By : Margaret Groarke
Several years ago, my family was part of Norwood Food Coop CSA. We enjoyed the vegetables, the yogurt, and the community. I enjoyed feeling like I was helping Zaid develop his farm. But at some point, my life became a little overwhelming, and we were composting too many of the vegetables, and we dropped out.
Last spring, Laura C. sent me an email asking me if I’d like to join Norwood Food Coop. I hadn’t thought about it in a while, but the time seemed right. I signed up. And I’m so glad I did!
Things were a little different during coronavirus – no longer did picking up your vegetables at the Bainbridge Garden mean hanging around the garden for an hour chatting with other members. But I learned that three other members lived on my very block (and Laura nearby), so we arranged group pick-ups, building a small community. We ate well all summer, and when we were out of town we gifted our share to a neighbor, enticing them to join too.
My favorite part of the CSA has always been the surprise of what we get each week. This year, everything comes pre-packed in a box – so opening the box reveals what lovely vegetables Zaid has sent us this week. There’s always some familiar vegetables; Zaid grows some wonderful potatoes, and this winter we’ve gotten a lot of beautiful red onions. And there’s always some less familiar ones, which send me running to How to Cook Everything, by Mark Bittman, the staple cookbook in my kitchen, to figure out what to do with Kohlrabi or Winter Radishes.
A particular pleasure this winter has been the Raw Milk Cheddar and Yogurt from Ithaca Milk. The Cheddar is extra sharp and delicious. The Yogurt has a thick creamy layer on top, and a pleasant mild flavor.
One of the nice things about the winter vegetables from the CSA is that so many of them take well to roasting. One of my favorite easy dinners this winter has been to cut various vegetables – carrots, potatoes, turnips, parsnips – into similarly sized pieces, toss them with some olive oil, salt, pepper and shake of a dried green herb, and roast them on a sheet pan in the oven until them brown. Roasted vegetables over rice, with or without a little sauce or yogurt, is a great weeknight meal in the winter. If you’re a meat eater, roast vegetables go well with any kind of meat – you can even roast a piece of chicken on the pan with the vegetables!
And now that winter is giving way to spring, we look forward to the tender crops of early spring – garlic scapes, and salad greens, and other things that will surprise me when I see them in my box. Rejoining the coop has introduced me to new people and new vegetables, and reacquainted me with the rhythm of the seasons. If you aren’t already a member, Join us for the Summer 2021 season – go to http://norwoodfoodcoop.blogspot.com/p/what-is-norwood-csa-and-how-to-join.html to find out more.
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