Tucson’s Market on the Move

November 2, 2013 — bell peppers, Market on the Move, Nogales, produce, Tucson

The port of Nogales, AZ is the main entry point for Mexican produce to enter the United States. There are tons of fruits and vegetables traded daily at the peak of the season. Each winter the wholesale warehouses hum with activity.  The nature of the wholesale produce business requires that losses must be accepted when the goods can’t be sold or moved quickly.  The 3000 Club in Santa Cruz County has created a wonderful program to stem waste at the border, and provide fresh healthy foods in neighborhoods that need more access to fruits and vegetables.  They partner with churches and other facilities that have large parking lots in Tucson.  The volunteer crews load semi trucks full of produce that is at peak ripe condition and send them to the parking lots where anyone can buy 60 pounds of produce for $10.  This Market on the Move is saving people money, but what I like best is the distribution of fresh foods to those who might not otherwise buy  or try it.

I enjoy the challenge of filling my box (Since there are only two of us at home, I do not overfill it.) with the selections of the week, then making tasty dishes with them.  This week I went too late to score any tomatoes, which are always popular.  Tiny watermelons were limited to two each.  They look precious, and are fun to have in November.  Zucchini, yellow squash, cucumbers, and golden bell peppers were the featured crops on special.  I decided to juice the cucumbers, roast or grill the peppers, and make soup with the squash.  The Market on the Move is like the show Chopped on Food Network, in which you prepare dishes from what you find in the basket.  I try to recruit some help from my neighbors as soon as I get home.  My friend Mindy has just returned from Philadelphia where her son in law is a fancy chef.  She passed along a roasted bell pepper soup recipe while I convinced her to take some home.  The chef makes his soup with roasted peppers, a tiny bit of stock and cream cheese.  Mindy and I decided that this was very fine, but we are going to use mascarpone since we have no allegiance to Philadelphia.  If you have some good ideas that relate to bell peppers or squash I am very interested right now.  If you live in a city that offers this sport, the ingredient challenge, I urge you to try it.  For $10 you have little to loose.