Preservation For Winter by Similejesu Sonubi

I've actually been finding it more difficult than I would like to admit to use all of the weekly goodies. Really trying to change things up this week, I decided I would make soups for the nearing fall and cold season, all though it feels too early in some cases to make this food. It feels like the best practice to break the repetitive nature of the summer salads I've been making. 

I made my soup following these two recipes, and I'm excited for when the fall comes and it feels more appealing to eat (or drink them)!

https://culinaryginger.com/zucchini-and-sweet-potato-soup/

https://www.tasteandtellblog.com/zucchini-yellow-squash-soup/

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Interested in learning more about the Norwood CSA?  Check out our Info Page: https://norwoodfoodcoop.blogspot.com/2021/10/how-to-join-norwood-csa.html 

The Best Week by Evan Casper-Futterman

This is a slightly atypical blogpost, because this is a slightly atypical week for us. Katherine and I are getting married on August 27th. After our pickup on the 17th, we had all kinds of mixed feelings and anxiety about how we would minimize waste and make use of the incredible offerings while there were so many other things to attend to beyond recipes and meal planning, which are typically some of our favorite summer activities with the CSA. This blog post doesn’t contain a fun recipe unfortunately, because we simply didn’t have time to make anything fun or interesting with our colorful haul. 

 

Needless to say, that’s a lot of pressure for a box of fruits and vegetables (and dairy) to be under! Some of the fruits seemingly buckled under the pressure. Almost like they knew we needed things to be easy and stress-free, so they decided to give us a bit of a hard time. The small yellow melons were a little crisp. Maybe they weren’t ripe enough? Our peaches were a bit mealy. Good, but not great. The sunflower seeds were incredibly abundant and beautiful and fun to pick off the husk, but they went moldy overnight in the container, so we couldn’t do anything with them.These things happen. We made quick work of the plums and snacked our way quickly through the purple pole beans, but again, no culinary delicacies. With the new and intriguing stuff presenting us with some challenges we relied on the stability of the tried and true nightshades: tomatoes and eggplants.

Both of these were fantastic, made all the better by the fact that we barely did anything to them at all. the tomato I sliced and dusted with maldon salt and cracked pepper. Katherine said it was maybe the best tomato she ever had, top 5 for sure. I agreed! The eggplants likewise got minimal treatment - sliced into rounds and sauteed briefly with olive oil, oregano, salt, and pepper. Tender and delicious. Delicate and flavorful. A pure summer delight. 

This was a stressful week - approaching the exciting end of a busy month. But as we try to do in our lives and relationship, we try to roll through the tough times and the frustrations, the unexpected and the disappointing, and try to focus on savoring, all the sweetness we can. Something we have tried to keep in mind for our wedding, and that this week reminded us too - is that simplicity goes great with basically everything. As always, we were grateful for what we had, and happy to be able to share it together and with our neighbors and community. 

 

A small selection of of our haul after we picked the seeds off the sunflower. (Photo by author)

 

 

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Interested in learning more about the Norwood CSA?  Check out our Info Page: https://norwoodfoodcoop.blogspot.com/2021/10/how-to-join-norwood-csa.html 

Tomato or Nomato? by Jenny Pena

One major reason I joined the CSA and decided to make changes to my eating habits was to improve my health. While doing research and trying to find the right things to add (or remove) from my diet, I noted that inflammation would be triggered when I ate a lot of nightshade vegetables (which were pretty much my favorites). Tomatoes, eggplants, peppers and potatoes (not sweet potatoes) are all nightshades and while they don’t trigger my inflammation when I have them in small doses, they can surely flare it up if I eat a lot of these vegetables.

I am linking an article that explains the rationale behind this here - https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/321745#anti-inflammatory-foods-

https://health.clevelandclinic.org/whats-the-deal-with-nightshade-vegetables/

This week, the vegetable box came with beautiful tomatoes and while I will be eating some of them, I thought I would use this opportunity to share with neighbors and let them know about the CSA. I will also share some recipes for traditional sauces that are made with tomatoes that are nightshade free. Hope you give them and try and enjoy experimenting with other vegetables and flavors. Also, this is a great way to add more nutrient dense items to sauces for your family.

So, if you can have as many tomatoes as you would like, Tomato Confit is my favorite way to prepare them and add them to any recipe that you may be preparing. I use this when I have a lot of tomatoes in hand to preserve or if I want to give a fancy gift to someone. It is super easy to make and feels special when you share some in a mason jar, sometimes I mix it with garlic and switch herbs depending on what I have on hand. See recipe from Teri Turner from Nocrumbsleft site here - https://nocrumbsleft.net/2016/02/10/tomato-confit/

On the other hand, if you need to be off tomatoes or limit your intake, here is an alternative to marinara sauce that 's not only delicious but nutrient dense and very easy to make. You can make a big batch and freeze it as well. I love this sauce! I use it for pasta or lasagna and it has lots of nutrients from the carrots and beets. Feel free to experiment with the seasonings to change to your liking, see recipe link here https://healmedelicious.com/classic-nomato-sauce-aip/

You can enjoy your tomatoes or find ways to satisfy your cravings without them, in the end, enjoying more vegetables and experimenting with them is the best culinary experience you can have while using all the CSA veggies.

 

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Interested in learning more about the Norwood CSA?  Check out our Info Page: https://norwoodfoodcoop.blogspot.com/2021/10/how-to-join-norwood-csa.html 

Carrot Top Pesto by Shannon Haas

Carrots growing in soil with visible leaves.

Picture by zoosnow (2020). Licensed by Pixaby.

