Summer Vegetable CSA Week 6 -- Fruit CSA Week 1

Week 6 was a beautiful week for weather and vegetables. We received basil, green leaf lettuce, mint, 3 green onions, 2 bunches of radishes, 8 cucumbers, 6 squash, 2 swiss chard, 4 ears of corn, a missing pint of grape tomatoes, and two bunches of carrots.

The fruit share contained 2 pints of blueberries and a 1/2 pint of raspberries.

I'm still catching up on life after the breakage of our stove, the internet constantly dying for no reason, and my beautiful dear child dumping a drink on my laptop. I've also had lovely weather to distract me, but I've also been busy preserving and making jam.

Most of these things are long gone, I can tell you what I made:
Blueberries were went into a salad and a few jars of small batch jam.
Raspberries were frozen for future misdeeds.
The basil made sauce, meatballs, and bruschetta.
Green onions were frozen and used in bruschetta along with tomatoes.
Lettuce, cucumbers, and radishes were for salad.
Other cukes are being made into pickles.
I roasted most of the squash for lasagna or side dishes.
Swiss chard was a side dish.
The corn was used in my First Time Grilling Corn Ever.
The carrots last forever, so they are stored in my fridge.

That's what happens to a week's worth of vegetables! It is kind of neat to look back and say how everything was used and to see how little waste we made, I think it was a successful week in the kitchen.

Summer Vegetable CSA Week 5

Week 5: 2 Kohlrabi, 2 beets, fennel, 8 assorted squash, 2 basil bunches, arugula, peas, 2 bunches radishes, 6 pickling cucumbers, scapes and lettuce. I'm planning on baking with the zucchini and roasting what I don't use as a side dish. The arugula will become pesto as well. The beets are already chips. Kohlrabi isn't my favorite vegetable but I was thinking I might make a cheese sauce and serve it as a side dish, since it tastes somewhat like broccoli. I am hoping to make and can some relish this week with the cucumbers. Here is where the season really begins to pick up and I dedicate a lot of time to preserving, which is always appreciated in the late fall and winter.

Summer Vegetable CSA Week 4

This week we had a new vegetable, a big leafy green bunch of escarole. I can't remember if I've ever taken escarole in the past three years or if I've ever received it in my share. Anyways, it made a lovely Italian wedding soup. We also got beets, which I always make into chips, green onions, basil, sugar snap peas, fennel, scapes, red and green lettuce, and various squash. I was sure to pick up some pine nuts and I've made a ton of pesto to freeze, though I am certain it will probably not last past Christmas. Again, the food has been flying out of the kitchen but I've been so busy, with internet problems, stove problems, and any other problems that can be problemed, all I want to do is eat, otherwise I'd have more pictures an recipes. The beginning of July is always insanely busy, better to be busy before fruit season though!

Summer Vegetable CSA Week 3

Week three brought us more sugar snap peas, kousa and summer squash, beets, swiss chard, chives, lettuce, radishes, scapes and broccoli rabe. My favorite thing to do with the sugar snap peas is to put them in salads but I also love to just wash them and take them with us as a portable snack. The squash was roasted and along with the broccoli rabe, it made a great lasagna. The scapes were made into pesto and the chives packed away for another day. It really amazes me how quickly everything goes. I never have a lot of kitchen waste but I think this has been my best year yet.

Summer Vegetable CSA Week 2

Week 2: Two bunches each broccoli rabe and rainbow chard, a bag of spinach, a bag of snow peas, two tomatoes, a head of romaine lettuce as well as Boston lettuce, two bunches of chives, two summer squash, and garlic scapes. I loaded all into my vegetable ark and brought it home in the pouring rain.

Now that my oven is again working, I'm hoping to have a productive week in the kitchen. Whenever we get romaine, I know we're going to have salad. I do have a few odd-ball type recipes on deck that use cooked romaine but I'm waiting for a week where I'm swimming in lettuce. I love using Boston lettuce in place of bread, so I will keep it on hand as long as possible to use as a wrap or a taco shell. if not, there is always salad. The squash, spinach, and chard are all in just the right amount for a side dish. As usual, I will chop and freeze the chives. For the broccoli rabe, I am thinking about a ricotta cheese sauce with sausage meatballs or a white lasagna. As for the scapes and the peas, I just don't know, they are both great in salads. For this week, scapes are definitely my wild card. I will either make a pesto or incorporate them into a meal in place of garlic. I'd say the biggest challenge will be using the peas before they go bad, I may have to review my notes from last year and give myself a refresher course on peas.

