Week 41 in Review

The Score
Eaters - 10     Compost - 1     Carry Over - 0

This week was an ambitious week, but it helped that I was able to come home from the farmer's market and throw several ingredients straight into the oven.  The workload of my 'real job' is getting more and more outrageous, leaving not enough time to prepare dinner these days, much less document it.  So, loading activities onto the weekend is becoming a better and better plan.  I really have been enjoying my adventures into the world of canning, though sadly the end products just aren't lasting long enough to fully merit the process.  The learning continues! 

The Best

• We all loved the roasted tomatillo and poblano salsa.  I took 2 lbs. of tomatillos, a handful of bunching onions, three poblanos, and a jalapeno that I had sitting around, and put them under the broiler.  About 5 minutes in, I added 6-7 cloves of garlic, flipped over the peppers, stirred up the onions, then continued to broil another 10 minutes.  When everything was nice and roasted, it went into the blender - juices and all - with about 2 cups of cilantro.  Blended until it was nice and smooth, and done!

In process shot

The finished product

The Good

• A closer runner up this week was the arugula salad with sugar snap peas.   It is one of the best salads that I've ever tasted, between the arugula, peas and sauteed mushrooms; my family almost didn't get any.

• My husband made the black bread, which was a delicious, wintry treat that incorporated some carrots from the box.  It reminded me of the year that I spent in Prague after college.  With that in mind, I tried it with some butter and homemade pickled radishes.  Yum!

• The spinach lasagna was simple and good.  My husband didn't like that it didn't include ricotta and my kids also complained that it wasn't cheesy enough.  But, for a quick evening meal, it did the trick.

• The strawberry tangerine marmalade is a tasty change of pace from the strawberry jam that we've been eating since May.  It's tangy flavor goes great on crepes and waffles.

Week 38 in Review

The Score
Eaters - 8.5      Compost 2.5     Carry Over - 0
We did some fun things in the kitchen during the first week of our holiday break (kids and mom included), and put a lot of the box to good use.  Who knew that beets could make delicious muffins, or that spaghetti squash could be enjoyed two ways in one day - savory, and in bread?  I neglected to get a soup made (so the swiss chard and dill hit the compost), but we made the most of everything else in the week's box.


The Best

• The strawberry beans were gorgeous both unshelled and shelled!  It's too bad that most of the beauty got cooked away, but they were delicious in the pasta recipe that was passed along by our CSA.  If you ever see these at a farmer's market, grab them quickly.

The Good

• These whole wheat blueberry beet muffins really surprised me.  The dough was beautiful and - though most of the red cooked away - the end result was moist and tasty.  You could definitely taste the beets, but the flavor didn't overpower the entire muffin. 

• This week, we received a GIANT spaghetti squash.  It think it was almost five pounds.  After baking it and getting out the good stuff, it was clear that we'd have enough for two recipes.  I did a little poking around and found a recipe for a spaghetti squash and carrot bread.  The kids kept calling it banana bread, which signals to me that they thought it was really good.

 

• We made the eggplant beef lasagna and gave it away to a family member who had just had a baby.  We didn't taste it (and I forgot to take a photo), but we hear that it was really good.
• The carrot spinach strawberry banana smoothie was about as expected.  The color looked like mud (i.e. quite unappetizing).  It was sweet, but not overly so.  I think I prefer juicing carrots and spinach to making a smoothie out of them, but it'd be ok for an occasional breakfast.

The Rest

• I didn't think it was too bad (nor did I think it was amazing), but the boys were not fans of the lemon sage spaghetti squash recipe.  I think I used garlic that was very strong, as they kept complaining that it was too spicy in addition to being pretty mushy.

Week 27 in Review

The Score
Eaters - 11     Compost - 0.5     Carry Over - 0.5

We're all loving these fall boxes.  Having a bunch of ingredients that require very little preparation time is just what the doctor ordered for these busy fall days.  That said - after more than a month of over scheduled weekends - I was finally able to spend a good portion of a day in the kitchen this past weekend.  That really set me, and the entire family, up for a successful week of meals that made the most of the fall ingredients.  The results weren't necessarily fine dining, but everything was enjoyed and very little was left to waste (a bit of basil hit the compost, and one avocado is carrying over into next week). 

