I saved the best for last, Cooking! The best part of a CSA, for me, is that I have so many fresh, interesting, and organic vegetables to cook. I simply love to cook.
The Purple Cook blog is one year old TODAY! The blog allows me to share the food I’m making and sharing is the ultimate goal when having fun cooking. I also hope the blog is a resource for ideas and recipes for what to do with your CSA, local, and seasonal foods. I’m looking forward to the 2011 CSA season of blogging.
It is CSA sign up time. Roxbury will have enrollment forms available tomorrow, Tuesday Feb. 1.
Here is the website…
http://www.roxburyfarm.com/
Another popular CSA around here is Eight Mile Creek. Here is their website…
http://eightmilecreekfarm.com/
Need help finding a CSA in your area. Try Local Harvest…
http://www.localharvest.org/
Happy Birthday to The Purple Cook!
Monday, January 31, 2011
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Two Days to CSA sign up day
I am a huge advocate of meal planning. I think it makes all the difference to sit down at regular intervals, for me it’s once a week, and plan a menu. From there make the grocery list based on the menu.
The advantages for me are…
• I visit the grocery store only once a week
• I have what I need on hand
• I know what needs to come out of the freezer and when
• Each night’s dinner is planned around our family’s schedule
Planning the menu around our schedule helps on days like these…
• Soccer practice is at 5:45, I make something the kids can eat at 5pm, but will sit and wait on the stove for my husband and I to eat at 7pm
• If I’m going to be out of the house for the evening, I know to make something simple and that the kids will eat without argument, not the time to introduce new flavors or foods
• On the days I know we’ll be around the house most of the day are the days to braise or roast
Meal Planning was the biggest adjustment I had to make when I got a CSA. I plan the menu and go shopping over the weekend. Our CSA pick up is on Tuesday. I’m one of those folks a little bit rigid about schedules and lists, those of you like me understand it helps keep me calm and sane. So…not knowing what I will have to cook with during the week really gave me an opportunity to be flexible and adjust to the unknown. SCARY!!!
Okay, really it’s not so bad. Each week the farmers share a guesstimate of what we will get next week.
I will plan dinners based on that guesstimate. During CSA season I almost always have something grilled –chicken, steak, or shrimp on Tuesday (pick up day) with a salad. We almost always get salad greens and then it’s fun to put in the salad whatever else we got that week. W – F I evaluate what we actually got and make the meals planned for those ingredients. The vegetables that were surprises get planned for the weekend and early into the next week. I’ll admit it has been fun to be flexible and ease up on the schedules and lists.
The advantages for me are…
• I visit the grocery store only once a week
• I have what I need on hand
• I know what needs to come out of the freezer and when
• Each night’s dinner is planned around our family’s schedule
Planning the menu around our schedule helps on days like these…
• Soccer practice is at 5:45, I make something the kids can eat at 5pm, but will sit and wait on the stove for my husband and I to eat at 7pm
• If I’m going to be out of the house for the evening, I know to make something simple and that the kids will eat without argument, not the time to introduce new flavors or foods
• On the days I know we’ll be around the house most of the day are the days to braise or roast
Meal Planning was the biggest adjustment I had to make when I got a CSA. I plan the menu and go shopping over the weekend. Our CSA pick up is on Tuesday. I’m one of those folks a little bit rigid about schedules and lists, those of you like me understand it helps keep me calm and sane. So…not knowing what I will have to cook with during the week really gave me an opportunity to be flexible and adjust to the unknown. SCARY!!!
Okay, really it’s not so bad. Each week the farmers share a guesstimate of what we will get next week.
I will plan dinners based on that guesstimate. During CSA season I almost always have something grilled –chicken, steak, or shrimp on Tuesday (pick up day) with a salad. We almost always get salad greens and then it’s fun to put in the salad whatever else we got that week. W – F I evaluate what we actually got and make the meals planned for those ingredients. The vegetables that were surprises get planned for the weekend and early into the next week. I’ll admit it has been fun to be flexible and ease up on the schedules and lists.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Asian Chicken Burgers
Sad news…from my 40 pound vegetable box my carrots are officially gone, I roasted the last of the beets to use in a variety of ways this week, and I only have a few small sweet potatoes left. GREAT NEWS…we got an e-mail from the farm yesterday offering us another 40 pound box to be delivered the week of Feb. 7th. Yahoo!!!!
Friday Menu – Asian Chicken Burgers, Baked Sweet Potato Fries
Farm Share Produce – Carrot, Sweet Potatoes
Asian Chicken Burgers
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/asian-chicken-burgers-recipe/index.html
NOTE: I used ground turkey with success.
