our first basket! (this year)

Last week our family received the first CSA basket of the year!  (CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture, find out more by clicking HERE.) This is our fifth year of participating in such a program.  We love it so much; it's wonderful to get a chance to have all of this fresh, local, seasonal produce.  I love that we're helping to support a local farmer.  And it's great to be encouraged to try new things - I am very much a one of getting stuck in a rut as far as which foods I buy.

We will receive a weekly basket of goodies throughout the growing season - roughly from June through September/October.  The amount of produce in each week's basket varies according to the season (for example, although this week's basket was plentiful, the fullest basket is yet to come).

Our first basket included:  two heads of lettuce, broccoli, pod peas, a ton of Walla Walla onions, a green pepper radishes, beet greens, kale, and Swiss chard.  Bounty!  We're so thankful to be able to do this again. 

To nourishment,

seasonal food: beets

When I was a kid, I would not eat beets.

I know, big shocker.  There's a lot of stuff I wouldn't eat as a child.  And there's a story in family lore of how a daycare provider tried to make my brother eat beets, and how traumatic the whole thing was.  Clearly, beets were not something a sane person chose to eat.

But over the past few years, largely due to the CSA program, I have absolutely fallen in love with beets.  My favorite way to prepare them is to roast them.  I cook them til they're nice and tender, peel them (marveling at the gorgeous hue), and dice them.  Then I toss them with a little extra virgin olive oil and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar, adding a sprinkle or two of salt.  Perfection!  My daughter adores them this way. 

Fermented Beets

Another way we use beets around here is to pickle them.  I use the lacto-fermentation process - it's so easy! The end result is a crisp, flavorful beet: great on salads or in wraps.  I really enjoy the addition of a little garlic too, it adds such a nice zip to the pickled beets.

Pink Coleslaw

When I first learned about Pink Coleslaw, I was intrigued.  And it's the easiest thing ever to "pink" up the recipe!  Just grate a raw beet into the mix and stir it up.  The recipe called for two beets, but I only used one (I got lazy), and the result was still very pink.  It tastes like normal coleslaw to me (though I love that the dressing is sweetened with honey), but you get the health benefits of beets as well as that stunning color.

And what are the health benefits? According to Sally Fallon in Nourishing Traditions, beets are a wonderful source of vitamins and nutrients: "calcium, iron, magnesium and phosphorus, as well as carotene, B complex and vitamin C."   They can be eaten cooked, raw, or fermented.  They also help to detoxify.

My next quest is trying and making beet kvass.  Talk about packing a punch!  And to think, a few years ago I never even would have considered it, not for anything.  My, how time can change things.

Blessings,


p.s.  I should probably tell you that beets can influence the color of your urine, especially if you eat more than one serving.  So if you g out and enjoy them, don't be alarmed!  You are not dying.  It's simply part of the "beet experience."

a seasonal jackpot

summer squash, zucchini

I was hugely bummed to miss the first three weeks of the season for the CSA (Community  Supported Agriculture) baskets we purchase in summer.  As it turned out, the very first one was to be delivered on the day we drove out of town.  What timing!  My neighbor kindly offered to receive them and reimburse us for the produce - part of the arrangement of the CSA program is that the consumer commits to buying from the farmer for the growing season.  I hated the idea of paying for three weeks' worth of produce we'd never see, and I also hated the idea of asking for a refund for those three weeks.  This program is built to support the local farmer; that's one of the many reasons I love getting seasonal produce in this way.

kohlrabi

Well, we got home on Saturday and I discovered that my neighbor had sweetly put the perishable vegetables away in my kitchen.  When I poked around to see what there was, I was amazed at the quantity!  Three weeks in, and we are rolling in produce.  Let me take you on a little tour of my refrigerator's crisper, if I may...

beets

green onions
cauliflower
kohlrabi
beets
lettuce
cucumbers
red chard
green chard
English peas
snap peas
carrots
cabbage
zucchini
yellow summer squash

cucumbers

Did I score, or what?!

this week's CSA basket

I keep meaning to share about our CSA baskets this summer. Currently, they are absolutely packed, filled to the brim and then some. Here's a photo from this week's basket. Doesn't everything look wonderful?

