Toasted Squash Seeds

One of my fondest memories of pumpkin carving as a kid was getting to toast up the seeds. So much tastier than popcorn and so much more special being only available in the fall.

Since then, I discovered you can do this with any winter squash seed. This is probably not news for a lot of people, but for me it was a lightbulb moment. The joyful byproduct of this knowledge is a lot more opportunities for crunchy toasty goodness. These are seeds from a little Sweet Dumpling squash we got in our CSA box. 

A little olive oil, a little salt, a little pepper (in this case California Seasoned Pepper, Penzey's), and toast in the oven. Snack perfect! Really good on a salad too, if they last that long...

CSA Season begins soon

This will be our 8th year getting veggies from Tipi Produce - I am so excited! The peeps are excited! Even the Dog is excited (did I mention she loves veggies?!).

 The weekly veg has thoroughly changed they way we eat. I'm looking forward to the constraints of cooking by what comes in the box. Too many choices is not easier.

Our first box should look something like this:

Mmmmm....

Where's the Box??

It's been a few weeks since I last posted a box update - oops!. Late Summer veg production is in full swing, and I've been working to preserve as much as possible. This week's box is much like the last couple, so without further preamble:

This week's box contains: watermelon (an orange one!), sweet corn (8 ears), edamame soybeans, slicing tomatoes, bell peppers, Spanish onions, pickling cukes, basil, Romano beans, and heirloom tomatoes.

I don't have a pretty picture since the lighting was bad - we had storms in the area Friday afternoon, and I'm still totally reliant on natural sunlight for pictures. I have flash available, but the color is ug-ly! And I've not sprung for the light shed yet.... so....

Rather than share mediocre images, here are a couple shots of the pickling madness that's consumed the kitchen.

Hot pots on the stove!

Here's the big blue canner, the stock pot with pickling syrup, and a small saucepan with rings & lids behind. Notice I've learned you can use the handle of the stock pot as a handy spoon rest ;-)

Vinegar, sugar, jars.

I discovered last year the difference between apple cider vinegar and apple cider flavored vinegar (the flavored stuff is really bitter). Being fairly thrifty, I understand wanting to save on the fancy stuff, but when the real thing made from apple cider is only $1.79/gallon.... what would be the point of using anything else.

Bread & butter pickles ready to shelve.

So far we've been through 25lbs of cukes to make bread & butter pickles (slices and spears), sweet cucumber pickle relish, and garlic-dill cucumber pickle spears. Next came pickled beets, pickled watermelon rind, and cranberry-red onion relish. I've never had pickled watermelon rind before, but it sounds interesting; more on that later. With so much produce available right now, I have plans (reckless hopes?) to put up more, much more.

What's in the Box? CSA Week12

Lots of goodies in the box this week. The only issue to get through may be the muskmelons; geekMan is not a fan, leaving me to eat it all. Recently my lunches have been melon and cheese; almost better than grapes and cheese. The new Emeril cookbook has a recipe for pasta sauce made from melon. I just may be able to sneak some past geekMan.

This week's box contains: sweet corn (6 ears), muskmelons (2), green leaf lettuce, green bell peppers (2), red bell pepper (1), Walla Walla onions (4), summer squash (1), garlic (1), cucumber (1), tomatoes (pint of cherry maters), eggplant (1), broccoli (other options were celery and red frying peppers).

It's hard to see from the pic, but the cucumber is really big. Once seeded, it should be great for some tzatziki sauce. Beth at the farm also mentioned that the garlic is fresh - not dried as usually found. She said to eat it up since it won't keep well. I decided baba ghanoush would be a tasty way to use up the garlic and eggplant. At the moment, the house smells of roasting garlic and, well, eggplant. Should be tasty when done.

Since I'm writing this on Sunday, I should point out that the tomatoes are already gone; mixed into a caprese of sorts with slices of small fresh mozzarella balls, fresh basil, olive oil and S&P. That and sweet corn are the tastes of summer.

What's in the Box? CSA Weeks 10 and 11

Catching up with posts - and veg. I didn't realize until getting Week 11 ready that I utterly failed to mention Week 10. So, without further delay: 

Week 10 box contained: green beans (1.5 lb), snap peas (0.6 lb), celery, Italian frying peppers (2), collard greens, lettuce, zucchini/squash, cucumbers (2), scallions, Walla Walla onion (1).