I'll put this question to both of my readers: What should I do with the peas? If I make your recipe, I'll post a photo and give you credit! How amazing would that be?! Almost on par with a Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer giveaway, right?

Vegetable CSA Week 1

This was the first day of a twenty week vegetable CSA. This has probably been my favorite first week out of the last three years. 2 bunches of thyme, oregano, garlic chives, 2 bunches broccoli rabe, a cucumber, 2 bags of spinach, beets, 1 bunch kale, a head of Boston lettuce and a tomato that is not pictured because it is in protective custody.

Thankfully, beets will keep a long time in the fridge because I have a repairman coming sometime this week. I cannot make beet chips until he looks at my oven. That's a pretty major setback so I'm planning on doing most things on grill or stove top. The thyme will be hung and dried for another day and the oregano will be frozen in an ice cube. I'm not sure about the garlic chives yet, whether I want to make a compound butter, a pesto, or just freeze them. The lettuce will make a great bread substitute or will go for a salad, while the spinach will end up as a pesto or dip. I'm not sure about the broccoli rabe, maybe a pasta or sausage dish. We often use the cucumbers as a substitute for crackers or chips, our 4 year old loves them this way. As for the kale, I'm still not certain. I wish I could find one go-to recipe that I like for kale but until then, it continues to defeat me week after week. Kale is my biggest nemesis.

Week 12: Final Spring CSA Week

This is the last week of the my Spring CSA share. Next week is the first week of summer shares. I was so happy to see tomatoes! Even though they are greenhouse-grown, they are leaps and bounds beyond whatever is in the grocery stores right now. This week also included kale, parsley, cilantro, 2 bags of spinach, two bags of lettuce and a bag of joi choi with nasturtiums. I originally had some tatsoi but I traded it for an extra bag of lettuce in the swap box.  One bag isn't enough for my family for a week!
We had our usual Taco Salad, so as of now, we're one bag of lettuce, one tomato down and the cilantro is gone. I'm thinking of spring rolls on Friday with the joi choi, carrots, and some shrimp. The kale is going to be in a chicken, kale and carrot soup. The spinach will be a dip or spanakopita. I'll still have enough extra to make a great salad and the parsley will probably end up in a compound butter.

I'm so glad we signed up for the spring share, and I'm looking forward to my third bountiful summer share.

Spring CSA Week 11

 

What a week! I was really surprised to find tomatoes and chives with flowers in my share. My son had to carry one bag of spinach because I should have brought two bags this week. We ended up with three bags of spinach, kale, tatsoi, nasturtiums, lettuce mix, carrots and a lovely bunch of oregano. No swaps this week for me, but I really had a hard time deciding between cherry tomatoes and a big, ripe whole tomato.

I've mostly been making things that I've made before as I tend to do when I am busy. I made a whopping bowl of spinach dip last week and will probably make another this week. I like spinach almost every way so it isn't hard to use up three bags. It looks like salad with the lettuce this week and I might have all the ingredients for a nice dressing. The tatsoi will be for an Asian dish one night and I am thinking about making a kale and feta pie. I feel like the carrots don't get attention but I can't make enough of them when we have a roast, so they are always great to have on hand. The oregano is enough for some herb butter, and then some, probably two batches for the freezer. The tomatoes and the chives might be components of a salad dressing or just part of a salad with edible flowers. If we're grilling, I might even throw the tomatoes on the grill.

Spring CSA Week 10

This was a great week for spinach. I traded my bok choy for an extra bag, making a total of three bags of spinach, a bag of mixed lettuce, carrots, chives, dill, kale, a cucumber, and a few nasturtiums.

My plan for the week: dill dip for potatoes, salad, a green smoothie with kale, preserve the chives, spinach dip, and a main dish or soup with spinach. If we don't use all the cucumber for salad, I slice them thin with a mandoline and use them in place of chips or crackers.

