Local and tropical

This past weekend I went to visit my family in Florida. In addition to spending a much-needed relaxing weekend with some of the people I love most in the world, I also got to snag some of the fruits and veggies that were in season down there. My mom and grandmother and I headed into St. Petersburg for the Saturday Morning Market at the bright and early hour of 10:30. I love sleeping in. The market is always a fun conglomeration of yummy smells, delicious looking produce and odd folks. Not to mention cute dogs.

Anyway, a lot of the produce turned out to be from far, far away, but there was a sampling of local goods. I went straight for the tomatoes; choosing a large, deep red guy destined for a tomato sandwich, and a mixed bag of cherry and grape varieties.

My mom picked up some peppers and heavenly smelling strawberries, while my grammy chose a pineapple that lived up to the sign that boasted it was Super, Super, Super Sweet! Grown in Chile, or somewhere thereabouts, but definitely worth a sample.

The most exciting (and, it turns out, aggravating) find of the day was a local coconut. Say that 5 times fast. We somehow managed not to gorge ourselves on all the delicious baked goods and fudgy things the market had to offer, and headed home to make some lunch from our purchases.

I ended up flying back with a suitcase packed with tomatoes and a coconut, plus a carryon bag of oranges and tangerines. The fruit was a gift from my mom’s friend Nilima, who scaled the trees in her yard to provide me with some real Florida citrus. I do declare that it was the juiciest, most delicious fruit I have ever tasted. My mama made me a fresh squeezed tangerine/orange juice for breakfast on Sunday, and it was so good I could have drank a gallon. Thanks, mom and Nilima!