Category Archives: CSA

CSA Week 10

Caprese

We’ve made it to the halfway point in my CSA season, which is kind of hard to believe! I did pretty well this week, probably because I had a couple of extra mouths to feed…in the form of parents visiting from NY:

  • Cucumbers: 100%
  • Zucchini: 100%
  • Beet greens: 100%
  • Tomatoes: 100%
  • Swiss chard: 100%
  • Basil: 100%
  • Corn: 100%
  • Blueberries: 100%
  • Watermelon: 100%
  • Lettuce: 50%
I super enjoyed the corn and the tomatoes (with basil and mozzarella). This week is also momentous because I fired up my grill for the first time, and grilled flank steak and zucchini…not a bad way to christen my free grill! Now hopefully I will remember how to light it without Dad around.

I was putting basil on everything, but decided to make more pesto with the rest of the basil from last week and the new basil we got today. We got a pretty huge share this week so there will be lots of veggie maintenance in my future. It was hard to fit it all in one photo.
Week 10
I appreciate all of the zucchini recipe love that people have been sending me! I really am looking forward to trying some of them…next time zucchini wants to come home with me.

My half
I am also very proud to present my very own tomatoes! These little grape tomatoes have been doing so well, one of the plants has even grown larger than the tomato cage.

Tiny tomato harvest

CSA Week 9

This week I made a quick trip to North Carolina to visit some college friends. And I got to have some pretty fantastic fried chicken at one of Ashley Christensen’s restaurants in Raleigh. We went to Beasley’s Chicken + Honey for lunch, which opened at 11:30. I got there at 11:20 and there was a large crowd waiting outside the restaurant to get in. No food pictures…I was too busy eating!


For being away for the weekend, I did ok with my veg consumption for the week.

  • Basil: 100% made pesto and froze it
  • Blueberries: 100%
  • Lettuce: 90%
  • Radicchio: 90% (that tiny little head was super bitter)
  • Carrots: 25%
  • Onions: 10%
  • Zucchini: 0%
  • Cucumber: 0%
This week felt more like a normal share, though last year at this time we were already getting peaches. I’m not complaining, I love the blueberries…and we got a watermelon this week (always reminds me of Dirty Dancing, “I carried a watermelon”). I traded my Japanese eggplant for two extra ears of corn.

Week 9
I am excited for the first corn and tomatoes of the season. I picked up some fresh mozzarella to have with the tomato and basil.

My half

CSA Week 8

I am very proud to report that all of the zucchini and summer squash is now gone!! Well technically it’s not totally all eaten, but it’s all been “dealt with”. I made a zucchini salad, which was *actually* pretty good and I sautéed up the summer squash with some green garlic and onion. Earlier in the week, I also did a collard, chard, beet green sauté. Into a pan with olive oil and garlic scapes, the collards went in first (they take the longest to cook), then the chard, and then the beet greens (they were tiny ones).

Delish

Here’s how I did this week:

  • Zucchini/summer squash: 100%
  • Kale: 100% (made kale chips once it cooled down enough for me to be able to turn on the oven)
  • Beet greens: 100%
  • Green beans: 100% (made a gremolata, recipe coming soon)
  • Cucumbers: 50%
  • Onions: 50%
  • Red gold potatoes: 0%
Here’s what’s on tap for this week:

Week 8, Photo courtesy of Claire Blay

Five ounces is a lot of basil, and I was correct in my suspicion that I got more than half of it! Since it doesn’t love being refrigerated (turns kind of black), I decided to make a quick pesto. 

My half




CSA Week 6

I did pretty well this week…the only things left were parsley and garlic scapes.

  • Strawberries: 100%
  • Lettuce: 100%
  • Salad greens: 100%
  • Napa cabbage: 100% (made Napa salad)
  • Cucumbers: 100%
  • Broccoli: 100%
  • Summer squash: 100%
  • Pearl onions: 100%
  • Parsley: 0%
  • Garlic scapes: 0%
It actually felt like a bit of a light share this week, though I don’t have a comparison because this time last year I was in Belgium celebrating the Gentse Feesten! Perhaps it’s due to the lack of lettuce. It’s getting too hot for lettuce, and I can totally sympathize…I don’t do so well in the heat and humidity either. Anyway, here’s what I will be eating this week:
Photo courtesy of Claire Blais
I am very excited for blueberries and Swiss chard!

My half


CSA Week 5

I felt pretty good about the emptiness of the vegetable drawer in my refrigerator today, but perhaps that’s because most of the goods we got last week weren’t that bulky. I had a party to go to last weekend and decided to use the spinach from this week and last week to make a spinach dip (recipe coming soon). Here’s how I did this week:

  • Strawberries: 100%
  • Mesclun mix: 100%
  • Spinach: 100%
  • Lettuce: 75%
  • Pickling cucumbers: 50%
  • Broccoli: 50%
  • Carrots: 50%
  • Garlic scapes: 50%
  • Collards: 0%
  • Thyme: 0%

This week most of my veggies are going on a field trip to Bay Shore to celebrate the Fourth of July! Happy birthday America! This is the first week I took advantage of the “swap box” and traded in a purple kohlrabi for an extra head of lettuce to take to NY. Sadly it is probably the last week we will get strawberries…we only got a pint and they were super ripe so I just ate them as soon as I got home. 

