CSA - Week 7 - What Color is Your Carrot?

Always anxious to peek in to see what special organic vegetables have been packed inside the CSA bin for me, this week it was a bunch of carrots in an assortment of colors that first caught my eye. Not just orange ones, but yellow and white carrots too! I had noticed these colorful carrots showing up at our local farmers market this season and am very pleased to receive some in my harvest bin this week. These different colored carrots are really not new, but they have been re-discovered. Research shows that they have really been around for a long time. The purple and yellow carrots were grown as long as 1,000 years ago in Asia and Western Europe.Today, a more scientific and selective breeding program is practiced in order to produce these colors for commercial purposes. Scientists say there is added nutritional benefit to choosing these colorful vegetables over more conventional ones. Red carrots have extra lycopene, which is also found in tomatoes and believed to lower blood pressure and help reduce the risk of some cancers. Yellow carrots promote eye health with beta-carotene-like pigments, and the purple carrots contain powerful antioxidants.

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Oh, the power of produce! Plant foods contain natural disease fighting compounds called phytochemicals and antioxidants. These disease fighting compounds enhance our immune systems. We should eat at least five servings of vegetables and fruits each day, but seven to nine servings are even better. The weekly CSA harvest bin is a convenient way for me to get these necessary fresh fruits and vegetables - plus the produce is organic and grown by our local farmers!

Also in this week's harvest bin, lots of onions. Assorted zucchinis and summer squash.
Fresh basil and tomatoes.
Garlic.
Juicy red ripe raspberries.
Enough broccoli for soup.
Farm fresh organic brown eggs.
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So, what color are your carrots?