Where you live/lived: Best natural foods you'll miss

[lph]

Oh, if I moved somewhere where there were no wild strawberries I'd definitely miss them. They are the best berry in the world!

[redrhodie]

Same here! Where did you find wild strawberries? I have never run across those but have found blueberries, raspberries and blackberries along some of the trails.

Right along the road in Kingston, RI. They're so tiny, they're easy to miss, but they really pack a punch of flavor!

[bmccasland]

Creole Tomatoes - fresh tomatoes grown in Mississippi delta dirt, Farmer's Market or some local grocers
Satsumas - a type of tangerine - currently in season. Easy to peal, very few seeds, yummy.
Shrimp - packed on ice at the grocery store, not frozen. Wild caught from the Gulf of Mexico. It is most definitely politically incorrect to eat imported shrimp. And there is a taste difference between fresh and frozen. I like mine sauteed in butter/olive oil with garlic and a bit of cayenne pepper.
Crawfish (crawdads, mudbugs) - Louisiana born and bred - not imported. If it has to cross an ocean to get here, it isn't worth eating.
and finally, Smith's Dairy milk - I buy direct from the dairyman Mr. Smith at farmer's market - their milk is pasteurized but not homogenized (you have to shake the carton). They make a wonderful chocolate milk that is the perfect after ride pick-me-up. and he passes out shots of it at market.

[Crankin]

Blueberries! We once found an abandoned blueberry farm in some conservation land in S. Yarmouth on the Cape. It was at the end of a cul de sac where we had rented a cottage. We brought bowls and bowls into the woods, to take home and freeze. Now, I get them from local farms.

I miss the Hass avocados we used to pick right off of the trees in our yard in Miami, when I was a teenager. I also miss a lot of the Mexican type food we had in AZ, but not sure if the ingredients are necessarily native. As the years have gone on, I have found a few authentic places here to get Mexican food, but they are all a drive. What I really miss is having the parents of my students make me tamales, enchiladas, etc. for gifts.

[katluvr]

Oak,
Actually (although not organic) in the right place in Florida you can get fresh produce. Not in my coastal area, but near Ocala where my folks live...lots of sold on the side of the road produce. I think it is the left over or surplus from large commercial lots.

Melons...cateloupe and watermelon, when in season can be bought off the back of the truck in these more rural areas.

I do agree that in the more urban and coast (congested) areas, fresh produces is hard to find. Even the "saturday am market" in teh "city" the procudes does nto look all that fresh and they really don't advertise/say where it is comes from. It really looks like surplus and "fallen off the back of the truck".

I can't even say we have fresh seafood here!

Oh, corn is another thing...early corn (spring) is usually local and fresh.
Although not organic!

K

[Atlas]

Sweet Corn: This is Iowa, the land of corn. Peaches 'n Cream or Honey 'n Pearls are my favorite kinds.

There are a lot of other great things, we have fantastic farmer's markets, but the corn is the thing I would miss most if I left.

[Pax]

New Mexico - Hatch green chiles, freshly roasted...man I miss that smell and being able to smother almost any food in those bad boys. YUM!

[Reesha]

Oooo awesome thread idea, ShootingStar

New Hampshire:
Being able to go just off trail on local hikes and fill tupperware container after tupperware container with wild blueberries.

Belgium:
Fresh milk and yogurt from the Ijshoeve just outside Brugge
Soft-ripened cheeses from France and Belgium
Local sausages were always phenomenal

Lake Placid, NY:
Ha, well I lived and worked on an organic farm there so... all of it? The zucchini was always incredible as well as their beets. I loved the pork and lamb we raised as well as the continuous stream of fresh eggs. Tomatoes and basil!

[GLC1968]

Wow, this should take me down memory lane...

Minnesota: too young to remember any foods

Massachusetts/Maine: steamers, lobster, fried clams, apples and pears off our own trees, oh and those sausage/onion/pepper sandwiches sold late night off carts around downtown Boston...we had a love/hate relationship with those!

Michigan: apple picking, maple-sugar candy, cider mill donuts, raspberries growing wild in our backyard

Wisconsin: Kringle, brats, frozen custard and cheese

Poconos: nothing worth remembering!

Florida: strawberries from Plant City and fresh sqeezed OJ from the orchard farms place across the street from us... Oh, and Greek salads with potato salad on them from Tarpon Springs (totally a Tarpon Greek tradition). And from the other coast - we knew an amazing fisherman who would fish in the am to stock his tiny dive restaurant in the PM with the most amazing fish. YUM!

North Carolina: we were fans of a Virginia winery and my husband loved the sweet tea and the BBQ (not my favorites)

Oregon: too many things to list! Blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, hazelnuts, walnuts, salmon, apples, pears, grapes, blueberries, wine, beer, etc.

[shootingstar]

[COLOR="Red"]Crawfish (crawdads, mudbugs) - Louisiana born and bred - not imported. If it has to cross an ocean to get here, it isn't worth eating.

Am not certain if I've had crawfish yet. Sounds like a type of big shrimp.

Just reading this whole thread, makes me want to memorize certain special regional foods to try if I ever get to visit certain areas.

Someone here mentioned hazelnuts. We do have a local poducer here that does sell great stuff. The Northwest coast is also known for its diversity of mushrooms. Some mushroom types are only found in our region. Must be the moist rainforests that make happy growing areas.

Admittedly the high price tag for certain mushrooms, so far is abit of a barrier for us to try cooking freshly picked stuff.

[OakLeaf]

I'd be surprised if you don't have crawfish in BC - they live in most of north America. We had them in North Dakota.

They're more like little lobsters than big shrimp I guess. Pick up a river rock and you've got a pretty good chance of seeing some underneath.

[Bike Chick]

For Thanksgiving we are getting together at my brother's place in IL. We aren't having turkey. Instead we are having steak, lasagne, and New Glarus beer...with plenty of cheese and smoked fish.

Spotted Cow is the best!

[shootingstar]

I'd be surprised if you don't have crawfish in BC - they live in most of north America. We had them in North Dakota.

They're more like little lobsters than big shrimp I guess. Pick up a river rock and you've got a pretty good chance of seeing some underneath.

Most definitely crawfish does not sound familiar to me at all. For certain, we never had them in Ontario in our lakes nor rivers for eating or have never heard of them in that area. But I'm an urbanite.

As for here, next time I would have to scout out our fish mongers' stalls more closely. The edible spotted shrimp, for instance is indigenous to our area.