Baked Sweet Potato Fries
http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/oven_baked_sweet_potato_fries/
Friday Menu – Asian Chicken Burgers, Baked Sweet Potato Fries
Farm Share Produce – Carrot, Sweet Potatoes
Asian Chicken Burgers
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/asian-chicken-burgers-recipe/index.html
NOTE: I used ground turkey with success.
Baked Sweet Potato Fries
http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/oven_baked_sweet_potato_fries/
Three Days to CSA sign up
I find my CSA to be a good deal. For 2011 a share is $541 dollars for 25 weeks of organic vegetables. That is $21.64/week for 10 -17 pounds of vegetables. With a half share at $271, I’ll pay $10.84/week.
I have done the following experiment a couple of times. I take a list of what was in my half share to the grocery store and calculate what I would have paid for non-organic and organic equivalents. Both prices are always more than my CSA share. The other occurrence that made me realize my CSA was a good deal was coming home from vacation several days before CSA pick up and visiting the farmer’s market to pick up vegetables. I spent $25 -30 and only got vegetables for a couple of days. During CSA season we have enough vegetables to have something from the farm on the dinner table every night.
I have done the following experiment a couple of times. I take a list of what was in my half share to the grocery store and calculate what I would have paid for non-organic and organic equivalents. Both prices are always more than my CSA share. The other occurrence that made me realize my CSA was a good deal was coming home from vacation several days before CSA pick up and visiting the farmer’s market to pick up vegetables. I spent $25 -30 and only got vegetables for a couple of days. During CSA season we have enough vegetables to have something from the farm on the dinner table every night.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Four Days to CSA sign up day
Yesterday I mentioned that we will continue to share our vegetable share for 2011. The relationship I’ve developed with my share partner is very important to me. We not only get to Ohhh and Ahhh over our vegetables together and share recipes, but our families have also formed lasting relationships. We trade kids back and forth during CSA season, to give each other some alone time and then the alone person picks up the CSA. The kids love being together and having a regular playdate.
Friendship is another reason having a CSA is one of the best things I’ve ever done.
Community and friendship are also a much larger part of our CSA. Our first year, I was happily stunned at how many people I knew who had a share. Picking up the CSA is one of my favorite activities, I get to see lots of people (and get excited about all I’m going to cook that week). Beyond my share partner, lots of my friends have a share. We can all swap recipes, or visit the farm together on a work day. New connections are also formed - people I’ve seen and met at CSA pick up also happen to be a part of our elementary school community or work with us, etc. I also love chatting and comparing notes with people who have another CSA. What are they getting? What have they learned from their farmer?
Building community and forming friendships is a part of having a CSA that has been a wonderful gift for me
Friendship is another reason having a CSA is one of the best things I’ve ever done.
Community and friendship are also a much larger part of our CSA. Our first year, I was happily stunned at how many people I knew who had a share. Picking up the CSA is one of my favorite activities, I get to see lots of people (and get excited about all I’m going to cook that week). Beyond my share partner, lots of my friends have a share. We can all swap recipes, or visit the farm together on a work day. New connections are also formed - people I’ve seen and met at CSA pick up also happen to be a part of our elementary school community or work with us, etc. I also love chatting and comparing notes with people who have another CSA. What are they getting? What have they learned from their farmer?
Building community and forming friendships is a part of having a CSA that has been a wonderful gift for me
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Five Days to CSA sign up day
I said the other day that I sought out a CSA as a way to eat local food to cut down on the energy used to transport our food. Getting a CSA is one of the best things I’ve ever done and my commitment to our farm has grown. I was reading an article in “Asparagus to Zucchini” titled 10 Easy Steps to Incorporate More Local and Seasonal Food into Your Diet by Lauri McKean. Her first suggestion is to start slowly. I agree! You choose your starting place, maybe it’s a monthly or weekly visit to the farmer’s market, or getting a CSA, or eating at a restaurant committed to local and seasonal food.
I started with sharing our CSA share. Then last year I added a fruit share. For 2011 we will share our vegetable share, we have our own fruit share, a beef share, and a winter share. In the future we will likely have our own vegetable share, I’d like to find a chicken and egg share that works for us, and I’d like to find locally milled flour.
Start slowly, but find something local to pick or buy, cut up, cook and eat! It’s fun!
I started with sharing our CSA share. Then last year I added a fruit share. For 2011 we will share our vegetable share, we have our own fruit share, a beef share, and a winter share. In the future we will likely have our own vegetable share, I’d like to find a chicken and egg share that works for us, and I’d like to find locally milled flour.
Start slowly, but find something local to pick or buy, cut up, cook and eat! It’s fun!
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Six Days to CSA sign up day
Roxbury is getting ready for sign up day too. I noticed yesterday that they posted share information for 2011. A helpful outline on how their CSA works…
http://www.roxburyfarm.com/content/6144
This page has details about vegetable shares, fruit shares, member responsibilities, and costbreak down.