Week 11 box contained: sweet corn (7 ears), muskmelon, eggplant (1), Walla Walla onion, zucchini/squash, basil, green bell pepper (1), cucumber (1).

 

We're holding our own on the veg with everything but the greens. I never seem to get to those in time. We still have some beets from a couple weeks ago as well. The sweet corn was amazing! And we've discovered you can grill green beans. Our favorite combo includes wedges of zuke sliced longwise, scallions, and green beans tossed in olive oil, salt, pepper, & other spices. Very very tasty.

My new favorite summer dessert is from Nigella Lawson's How to Be a Domestic Goddess. I really enjoy reading her cookbooks; she has a wonderfully casual and intimate way of writing about the recipes. It feels like she's your best friend sharing kitchen secrets. The Black & White Tart recipe in the book is silly easy and seems to work with any fruit. It's no-bake too - perfect for hot summer days when I'm feeling particularly lazy. We've been doing a lot with red currants since we got some from the SSFM. First tart was with fresh figs and red currants; this version is more patriotic.

What's in the Box? CSA Week 9

The holiday weekend saw us devour a good portion of our veg. We haven't eaten it all though; we still have peas, bok choy, scapes, summer squash, beets, cabbage and diakon left to eat. One of our favorite summer meals is a sort of pasta carbonara with veg. We like using summer squash and mushrooms sauteed with onion in bacon fat (saving the bacon to add back in of course!), but it works with most veg (even greens if you cut them small). It has fallen out of rotation in the kitchen but sounds really good to me at the moment. I think it ought to make an appearance on the table soon.

This week's box contains: green beans (0.7 lb), snap peas (0.9 lb), swiss chard, red leaf lettuce, green bell pepper (1),  cucumbers (2 or 3), zucchini, basil, kohlrabi (1 small) OR a little broccoli.

The Farm Fresh Atlas

As soon as you decide that you'd like to eat more local, perhaps even try the 100 Mile Diet, you realize that you have no idea where to find the goods. Farmer's markets are a good place to start as well as local natural food stores, but what if you want to get even closer to the source? How do you find grass-fed lamb and organic berries?

Fortunately the people at Farm Fresh Atlas are aware of these questions and they know the answers. Or at least they try to find them. The list of farms (at last count, well over 100) details location and produce, including whether you can find them at a market or buy direct from the farm (or both), or perhaps they have a CSA. The list is updated annually, so the list stays, well, fresh  ;-)

What's in the Box? CSA Week 8

Another week's delivery of veg - I confess we are having some trouble keeping up (doesn't help that geekMan was traveling for work again...). Fortunately, we have a house full of folk for the holiday weekend, and will be able to share a lot with family. It looks to be pretty warm weather too, and veg are always a light choice to build hot-weather meals around.

This week's box contains: cabbage, beets with greens, summer squash/zucchini (2.5 lb), red leaf lettuce, kohlrabi (1 or 2), cucumbers (3), parsley, snow peas (0.25lb), snap peas (1.3 lb).

I realized late last week that I forgot to post the box from week 7 - oops! Last week's box contained: broccoli (2 medium heads), snap peas (1.5 lb), snow peas (0.5 lb), zucchini/squash (2 lb), fennel (1 large or 2 med.), red bibb lettuce, cucumber (1), red Russian kale, basil, garlic scapes. It's a lot of veggie goodness - I'll tally up after the long weekend.

What's in the Box? CSA Week 6

The box this week has a wide range of goodies. The store of veg we have around is starting to pile up, so I'm going to have to get creative. With geekMan back from his work-ly travels, I will have some help eating it.

This week's box contains: strawberries (1 qt),  rhubarb (1 lb), snap peas (1 lb), snow peas (0.5 lb), green leaf lettuce, collard green, broccoli (1 smallish head), zucchini (about 2 lb), cilantro, garlic scapes. I'm excited about the additional rhubarb - more fodder for perfecting the rhubarb meringue pie. The cilantro is a big bunch; I feel some cilantro pesto coming on.

Garlic scapes (see right) are the flower spikes of garlic bulbs. Our farmer Beth tells us these are snapped off, forcing the plant's energies into the bulb. They have a milder garlic flavor, like the green garlic earlier this year.

