5 Staples to Swap

You’ve heard the saying, put your money where your mouth is. Well, we believe in putting our money where our house is–choosing to spend our hard-earned cash to support the farmers, ranchers, and business owners in our own backyards. 

Farmers markets are where our mission to eat delicious food intersects perfectly with our mission to support our local environment and economy. Each local bite is an investment in neighboring farms and their resources. This week, we challenge you to swap 5 grocery staples on your weekly list for locally-made goodness. 

Our markets in Boulder and Longmont boast a multitude of fridge and pantry necessities, in addition to all of the wonderful seasonal produce you know and love. Here are 5 ingredients you can swap from your grocery list to your market list:

Your Morning Must-Have: Coffee Beans

We get it, you aren’t you until you’ve had your morning coffee. So if there was ever a staple to keep stocked at all times it has to be something delicious and caffeinated.. Silver Canyon Coffee has been roasting beans at their roastery in Boulder for 34 years. These coffee experts pay careful attention to the farmers they source from and the temperature and humidity throughout the roasting process. When it comes to coffee, buying local supports small growers and ensures the greatest degree of freshness to enjoy in your morning cup. 

To Pair with Sugar, Spice, and Everything Nice: Heirloom Grains

Once you try bread, pastries, or any other baked goods under the sun made from locally grown and milled wheat, there is no going back. The texture and flavor that heirloom wheat brings to your baking projects is entirely different from the flour you find in the grocery store. 

Aspen Moon Farm grows and processes cornmeal and heritage wheat that can be the base of your next cornbread or carrot cake. Monroe Organic Farms brings multiple varieties of popcorn to our markets, perfect for your movie nights. And Black Cat Farm, active members of the Colorado Grain Chain, grow and mill organic polenta corn, rye, einkorn, buckwheat, khorasan, and kernza perennial wheat

All They’re Cracked Up to Be: Fresh Eggs

Another morning essential to start your day on the sunny-side are fresh local eggs. Picking up eggs from Croft Family Farm, Wisdom Poultry, or SkyPilot Farm changes the breakfast game entirely. By putting eggs on your market list instead of your grocery store list, you are choosing to support farmers who are raising birds in open pasture and giving them organic feed.  And with rich dark yellow yolks, local eggs really are all they’re cracked up to be. 

Buon Appetito: Pasta 

We think that pasta should always be on hand. The perfect base for any sauce or combination of fresh veggies, good pasta is a completely different experience than what you can find in the grocery store. 

Online at bcfm.org you can buy pasta from Pastificio Boulder for your weekly pick-up. Claudia and Ted started selling their pasta at our markets in 2018 using organic, ancient, and heritage wheat to create a high quality delicious product. Many of their pastas are made from grains grown by local farmers, supporting their mission of creating real food, grown and crafted by local businesses who care about a more sustainable and fair food system.  

A Weeknight Quick Fix: Veggie Burgers

We know that sometimes even the thought of throwing together a few ingredients for dinner seems daunting after a long day of work, school, or sitting in traffic on I-70 after a weekend adventure. But don’t worry, you can be a lazy locavore in the kitchen too. 

The team at I Love Heart Beets makes vegetarian and vegan beet burgers that are perfect to have in your fridge or freezer. They use beets from Black Cat Farm and only organic ingredients to create a product that transforms into a delicious and hearty meal in minutes. 

And if veggie burgers aren’t your favorite ready-to-eat option, you can try frozen ready-to-eat pupusas from Pupusas Familia, tamales from Amaizing Corn Tamales, or pot pies from Hinman’s Pie. 

With these 5 simple swaps, your community and your taste buds will thank you. We’ll see you at markets this week or at online ordering pick-ups. And if you want to swap out more than 5 ingredients, by all means be our guest! Sign up to take the challenge at bit.ly/Take5atBCFM.

This article originally appeared in the Daily Camera.