This week we'll be enjoying green beans, cucumbers, lemon cucumbers, carrots, kale, chard, lettuce, red potatoes, peas, and (ta-da!) tomatoes - though not the ones featured in yesterday's blog post. Those beauties were from my very own garden. But back to the basket: we also received fresh parsley and basil. We'll see how much we can get through before the weekend!

Needless to say, I'm not buying many vegetables from the farmer' market these days. I've got all I can keep up with from our weekly CSA baskets. This summer, we've also been enjoying cabbage, cherries, raspberries, and golden potatoes. It's been so much fun!

To learn more about what a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) is, or to find a program near you, click here.

the last days of June

As June draws to a close, I feel a bit as though I'm in a desert. I am hungry, thirsty, and tired. My supplies are dwindling, and my eyes search the horizon for a sign of nourishment. Surely things will turn around...soon, soon.

The scene inside our chest freezer is bleak. We've eaten the ten chickens I bought from a friend last summer. Our 3/8 of a side of beef is gone - aside from a few organ meats I haven't been able to cope with just yet.

Outside, our garden is struggling. Some plants are doing well, but others long for sun and warmth, as do I. June has been cool and rainy here, and my tomato plants do not appreciate that fact. By and large, the garden is hanging in there, but there's not much that's ready for picking - yet.

I've spent my grocery budget for the month. Every penny. Last week I was scraping to buy produce. I wanted to buy a head of cauliflower, but couldn't quite manage it. I'd spent that money on strawberries, so I had to settle for something less expensive. Our fresh vegetable purchases last week consisted lettuce and a single cucumber. (We also had a stash of carrots.)

Yes, things are bleak. For the last few weeks, meals have been extra frugal, and often meatless, unfortunately. Thankfully, I still have some shredded, cooked chicken in the freezer, which I pull out for this and that. But all in all, the end of June is fairly stark.

Ah...but July is coming. July, when I will purchase a new batch (ten in all) of fresh, pastured chickens. July, when I'll get the call that our new order of grass-fed beef is ready to pick up. July, when the CSA program we're signed up for will begin. July, when summer will likely begin to feel like summer - for more than one or two days a week.

With any luck, July shall bring berries and vegetables, pastured meat, warmer temperatures, and sunshine.

So for now, we're buckling down and getting by. But July...ah, July. In July, we shall eat like kings.

bring it on!

It's been a long time coming (due to the lingering cold and rain in my area), but at long last, the CSA baskets are back! CSA, you may recall, stands for Community Supported Agriculture. It's a great idea, and I am so pleased to be able to participate again.

We're going through a different farmer this year (when I contacted our first farmer, in March, they were completely full!), but I'm confident that we're in for another good experience. Also, for a small extra fee, they'll deliver the basket to my house! That's worth a lot to this busy mom of four.

The first basket of the season included: raspberries, Walla Walla onions, yellow onions, mixed lettuce, kale, red potatoes, radishes, and sugar snap peas. I can hardly wait to see what the summer and early fall will bring us!

fresh roasted pumpkin

I recently took a whack at my first pumpkin.

Truly. I received one from the CSA one week, and considering that it was organic, I decided to use it for food purposes, as opposed to a purely decorative one.

So I did some research. In the process, I came across this website. I found it extremely helpful, and, in light of the fact that I had a "small pumpkin" and had very little interest in removing the pumpkin's shell with a knife (I had hacked away at a round squash not too long ago, and it was less than enjoyable), I decided to go with the method the website used on pumpkin #2.

So I cut it open, removed the seeds and pulp, and cut it into wedges.



I then roasted the wedges at 350* F. It didn't take nearly the 2 hours suggested, though. In fact, I wish I had taken it out a bit earlier.