The Best

• Though I often struggle to use up the salad greens, making two salads for a weekend dinner with friends was a great way to both consume and enjoy both lettuce and arugula.  We had two amazing salads that simply showcased what our CSA box is all about.  

The Good

• Fall strawberries are in, and they give the summer ones a run for their money.  They are indeed perfect, sweet berries for a fresh strawberry pie.  

• Last week's dud turned out to be a delicious bread once made correctly.  The zucchini, carrot, banana bread was embellished only slightly by the addition of pecans in one loaf and some dark chocolate chips in the other, and made for a delicious dessert all week.

• We continue to eat up this kale, onion and potato frittata every time that I make it.  The sprinkle of smoked paprika on the 'grownup's side' made it extra yummy for some of us.  

• There wasn't a lot to this Chinese chicken salad, but it was a good way for us to eat up our lettuce this week!

• Though not in the meal plan, I had some help making fresh yogurt this weekend.  It's easy enough that my son could manage about 80% of the process.

The Rest

• Sadly, this black eyed peas recipe fell a little flat.  They certainly tasted fine, but could have been any kind of beans simmered with ham hocks.  (They were served with some leftover tomato arugula salad).  

Week 21 in Review

The Score
Eaters - 9    Compost - 1     Carry Over - 1

Our 'over the rainbow' ingredients made for several great meals this week.  So good, in fact, that this may be the first week where there were really no recipe duds at all in the meal plan.  That said, I continue to struggle using up all of the lettuce, with some hitting the compost again this week.  We also have a couple of lemon cucumbers and grapefruit left over that will follow us into next week.  On second thought, perhaps I just came up with a great idea for tomorrow morning's juice!

The Best

• The Thai beef skewers with peanut sauce and Thai (Lemon) Cucumber salad was, in my mind, one of the best meals that I've ever made.  I changed things up a bit and made a peanut sauce recipe from the Sept/Oct Cooks Illustrated magazine (the recipe for is only available if you are a magazine subscriber, or sign up for a free 14 day trial), but the combo of the marinated steak, peanut sauce and cucumber salad was really fantastic!  I didn't quite get the lime fro yo done on time for dessert, but it was enjoyed later in the week, and was wonderful too.

The Good

• The mashed potato and Kale recipe that was accompanied by chicken, chorizo and red pepper sauce was a big hit with the entire family.  The cheesy potatoes and kale will likely become a staple recipe for us; it was that good!

• The lightness of the (once purple, but after cooking) Green Beans, Grape Tomatoes with a lemon ricotta sauce over pasta made for a perfect summer dinner.

• It's hard to go wrong with (heirloom!) Tomatoes, fresh Basil, garlic and olive oil!  We used this tri-colore checca to make bruschetta, and tossed the leftovers with pasta.

• The moist Carrot muffins were enjoyed for both breakfasts and snacks, and were pretty with flecks of purple and orange (from the carrots) and yellow (from the pineapple). 

Week 13 in Review

The Score
Eaters - 10.5     Compost - 0     Carry Over - 2.5

With as much travel as we've managed through (both parents on the East coast at one point, though never overlapping), it seems like we did a pretty good job this week.  We did make everything on our not-too-crazy plan, and had a few tremendous hits along the way.   I suppose one of the points of this whole process is to know that - while life will certainly have it's crazier moments - being proactive and planning ahead will allow us all to eat healthy meals at the times when it matters most.  While we have a little more to carry over into next week that we typically do (some summer squash, carrots and cucumbers, and all of the pickling cucumbers), I'm quite proud of what did get made!

 The Winner

• I wasn't here when this got prepared, but this roasted chicken with Carrots, Turnips, Summer Squash and Cilantro was a huge hit with the boys - who asked to take the leftovers to lunch the following day.  The presentation was beautiful as well.

The Good

• The Green Bean bacon bundles is perhaps the best preparation of green beans that I've ever tasted.  I mean we've all had beans with bacon before, but the textures were perfect and with the brown sugar and garlic... all I can say is yum!

• The skirt steak and Cilantro Green Garlic sauce were a perfect match, made all the more fantastic with the addition of some caramelized Sweet Onions and homemade guacamole.

