Farmers Market

Today we went to the Arcata Farmers Market. Luckily the rain held off until we were done with our shopping adventures, and the sun even came out to shine on us! There are a ton of vendors that sell live plants--from lettuce starts to carnivorous pitcher plants. One woman had the most beautiful bouquets, and the wheelbarrows full of lilacs were really a visual kick. After strolling around and looking at what was available I chose to buy a bunch of chard and some bok choy. I've never really cooked with either of them, but they're so good for you I decided to get them and challenge myself a little bit.
Chard, for example, contains phytonutrients that serve as antioxidants and are anti-inflammatory.  In my olericulture class last semester someone said that chard was good for blood sugar regulation. A little bit of background research gives me this info, from whfoods.com: "...lab studies and animal studies show that syringic acid-one of chard's premiere flavonoids-has the ability to inhibit activity of an enzyme called alpha-glucosidase. Alpha-glucosidase is an enzyme used to break down carbohydrates into simple sugars. When this enzyme gets inhibited, fewer carbs get broken down and blood sugar is able to stay more steady." So that's cool.
Photos tomorrow of my chard creation!