Week 5

It was nice to see Napa cabbage as I love my Napa salad recipe. Not as nice to start seeing zucchini and summer squash already…probably my least favorite vegetables, but over the years we have developed a mutual tolerance of each other.

My half

CSA Week 4

Leftover from week 2, I finished the lettuce (it seems never-ending at this time of year) and the Russian kale, which I sauteed up with the Swiss chard. I made an over easy egg to go with the Swiss chard/kale mixture and also added some of these leftover greens to a grilled cheese sandwich. All in all, I was pretty proud of my veggie maintenance this week!

  • Strawberries: 100%
  • Swiss chard: 100%
  • Savoy cabbage: 100% (made a cabbage gratin)
  • Beets: 100% (roasted and added to salads)
  • Pea tendrils: 100% (made a pasta dish, recipe coming soon)
  • Lettuce: 100%
  • Garlic scapes: 100% 
  • Dill: 50% (also donated some)
  • Spinach: 0%
 It’s nice to see some good salad toppings this week (carrots, cukes, broccoli), in addition to all of the lettuce and salad greens!
Week 4
My half


CSA Week 3

Another week of veggies, and another Bruins game (game 4). Leftover from week 1, I finished up the green garlic, gilfeather, and radishes in my braising/pickling experiment, as well as the kohlrabi and Hakurei turnips from this week. And here’s how I did this week:

  • Kohlrabi: 100%
  • Hakurei turnips: 100%
  • Spinach: 100% (wilted with olive oil and chopped garlic scape)
  • Garlic scape: 100%
  • Mixed greens: 100%
  • Strawberries: 100%
  • Lettuce: 50%
  • Red Russian kale: 0%
  • Oregano: 0%
  • Cilantro: 0% (but it’s de-stemmed)
This week’s goods seem a lot bigger than last year at this time. I got the cabbage this week and my CSA PIC (partner-in-crime) took the endive. The farm seems to have a plethora of lettuce and salad greens – they’ve been advertising (on Facebook) with a “buy one lettuce, get one free” coupon to be used at a farm stand or market. I have some aggressive salad eating to do!
CSA Week 3
I’m intrigued by the pea tendrils, but really have no idea what to do with them. If I think of something interesting, I’ll be sure to share!

My half

CSA Week 2

Bruins game 1, CSA week 2. It is nights like this where I wish I had a tv in my kitchen, or could do veggie prep from the couch!

Week 1, how did I do? This blog definitely keeps me honest about my veggie intake. It also leads me to do strange things like a late night spinach and green garlic saute and/or attempt to create radish roses (just kidding about the radish rose part). It takes me awhile to eat radishes since I just add them to salads.

  • Mixed greens: 100% (as in 100% gone)
  • Lettuce: 100%
  • Spinach: 100% (sauteed up with some green garlic)
  • Strawberries: 100%
  • Green garlic: 33% (the rest is chopped and ready to use)
  • Radishes: 20%
  • Gilfeather: 0% (no inspiration yet…)
I wonder how all of this rain will affect our shares. The farm posted this to Facebook yesterday, “Almost 2 inches of rain overnight. Hey sky, turn off the tap!”. I agree, enough with the rain already!

Week 2 brings lots of greens – mixed greens, lettuce, spinach, and Russian kale. Apparently Russian kale is like regular kale except it cooks faster. Since I typically like all things Russian, I’m sure that I will like it just fine ;). Last year at this time, we got beets, carrots, broccoli, and cabbage instead of kohlrabi and turnips.  

Week 2

Btw, our CSA coordinator this year is awesome! She is super organized and I love the addition of the “swap box” (you can leave items you don’t want, and take something else from the box in return).

My half



CSA Week 1

It’s the first week of my CSA…yay! And this year, because I’m super nerdy, I’m excited to compare this year’s weekly shares to last year’s. Same as last year, the goods come from Red Fire Farm in Granby, MA. I am doing a 20-week vegetable share and a fruit share, and splitting it with a friend which comes out to $17.88 per week.


June 5, 2013

Anyone know what a gilfeather is? It sure looks like a turnip…turns out it is a turnip! Those beautiful strawberries aren’t going to last long.


My half

CSA Week 20

And then we come to the end…the last week of my CSA was this week. Since I’ve been so behind in veggie maintenance, it’s a bit of a relief that I won’t keep adding to the stock in my refrigerator. I also won’t be adding to my guilt for not having time to do something fun with it.

This is the first year with Red Fire Farm that I’m not doing the November/December shares. The pickups for those months are a little tougher to coordinate (Friday evenings), and honestly I just can’t eat that many potatoes. But ask me in a month, after I have to resume shopping for produce at the regular grocery store, and I might have a different attitude about it. Either way, I’ll be sending in my deposit for the 2013 season soon!

The leftovers from the previous weeks have all kind of blended together, but the main things I had left were kale, lettuce, and beets. Since we got more beets this week, it looks like I might have to host a little beet roasting party in my oven.

Week 20
My half

 Until next year…