Locavore In Training

For the record's sake, here's what I would have gotten this week at the CSA (week 6) had I made it over there...

4 pounds combo of the following:

Photo by fooddesign @ photoxpress

• kale
• turnips
• kohlrabi
• green head cabbage (1 head maximum)

• 2 1/4 pound zucchini
• 3/4 pound carrots
• 1/2 pound peas
• 1/2 pound Swiss chard
• 1/4 pound lettuce
• 1 bulb onion
• 1 bunch bunching onions
• 1 head garlic

Mmm... sounds good, right?! But, alas, I had to work late Tuesday night. It's actually been quite busy around here, as evidenced by my lack of posting. Though I really enjoyed it, I welcomed the end of my canning classes. I will very much welcome the end of the intense course I'm taking to help with work. That should free up quite a bit of time!

In the meantime, skipping last week's share may have paid off. I'll pick up a double share on Tuesday, and the CSA is taking the following week off to catch up on farm chores. Since working at the community garden, I have a new appreciation for all the work that goes into raising food... so if they need a week off, I'm more than happy to step back and let them have it.

Speaking of the garden... holy cow, is that more than I anticipated! There are some very dedicated souls who spend most of every weekend out there. Even if I could hack hours and hours and hours in the sun, I'd never get anything else done in my life! I'm getting out there when I can to help, and I'm learning quite a bit! (Even more than how hard farming is!) The garden boss asked people to come out and harvest zucchini and cucumbers today... I'd love to do that, since my last canning class covered pickling but if I go over there, I'll spend a couple hours working and then not have time to actually do the pickling! It's a dilemma.

I haven't been to a farmer's market in weeks (no need with 2 awesome sources of produce that's already paid for!!) but I do miss it. Two news ones have opened for the season, so I definitely need to get over and check them out!

Well, I think that's it for me! Time to get out and do stuff

A terrible problem to have, I know...

Week 5, and these words make me want to cry:

5th CSA Share: Kohlrabi, Snow Peas and Carrots

Oh boy. I should also mention that the kohlrabi that I claimed would be consumed last night was, in fact, not. Not a sugar snap pea either. Let's just say, Jay had to work late last night, and he considered not having to eat more kohlrabi a fringe benefit.

Here's the rest of this week's share - I can't really explain how I ended up with something different than shown on the Clagett's list... but here's what I've got:

• Purple kohlrabi - the largest one I've ever seen. Weighs 4 lbs. Seriously.
• 2 lbs kale
• 1 onion
• 1 lb carrots
• 1 lb sugar snap peas
• 2 small zucchinis

That oughta do.

I mentioned before that I was making carrot cake muffins... Look, I'm calling them muffins because that means they're acceptable to eat for breakfast. Icing and all. They're made with local carrots and eggs, that means they are healthy. Don't judge.

I made these carrot cake cupcakes, following the recipe almost exactly (except for adding a bit more cinnamon because there can never be enough). They don't - in any way - look pretty like hers (or otherwise, really), but they're yummy.

Off to...

... stare at the produce hoping it'll inspire me (and fit in the fridge)

... make frozen pizza

... roast some sugar snap peas

... drink some beer
And, surely, there will also be cupcakes muffins consumed.

You didn't think it could be done. I didn't think it could be done... but it turns out, I mostly did it!

Let's refresh our memories, shall we? Here was the "it can't be done" double share from last week:

• 1lb broccoli
• 2 1/2 lbs sugar snap peas
• 2 1/2 lbs carrots
• 5 lbs (6 giant) kholrabi
• 4 lbs kale
• 2 lbs garlic scapes

Broccoli was immediately dispatched into a ham frittata. It might even be my first completely local meal - eggs and ham from polyface (VA), smoked swiss from South Mountain (MD), and the broccoli from my Clagett Farm share. There were spices and olive oil too, of course, but if that's wrong, I don't want to be right. Oh, and the meal was capped off with my own brewed beer! Despite the earlier fiasco, it actually turned out quite well!

Carrots have been shredded and will be turned into carrot cake muffins. Sure, I could have eaten them raw... but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to make them into a baked good. Carrot cake is my absolute favorite. (FYI 2 1/2 lbs of small carrots with large tops turns into 2 cups shredded.)

Kohlrabi was roasted Saturday night using this Veggie Venture recipe, again Sunday night (this time with some extra Cajun spices and the rind cut completely off - a lesson from Saturday night) and will again be part of dinner tonight. Turns out, we like it. (Though preferably in small quantities than this.) Good thing, huh?

Kale... oh, how I love thee. And also, please stop being in season. I took the entire 4 lbs, pulled off the stems, micro-blanched, chopped and froze. It will be used when a recipe calls for 1 box frozen spinach, because a) spinach doesn't come in a frozen box in nature and b) spinach isn't the only green out there. I've previously substituted kale in spinach dip recipes, and will do so again for sure. (4 lbs kale = 27 oz with stems removed.)

