares to homemade roasted tomato soup!
Use Your Grill
Admittedly I am still learning how to use our BBQ but I love to grill veggies in the Summer! It’s one of my favorite ways to prepare zucchini and asparagus. Grill them to perfection and then top them with good quality olive oil and some fresh herbs, salt, and pepper! It makes the perfect Summer side dish!
Smoothies
Smoothies are a breakfast staple for me in the Summer months. I love adding homegrown strawberries and blueberries and even homegrown kale or spinach!
Stir Fry & Curry
Stir fries and curries are such a great way to use up a surplus of fresh veg! You can add any combination of veggies you like and then a protein and serve with rice or noodles and you’re done! I sometimes do what I like to call a “whatever is in the fridge” stir fry. Curries are easy to make in large amounts and then freeze some for later!
Dips/Salsas
I love chips and a good salsa. Really any crunchy chip or cracker with dip situation and I am on board! Use up those jalapenos and tomatoes or tomatillos for a delish salsa or eggplant for a homemade babaganoush! Roasted pepper hummus or spinach dip…I’m sure Pinterest has some excellent recipes to try!
Roasting
I am going to go out on a limb and say that my favorite way to prepare veggies is to roast them. The flavor is insane…roasted Brussels sprouts are the bomb! Especially during the Fall and Winter, I love a tray bake and there is usually leftover squash that I grew during the Summer on there. Simple salt, pepper, and olive oil are great but it’s easy to get creative with those herbs in your pantry or garden as well!
Eggs
And last but certainly not least, the incredible edible egg. I dunno what it is about eggs that make them the perfect vessel for your homegrown veggies. We love a good scramble or omelet in this house. You can also make a quiche, tart, fritter, or even a breakfast egg muffin. Add any veg you like and the combinations are endless!
I hope this inspires you to not only grow your own food but get in the kitchen and get creative with what you have grown! Share your favorite recipe that you use your homegrown produce in below!
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