They also explain their new meat shares in detail.
http://www.roxburyfarm.com/content/9501
Today I thought I would share the books that in my mind go hand in hand with my CSA.
First and Foremost…“Animal, Vegetable, Miracle” by Barbara Kingsolver. This book is why I sought out a CSA. The book is about how Barbara and her family committed to one year of local food. The book is full of information (provided by her husband, like how food stamps and WIC can be used at farmer’s markets), stories, and personal reflections. The message that stays with me years later is that eating locally is not about boycotting (not doing), but about being active (doing ). They suggest getting yourself locally grown vegetables, cutting them up, cooking and eating them and in the process doing good stuff for the world.
http://www.animalvegetablemiracle.com/
The book I can’t wait to read is “The Dirty Life: On Farming, Food, and Love” by Kristen Kimball. I’m on the waiting list at the library. This is a book about her first year on a farm in upstate New York. The Roxbury farmer in the middle of busy time summer said he couldn’t put this book down. I’ll let you know how it goes.
The other three books I want to share are also part of an idea I have to add a new dimension to the blog for my second season of blogging. Late spring I’m going to have a poll. I’d like to pick one of the following books to feature weekly. Here are the books and how I think they could be incorporated into the blog each week.
“The Flavor Bible” by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg
I’ve mentioned this favorite of mine before. This is an index of ingredients and what pairs well with them. I was thinking of taking a vegetable each week and sharing the highlighted ingredients that pair well with it.
This book is invaluable to me. We don’t like nutmeg at our house, whenever a recipe calls for it, I consult this book and find out other spices that also go well with the main ingredients. Or, if I want to make my generic muffin recipe and I’m not sure a flavor combination will work, I check this book. This book is the best!
“From Asparagus to Zucchini” presented by the Madison Area Community Supported Agriculture Coalition
This is a cook book for CSA members. I thought it would be fun to highlight this book weekly on the blog by sharing one of the recipes for a vegetable we got that week. Likely something hard, kooky, or a technique I’ve not tried. I’d let you know the reviews, good or bad.
“Produce” by Brad Matthews and Paul Wigsten
This is the textbook on produce for the Culinary Institute of America. I thought it would be fun to learn about one vegetable each week in depth. This book has descriptions of each vegetable, how it can be used in cooking, storage information, and nutritional information.
http://www.roxburyfarm.com/content/6144
This page has details about vegetable shares, fruit shares, member responsibilities, and costbreak down.
They also explain their new meat shares in detail.
http://www.roxburyfarm.com/content/9501
Today I thought I would share the books that in my mind go hand in hand with my CSA.
First and Foremost…“Animal, Vegetable, Miracle” by Barbara Kingsolver. This book is why I sought out a CSA. The book is about how Barbara and her family committed to one year of local food. The book is full of information (provided by her husband, like how food stamps and WIC can be used at farmer’s markets), stories, and personal reflections. The message that stays with me years later is that eating locally is not about boycotting (not doing), but about being active (doing ). They suggest getting yourself locally grown vegetables, cutting them up, cooking and eating them and in the process doing good stuff for the world.
http://www.animalvegetablemiracle.com/
The book I can’t wait to read is “The Dirty Life: On Farming, Food, and Love” by Kristen Kimball. I’m on the waiting list at the library. This is a book about her first year on a farm in upstate New York. The Roxbury farmer in the middle of busy time summer said he couldn’t put this book down. I’ll let you know how it goes.
The other three books I want to share are also part of an idea I have to add a new dimension to the blog for my second season of blogging. Late spring I’m going to have a poll. I’d like to pick one of the following books to feature weekly. Here are the books and how I think they could be incorporated into the blog each week.
“The Flavor Bible” by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg
I’ve mentioned this favorite of mine before. This is an index of ingredients and what pairs well with them. I was thinking of taking a vegetable each week and sharing the highlighted ingredients that pair well with it.
This book is invaluable to me. We don’t like nutmeg at our house, whenever a recipe calls for it, I consult this book and find out other spices that also go well with the main ingredients. Or, if I want to make my generic muffin recipe and I’m not sure a flavor combination will work, I check this book. This book is the best!
“From Asparagus to Zucchini” presented by the Madison Area Community Supported Agriculture Coalition
This is a cook book for CSA members. I thought it would be fun to highlight this book weekly on the blog by sharing one of the recipes for a vegetable we got that week. Likely something hard, kooky, or a technique I’ve not tried. I’d let you know the reviews, good or bad.
“Produce” by Brad Matthews and Paul Wigsten
This is the textbook on produce for the Culinary Institute of America. I thought it would be fun to learn about one vegetable each week in depth. This book has descriptions of each vegetable, how it can be used in cooking, storage information, and nutritional information.
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