The Box! Week 3

You know what I'm not? A photographer.

But documenting the week's haul photographically is already fun. See, looks like the same pile of green stuff as last week, right? Except, hey, what are those curly things over there? And, could that really be three massive kohlrabi? And look at that: the year's first and possibly only bag of sugar snap peas.

This week: red and butter leaf lettuce, radishes, kohlrabi, sugar snap peas, garlic scapes (the curly things -- you cut them off the tops of the radish to encourage fat, healthy bulbs), spinach, broccoli, and... I must be forgetting something. I've mislaid the newsletter and I'm too lazy to get up and open the fridge.

The Beans love these.

So much that I remember a tantrum the Big Bean threw at the farmer's market last year, when I told her she could pick anything she wanted. She chose "peas peek out of the pod," but, alas, it was late July. That's a hard lesson in seasonal eating right there.

Yep, still not a photographer.

The Box! Week 2

It's Thursday, that means veggies! This week, we've got arugula, collards, lettuce, scallions, pea shoots, radishes, spinach, and turnips. You can see it's been hot here, with the little sunburned edges on the radish tops. But our skilled farmer has protected the other delicate greens.

Only two heads of lettuce and one has already been gobbled up with tonight's dinner. Half the radishes and turnips have already been turned into some quick sweet pickles (thanks to our farmer for the inspiration!). The turnips are something else: a Japanese variety called hakurei. You can pick one up and chomp into it like an apple -- it's sweet and crisp and very juicy inside. In the past I've grated them and tossed that with a vinaigrette. Here's what I did tonight instead.

Quick radish and turnip pickles

12 or so radishes and Japanese turnips
1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon mustard seed
1/2 teaspoon peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon whole allspice
1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds
1 bay leaf

Quarter radishes and turnips through the poles. Place in a jar or glass bowl with a lid. In a non-reactive saucepan, heat remaining ingredients to a simmer, stirring until sugar dissolves. Let cool slightly. Pour mixture over radishes and turnips, making sure they're all covered. Let cool a little more, cover and refrigerate. They'll keep in the fridge for a week.

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No specific plans for the collards yet. Probably the classic Italian kale (for that's what collards are)/sausage/white bean combination. Maybe with some whole wheat spaghetti.

The pea shoots are destined for pesto again. I think they're just too tough and stringy to eat any other way. It keeps its beautiful, bright green color and springy flavor.

The Box! Week I

Our first CSA veggies arrived last week. A big, beautiful, intimidating box of early summer greens. This is our fourth year with the farm, but the first year we'll be attempting to eat it all on our own. Now, on Day 7 of Box I, I'm pretty proud of our efforts. I'll eat the last of the salad greens for lunch tomorrow and throw a serving's worth of pea shoot pesto into the freezer for later.

The smaller beans, it has to be said, are not much help on our quest to eat The Box, although they both clamored for lettuce on their plates. Didn't actually eat it, of course.

This is our farmer's recipe, linked above, but he's got it in a pdf, so I'll paraphrase here.

Pea shoot pesto

1 big bunch pea shoots, coarsely chopped
2-4 olive cloves (or green garlic, in the spring)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts (walnuts are nice, too)
1/2 cup grated parmesan
1/4-1/2 cup olive oil

Put everything but the olive oil in the food processor, start it up, and start pouring the oil in until it makes a thin paste. Toss with pasta or smear on bruschetta.

Big Bean: Thumbs down
Little Bean: Thumbs down
Too garlicky for them!

(Want your own CSA farmshare next year? Find one here.)