CSA

We have been participating in CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) the past couple of weeks and REALLY enjoy it. For those of you who are unfamiliar with CSA, it's a program where you buy fresh, local, produce (harvested by a local organic farm). It's often organic and tastes so great since it's what's in season, harvested locally, put in a box, and delivered right to you! We have a program in Pasadena where we can sign up each week to receive a box, but I know many programs in other parts of the country require you to sign up for an entire season at a time. We pay the same each week, but never know what's coming in our box. It is totally dependent on what is ready to be harvested that week. If there's a bad harvest or season, you won't get as much for your money. But, if there's a good harvest, you get A TON for your money so it does have a little risk factor. Our boxes have been so full lately that we need to split them with neighbors. We have been eating LOTS of fresh greens, beets, radishes, broccoli, kohlrabi, and more. It's very fun and satisfying knowing that what we're eating is what's in season and hasn't been shipped across the country.
I encourage all of you to check and see if there's a CSA in your area! http://www.localharvest.org/

I have been learning to cook with greens that I've never heard of before and have experimented adding them into many things. One week, I made "CSA soup", which ended up being DELICIOUS (Noel was crazy about it!). Last night I made a "CSA potpie" with onion, potatoes, beets, tons of chopped greens, and carrots. Again, it was delicious! I made a broccoli soup since we're starting to get lots of broccoli (it's just coming into season). We've thrown the greens into quiche. It's been so fun to experiment with new, fresh flavors.

I'll try and remember to post a picture of our box tomorrow. I think you'll be impressed and hope you'll consider trying it yourself!