Someone recently asked "What do you do to use your share up before it goes bad?" For many people a CSA share can be overwhelming in quantity and variety. When I bring my bounty home, I usually photograph it and take inventory.

Root vegetables last the longest and go into the fridge or storage right away. I put the vegetables stored at room temperature away next. Lastly, anything that has to be wrapped or stored for maximum freshness, such as herbs or leafy greens gets packaged and put in the fridge. I make note of what needs to be eaten first and cannot be preserved, usually lettuce and pea tendrils. Normally, I make a salad in the first few days after a pick-up, using the other vegetables.

On a big week, in the summer or fall, I make a menu up based on what needs to be eaten first. I write out a plan for snacks, sides, lunches, and main meals. I also decide what I want to preserve in the freezer, by canning, or other means. I will normally preserve the food the same say or 1-2 days after a pickup at the latest.

As for veggies like eggplant, squash, root vegetables, I usually plan to use them over the weekend or when pick-up day is closer. I pick up my share on Tuesdays, the vegetables that last longest are perfect for weekend meals that require longer cooking times.

Lastly, I think the first year or two of a CSA can be an adjustment period for some people. Learning new recipes and becoming familiar with new food takes time. When a food becomes familiar to the cook, preparation time decreases, as well as waste. My advice is to be patient, try to avoid waste but realize you are still learning and that sometimes things will go bad, it gets easier after the first year. If you are determined to make it work, the benefits are fantastic. You will become more prepared, self-reliant, frugal, and you will have a full freezer and pantry--not to mention a kitchen full of fresh delicious vegetables--so don't let waste discourage you!

Spring CSA Week 8

Lettuce, nasturtiums, oregano, chives, carrots, cucumbers, braising mix, and spinach! We're leaving for a trip and I've already planned to take part of my share on the go. I'm going to make a spinach dip to spread on sliced cucumber, pepper strips, and crackers for the road. We'll be taking a salad, as well as eating one for our last meal here at home. The carrots will keep until we get back. I've chopped the oregano and frozen it in a cube of ice for a future sauce. The chives are chopped and stored in the freezer for another day as well. I traded my joi choi for an extra bunch of chives in the swap box because they freeze so well and I didn't want anything to go to waste. There were a lot of chives in the swap box, I can't even imagine not wanting them! I'm sure that other people feel the same way about the beets, kohlrabi, and extra cukes that I exchange in the regular season.

Spring CSA Week 7

 Herbs are never a bad thing. I was so happy when I opened my box this week to find cilantro, chives, and basil. I even traded my joi choi for more cilantro. We go through cilantro pretty fast these days. Tonight, we're having taco salad again and I was thinking about making more chimichurri sauce for a mixed grill dinner that we're having on Wednesday. It makes a great marinade, too. I'm hoping to use the basil in a sauce, possibly for eggplant on Thursday. It looks like I have plenty of carrots and greens for salads and braising. The cucumber always goes great in salad but it isn't bad for dressings and appetizers, either. I'll probably end up freezing the chives for another day and I'm not sure if the what the greens are in the share, they look like arugula, but they might be from a root vegetable or a mustard green.

Spring CSA Week 6

Week 6 brought three bags of storage potatoes, actually two, but I traded my joi choi in the swap box. We also received a bunch of radishes, a cucumber, storage carrots, tatsoi, mixed lettuce, and cilantro. There is always a surprise each week, this week it was a nasturtium in the salad mix and a small bunch of mint.  I wish there would have been more nasturtiums so I could try a few of the recipes I have been saving, but the mint really threw me a curve. I don't cook with mint much but I do know of a wonderful salad dressing that is made with mint and I can always make Greek food with mint and a cucumber. Perhaps I might even end up infusing it into a tea? All in all, I'm very pleased with the Spring share, it is better than I thought it would be.

Spring CSA Week 5

It is a challenge to get new things in a weekly CSA share from week to week. I also enjoy the challenge that comes from those weeks with little variation. Staying out of a rut and trying new things requires a lot of creativity.

This week we have another salad green mix, a cucumber, joi choi (it's getting bigger, too), cilantro, storage carrots, storage potatoes and radishes. I actually had dill but I traded it for more radishes.

