This Week's CSA - Week 2!
Week 2:
The day before our harvest box pick-up, I received another amazing email from the farmer at Crisp Organics. This time, instead of welcoming his baby boy to the world, he was talking about beets. Or more specifically, how disappointed he was in his beets. Apparently, “they didn’t do a good job of managing the quality” of the beets. News to me, as the beets were beautiful! Members were also told that all the fall mainstays (broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage) were just emerging from their planting as the final fields are getting prepped for their incoming. What a great example of why CSA’s are a win-win for everyone! The prepaid arrangement allowed the farmer to invest in seeds and plant crops when expenses are high.
Last week, a reader inquired about the cost of the harvest box produce compared to buying the same local produce in her neighborhood grocery store, with the added bonus of being able to buy what she wanted when she wanted it.
Stay tuned for next week, when I do a cost comparison of our harvest box to the same produce found in a grocery store. But remember the harvest box program is more than just a number. Take the example above – by being a member and subscribing to a CSA, we are giving a local farmer financial security.
So, what was in this week’s box: (huge) lettuce heads, strawberries, beets, fava beans, fennel, and swiss chard.
I did a bit of prep-work the day the produce arrived. For example, I cut and bagged all the lettuce for a ready-to-eat salad, otherwise the lettuce wouldn’t have fit in the fridge. All the strawberries were gone in a couple of days and the lettuce was used for tacos and salad. Other salad ingredients could have included the beets, beet greens, chard and fennel.
What was left after the week: beets, beet greens & fava beans. I had to freeze the beets and compost the beet greens and I still have to do some digging into fava beans recipes, as I know more are coming next week!
Honestly, it wasn’t the best week – probably because we ate out more than usual (it was my birthday plus a long weekend was thrown in there…but no excuses, just something to be aware of for the next long weekend).
Only other issue: I was a little confused over when & how to return the empty harvest box from last week. But a quick email to the farmer told me each member has three boxes that they rotate – easy peasy!
Does anyone have a good fava bean recipe?
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