Week 4 Menu Plan

First Strawberries of the Season

Featuring green garlic, onions, mushrooms, and lettuce

Fortunately I used up all the onions from last week, because we got both yellow onions and red spring onions (a LARGE bunch) in our farm share this week. I didn’t do as well using the green garlic, so I’m going to try harder this week, since I know there’s more garlic where that came from. ;-) Scheduling must work around possibly being in San Francisco all day Sunday. So it looks like I’m cooking Friday and/or Saturday.

Week 4, Veggie List & Ideas

Bonus Fruit for Members!

It's Week 4 of our CSA farm share and a most wonderful surprise greeted us today when we picked up our share. The very last of last season’s apples offered to members on a take-as-many-as-you-like basis! True, many of the apples are dryish or have a small squishy brown part, but the taste is still sweet ambrosia. I might make some of my Mom’s applesauce, but we’ll probably just eat them as is. Heavenly! Thank you, Live Earth Farm.

Potato Leek Soup

Potato Leek Soup

Recipe by Robin

I came to Santa Cruz quite a few years ago as a braless young vegetarian idealist in search of good veggie camaraderie and foods, among other things. At the time, there were so many vegetarians here that none of the natural food stores carried meats as they all do now. I moved into a cooperative vegetarian household with the agreement that I would cook for the household once per week. I’ve always been an experimental cook, but because I was cooking for others and experiments can go very wrong, I started to consult cookbooks.

Steamed Artichokes with Lemon Sauce

Steamed Artichokes for Two

Artichoke Recipe by Devon
Sauce Recipe adapted from “Cooking by the Seasons” by Karri Ann Allrich

My friend Devon. We lost each other when she moved away, then found each other again one night at a local coffeehouse when she moved back. She taught me how to steam artichokes during our many dinners together, then she suddenly moved away  again. We’ve been parted long enough. Where will we meet again?

Chicken with Green Garlic, Onion and Tomato

Chicken Baked in Thick Sauce over Pasta

Recipe by Robin

Part of my commitment to eating local foods emerges from my greater desire to conserve natural resources. Less transportation of food equals fewer fossil fuels used in its production. As a longtime conservationist, I’m delighted to see increasing interest in global warming. In particular, I am heartened to see individuals taking responsibility to reduce their “carbon footprints” by minimizing the amount of fossil fuels that they consume, reducing personal contribution to global warming by lowering their production of greenhouse gases.

Easter Wishes

Fragrant lilacs grace our yard

Happy Easter, Everyone! I sincerely hope that you’re enjoying your day.

Although my Easter was not at all traditional, and I didn’t make any Easter foods this year, Easter is still my favorite holiday of all. Do you have favorite Easter traditions? I would love it if you’d post a comment about your Easter including any food you prepared or ate. I have many Easter memories from Easter egg hunts to singing in church to colorful indoor-outdoor potlucks. Let’s share our joy about Easter and spring, and inspire each other with ideas for next year!

Week 3 Menu Plan

Japanese turnips from Live Earth Farm

Featuring artichokes, green garlic, and more leeks & radicchio

This week I’m having a challenging time figuring out how and when to cook veggies. We will be out all day Saturday celebrating my husband’s birthday. We will have time to cook on Sunday, but I don’t want to burn out by making too many things then, especially since that’s my prime blogging day. ;-)

I’m hoping that we can get it together to cook chicken with green garlic and canned tomatoes tomorrow (Friday) night, but will have to make up a recipe and buy the canned tomatoes—and chicken—beforehand. Good thing that necessity is the mother of invention. We seriously need to use up the leeks and radicchio before we get more, as well as the potatoes from last week.

Week 3, Veggie List & Ideas

Preserved foods left over from CSA winter share

It's Week 3 of our 2011 CSA farm share and we're more or less keeping up with the veggies. Except for a few. We have some leftover radicchio, onions and leeks. We’re getting more of each of these this week, so it's time to commit to working with these foods so we'll eat them. I bought some potatoes last week at the Watsonville Farmers Market where I was playing music. The potato leek soup I was envisioning at the time didn’t get made (I used the leeks in a stir fry with bok choy) so this week we’re definitely on for the soup.

Hot Kale Salad with Balsamic & Hot Chili Oil

Delicious and Nutritious Kale

Recipe Inspired by Live Earth Farm

Another recipe inspired by Debbie, LEF’s CSA coordinator and kitchen wizard. Most likely I created it when we wanted to make her original recipe but were out of lemon and parmesan. We substituted balsamic vinegar and a touch of hot oil. Debbie tried our recipe and didn’t have hot oil, so substituted hot chili sauce, and reported delicious results! Feel free to come up with variations of your own, and post them as a comment if you create something you like!

Beltane Lemon Bread

Recipe From "Cooking by Moonlight" by Karri Ann Allrich

 

My quest to use my bounty of fresh Meyer lemons brought me to explore a most delightful cookbook for cooking with the seasons. In “Cooking by Moonlight,” Karri Ann Allrich has created menus and recipes for each moon (month) of the year.  May’s Flower Moon menu features this quick bread.