Switching CSAs

So my Silverbrook Farm CSA has come to an end, and I am now picking up substantial bi-weekly shares from The Kitchen Garden Farm in Sunderland, MA. I'm loving the new shares, they're large, have a wonderful variety of produce, and for what it's worth, are cleaner and nicer looking than the last few weeks of my Silverbrook shares. The style of picking up the Kitchen Garden shares is also different. The Silverbrook Farm shares would be portioned out and packaged for each person ahead of time, you just had to throw everything in your bag. The Kitchen Garden instead lays out bins of each vegetable, and posts the amount you should take of each on a whiteboard. For example, the list will say '2 pounds of potatoes', '1 head of lettuce', and '1 bunch of carrots', then you can select and bag which veggies you want. I really appreciate the opportunity for selection.

The last week of my Silverbrook Farm shares and the first week of the Kitchen Garden shares happened on Monday and Wednesday of the same week so I was bombarded with fresh veggies. My last Silverbrook share brought:

Two carnival squash, mixed greens, a head of green cabbage, a bag of arugula, cranberries, apples, red potatoes, and delectable Cloumage cheese curd from Shy Brothers Farm.

The Kitchen Garden gave me 2 pounds of beets, a bunch of carrots, broccoli, a head of radicchio, hakurei turnips, sweet potatoes, bok choy, a head of cauliflower, and red onions (the kitty was sold separately).

Apples and carrots went into Oh She Glows' lentil walnut apple loaf, which I served with smashed potatoes and butternut squash. This was my take on vegan meatloaf and mashed potatoes, and it turned out more flavorful than the real thing!

The sweet potatoes and arugula went into this flatbread recipe from The Kitchn. I swapped cloumage for the ricotta. I also made a few pumpkin pie smoothies. I couldn't find an easy recipe that I liked for these online, so I made up my own version with frozen bananas, almond milk, pumpkin puree, maple syrup and pumpkin pie spice. It was like drinking pumpkin pie filling - yum.

I stuffed the carnival squash with mixed greens, sweet potatoes, turnips and onions and baked them until soft. I love trying all the different varieties of squashes, they each have their own delicate flavor.

Upon request from GP, I made a New England boiled dinner with part of the green cabbage, potatoes and carrots. I had to replace the corned beef with pot roast though, as I was unable to find briskets anywhere in my area... I made a drizzle out of hard mustard and beer and we ate it up with plenty of cider.

More butternut squash from previous shares, along with black beans and arugula, were seasoned and sauteed, topped with cloumage and walnuts, and served on a bed of brown rice. This was a last minute throw-together-random-stuff dinner that I was pleasantly surprised by.

The remaining green cabbage went into my favorite soup of all time - hot and sour mushroom, cabbage and rice soup from The Kitchn. I've modified the recipe a bit, reducing the amount of cabbage, and adding Chinese black vinegar and lemon juice. Dotted with Sriracha, this soup will warm you to the core.

The blog Serious Eats provided me with this delicious recipe for radicchio risotto, drizzled with balsamic vinegar. I'm becoming a big fan of risotto, they're not as intimidating to make as they may seem. Whether or not the final texture on my risotto is perfect - who cares? I like them! This recipe had the savory smoothness typical of risottos, but with crunch and bitterness from the radicchio and a sour bite from the vinegar. It was incredible. 

The broccoli and cauliflower were spiced and roasted, and paired with this simple recipe for sauteed turnips, fennel and chickpeas.

Lastly, with two pounds of beets, all I could think to make was the Russian soup borscht. I have never eaten nor cooked borscht before, and this simple recipe from The Kitchn makes no pretense of being authentic. My understanding is that the real deal is very involved and includes making beef stock with bone marrow. I still look forward to one day trying legitimate borscht, but this simple one-pot meal of mushrooms, potatoes, beets and carrots simmered in seasoned broth has earned a permanent spot in my recipe box.

That's all for now! In my next post I'll share what I've been eating lately, along with my adventure cooking for Thanksgiving.

Best!