Vegetables!

This year I signed up for a CSA share. CSA, community supported agriculture, is somewhat like having a subscription to a farmers' market - you buy a share of the harvest from a local farm. I had wanted to participate in one for a while, but was concerned about the amount of produce I'd be getting when I'm usually just cooking for li'l ol me. Fortunately that's what half-shares are for - I pick up veggies every other week for half the price.



This year I decided to go for it and found a great CSA near me called Garden of Eve. Besides the social aspects of the CSA (e.g. supporting small agriculture by consuming local, seasonal produce), I was also intrigued by the Iron Chef aspect. You cook with what you get, and you're introduced to new produce. For instance, in my first share, I had garlic scapes and bok choi. Bok choi I've eaten but never cooked myself. Garlic scapes I had never heard of and approached them with some trepidation (e.g. what the fuck are these?). Thank god for the internet.



I cooked with rhubarb for the first time and made whole wheat yogurt rhubarb muffins - yum! Two weeks ago I encountered sweet salad radishes for the first time and made a really nice, fresh summer salad with cucumber, lettuce and dill. This week's bounty also brought new surprises:


The weekly share included:

• 1 head of lettuce
• 1 pint of blueberries
• 10 peaches
• 1 pint of cherries
• 1 weird looking root vegetable*
• 1/2 a head of cabbage
• 1 bunch of beets
• 6 ears of corn
• 1 bunch of dill
• 1 bunch of basil
• 1 bunch of Swiss chard
• 1 bunch of kale
• 3 zucchini
• 6 cucumbers (I took 4 regular and 2 white - another newbie!)

* So back to this thing. As soon as I saw it at the pick-up site, I thought, "oh, going to have to google that when I get home." Of course when I got home I couldn't remember what it was called. I thought it began with a "K". My roommate Jenny came home and into the kitchen; I asked her if she's ever seen one of these before.

She hadn't. She thought it might be a turnip, so I googled "turnip family", but the way the green shoots came out from various points rather than one localized shoot on the top ruled that out. I tried searching broadly for root vegetables. Then I thought it might be related to cabbage because of its texture. Bingo! Ladies and gentleman, if you've never seen on before, this is your and my first kohlrabi.

My friend Jane is coming over for brunch today, and we're going to cook using my new veggies. I did this 2 weeks ago with my friend Brooke. It's a perfect way for me to enjoy my CSA share with friends and challenge myself to cook interesting things. Brooke and I enjoyed a menu of:

• blueberry mojitos (with fresh mint from my fire escape garden)
• scrabbled eggs with zucchini, scallions and fresh basil
• salad with cucumbers, dill, white radish and a balsamic mustard vinaigrette
• chicken apple sausage
• homemade honey wheat bread with fresh goat cheese Brooke picked up from the farmer's market on her way over and bacon marmalade we scored at a craft fair a few months back (it was supposed to be a gift, but I have no regrets over eating this)
• fresh cherries

It was both delicious and beautiful. (Unfortunately the pictures from this feast were lost when my phone was stolen Friday - a wise reminder for me to back up phone photos and blog in a more timely manner.)

Last night I was chatting with Jane on Facebook to ask if she had ever heard of or cooked with kohlrabi (Jane is a great cook and frequently more adventurous than me - her pulled pork is to die for). Her response, "como se what?" Exactly. She then got to searching and found this recipe for a Kohlrabi & Apple slaw. I happen to have all the ingredients in my kitchen so am going to make it this morning.

I'm off to grate kholrabi and think of something to do with those peaches. Pie may be in order. Bon appetit!