I was a lucky kid. While most of my friends went off to summer camp, we left to spend the summer at our beach house. Every year, by the time we got home on the last day of school, my mother was already in the car, key in the ignition, set to depart for our summer escape.

The car was packed with all the summer provisions that me, my sister, my brother, and any, and all of the numerous extended family members who would fill the beach house, needed to get through Labor Day. Bathing suits, flip flops, and lots and lots of food. In perfect unison, we’d jump in the back seat and we were off.

Between June and September the kitchen in our beach house was fully operating, and quite honestly, to me, was the most exciting room in the house. It was where we cooked up a smorgasbord of fresh seafood from the fisherman on the docks, where we sat and ate warm homemade beach doughnuts made only on the weekends in the very early morning hours, but mostly, it is where we made summer salads, and chowders, and vegetable dishes from fresh farm stand produce.

My father loved farm stands, especially Scotti’s. It was right around the corner from our cottage and we never drove by without stopping to see what was just harvested from the field and fresh on the shelves.

”The only way to eat a tomato is when it is just picked off the vine.” my father would say, as he turned the car into the dirt parking lot.

Turns out he was right. Eating foods just harvested results in food that not only taste better but that is more nutrient dense. The nutritional value of produce begins to decline the minute it is plucked from the vine, and when we eat from farm to table we provide our bodies and our minds with the most protective elements. It is fresher, it is healthier, and it has much, much, more power.

And to me Scotti’s was a pretty powerful place. It was where I learned how to touch a tomato, or a peach, or a plum, and know if it is ripe enough to eat, and to hold a watermelon in your hand and tell by the weight if it is sweet and juicy, and to look at the silk of the corn and pull back the husk, to make sure the kernels are fresh enough to pop when you bite into them.

Eating whole, local, and seasonal food is the best way to build a strong nutritional foundation. By supporting local farms, and farmers, we nourish our bodies, our communities, and the environment at the same time. The world of health and wellness comes full circle. So if you find yourself escaping to a beach community this summer, here are some of my favorite east coast spots. Stop by and visit when you are in the area and be sure to pick up some farm fresh food and lots of power.

WHITE GATE FARM, EAST LYME , CT

Specializing in organic produce White Gate Farm is over 100 acres of power. In addition to high quality seasonal produce, poultry and meat, eggs, homemade and gourmet food items also line the shelves of the beautiful farmstead. With farm dinners, events and class, and available lodging at the inn on the farm, White Gate Farm is truly a foodie destination. www.whitegatefarm.net

SERENE GREENS, SAG HARBOR, NY

This year-round farm stand is a culinary hot spot. Fresh produce, prepared foods, including dinners and salads to go, as well as bins of fresh seafood stocked with whatever fish just came off the docks make it a place you never want to leave. And you don’t have to either...with fresh made juices, coffee, tea and ice cold snoballs, plan to stay awhile. www.serenegreenfarm.com

MORNING GLORY FARM, EDGARTOWN, MASSACHUSETTS

If you find yourself lucky enough to be visiting the island of Martha’s Vineyard, make the first thing you do is stop by Morning Glory Farm. Blossomed from small stand to a bucolic farm store, Morning Glory Farm offers fresh produce, delicious baked goods and food items made daily, as well as,

my personal favorite, beautiful cut fresh flowers, in tin cans lining the walkway of the entrance. Be sure to grab a bunch when you are there. I promise, they will brighten up your day! www.morninggloryfarm.com

ROSEBANK FARMS,
JOHNS ISLAND, SOUTH CAROLINA

Although I have not yet visited this farm stand from what I hear, the stand, and it’s owner, Sidi Limehouse are iconic in the low country of South Carolina. Considered a pioneer for growing crops and farming, the result is a huge array of fresh produce options, flowers, and, with a resident baker, fresh baked goods and food items that are said to fly off the shelves. For more info email rosebankfarmstogo@gmail.com



WEST PALM BEACH GREENMARKET

Voted the number one farmer’s market in the United States, the West Palm Beach GreenMarket, brings together hundreds of farms and even more people from October until April. A true community gathering and shopping extravaganza, you can get anything from fresh produce and flowers, to homemade donuts, cheeses and sauces. Considered the place to see and be seen, the next time you are in West Palm be sure to check out the food and the people. www.wpb.org