Garlic Scapes... If I hadn't had a monster amount of everything else, I'd have tried to be a little more experimental with these. There are lots of awesome looking recipes... Things like Garlic Scape Carbonara and Garlic Scape Dressing. Instead, I went with the standby Garlic Scape Pesto. I used a modified version of Dorie Greenspan's recipe because she's brilliant, so it had to be good. It is.

It's getting serious around here. Here's this week's monster CSA haul:

1/2 pounds combo of the following:

• lettuce
• broccoli

2 1/2 pounds combo of the following:

• snow peas
• sugar snap peas
• carrots
• Swiss chard

7 1/2 pounds combo of the following:

• turnips (scarlet queen, hakurei and purple top white globe)
• kholrabi (white Vienna and purple Vienna varieties) -- the greens are also edible
• kale
• collards
• garlic scapes

If that wasn't enough... I skipped last week's share because we were headed out of town for the holiday weekend. What does that mean? It means I got a DOUBLE SHARE this week. Double. As in twice the super ginormous regular amount. 19 lbs.

Here's what I've got:

• 1lb broccoli
• 2 1/2 lbs sugar snap peas
• 2 1/2 lbs carrots
• 5 lbs (6 giant) kholrabi
• 4 lbs kale
• 2 lbs garlic scapes

I still fell short of the 19 lb total, but honestly... I'm going to have enough trouble with what I've got. I'm going to freeze a large amount of the kale. I should have done it last night because this barely fits in the fridge.

Broccoli, peas and carrots shouldn't be hard (although I didn't manage to eat the last batch of carrots). I've got my eye on some sort of carrot cake baked good... cupcakes, pancakes, muffins... something.

The farm posted a recipe for a marinated kale slaw, which might make its way onto the menu as well...

So, um, anyone know what to do with kholrabi?

Loving CSA season already! Yay local Maryland produce! I managed to get through all but the garlic chives and mint last week. I know, I know... those were the easy ones. I don't know what I was thinking picking mint as my herb. I already have two plants taking over... one in the aerogargen and one in a flower bed. So, when I made my strawberry mint jam, I used fresher stuff that I picked from around here.

• Fresh onions (2 bulbs) - All gone already! One used when I made bison tacos the other night, and one used while making fried rice tonight.
• 1 1/2 pounds kale + collards
• 3/4 pound Swiss chard
• 1/2 pound bok choy - Destined for the grill!
• 1 pound turnips (scarlet queen and hakurei) + radishes (pink beauty) - some of each... on accident. And I can't tell them apart now.
• 1/4 pound lettuce
• A few seedlings (same options as this week with the addition of lettuce) - Tomatoes and parsley
• 1/2 pound carrots or 1/4 pound spinach - Felt like I had enough greens, no?

I bolded my picks.

I recently bought a book that I'm LOVING. Dishing Up Maryland by Lucie L. Snodgrass. Yes, yes, yes. It's a beautiful book, primarily a cookbook but I hesitate to call it just a cookbook. It has these great profiles of local people involved in producing Maryland foods. Restaurants, farms, wineries, you name it. The list of resources is worth it alone... but the recipes... It's organized by season. By MARYLAND season. Love ya, California, but local cookbooks written by CA authors... well, they don't quite capture the joys and challenges of Maryland seasonal eating.

Last week's kale was used in the Risotto with Fresh Greens and Basil. I used purple basil grown right here inside the house. My arm almost fell off while cooking it... but yum. Plus, it reheats fairly well. Gotta love more than one meal for the price (and effort) of one. Especially when it's a little more effort than usual.

Then, last night... Oh, I'm so proud!! I made a souffle. ON A WORK NIGHT. Yep, loving the new work schedule. So, the recipe is for a Spinach Cheddar Souffle. Well, you might remember how I didn't take the spinach - and even if I did, it wouldn't have been the 1lb called for. And, um, I may have been out of cheddar. So, Kale/Swiss Chard Swiss Souffle it was. Plus, I also substituted the half and half for milk. And didn't measure the butter. And it turned out. Did I mention, it turned out?

So, check it out...

• Kale/swiss chard from Clagett Farm
• Eggs from Polyface Farm
• Milk from Nice Farms Creamery
• Butter and Swiss Cheese from South Mountain Creamery

I'll say that both recipes were fairly labor intensive, but definitely worth it. I can't wait to try more of the recipes either. As you might expect there are quite a few featuring crab. I'm sure they're awesome... but I'm allergic. Excuse me while I hide so I'm not deported.

This post was part of Fight Back Friday hosted by Food Renegade.

Quick check in to update on my progress with all the great CSA goodies...

