Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Have you ever gone to the grocery store, gotten out of your car, grabbed your wallet, gone to the back seat to grab your reusable grocery bags, and you look, and it is as if they have disappeared into thin air. Then you remember that while in a hurry to find your grocery list, you kept reminding yourself to grab the bags, and you ended up forgetting them at home as you rushed out the door.

Now as your attempt to try and be environmentally friendly is ruined, you now have to decide if you are both going to buy plastic, and still have to pay five cents a bag, or fork out an extra dollar per bag to replace the reusable ones that you forgot. It puts you in a tough spot, do you buy those terrible for the environment plastic bags, and try to remember your reusable ones next time, or do you replace them now.....and have a closet full when you get home?

Now because this situation has happened to me more times than not, I wanted to find a different alternative to those reusable bags from the grocery store, or any other type of self proclaimed “reusable” grocery bag that is just like all the others, and will just end up being left behind when I make another trip to the grocery store. I was introduced to the solution, which will stop the above scenario from happening again.

The solution, EZ Grocery Bag! Its website describes it as a new generation of grocery bag made from a high quality recycled PET fabric, which is made from 80% recycled plastic bottles. The EZ Grocery Bag is the only grocery bag that can roll up and seal with Velcro, and get this.... fit in your purse!! So are the days of forgetting your grocery bags at home, the EZ grocery bag will fold up into a neat, compact, and easy to fit into your purse pouch, so now once you finish unloading the groceries, you fold the bag up, and put it back in your purse for your next shopping trip.

Check out their website for all the other perks of EZ Grocery Bags. (http://www.ezgrocerybag.com/)

~ Pickle Blogger

Sound Off! Do you have an EZ Grocery Bag...does it live up to the hype?

``What is that!”

I`m sure at some point or another everyone has bought a product, or had one given to them to try at a family reunion, and you might have saw something funny looking on the product and thought `What is that! There is no way I am eating that!"

While handling some emails here at Sunshine Farms I did come across someone who had, had that exact reaction to some grey flecks in our pickled asparagus. Although they do seem to cause great concern, and in some cases disgust to some of our un-expectant customers who happen to come across these flecks, they actually cause no harm and can hold some benefits.

Those grey flecks are a protein build up called Rutin. More specifically Rutin is a citrus flavonoid glycoside. It is made up of two chemicals; quercetin and rutinose. Rutin is created within Pickled Asparagus when Asparagus is heated with an acid, such as Vinegar; like in the pickling process, and through this process Rutin, which is a bioflavinoid, is drawn out of the Asparagus plant. It then becomes insoluble in the vinegar and crystallizes on the Asparagus.

The Rutin that is produced is actually the opposite of what most people think when they see those flecks in their food; it can have some really great benefits. Rutin is a strong antioxidant which can be effective against inflammation, cell damage and blood circulation problems. As well Rutin works well together with Vitamin C to fend against easy bruising, thin skin and unsightly veins.

So next time you see a grey fleck in your Pickled Asparagus, not to worry, it won`t be a hinder, it might actually be a help.

~Pickle Blogger

Sound Off! Let Us know what you think!