I am like a 6 year old on Christmas morning when I open up our CSA box. I cannot wait to find out what’s inside! This week was even more exciting as it was the first installment of the Fruit Share. In addition to what Harmony Valley grows on their farm, they offer a fruit share where they source in-season organic produce from small farmers across the country. Genius!
I was not disappointed when I opened the boxes. In fact, I think I squealed.
First up, the Veggie CSA box included:
- Fresh Italian Garlic – milder and juicer than the dried garlic, but you can use it just the same.
- Scallions – All of our onions have been delicious.
- Kohlrabi – Do you like kohlrabi? I have always loved this veggie. My mom would buy it every week she could at the market. I have 3 bulbs – 2 green and a red.
- Yukina Savoy – It looks very much like spinach and can be used like it too. I think I’ll be putting it in my smoothie tomorrow.
- Strawberries – Because these are grown on their farm, they come in the veggie share. 2 more pints! I just can’t get enough of them.
- Sugar Snap Peas – a huge bag!
- Salad mix – The bag says it serves 6-8. To me it looks more like 2 salads. Man I love salads.
- Amaranth Greens – these are already gone. We stir-fried them with garlic scapes, scallions, lemon and vinegar. Delicious. And beautiful. They are a deep red color. I commented to Brette they would have made a great wedding bouquet.
- Radish Seed Pods – I’ve never heard of these. Anyone familiar? The newsletter says they can be used as a crunch, spicy addition to salads or you could stir-fry or pickle them. Not sure what I’m going to do with these.
- Green Romaine – I think this will go in the salad mix. Or if I feel crazy, I might grill it.
There are flowers in my salad!
Fruit Share:
- Murcott Tangerine – a late season citrus.
- Perlette Grapes – little green grapes. These are not the sour type, but the sweeter variety.
- White Peaches
- Yellow Peaches
- Dark Sweet Bing Cherries – I do not have stop button with cherries.
- Blueberries – Yum! I already know I’m using these cuties for my dish for Gourmet Dinner Club tonight. (shhh!)
- Pluots – I’ve never had one of these. They are a cross between a plum and an apricot.
Now my task is to find a purpose for all of this lovely produce. I’m confident I’ll be able to find one. Bring on the produce!
What produce have you been loving lately?
Previous CSA Posts:
FYI – The Winner of the Noodles Giveaway is Amanda P. Amanda – I will email you for your address.
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We do Harmony Valley as well! So far, I’ve only made salads, mixing in some of the yukina savoy and amaranth greens. (Note: they suggested using amaranth in raw salads but it’s pretty bitter! I stuck with it because of the raw nutritional value [I'm assuming] but I might saute the remainder…)
I’m planning on making pad thai (scallions and garlic) using a recipe from Heidi Swanson’s “Super Natural Every Day.”
As for the strawberries…I took one of the cartons, chopped them up, dumped them in a Mason jar and poured VODKA on them. In a week, I’ll have strawberry-infused vodka. Totally healthy. Yup.
Awesome idea on the strawberries. Genius. Thanks for the ideas. What are you going to do with the radish seed pods???
I put some in a salad just yesterday to try it out. I didn’t even really notice them – they are so small! When I tried one by itself it was like a very flavorful radish (shocking). I wonder if they would be a good addition to the pad thai after blanching them a bit?? Hmmm…
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