The biggest complaint I hear from contrarians about buying healthy local food from the farmers market is that it sure as hell ain't cheap.

If you'd like to get into the locavore mood but are cash deficient, like so many of us these days, you might want to check out a FREE event taking place tonight at People's CO-OP [3029 SE 21st]. The premise? How you can afford to eat locally and sustainably by getting the absolute most out of what you're buying. In two separate lectures/demonstrations beginning at 6:30 pm this evening, Chef Linda Watson from Cookforgood.com will be showcasing techniques for purchasing and cooking cheap, healthy, and sustainable meals. From the press release:

6:30pm - Using Thrift as a Path Towards Healthy People and Healthy Food Systems
A growing minority of people vote with their forks for pure food, humane treatment of workers and animals, a sustainable local food system, and the environment. Yet many people can't see the point of eating anything but the cheapest, most convenient, and "tastiest" food, no matter what their financial situation. This talk discusses four hurdles that keep people from eating healthy, local food and four opportunities to help people overcome them.

8:00pm - You bought it, so cook it! Making green cooking affordable
You can afford to cook with local, sustainably grown, and organic ingredients. Just squeeze every last drop of flavor and nutrition out of the food you buy. Linda will show you how to make delicious dishes out of food that many people throw away. Learn how to make Magic Asparagus Quiche, Parsley Pesto, Chickpea Gravy, and Spanish Rice. Develop new habits that will provide you with "free" meals every month. Save hundreds of dollars a year and up your locavore score by making the best use of your freezer.

It just may give you the info you need to make your weekly farmers market trip as affordable as your average Safeway haul.