Tonight we're having a salad bar with citrus-balsamic dressing, steak tips, cilantro chimichurri, and sauteed radish greens. I used carrots and cucumbers from my share for the salad as well. As I write this, this week's share is halfway gone. I have plans for the carrots in a braised dish later this week, the joi choi will be something Asian, lettuce wraps, soup, or maybe spring rolls, and as for the potatoes, no idea yet. I have some bacon ends that would make a nice potato soup but maybe I want gnocchi. Either way, I'm glad that potatoes are so versatile and they store so well!

Spring CSA Week 4

Look at all that green!

It is hard to believe we're already on Week 4. As you can see above, we're looking pretty green. We've got mixed lettuces and spicy mix (the one that looks thin and wispy) and even regular lettuce. Carrots and potatoes, from the winter storage crop, graced our share. The Cutest Little Radishes Ever continue this week with two new additions: a greenhouse grown cuke and cilantro.

As I write this, I'm making taco salad for dinner so we're already down 1 bag of lettuce and the cilantro is gone. I will be trying to think of some new, fun salads to have this week, maybe a new take on some of our favorite dinners. I didn't get a chance to eat just the radish greens alone last week, I tasted them, even added a few to the soup, so hopefully I can try them sauteed soon. They hold up well in anything with cooked greens. So many greens from tubers and root vegetables are tasty and edible, so don't just chop them off and throw them away!

Spring CSA Week 3

Pretty little radishes

Mustard greens, joi choi, lettuce mix, tatsoi, potatoes and radishes. (clockwise)

Spring is here, or at least pretending to be here a few days a week. We're still in mud season and all getting a touch of cabin fever. It is always fun to see the different changes in the CSA box from week to week, perhaps being stuck in the house all winter adds to that excitement. This week we have the cutest little radishes, I had beets but I swapped them for a second bunch of radishes. If I have time, I may sautee the radish greens for a side dish but, otherwise the radishes are going to be great in salad or spring rolls. As for the other greens, I see multiple salads in the week ahead. I'm still thinking of working the tatsoi into a gingery soup, something quick and flavorful for lunch. I have a stew in the works with potatoes and carrots that will be ample for dinner and lunch the next day. As for the mustard greens, I don't know how much bite they have, so I may blanch half and serve the other half raw, and we'll see how we like them best. Overall, Everyone in our family has enjoyed much more energy from eating so many greens, myself included.

Spring CSA Week 2

This is the second week of my Spring CSA, it looks a lot like last week. We had beets but my children wanted to swap them for potatoes. We ended up with two bags of potatoes, a bag of carrots, baby lettuce mix (top), baby tatsoi (right), and baby bok choi (bottom left). I really liked the baby bok choi it is really mild, it was almost sweet. I wonder if the baby tatsoi, another brassica, will be milder than regular tatsoi, which tends to be slightly bitter.

I like to try to change things up a bit from week to week, but I am always tempted to repeat my favorites. The lettuce will be a salad tonight. With the bok choy, I am thinking maybe an Asian soup with shrimp. As for the tatsoi, since I have to go to the grocery store, I was thinking about picking up some shiitake mushrooms, and making a mushroom stir fry or maybe egg rolls, I could add in the carrots, too. Potatoes, really, how hard is it to use potatoes? I think they only way I don't like them is in potato salad because I don't generally like mayonnaise. I wouldn't eat even my favorite food if it was covered in mayonnaise, but I will eat just about anything in a flour tortilla. Draw your own conclusions on that one.

PS: I think my Spell Check needs to spend more time at the farmer's market. It's called tatsoi and I most certainly do not mean Tutsi. Technology is weird.

Spring CSA Week 1

Carrots, baby bok choy (joi choy), potatoes, celeriac, baby arugula, and baby spicy greens

This is the first week's haul of my Spring CSA and also my first spring CSA session. It's a light haul, smaller than even the small shares of the summer but I am glad to have some fresh vegetables in the house again.

That ugly vegetable in the center is celeriac, it has a very mild flavor, like a cross between celery and a white potato. It's great in soups, and I will probably either make celeriac and potato soup or cream of celeriac soup. The baby arugula is heading for a salad, the joi choi will probably end up in a salad or a stir fry, and the spicy greens are going in a soup. I will probably split up the carrots for salad and maybe make some glazed carrots as a side dish.