Mindful Plate

Posted by Lisa

After forgetting to pick up our CSA share for two weeks in a row, I finally got my act together and put a reminder on my cell phone.  Our share included:  onion, carrots, kale, broccoli, cauliflower, fava beans and fennel.

For various reasons, I have an abbreviated meal plan this week.

• Pork Carnitas Tacos Topped with Purple Coleslaw; Cumin Roasted Broccoli and Cauliflower (cabbage, carrots, bell pepper, broccoli, cauliflower)
• Kofta; Fennel Salad; Spring Succotash (without ham) (fennel, corn, fava beans, mint, carrots, green onions)
• Potatoes, Kale and Black Beans; Sautéed Turnips (kale, turnips)
• Fava Bean Basil Pesto; Crusty Bread; Crispy Kale; Roasted Broccoli and Cauliflower (fava beans, basil, kale, broccoli, cauliflower)

Posted by Lisa

Summer seems to be in full swing around here and with the 4th of July making Monday a holiday, I was thrown off all day on Tuesday and because of that, I completely forgot to pick up our CSA share.  It’s a terrible feeling to remember late on a Tuesday that I missed CSA pick-up.  I’ve only done that one other time in the years that we’ve been getting a share.  Luckily and unexpectedly, another set of friends gave us an IKEA bag that was nearly full of vegetables from their CSA when I happened to be at their place on harvest day.  (We are so blessed to have wonderful friends!)  They sent us home with enough salad turnips for 3-4 side dishes, 1 bunch of beets, 1/2 of a large cabbage, a small fennel, 2 shallots, 1 spring onion, fresh herbs (parsley and tarragon), one bunch of young parsnips, a bag of snow peas and snap peas (I think) and one large kohlrabi!  I supplemented this with some things I picked up at our local public market (formerly Saturday market, but it’s all weekend now):  one small purple cabbage, a bag of salad mix, celery, 1 cucumber and a bunch of radishes.  We had a few leftovers rolling around in the fridge from the previous week’s CSA share, so I feel awash in vegetables–in a good way, of course!

With all these vegetables and a full freezer, not only including beef and goat, but four of the six roosters we had processed a couple of weeks ago*, this week’s meal plan has lots of variety.

• Meatloaf; Oregano Potato Salad; Pea and Radish Salad (celery, bell pepper, carrots, oregano, spring onion, radishes, mint and chives)
• Slow Cooked Beef Heart Burritos; Turnip Slaw (spring onions, turnips) [I use Ren's ingredients for the beef heart burritos, but I alter the cooking method since I don't have a great way to grill]
• Pizza with Spring Onions, Green Garlic, Garlic Scapes, Mushrooms and Beet Greens; Green Salad with Beets, Cucumber, Fennel and Carrots (spring onions, green garlic, garlic scapes, mushrooms, beet greens, salad mix, beets, cucumber, fennel, carrots)
• Stir-fry with Chicken and Vegetables; Sautéed Turnips (broccoli, celery, peas, purple cabbage, spring onion, carrots, turnips)
• Thai Chicken Slaw; Chinese Kohlrabi Salad (shallots, cabbage, carrots, mint, kohlrabi)
• Goat Stew; Sautéed Parsnips (turnips, carrots, peas, parsnips) [I'll be using Kim's recipe and swapping goat for the lamb]

Also, this week we will be participating in an summer camp, so I need to pack lunches for the three girls and myself for four days in a row!  Two things I’m planning on making after cooking up a big pot of chickpeas are:  Smashed Chickpea Sandwiches and Chickpea, Feta and Cilantro Salad.

*You can read about our experience with getting these roosters processed here on my personal blog; don’t worry, it’s not graphic.

Posted by Lisa

This week, I finally meandered down to our farmers market for the first time this year, though it’s been open for more than a month.  I kicked myself for waiting for so long.  While I was there, I stocked up on wonderful things like:  beets, green onions, cabbage, cherry tomatoes, summer squash, bell peppers and salad turnips.  In addition to these goodies, our CSA share included:  sugar snap peas (loads and loads of them!), spring onions, broccoli, chard, lettuce and carrots.  Since the weather is supposed to be hot this week, it’s the perfect time for indulging in some summer salads.

One other excellent thing is that the side of local, pastured beef that we ordered was finally harvested and processed.  This is the first time in three years that we’ve been able to purchase a full-sized side of beef.  I’ve been stretching the last one along with a small Jersey side of beef we purchased from a friend last winter.

• Pasta with Summer Vegetables and Feta (summer squash, green onions, cherry tomatoes, spinach)
• Steaks (barbecued over a pine wood fire); Oregano Potato Salad; Easy Vinaigrette Coleslaw (oregano, onions, cabbage, carrots)
• Potato, Beef, Chard and Corn Enchiladas; Mexican Rice; Cantaloupe (chard)
• Cilantro, Bean and Rice Salad; Green Salad with Peas, Beets and Feta (lettuce, peas, beets)
• Taco Salad (lettuce, carrots, radishes, peas, bell peppers)
• Roasted Broccoli, Quinoa and Feta Salad; Sautéed Radishes and Salad Turnips (broccoli, radishes, salad turnips)