Hello Friends!
The next interesting thing of an eating variety: prickly pear. HEB was selling a bag of prickly pear for $3.00 so I thought I would give it a whirl. The prickly pear is good but full and I mean FULL of seeds. Like you can't take a bite without eating ten seeds which are too hard to chew. So Mr. Wonderful and I spent the majority of the time eating a small bit of flesh and the rest of the time spitting out seeds. For the record: these prickly pear were skinned and looked to be green, not like this picture of prickly pear that I got when I googled "edible prickly pear."
This prickly pear actually looks really good and easy to eat. So maybe I can find something to do with my pears??
It's been a while since I posted so I thought I would update people on what I've been eating. Mostly it's been the same old, same old but I have tried two new things I wanted to talk about.
The first: bison. 
From Thunderheart Bison, a local grower from the San Antonio region. They are profiled in the current version of Edible Austin and the company has been at every farmer's market I have been to. I think, when I first bought my bison, I actually talked to the guy in the article (the owner) so that was pretty cool. He was friendly, personable, and he seemed to like me (he was joking with me about buying stuff for my brother, not knowing he was my brother. Good times for all!).
Anyway, we bought a pound of ground bison and it was yum! I didn't notice a huge difference between it and beef. But the bison guy gave me a list of bison facts and, if they are all true, bison is 10 times healthier for you than just about any meat. Even chicken! Mr. Wonderful and I went back to the Farmer's Market after a hiatus and bought another pound of ground and some stew meat. Thunderheart is reasonably priced (although I'm not splurging on strip steaks) and the meat tastes great! The article in Edible Austin talks about the humane way of killing (basically shooting them with a gun from a reasonable distance) because bison guy said that you could taste the adrenaline when the bison went through a conventional slaughter. I heartily endorse bison!
The next interesting thing of an eating variety: prickly pear. HEB was selling a bag of prickly pear for $3.00 so I thought I would give it a whirl. The prickly pear is good but full and I mean FULL of seeds. Like you can't take a bite without eating ten seeds which are too hard to chew. So Mr. Wonderful and I spent the majority of the time eating a small bit of flesh and the rest of the time spitting out seeds. For the record: these prickly pear were skinned and looked to be green, not like this picture of prickly pear that I got when I googled "edible prickly pear."
On an HEB downer note: HEB had one of their "buy this, get that free" and it was for organic apple slices and Central Market greens. Hm....that's healthy and I was going to buy apples anyway....why not??
Well, I haven't eaten the greens yet but the apple slices are disappointing. First: they are packaged in four individual bags. Ick! Just pack them together! And the four individual bags are packaged in a larger plastic bag. They taste like watery air and retain very little of the incredibly juicy flavor that I have tasted of other organic apples (store bought and farmer bought). Not doing this one again.
On a happier note: my CSA starts this weekend!!! Community supported agriculture that is. Edible Austin, again, provided a great article on the CSA I joined (I was happy about that because I got to know a little more about them before venturing onto their farm). The CSA is with Johnson's Backyard Garden and I am hoping that it will be a wonderful experience (I think it will be). I'm boning* up on all sorts of preservation methods...well, canning and freezing. Methinks I need to purchase canning equipment? Si.
And on a sad note: The Bull and Boar is closed. :( It was great while it lasted, I hope it comes back, and in the mean time, you can purchase yummmmy meat from Peach Creek Farm at the Austin farmer's market or online (I think). Check these guys out: they're great!
Today's Pic:
Doesn't "Local Lucy" sound like a strumpet name?
*Principal Skinner: "And bone I will!"
3 comments:
While I don't know if you can make these with actual prickly pears, or if you just make them with prickly pear juice, but I highly recommend prickly pear margaritas...especially the ones they have at Vivo.
Well, damn. That's a real bummer about The Bull and Boar.
Johnson's Backyard Garden looks great!
Canning equipment is an inexpensive one-time purchase (water bath canning, anyway) that is well worth it! A pressure canner can be pricey. Maybe someone around you has one you can borrow so you can see if you would want to buy one? Just a thought.
I, too, am sad that the Bull & Boar closed. It was so tasty! I think their location is what did them in.
I want to can too! It's October, is it too late?
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