• bunch garlic scallions (young garlic plants that have a strong garlic flavor) - nothing yet
• 1 1/2 pound combination kale and collards - possibly cooking tonight... with bacon, garlic, olive oil... possibly those garlic scallions?
• 1 bunch herbs (onion chives, oregano, lemon balm or mint) - Either the strawberry mint jam will get made tonight, or mojitos!
• 1/4 pound radishes - You can indeed pickle radishes! The jury is still out on how they ended up - I'll share the recipe if it's any good.
• 3 seedlings (we have a mix of herbs (cilantro), tomatoes, flowers, kohlrabi, and other odds and ends) - It was raining last night, so I didn't plant them. Nor do I really have a place, since all my cold season things are still in the "garden".
• 1/2 pound combination spicy mix or lettuce OR 1 pint strawberries OR 1/2 pound asparagus - Roasted and enjoyed last night. Yum!
• 1/2 pound rhubarb - Really... no idea. Possibly a strawberry/rhubarb baked good?

The you-pick strawberries were dispatched last night. Most were destined for the strawberry sorbet I will complete tonight. The rest were sliced and frozen for future use.

All in all, I'd say the lack of ridiculously long commute and lessened work hours is starting to pay off!!

This year's CSA season has official begun! Last night I picked up my first batch of produce from Clagett Farm.

I bolded my picks from the options.

So, let's see... I've never cooked... most of that. I now have lots of strawberries that need to be used up pretty quickly as well. The you-pick strawberries from last week are starting to look a little sad. I may try to get the mint strawberry jam going tonight. Asparagus will be roasted, mostly likely tonight.

Any ideas or suggestions for the kale, garlic scallions or rhubarb? Oh, and for the radishes because I'm not a huge fan... Can you pickle radishes?

My goal for this year's CSA is to use as much as possible. Last year, lots went to waste, and that's not even counting the new community garden goodies to come!

The other day I read a really interesting post on Rurally Screwed, a blog that is always entertaining and often informative in the process. That entry, entitled So you think you want to farm, was an interview of a couple who own and run a farm in rural Virginia. The entire thing is interesting, so I encourage you to check it out, but the thing that grabbed me was this:

“You have to be willing to squat five hours a day,” says Susan.  “Our interns can expect to spend at least half of every day hunched over in the dirt harvesting and weeding.”

Which might not sound so bad…if you’ve been attending Body Pump classes at YMCA.

First thought: Totally makes sense. Second thought: Oh crap.

You see, there have been no Body Pump classes in my life. No gyms of any kind. And, still, I've joined this community garden with the mutual understanding that I'll be working. Quite a bit. I did a small stint over there already, but this weekend was my first real chance to get full days in. I lasted about 3 hours. And could hardly walk the next day. And the day after.

Don't get me wrong, I had a great time. Our main task was transplanting seedlings which is my favorite gardening job ever. There's nothing more satisfying to me than putting those partially grown, hopeful plants in the ground. So much more satisfying than putting some seeds in the ground and waiting. And waiting. With seedlings, you plant them and then you can see what you've done. We also weeded, spread compost, watered and spread hay. It was a beautiful day, and I enjoyed doing my time... but I'll need to get in much better shape before I think about doing this all on my own!

It was quite chilly again on Saturday, but all in all, a good day. A few extra pictures from my time at Jug Bay:

Think it comes from here?

photo credit: Virginia Ngai / Istock

Not so much anymore...

I think the coolest thing about my path to local, sustainable foods is knowing where my food comes from. And, I don't mean which grocery store. My food sources have become, or will continue to become, quite local.

This is where my food comes from:

Clagett Farm, my CSA. Affiliated with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, I get the freshest, organic produce possible, but I also get to feel good about supporting the group and farm. Driving through this weekend, I couldn't help but feel the anticipation. There was almost no trace of food in the fields, but in a few weeks... it will be a completely different story.

I also briefly stopped by my new community garden on Saturday as well. I was hoping to time the visit to see as few people as possible... I'm new to the garden, felt a little guilty about immediately taking the weekend off. I do have a good excuse, with my parents in town, but still! Luckily, the hard work of growing food was finished by the time we drove through!

The view from just behind the deer-resisting electric fence, you can barely see the raised rows of potatoes that were planted last weekend.No planting here, but it's the amazing water view I'll be enjoying while working the garden this year!

I also planted my little 3' x 3' raised bed this weekend. Swiss chard, snow pea, kale, spinach, beet and carrot seeds are all tucked underneath a thin layer of newspaper so they don't wash away with the impending thunderstorm. (What a good suggestion from my dad! Wish both my parents were around more to help, or at least be amused, with my projects!)

That, along with some really great quality time with the folks, made for a successful and fun weekend!

2 heads garlic
1.25 pounds squash
1/2 pound green bell and chile peppers
1 head cabbage or a large green tomato
1/2 pound carrots, onions, cucumbers
1/2 pound kale and swiss chard

Kale, collards and broccoli on the you-pick list.