Still, the peel came off beautifully. I then pureed the pumpkin flesh in my food processor.

Please excuse the poor quality of this photo. My camera and I were having a serious disagreement. This is the best of my efforts, if you can believe it.

I used it in a loaf of pumpkin bread. This was my first attempt at using fresh pumpkin, and I think it's safe to say that I learned a lot. But I will no longer be intimidate by the classic and charming vegetable!

roasted summer tomatoes

One of my favorite things to learn this summer is to make roasted tomatoes. So simple, yet so delicious.

I've been enjoying such a bounty of tomatoes, between the CSA and our friends' garden surplus. I've loved making extra batches to put into the freezer for some cold rainy day this winter. I'm convinced that the wonderful taste of tomatoes will be like a ray of sunshine.


Preheat the oven to 375* F.

Prepare:
-approximately 4 lbs (about 8 cups) tomatoes, cut into 1 or 1 1/2 inch wedges
-1 sweet onion, cut into 1 or 1 1/2 inch wedges
-15 or 20 garlic cloves, peeled

Place the vegetables into roasting pans. (I used metal pans before, but since the move my edged pans are MIA...so glass it is for me.) They can be crowded, but try to keep the vegetables in a single layer.

Top with:
-1 c. fresh basil, torn (if on hand, I've recently been using dried basil instead)
-generous drizzle of olive oil
-salt and pepper sprinkled over


Roast about 1 hour, but check frequently. You want the skins to be wrinkled, but you don't want them to be burnt.


After the pans come out, let the vegetables cool. My preference at this point is to transfer them to my food processor, and process into a chunky sauce. We love it on pizza, as well as served over noodles. Delicioso!

CSA report

It recently occurred to me that I haven't shared about our CSA experience since our first basket of produce. And although I have been posting weekly "CSA reports" on my Facebook page, I want to share here as well.

In case you don't know, CSA stands for "Community Supported Agriculture." It's an opportunity to purchase local, seasonal food directly from a nearby farmer. In my case, I get my produce from an organic farm in Sandy, Oregon. If you're interested in finding a CSA program near you, go to Local Harvest. That site also has a more thorough explanation of the risks and benefits of doing something like this.

This has been our first time participating in a CSA program, and it's been wonderful. It has been really fun, as the weeks go on, to see the different items that are coming home in the basket. This week's haul yielded this glorious slew of tomatoes:


...and a lovely collection of pears: Barlett (I think) and Asian varieties. They go like hotcakes around here!


We have also enjoyed several varieties of lettuce (so plentiful that I have sometimes ended up giving a head or two away), wheatgrass, kale, chard, zucchini, cherries, blueberries, raspberries, plums, apples, red and gold potatoes, cabbage, cauliflower, peas, wax beans, burgundy beans, green beans, sweet peppers, hot peppers, basil, cinnamon basil, rosemary, mint, squash, and pumpkin.

Yes, I do realize that pumpkin is a kind of squash. Still, I feel that it's in a class of its own.

It seems that perhaps lettuce season is over, but the past few weeks we've been enjoying a plentiful supply of tomatoes. I am really digging the tomatoes!

I had hoped that this experience would stretch me in the vegetable department, and it has. I'm learning how to cool different foods than I've ever ventured into before. The boys are coming along for the ride, too...but slowly. My oldest is still the most adventurous eater of the crew. He makes me smile when he (often) tries to talk his 3-year-old brother into trying something new. "You'll never know if you like it, unless you try it!"

How very true!


***This post is a part of Real Food Wednesday, hosted this week by Cheeseslave. Feel free to hop over there and see what others are sharing about real food this week!

our first basket

At long last, yesterday we were able to pick up our first CSA basket. This is just the beginning of the season, and the bounty will grow as the weeks go by. Even so, I was very pleased with what we took away this week.

Salad greens, arugula, wheatgrass, fresh eggs, rhubarb, strawberries, and fresh mint.

And...a fresh bouquet each week, too! What a lovely addition.
I am really excited to see what the summer brings!