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EAT THIS: BACKYARD FRUIT AND FARMERS MARKET VEGETABLES

fruit at a farmers market
Credit: Kevin Painchaud / Lookout Santa Cruz

August is agriculture’s Olympics, the moment everyone with soil under their fingernails was working toward all year, whether they’re a farmer or backyard gardener. This week, I plucked the first ripe peach from a tree my husband planted last fall. For more than a month, we have watched them slowly ripen. Finally feeling the skin of one fuzzy, sunset-colored fruit yield under a gentle press of my fingers felt like one of my biggest accomplishments so far this year. 

At the risk of sounding too precious, there are few simple joys equal to eating a piece of sun-warmed fruit moments after it’s picked. I joyfully and gratefully purchase food from the supermarket all year round, but at the height of summer, it’s worth it to seek out something – literally, anything – grown near you that hasn’t had its flavor dulled by refrigeration and transportation. They don’t write songs about homegrown tomatoes for nothing, folks. 

The obvious place to head to is the farmers market near your house. Nine markets are in full swing throughout Santa Cruz County, and every one is brimming with a rainbow cornucopia of delicious things grown in the ground. On a budget? All of the markets offer financial incentives, like matching funds with additional cash, for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program beneficiaries. Just bring your EBT card to the info booth. 

But you might not even have to go that far. I’m willing to bet you have a neighbor who’s desperate to get rid of some zucchini, or a wild blackberry bush down the road that’s popping with dark berries. 

So that’s your homework for this week. Go to the farmers market. Eat some fruit. Or, leave some basil on your neighbor’s doorstep and post a photo of your cherry tomatoes on Instagram. Wiggle around in the flavors of summer in this special place we call home. 

BEST OF THE WEEK AHEAD

Below, find a curated list of the best food and drink events in Santa Cruz County for the coming week. At the top, I share my picks of unmissable local happenings.

Credit: City of Watsonville

Best of Santa Cruz County food & drink events, Aug. 2-8

NEWS OF THE WEEK

ICYMI – here are the food news stories from Lookout that you might have missed.

Lily Belli is the food and drink correspondent at Lookout Santa Cruz. Over the past 15 years since she made Santa Cruz her home, Lily has fallen deeply in love with its rich food culture, vibrant agriculture...