If you’re like me, you’re always looking for new ways to use up ingredients, especially things that might end up in the trash (or a compost pile)! Although we’re not always guaranteed to find this ingredient in our boxes at this time of year, you can definitely count on carrot tops early in the CSA season. Don’t toss out those carrot tops!!!

Below is a tried and true recipe for carrot top pesto (modified from the New York Botanical Garden). I’ve even subbed the carrot tops in this recipe for blanched kale (blanched meaning 1 minute in boiling water, drained, and run under cold water or in an ice bath to prevent further cooking). After a few tries, you can easily make this by eyeballing all of the ingredients as you go.

Ingredients

• 1 cup lightly packed carrot leaves

• 6 tablespoons olive oil (or other oil of your choosing)

• 1 large garlic clove

• ¼ teaspoon salt (or more to taste)

• 3 tablespoons toasted pine nuts (or other nut - I’ve used walnuts and pistachios)

• ¼ cup grated parmesan

Instructions

In a food processor, combine the carrot leaves, oil, garlic, and salt, and process until finely minced. Add the pine nuts and pulse until finely chopped. Add the parmesan and pulse just until combined. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Use immediately, or cover and refrigerate for up to 4 days.

I prefer adding this kind of pesto to cheesy, stuffed pastas like tortellini or ravioli. Enjoy!

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Interested in learning more about the Norwood CSA?  Check out our Info Page: https://norwoodfoodcoop.blogspot.com/2021/10/how-to-join-norwood-csa.html 

Using My Entire Weekly Share by Patrice Hall

Some CSA members will look at the title of this blog post and think “Yeah right, my compost bin gets filled every week with limp veggies!”  However, this is my goal for this season, and so far I have failed 2 weeks, the most discarded veggie was the swiss chard.  This week I solved that problem by making a salad combining them with the dandelion greens, lettuce, cucumbers and zucchini.  A very tasty combo!

August will present its own share of challenges with the apples, I’m promising myself that I would can applesauce and freeze some for pies in the fall.  I’m also looking forward to finally making use of my pressure canner for soups and stews to store for winter.  With my busy schedule I have to carve out time to do this, and I want to study my Ball canning book beforehand (I also have to get the jars too).  

I find myself fortunate that this is such a bountiful season so far, with the current inflation and other supply chain problems I am happy for the problems I have.  I was a CSA member for 15 years and never experienced a bad season, and I hope that the winter season is as good as this one.  Looking forward to enjoying the summer season veggies during this fall and winter, and I hope to enjoy being a member for years to come.

 

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Interested in learning more about the Norwood CSA?  Check out our Info Page: https://norwoodfoodcoop.blogspot.com/2021/10/how-to-join-norwood-csa.html 

Lettuce Talk about Greens by Jenny Pena

As the deliveries have started, I see an increase on one of my favorite vegetable….GREENS! I am sure we all have things we love about summer; as for me, I just love having lots of greens for lunch. They are in season and each day I can create a salad that doesn’t feel the same, plus, who wants to be cooking when the temperatures are high? I love to pair greens with seasonal fruit (those that have the fruit add-on can easily do that) and adding homemade dressing with olive oil, salt, lemon, mustard and honey (another item of choice to add on to your deliveries). While I sort of just eyeball the amounts when I make the dressing, I found a similar recipe online (see link here - https://jamjarkitchen.com/2022/04/20/honey-lemon-vinaigrette/#recipe )

Now comparison on 12 different greens is featured in an article from Business Insider (see article here - https://www.businessinsider.com/best-salad-greens-kale-spinach-lettuce-2017-6 ), ranking 12 common greens based on vitamins, protein and other nutrient content. I want to share how I use each of the greens featured and maybe add some personal tips on how I prepare them:

1.       Iceberg Lettuce – Did anyone say tacos? It may not be as high in terms of nutritional value but it feels fresh and has high water content which is great for the summer time.

2.       Arugula – Because of its peppery flavor I tend to mix it with other types of greens of milder taste but enjoy it best when served with grilled veggies like red peppers or corn.

3.       Radicchio – This one has lots of vitamin K. It has a bit of a bitter taste but I enjoy it grilled or sautéed with some oil and garlic. And if you want to eat it raw, cheese is your best friend.

4.       Watercress – One that is not as loved for its bitter taste, but great to lower risk of type 2 diabetes. I love to chop a lot of tomatoes and add the honey lemon dressing to it.

5.       Endives – Potassium, Fiber, Folate as well as the usual Vitamins A and K are in this vegetable. Another one that is great grilled or sautéed and if eaten raw, best to chop it thinly and add some grapes to the salad (thank me later).

6.       Leaf Lettuce/Butter Lettuce/Romaine – While different they all pack some Vitamin A, K, and Potassium. My trick to keep them fresh is to wash and dry then wrap some damp paper towels and in a Ziploc bag. However, I have to say the greens are so fresh from the farm I feel that they hold up well without much effort.

7.       Chard/Broccoli Leaves/Spinach/Kale – These are the highest in nutrients and surely my favorites. Chard – This one I would put in the Instant Pot to slow cook with some chicken stock, bones or bacon. Spinach – my favorite of all. I love it sautéed with eggs for breakfast, as a salad with pretty much anything for lunch and if I need a smoothie that’s the green of choice to add without affecting the flavor profile so much. Broccoli leaves and Kale – these I prefer cooked but if I want to make a salad I like to massage with my hands before mixing the rest of the vegetables.

Hopefully you try some tips to use your greens and learn to love and enjoy them as much as I have. Surely getting the deliveries through the CSA has been a great motivation to add more greens to my diet. 

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Interested in learning more about the Norwood CSA?  Check out our Info Page: https://norwoodfoodcoop.blogspot.com/2021/10/how-to-join-norwood-csa.html