Buried Treasure

by Linda Gallardo, Produce Manager

It is our later harvests, more-dependent-on-cool-weather root crops that mark Wisconsin’s seasonality. Crop availability and harvest times vary year-to-year, making them a very valuable local food source to see us through the winter months. Most root vegetables are cured and stored for use throughout the winter, and some are a sweet seasonal sensation that we enjoy for a shorter period of time, making these rooted wonders a real buried treasure. Who would have thought, right here in the Kickapoo Valley, that we could have so much treasure lurking about under the soil? Come check out the gold (beets & potatoes), jewels & garnets (sweet potatoes) and other treasures our local farmers have dug up for us this year.

(Botany distinguishes true roots such as tuberous roots and taproots from non-roots such as tubers, rhizomes, corms, and bulbs. In ordinary, agricultural, and culinary use, “root vegetable” applies to all these types.)

Check out our weekly Local Produce blog for continued updates on these local tasty treasures. Our ‘Friends’ on Facebook also get links to the blog as they are posted. Please feel free to ask our produce staff to help you find what you’re looking for, or to get ideas on how to prepare any of our produce. We are happy to help you, share ideas, recipes, or just talk about produce!