Your Summer Produce Public Service Announcement

Fair warning: this newsletter exists to make you excited about vegetables, not to discuss bathroom logistics. And yet here we are, because Cyclospora cayetanensis, a microscopic parasite riding in on uncooked greens and bumpy summer berries, has sickened nearly 7,000 people since May. We’re talking explosive diarrhea. There, I said it. Considerable cogitation went into that sentence.

The Good News: Investigators found the culprit, shredded iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms, sourced in Mexico, and confirmed to have been served at Taco Bell, by food service giant Sysco, and sold in Walmarts. Additional fast food restaurants (we’re looking at you, Jack in the Box and Subway) are under investigation, but not yet confirmed.

Taylor Farms has recalled the tainted produce. Case closed?

Not so fast.

In a classic case of government-corporate double-speak, the FDA is now claiming the lettuce they sampled produced a “false positive” result, suggesting it is not to blame, while at the same time issuing a Recall Alert, warning “Do not eat iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms de Mexico, or Market-side “iceberg brands” from Walmart. You don’t need to be a conspiracy theorist to suspect there’s something rotten in how this is being handled. A gutted FDA, a hard-to-trace parasite, and Taylor’s PR machine intentionally muddying the waters, are colluding to make this outbreak — now appearing in 27 states! — impossible to understand.

Bottom line: Remain vigilant. Here’s some news you can use:

Cooking kills the parasite, so if you heat your fruits and veggies to 158°F, it’s dead to you.
It’s not contagious person-to-person. Your partner who adores Taco Bell’s Crunchwrap Supreme can suffer through its aftermath solo (for up to a month, unfortunately) without you catching it. Small mercies.

The Best News: Farmers’ Markets.

It’s no accident this outbreak was not caused by lettuce bought at a local farmers’ market. The Taco Bell lettuce was grown on a mega-farm (typically thousands of acres), picked by a rotating workforce that may not have had decent bathroom access (human waste is the actual contamination source here), shredded and bagged at an industrial facility, then shipped nationwide, all before anyone had a clue anything was wrong. One bad batch, thousands of people (so far).

Compare that to the farmer at your market who grew the lettuce on a few acres, harvests it on Tuesday or Wednesday, sells it to you on Friday or Saturday, and will happily discuss the nuances of the The Farm Bill currently being debated in Congress. (I did that last week. Don’t get me started.) No guarantees, but the odds, and the scale of disaster if something does go wrong, shrink dramatically when you buy locally.

Low-Effort Fixes, Starting Today:

Skip the pre-washed bagged salads and shredded lettuce
Rinse all produce under running water, scrub what you can
Raid the freezer — it’s time to mine the “back 40” for those frozen raspberries and blackberries
Turn fresh berries into a pie. Heat is your friend here.
Eating out? Ask where the greens came from.
Hit the farmers’ market. It’s peak season, so there’s no better time.

Recipes that Make Your Local Produce Shine

Soupe au Pistou : This is my absolute favorite soup of the summer, hands down. It’s basically an excuse to go wild at the farmers’ market and buy one of everything, because this soupe au pistou happily absorbs whatever’s in season. Snappy green beans, tender summer squash, tomatoes at their juiciest, along with any adorably tiny pasta, and creamy white beans for heft.

The finishing touch is a generous spoonful of basil pistou stirred in right before serving. The soup is brothy but substantial, light but totally meal-worthy, and about as bright and fresh as summer eating gets.

Crispy Zucchini, Basil, and Corn Casserole: I have a produce problem. It’s called Musterfield’s, a farm stand in Sutton, NH that’s basically a shack, a chalkboard, a scale, and the honor system. Just write down what you bought, drop cash or a check in the wooden box, no cashier required. By late afternoon, the shelves are nearly bare. Last week I got there just in time for zucchini, summer squash, and basil. No corn yet.

So I improvised with sweet corn from my freezer, a half-jar of red sauce left over from pizza night, and a food I typically steer away from, plant-based mozzarella. But this recipe demanded a good melt, so I reached for Good Planet, which uses olive oil instead of coconut oil (way less saturated fat). It did not disappoint. This recipe claims to serve 6, but my husband and I nearly finished it in one sitting.

Mega Crunchy Salad with Quinoa : This is a riff on a Trader Joe’s pre-packaged salad. Probably best to stay away from those for now. But do not deprive yourself of lettuce, especially crunchy romaine, which your local farmer is likely to have bushels of right now. Load that romaine up with radishes, carrots, cabbage, and sunflower seeds for crunch (and fiber your gut will thank you for), fold in fluffy quinoa for a protein burst, then toss the whole thing with a zesty-sweet cilantro-maple dressing. Your taste buds are about to throw a party, and you’re invited.

Protein-Packed Zucchini Burgers: Zucchini or yellow summer squash, use whichever one’s currently taking over your garden, or looks best at the farmers’ market. Unlike most store-bought veggie burgers (looking at you, mystery-brown-patty), this one actually contains vegetables.

The squash adds moisture, plus a hint of natural sweetness. White beans bring protein and a creamy texture that holds it all together. Toasted pumpkin seeds add crunch, because texture matters. And quinoa rounds it out with a nutty flavor and complete protein, so this burger is overachieving before it even hits the oven. Bonus: they freeze beautifully. Make a double batch, and future-you, dragging in after a brutal day, zero desire to cook, will find these waiting and make you sooooo happy.

Simple Cherry Tomato Pasta : Three pints of cherry tomatoes still warm from the vine, a fistful of fresh basil, a bag of skinny pasta, good olive oil, and a few cloves of garlic is all you need. A simple pasta dinner where sweet, sun-ripened tomatoes get to be the star of the show is pretty much my idea of summer heaven. The tomatoes burst and collapse into a natural sauce, the garlic goes golden and fragrant in the olive oil, and the basil perfumes the whole thing at the last second.