 

• The summer berry crisp (with Strawberries and Blackberries) was a big hit at a gathering of friends, but it was gone before I remembered that I hadn't gotten a photo.

The Rest

• The recipe for the sundried tomato Arugula pesto called for two bunches of arugula, so I figured that my relatively large bunch would suffice.  What I realized after it was made that I probably had about eight times as much as they were calling for, remembering that it's common to find arugula sold in relatively small bunches in plastic herb boxes at the grocery store.  The end result was overpowering and pretty much inedible, though I'm pretty sure the right balance of sundried tomatoes and arugula could be quite tasty.

Week 8 in Review

The Score
Eaters - 8.5   Compost - 1   Carry Over - 1.5
It feels like we cooked a TON of food this week, but somehow still did not get through all of the box.  A lot of our recipes involved baking, and that didn't lend itself to us getting through the greens that we more typically eat uncooked.  One head of lettuce wilted beyond repair, and we just didn't get around to the spinach, though it is still in great shape and will get used up this week.  We also still have a few carrots left over from the gigantic bunch that we got in last week's box; thankfully, there are none coming in the box this week, so we'll have a chance to use them up as well.

On the recommendation of a reader, I'm going to start these reviews by highlighting the best recipe of the week.  Of course, it will be my very subjective opinion - but will consider taste, enjoyment by the family, and overall ease of preparation.  It will be my way of saying 'if you're going to try one of these, try this!'

The Winner

• Our first winning recipe would have to be the mini chicken pot pies with bacon, Marjoram and Carrots.  The flavors were delicious, the presentation was lovely, and - using a store bought rotisserie chicken, and frozen puff pastry - it was quite easy to throw together.  We all loved it, and there sadly were no leftovers at all!

The Good

• This one shocked me.  I was pretty sure going in that this was going to be a colossal waste of time, making crust from scratch, then a pretty involved recipe for the filling that I was convinced would turn out all mushy.  Honestly, it was the only semi-edible looking recipe I could find when searching for a recipe that contained both zucchini and swiss chard.  But you know what?  The provencal Zucchini and Swiss Chard tart was good!  The boys weren't super excited about it, but we grown-ups quite liked it.

• The pasta with Sugar Snap Peas, asparagus and parmesan was a perfect spring pasta recipe.  The Peas from the box were oh so sweet, and it was one of those delicious, just-a-few-ingredients recipes that show what good Italian-inspired cooking is all about.

• Nothing like a summery crisp recipe to enjoy on a hot spring - but wishing it was summer - afternoon.  Yum!

 

The Rest

• My husband made several pizzas on the grill last weekend, and experimented making a white pizza with Summer Squash, Zucchini and ricotta.  It wasn't bad, but the pizza lacked a bit of pizzazz. 

• The pot roast from our meat CSA was quite delicious, as were the monstrous but sweet roasted Carrots.  I'm just not sure how one makes a pot roast dinner look very pretty when serving it?

Week 1 in Review

The Score
Eaters - 11    Compost - 0.5    Carry Over - 0.5
Not too bad for a box with twelve items, though I'm hoping that we'll do better as we get the swing of this.  One of the heads of lettuce wilted beyond the point of restoration before we got to it (so into the compost it went), and we didn't get through all of the radishes, but those should keep for at least another week so I'm confident we'll get them eaten up eventually.

The Good

• The grilled halibut with tatsoi was amazing.  We'd all eat that again (and make more so we don't have to fight over the little bit extra we had)!
• Eating homemade saag aloo made the chicken that we prepared with store bought tikka masala sauce pale in comparison:

The So-So

• The carrot cake muffins were very tasty, though super sweet (to the point that no frosting was needed, nor made) and so moist they fell apart went taking them out of the pan.  Next time I bake these, I might cut the sugar a bit, and I will definitely use paper liners.
• The carrot, blood orange and radish salad was interesting and beautiful, but not a combination of flavors that will bring us running back:

The Ugly 

• The flavors of the sauteed kale and sorrel just did not go together, resulting in a flatbread that was overly bitter.  Next time, I'll do better to find separate recipes for these two greens!