CSA Fun Continues...

So far so good... I have not wasted any food, but this week was a lot of lettuce and there is a limit to how much salad a girl can eat.... So I fear, this may be the week I don't use it all... but I am trying.

So this is what I got for week two and week three...
 Spinach - 1 bunch Red Romaine Lettuce - 1 head Green Boston Lettuce - 1 head Red Boston Lettuce - 1 head Strawberries - 1 quart Swiss Chard - 1 bunch
 Lettuce Mix - .5 lb bag (not washed) Salad Turnips - 1 bunch Bok Choi - several pieces Red Kale - 1 bunch Arugula - 1 bunch Romaine Lettuce - 1 head

 

I had an extra bunch of spinach and some arugula, so I blended it together with some toasted walnuts and lemon zest and fresh squeezed lemon juice... and it was yummy, zesty and so fresh tasting.

As you can see, I tossed it over whole wheat pasta the first night.  The next night I had some extra chicken cutlets around and I layered the pesto on that with some sliced mozzarella and toasted it and it was even better!

 

I have never in my life cooked a radish...in fact, I never ever thought you could.  But this has been part of the fun of getting the CSA shipment each week.  I cut the radishes on my mandolin and then sauteed them in a little bit of olive oil and some dill from my yard.Then at the last minute I added in the greens to wilt.  I was surprised how much I liked them.  Cooking them mellowed out the bite and actually brought out a sweetness. 

On Father's Day I decided to use up the beets I had roasted earlier in the week.  I paired them with sliced ripe avocado and layered it on a bed of arugula.  I also had these baby arugula micro greens, which just looked so pretty.  I put a light lemon vinaigrette over the top, which not only helped from keeping the avocado from turning brown, but brought out the earthiness of the beets. 

 

For our Father's Day BBQ I also decided to make the rainbow Swiss chard as a side dish. I started by sauteing the stems first (since they take longer to cook).    When those were tender, I added in some toasted pine nuts and golden raisins and garlic.  Then I added in the leaves of the Swiss chard and covered and let it meld together and wilt down.  I took it off the heat and then added just a splash of balsamic vinegar.  It was DELICIOUS!

The finished product- it was so good and it looked so pretty too!

 

And of course I used up some more of the lettuce (did I mention there was a lot of lettuce in this weeks box?!) and made a salad.  I got fancy and cut the carrots into hearts... but I tossed it with a vinaigrette that I made with the chive blossom vinegar I made from the first batch from the CSA.  

 

Up next... white salad turnips... I know these are meant to be eaten raw, but I actually roasted them in the oven to bring out the sweetness.  I just coated with olive oil and pepper and let it roast in the oven while I was roasting some beets for the boy.  At the end, I added in the turnip greens to wilt.  It was a huge hit in our house- in fact... my daughter who will NOT eat a vegetable, declared it was delicious... she is all on board with trying new veggies now... of course her "trying" is taking a very teeny bit and making faces, but it's a start! 

I also made yummy radish sandwiches.  I made a quick dill butter, slathered that on some crunchy bread and added sliced radishes.  It was crisp and delicious. 

And last, but not least, I made Brazillian collard greens.  We go to a great Radizio place by us that has this as a side dish.  I thought I would give it a try and I was surprised how easy it was and how good it was!  I started by cutting the collards into thin strips (removing the stem).  Then I made a paste of minced garlic, and good sea salt.  Then I heated a pan super hot with olive oil, added the garlic paste I made and then added the collards.  Tossed to coat and covered with a lid to wilt.  They were yummy and such a bright green. 

 

Can't wait to see what is in this weeks box!