It strikes me that we eat a lot of flowers as veg. Chive blossoms, broccoli, artichoke come to mind. Scapes are a nice treat. Outright flowers too like zucchini blossoms, pansies & violas, nasturiums. I've heard day lily blossoms are also edible (tasty? I don't know). Perhaps this is a way to combat the overgrowth in the yard.... I'm not sure how to prepare them. Yet.

CSA Tally

I've been munching my way through more than strawberries this week. geekMan has been on the business travel road of late, leaving me to eat my way through the veg from last week's two boxes. Along with what remained from earlier boxes, how are we faring?

CSA Tally after 5 weeks:
Asparagus (new last week) - half gone
Strawberries (14qts last week) - nothing fresh left, mostly frozen awaiting to be jam
Lettuce - two of five heads left (no rabbit jokes please)
Bok choy - haven't touched it
Daikon - haven't touched much (but now have several recipes for pickles, slaws, etc).
Snow peas - half gone

And a couple carry overs:
White spring salad turnips - half gone
Escarole - half gone (it's a big head with some not-so-tender leaves and needs to be cooked)
Parsley - maybe a third gone (I forget it's there....)
Parsnips - still there
Potatoes - likewise still there

We did use up the chives, leeks though. And all the other veg we've received so far. The veg still around have a longer shelf life, so I don't feel as pressured to use them up.

In light of what's still around, I ought to make a bok choy/snow pea stir fry for dinner. We still also have simple syrup we made from the fresh mint ages ago; we need more rum (mojito anyone?).

Strawberries and Then Some

The strawberries from Tipi are amazing. Not only because of the variety they grow and the care they take in harvesting them, but also because they are incredibly fresh. I could not get them fresher unless I grew them myself.







Just in case you are curious about what 14 quarts (thereabouts) looks like:

I'll be at this for awhile...

What's in the Box? CSA Week 5

I think I'm in for it this week. We are picking up two boxes this week to make up for the one we missed last week. And there are strawberries. 3qts in each box. And I ordered extra, as I do every year. Making for a total of 14qts. geekMan said it sounds like I could be in a jam....

sigh....

This week's box contains strawberries (3 qt), asparagus (0.8 lb), snow peas (0.5 lb), lettuce, daikon radish, bok choy, and scallions.


Each.


A lot of favorites here. I thought we'd had the last of the asparagus, but not so. It means another shot at the asparagus mousse. Creative ideas for the diakon would be helpful... Cold Japanese-style pickles maybe?

What's in the Box? CSA Week 4

We've been doing some travel lately, which explains the lack of posts. We also rescheduled our CSA box. Tipi allows us to reschedule up to two boxes each season. We would normally have received a box yesterday, June 4, but instead we will pick up two boxes next week.

Two whole boxes.

That's going to be a real challenge. I have the feeling that we will be either having a dinner party, or breaking out the freezer bags (or some other preservation tool). Everyone who picked up a box this week received strawberries, asparagus, spinach, Romaine lettuce, white salad turnips, scallions, oregano and mustard greens OR collard greens.

Next week, our two boxes will likely contain "strawberries, bok choy, peas?, scallions, cilantro and more" according to the CSA newsletter. I'm excited it's strawberry season - Tipi grows amazing berries. Beth at the farm also mentioned there may be extra berries for sale. Extras are for preserving.  Last year I canned up some strawberry ice cream topping, and I'm out of strawberry preserves. Freezing whole cleaned berries is super easy if I don't have the time to can at the moment. Frozen berries work just as well for pies, smoothies, or canned goodies. Cross your fingers for plenty of extra berries!

What's in the Box? CSA Week 3

Another week of goodies has arrived! The pictures really don't do them justice. I will post some additional information about some of the lesser known veg in this week's box. Also means I get to add more beauty shots too (who knew you could do beauty shots of lettuce....)

This week's box contains: asparagus (1.4lb), spinach (0.8lb), white salad turnips, red bibb lettuce, green garlic, arugula, escarole, chive flowers.

We have chive growing in the back yard, so these will be extra. They make a nice bouquet for the table. The asparagus looks like it's starting to sprout out, so this will probably be the last week. We have lots of greens that are good for cooking: turnip greens, arugula, escarole as well. The radish greens from last week are still around - time for a "mess o' greens."

