Local Seafood from Barnegat Light NJ, Caught on Resolute by Captain Pete Benya

With my sister in law’s wedding last weekend and our cousin staying until Monday, we didn’t have that much food in the house. On Monday afternoon I caught the Union Square Greenmarket at its tail end but wasn’t sure what protein we were having that night. So I bypassed most of the market (except for snagging some of the last raspberries and blackberries of the season=JAM!) and headed to whole foods. Now there are some times I’m extremely disappointed by Whole Foods’ “local” selection and other times I’m pleasantly surprised. Thank goodness, this time it was the latter.

I was surprised to find so much local seafood, including mahi mahi (who knew?). I had a hankering for scallops so went with those. I LOVED how the sign in front of the scallops not only told me the scallops were from NJ, but also the name of the fishing vessel and fisherman! Now I don’t know if it was the local fish that brought good luck, but I was pretty damn impressed with the sear I got on them!

Next I found some yellow corn from New York (2 for $1!). Corn is one of those summer foods I love. I will NEVER turn down an ear of fresh corn. Having it in the winter, even off the cob just feels wrong. There’s nothing like a fresh piece of corn, and I swear the corn from the NY/NJ area is by far the sweetest!

I finished off the meal with some beautiful looking greens from Gotham Greens, grown right here in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. We’re talking UBER local here, literally 5 miles from my apartment. Now I know some of you aren’t so impressed but you have to understand my “outdoor space” consists of a 5 square foot fire escape and no community garden in site. I grow my own herbs, when I can keep them alive, but that’s pretty much it. So produce from my borough? Pretty awesome. Breaking News–Looks like more local produce is coming soon from a greenhouse in Sunset Park!

Gotham Greens – From BROOKLYN!

So there you have it, tasty, healthy and of course local.