It's Tradition

Though I did not grow up in the country, my dad was born and raised in rural west Tennessee, depression-era and having little they owned but a farm. He moved his family to the big city of Nashville in 1958 shortly before I was born and took his tradition with him. My mom and he (mostly Mom) would spend the summer preparing a freezer as if they lived in the tundra. Produce was not so readily available in the winter as it is now. They did not grow their own garden; they depended on locally grown produce for sale at the Nashville Farmers' Market. My summers were not spent at swim meets nor Kanakuk nor JH Ranch in northern California, but I am thankful for one of many traditions my parents handed down to me. Friends for years have looked at me like I have 3 heads when I talked about "putting up" a freezer. My mom could pull together a meal for a friend-in-need at the drop of a hat. She didn't even drive until she had 2 children, so trips to the store were minimal. Yes, we can now get great produce in other 9 months of the year, but the idea of getting locally grown produce did not just come into style here lately. My parents knew 50 years ago that locally grown was best, and putting all that they could in the freezer for later was the healthiest, most economical way to feed their family. I had to help shell peas, shuck corn, and break green beans. The good news is that now you can purchase fresh green beans already broken and peas already hulled. Talk about improvements! Forget about how much it costs. It is worth every dime. Skip one of your many eating out nights, purchase a used freezer, and go for the fresh, locally grown. Take your pullcart and get ready for a culinary extravaganza.  That's a tradition worth starting for your family.
http://nashvillefarmersmarket.org