Purple Sunrise

I just had a warm, delicious breakfast, a bowl of Purple Sunrise cereal. It's made by Chris and Barbara Swartz of Camano Island and is just being introduced onto the market this weekend. I heard about it through an article I read yesterday in the Herald.

The idea of a locally produced gluten-free cereal caught my attention. The ingredients, all superfoods, are organic whole grains, and would be a wonderful start to a day. And then I realized that it was Barbara Swartz, a friend from my boys' school days, who created the cereal!

When Barbara's daughter Christy went off to college in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 2009, she found it hard to study because of a growing sensitivity to wheat. So her mom began to experiment with grains, nuts, and seeds to find a breakfast that would not only be non-gluten but also give Christy a healthy boost to her morning. It's the gourmet black rice, that turns a lovely purple color when it is cooked, that prompted Barbara and her husband Chris to call the cereal Purple Sunrise.

They turned their TV room into a commercial kitchen and were licensed last October. That's where they mill the grain and make and package their cereal.

It's a busy time for the Swartz family just now. Christy is getting married on March 30, but there is plenty on the family's plate between now and then. This weekend they will be introducing their new product at Seattle's Vegfest. To prepare they packaged (by hand) enough 16oz bags of Purple Sunrise to sell at the festival, plus 2000 3.35oz bags to include in a box for other Vegfest vendors!

If my own experience is any indication, they should have plenty of sales at Vegfest. After reading the Herald article yesterday and checking out their website -- Barbara is a graphic artist, so both the website and the packaging are high quality -- I called to place an order. When I stopped by True-View Glass and Windows in Stanwood, a local drop-off for Purple Sunrise, there were several orders to be picked up by people who had also heard of them through local media. I'll just bet they enjoyed their breakfast this morning as much as I did.

(I'm already thinking about ways to add a bit of Purple Sunrise to the muffins I'm planing to bake later today!)

If a hearty, healthy breakfast for you and your family is important to you, I suggest you check out Purple Sunrise!

Farm Fresh and Wonderful

Imagine tonight's dinner salad -- lettuce, tomato, cucumber, and a little dried basil sprinkled on the top.  The ingredients come from who-knows-where, have been sprayed with who-knows-what, and likely taste waterlogged and/or a bit like cardboard.

Now re-think that salad with fresh, organic, never-been-sprayed deep green, leafy lettuce, luscious tomato slices, ripe and juicy, crisp cucumber, sugar snap peas (a tasty bonus) and a little fresh basil.  Let's take it one step further.  Imagine that you've just picked up the vegetables from the very farm that grew them, or you had them delivered right to your door by the local farm.

Let me introduce you to a couple of farms that could make your dream salad come true.

At Arlington's Garden Treasures, on SR530 just east of the Island Crossing exit off I-5, you can purchase a share in their CSA* program.  Each shareholder receives a box of produce each week, from mid-June through Thanksgiving weekend.  That's 24 weeks of fresh produce (mostly vegetables) grown on their own farm.  Pick-up day is Thursday, and shareholders stop by the farm to select their items for the week.

Would you rather have your box dropped off at your home?  Klesick Family Farm in Stanwood offers year-round home delivery from Anacortes to Monroe and Bothell, from Mt Vernon to Mountlake Terrace.  Much of their food is grown in the northwest, some on their own farm; with rare exceptions, all is organic.

Each of these farms offers a variety of box sizes, depending upon your family's size and preference.   Klesick boxes are made up for you based on the foods they are featuring that week.  With Garden Treasures, you choose what goes into your box from a list of recommendations on pick-up day.  Both farms provide a newsletter complete with produce information and a recipe. Their prices are comparable and their commitment to quality is high.

Check out their websites: Garden Treasures and Klesick Family Farms.  It just could be that by this time next week you will be sitting down to that dream salad, brought to you by your local organic farmers!


Here's one more resource for you.  The 2010 Puget Sound Farm Guide lists farms, farmers markets, CSAs and u-picks throughout the Puget Sound region.  You can check them out here.


*According to localharvest.org,  over the last 20 years, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has become a popular way for consumers to buy local, seasonal food directly from a farmer. Here are the basics: a farmer offers a certain number of "shares" to the public. Typically the share consists of a box of vegetables, but other farm products may be included. Interested consumers purchase a share (aka a "membership" or a "subscription") and in return receive a box (bag, basket) of seasonal produce each week throughout the farming season.