CSA Pickup Day
Today we drive to “the farm” to pick up our weekly CSA share.
It’s a real farm – there’s really no reason for the quotes other than the fact that we toss around the term as though we’re real farmers or something. We’re not. But we are definitely enjoying the bounty that comes from our weekly share.
This was the spread from week one:
![20130604_182835[1]](http://www.themeaningofme.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/20130604_1828351.jpg)
Gorgeous, right?
Our first week’s share included…
red and green kale (one bunch each), a nice bunch of cilantro (kind of tucked behind the kale),
![20130604_182900[1]](http://www.themeaningofme.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/20130604_1829001.jpg)
red leaf and green leaf lettuce (two heads each),
![20130604_183005[1]](http://www.themeaningofme.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/20130604_1830051.jpg)
bok choy (four heads of this stuff!), a bunch of broccoli rabe (hiding in the middle),
![20130604_182840[1]](http://www.themeaningofme.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/20130604_1828401.jpg)
a generously sized bag of spinach,
![20130604_182958[1]](http://www.themeaningofme.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/20130604_1829581.jpg)
and tiny pink radishes. Kidzilla loved these, naturally.
![20130604_182916[1]](http://www.themeaningofme.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/20130604_1829161.jpg)
We have what they’re calling a “full share” which claims to feed 4-5 people. If your 4-5 people regularly eat a decent amount of greens, then it’s spot-on. If your people are lightweights in the produce department, then it’s a ton. Good luck. We are sharing with Super Mom, Super Sister and her Super Fiancé so there are plenty of mouths to help.
Week two offered a very similar distribution with a few variations – no broccoli rabe that week and slightly fewer heads of lettuce (maybe). Our herb of the week was oregano. We also found ourselves with a great big bag of mesculin salad greens and two heads of Napa cabbage to work with. That means fish tacos are on the horizon – a Fab Hub favorite!
We got a little behind in week one, mostly because it was the last week of school and food prep and planning fell sadly by the wayside. We also ate several meals out which decreased our standard consumption of produce at home. So when week two’s share arrived, it was a bit overwhelming. We passed a bunch of our half to the BFF and her crew. I think delivery was a bit overwhelming for Super Sister and company, too (she and Mom will have to weigh in on that) so they may have passed some on to friends on their end.
Around here, we’ve done a pretty good job of getting caught up, although we haven’t used everything yet. We’ve learned some really good tips for storage, though, and it really is encouraging all of us to try and increase our daily intake of fresh, healthy greens.
Kale and spinach are no-brainers for us – Zilla and I both drink smoothies with kale or spinach in them. Zilla particularly likes one with tart cherry/pomegranate juice, frozen strawberries, almond milk or Greek yogurt, and spinach. I eat a kale salad almost every day for lunch. We’re still working on the lettuces, but tomorrow night’s dinner of salad greens with leftover roasted vegetables should take care of that.
We’ve done some experimenting, too. In the last week, we’ve tried Grilled Baby Bok Choy and a Berry Bok Choy Chia smoothie – both good finds. I’m still looking for something to do with the broccoli rabe that isn’t simply cooking it with olive oil and garlic. I’m just not that into wilted greens. Yet. If anybody has a great idea for broccoli rabe, let me know.
No idea what’s in store for us at pickup tonight…we’ll find out soon enough!
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Ah yes, june is salad month. My mother has a vegetable garden and so I basically get a whole salad each other day. Never tried making a smoothie out of them though.
The only thing better than the farm CSA box has to be stuff right out of the garden. The greens in smoothies seemed a horrid concept to me until I tried it. It was actually Kidzilla who got us started – she saw a green smoothie in a magazine and decided she wanted it. She loved it and we’ve been smoothie-ing ever since. At this point, I feel like anything is fair game – we’ll give just about anything a shot.
She’s pulling on my arm now…we are about to go make one with spinach, her hands-down favorite.
Wow. That is a great bounty. I wish we had a CSA near us.
I cook broccoli rabe the same way you do, with the addition of red pepper flakes and maybe a squeeze of lemon at the end. How about cooking it the way you do, then chopping it up, and adding it to some pasta with some pine nuts, parmesan, and tomatoes? White beans?
That sounds doable – really gotta watch the wiltiness factor, though. Do you chop up all of it – heads and leaves? Seems there are differing opinions on that. That sounds like a doable little dish – not sure why I didn’t think of beans. Duh.
So pretty! Can’t wait to see what you got this time. Summer is AWESOME!
We got our “here’s what might be in your box this week” e-mail this morning…looks like some fun stuff!
The little one (Minx 2) wouldn’t eat one thing out of that box. She’s terrible!
Truly, fifteen years ago I probably wouldn’t have, either. My Kidzilla, though, will take on just about any of it. She loved the baby bok choy. I think if we stick the word “baby” in front of anything, she will like it because it sounds cute.
Wow – that is amazing! We have a CSA around that I’ve thought of trying from summer to summer… but just never get to it. I think the stress of having all that produce on hand and not knowing what to do with it or consuming it fast enough is what overwhelms me!
My Sister seems to be struggling with that. The CSA sends recipes in their weekly e-mail. And, of course, there is always Pinterest for ideas! I figured since Kidzilla and I are willing to try just about any vegetable, it would be worth it. Fab Hub is a tougher sell, but he’s coming along kicking and screaming. When all else fails, toss greens that are at the end of their life cycle into a smoothie.
I should really look into this option. I have a feeling it would be a really good way to up our veggie intake.
Our treats here in the past two weeks have been an abundance of cherries and not nearly enough peas from the garden.
We are pretty good veggie consumers to begin with, but this is really giving us opportunity to try new things. Case in point – we got three kohlrabi in today’s box. Going to have to figure that one out…
Beautiful pics Lisa.
Good subject matter. 🙂
Whoa, what a good haul. Even if you’re not a vegetable eating person, this would be a good reason to become one. I’ve never looked into a CSA before so I don’t know if there are any around here. But since I love my veggies, I could see the benefits to it.
I think we did something like Googled CSAs near our town and found quite a few links. I’m enjoying trying new things and finding recipes that go with them.