Introducing Eat Local: Simple Steps' Latest Feature

It’s been a long wait for the summer cherries but here in New York they’ve finally made their appearance, ready for pies (and speaking of pies, rhubarb is available now as well providing just the right tartness for rhubarb-strawberry pie). Of course, we now have tomatoes, lettuce, radishes for spinach for salads (not to mention burritos). And just as farmers’ market shelves begin to overflow with the harvest, NRDC Simple Steps is launching Eat Local our new feature that allows you to search for in-season produce in your area, look up recipes fresh veggies and fruit and view maps with the closest farmers’ markets including directions by car, public transit, foot or bicycle.

To get started, go to Eat Local, where you’ll see a map of the United States from which you can find produce in season in any state or search for farmer’s markets near you. You can search in the main window or by scrolling through the produce list on the right-hand sidebar, which automatically lists what’s available now. This sidebar also provides a widget you can add to your own website or blog should you have a foodie focus and want to keep this at your fingertips. 

Click on your state on the map to see what’s in season in your area throughout the year.  Clicking on any of the fruit or veggies listed will take you to a page for that item with information about its nutritional benefits and what to look for when choosing them. On that page you’ll also see a map of states in which they’re available and below the map a list of recipes from a bevy chefs.

Now is the perfect time to pick up the freshest ingredients and explore flavors and specialties unique to your area. So pick out what looks good to you, grab a recipe or two and hop on the bike to your market!