CSA Tally: Week 2

Two weeks into the veg season, and we seem to be holding our own. The tally 6 days after box 2:
Asparagus: gone
Lettuce: gone
Mint: gone (made into syrup; useful for many things, but mostly used for mojitos....)
Rhubarb: still working on it
Green garlic: only couple stalks left
Spinach: a few leaves left
Potatoes: a few left
Radishes: making our way through the roots, still have the greens
Leeks: haven't touched them
Parsley: still slated for freezing

geekMan said last evening that he's amazed we're eating it all up. I think our approach to eating veg is different than it used to be. We used to ask ourselves "what do we want for dinner?" That has evolved into "what is in the fridge that needs to be eaten?" The "what" is followed now by "how should we prepare it?"

For example, asparagus is in season. When you have three to four weeks of bountiful asparagus, there's room for experiment and the delight of trying new flavors and methods with a familiar veg. So far we've had it steamed, in Potato & Asparagus salad, grilled in olive oil & spices, grilled in mustard/mayo marinade, and made into a savory mousse. I'm not sure how much longer local asparagus will be in season, but we won't run out of different ways to enjoy it.

Topsy Tomatoes

For all the garden space in our yard, there's really nothing suitable for growing vegetables. The only full sun area is either driveway concrete, or grass (and I'm saving this area for a butterfly garden, eventually). We also get the majority of our fresh veg from our CSA. Other than some fresh herbs, I have no plans to grow veg. Unless it's easy.

I mentioned using the Topsy Turvy planter to a friend last week: did she know anyone who had used it? Neither of us had. The commercials are so cheesy, and I'm a natural skeptic: does it really work? I proposed to my friend we be our own test population and both give it a try this Summer. I'm going to put cherry tomatoes in mine: the Juliet hybrid of cherry tomatoes (if I can find it). They fruit like clusters of oblong grapes. Super sweet, super prolific. Super super.

Has anyone else ever actually tried the Topsy Turvy?


UPDATE: turns out one of my trusted go-to websites for both products and information. Clean Air Gardening, sells them - they must work!

What's in the Box? CSA Week 2

Week 2 has arrived, and we did a reasonable job of eating up the veg from last week. Some items go right away, others not so much. Herbs and pungent veg like the green garlic tend to get used more slowly.

This week's box contains: asparagus (1lb), spinach (0.75lb), green garlic, red leaf lettuce, radishes (and greens), mint, rhubarb, leeks OR a parsnip.

Beth writes in her newsletter that some unharvested leeks & parsnips survived over the winter under the snow cover. They are sort of a windfall harvest (and spring leeks are extra mild and sweet), but there may too little of each veg for everyone to get some. Tipi always provides tasty alternatives. Boxes are prepacked and snooping is not encouraged, so it's a guess as to which veg you'll get. We like both, so no worries there (although I'd rather have the leeks since we already have a couple 'snips in the crisper). I won't get my box until later this afternoon, so we'll all just have to be patient.

UPDATE: Here's the loot!

We got leeks!

CSA Tally

 We've had 6 days to eat up goodies from the CSA box, counting the day we received it. How are we doing?
Radishes and greens: gone
Lettuce: gone
Arugula: gone
Asparagus: almost gone
Green garlic: still quite a few stalks
Potatoes: still have quite a few
Rhubarb: haven't touched it
Parsley: slated to be frozen

In our defense over the asparagus, we did have some on hand before we received the box. I tried making asparagus mousse, something geekMan encountered on a recent business trip to Germany. That was an adventure I'll have to share with you in its own space. Suffice it to say that 1) mousse does not equal puree, 2) 12 ounces of heavy cream makes a lot of whipped cream, and 3) chemistry always wins in the end. We also had some rhubarb-strawberry crisp around as well, left over from a large batch made for dinner with friends.

Tomorrow I plan to try a recipe posted by Nick Kindelsperger at Serious Eats:Dinner Tonight for Potato and Asparagus Salad with Mustard Dressing. So, technically that would make it Dinner Tomorrow Night.... Still, it looks like a tasty way to boost the CSA tally for the week.

Also, we're still working on set-up and eye candy for the new format. Don't be surprised if the scenery changes a bit over the next short while.

Radish Greens for Breakfast

Now, I already know what you're thinking. Radishes can be difficult enough so early in the day, but greens? Who even knew you could eat radish greens - or would want to? But prepared with smoky bacon and sweet onion and then used to fill an omelette... now you're talking tasty.


The first time I saw radish greens, they were not appetizing. I wasn't much of a radish fan either. Radishes purchased for geekMan (who LOVES radishes) sat in the fridge for a spell, and the leaves melted into slimy blankets for the radishes. Not. Appetizing.

Spring forward a few years and introduce radishes from our CSA at Tipi, and we can't get enough of them.

These are some seriously tasty radishes. Slice, add a hint of sea salt, and they are actually sweet. Yes, you read that correctly. Sweet. Crunchy. Cold. Really a treat in the spring after a winter of heavy veg. It got me thinking about the greens, and what a shame it would be to waste them.

Growing up, greens were not the menu. Salads of various lettuces, yes (I have a memory of my father harvesting dandelions from the lawn one year - everyone thought he was nuts, but isn't that always what they say about the visionaries?). We didn't eat "greens" though. I learned to love greens living in the South during graduate school. Cooked for long periods with smoked ham parts and served with vinegar. Mmmm mmm! It works best for tough greens like kale. And these radish greens were tender enough to eat raw, if a bit bitter for my taste. Enter the seasoning favorite of good applewood smoked bacon and some sweet Vidalia onion, and it's about perfect.

CSA use score: we used all the radish greens and a couple stalks of the green garlic. Oh, and a couple radishes. 

Omelette with Radish Greens in Bacon and Sweet Onion
Serves 2
You could use this to fill an omelette or a crepe, even add into the eggy part and make a quiche-like dish (around here we call them veggie pies). Amounts are approximate; a couple notes after the recipe might be helpful too.

3-4 rashers of good applewood smoked bacon (we like Usingers or Nueskes), diced fine
2 stalks green garlic (white parts only) or 1 large clove garlic, minced
1 quarter medium sized sweet Vidalia onion, diced fine
1.5-2oz radish leaves, rinsed well and destemmed (see below)

4-5 eggs, beaten well
2-3T half & half
1oz grated Mimolette cheese (see below)
butter for pan (we use a non-stick, but it still needs butter.... oh well ;-)
Put a medium-sized heavy pan over moderate heat. Add bacon; stir to break up. Cook until beginning to render and getting soft. Add onion and garlic; stir to combine. Continue cooking over medium heat until bacon gains color and onions soften and begin to color some. Add radish leaves. Stir to combine. They will wilt and lose volume quickly. Turn off heat after they are completely wilted into the bacon/onion mixture. Set aside.
Heat butter in large non-stick omelette pan (or cast-iron, or whatever you use for eggs). Beat together eggs and half & half. When butter is melted and slightly foamy, add eggs. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. As bottom sets, gently pull in eggs from the sides and allow uncooked liquid egg to spread out and cook. When omelette is almost cooked (it should still be a little wet on top), sprinkle with cheese. Add radish leaf/bacon mixture to one half of omelette. Gently fold over, and allow to set. This omelette is large enough to two. You can cut it in half; geekMan & I generally use one plate and two forks - it's cozier that way. Good served with slices of fresh radish.

NOTES:
Radish leaves, destemmed
Generally grown in sandy soil, the leaves will need to be rinsed well to get rid of grit. We like to use the bottom of our salad spinner with the basket - you can lift the greens right out of the water. Uses less that a whole sink full of water too. They have a bit of stem, and are tastier without them.

Mimolette cheese
We first encountered this cheese at the Flying Elephants Deli in Portland, Oregon (food souvenir score!). It has a nice nutty flavor that's a good alternative to parmesan. Nowadays we can sometimes find it locally, maybe at Outpost Natural Foods or the West Allis Cheese Shop.

What's in the Box? CSA Week 1

Today was the first delivery for our CSA subscription. One week early due to nicer than normal Spring growing conditions (not that we've noticed; our house is coastal - Lake Michigan has its own ideas about weather...). We're excited that the season has started. Chats with co-workers resulted in several people confessing to CSA memberships, but ours is the first to start (score!).


 Tipi farmers Beth & Steve send a newsletter on Thursdays by email so you know what to expect. It never really prepares you for the sight of these gorgeous veggies.


This week's box contains: asparagus (about 1lb), green garlic, green leaf lettuce, radishes (and radish greens), arugula, Gold Rush potatoes (3lb), parsley, and rhubarb (1.5lb).

So, we're off and running to use all the veg in every box, one way or another. I'll keep you posted on how we manage.