Turnip Two Ways Returns

Tonight for dinner I prepared one of my favourite (to date) CSA recipe discoveries- Turnip Two Ways. Last year, when we first received hakurei turnips in our basket, Kylah had posted a link to this recipe as one idea for how to use them. Since I'd never seen or even heard of a hakurei turnip, I decided to take a chance on this recipe. And I'm so glad I did! We enjoyed it several times throughout the season last year.

Delicious "Turnip Two Ways" pasta dish.

All winter and spring I have been looking forward to this delicious pasta dish, and it definitely lived up to my expectations. I think this was the largest bunch of turnips I've ever prepared this with, and the first time I actually had green garlic on hand at the same time! My only (temporary) disappointment was realizing that I had only one very tiny chunk of feta left in my feta pail. Guess it's time for a new one!

One measly little chunk of feta.

Fortunately I had lots of fresh parmesan to grate in. (I think I may have gone a little overboard, but it was very delicious!) I highly recommend this recipe. Let me know if you try it. :)

Yummy!

Week #2

Week 2, and I'm once again excited at the prospect of new veggies. Our basket from last week is almost gone, and it's time to restock! The only items remaining are the arugula and some of the mint. I also have the hakurei turnips, but those I've been saving for supper tonight! I'm making "turnip two ways" with a bit of feta.

Beets, Hakurei Turnips, Salad Mix, Rainbow Chard, Scapes, Peas, and Romaine Lettuce.

This week there were two choices to make. The first one- chard or arugula, was a no-brainer for me. I'm not overly fond of arugula, and still have last week's left! The second choice was much more difficult- broccoli or beets. Susannah (who is two) LOVES both, but we've had some broccoli from the grocery store, and have not had beets in a long while, so beets it is. I think the item I am most excited about this week are the sugar peas! I remember them from last year, and they are so delicious and fresh! I feel as though I've just picked them out of the garden when I eat them.






When I bring my basket of veggies home, I like to think through and plan what I will do with them throughout the week. It helps me to figure out what sort of recipes I need to be searching for, and what veggies will be my "challenge" for the week. There's usually one or two items that I struggle to use. It also helps me to be more organized with my meal planning so that it's not 5:30pm and I'm hungry and whining that I don't know what to make for supper! We eat much better when I plan ahead.

So here's my summary for this week:
I love chard in pasta sauce, so that's where it will likely end up, probably with some homemade turkey meatballs. I'm not quite sure what we'll do with the beets yet. Maybe roasted, or just boiled, along with some sort of BBQ'd meat. The turnips will likely end up in another recreation of "turnip two ways" which we love. Or maybe I'll branch out and try one of the other delicious-looking turnip recipes- the glazed turnips sounded good to me too. The peas will just be munched on, and the salad mix and lettuce will be quick and easy salads. Scapes can go in any number of dishes, so I'm not too concerned about where I'll use them. And that's the week!

Rediscovering Radishes

Radishes are one veggie I've always thought I should like, but don't. They're so pretty, and crunchy... but often have quite a bite to them. I can handle them in a radish sandwich, and can tolerate them in a salad. But they're one veggie I haven't really enjoyed- until now.

As with other veggies from our CSA basket, I've once again discovered a different way to present something I previously did not enjoy, in a way that I now love. Tonight it was roasted radishes. No longer will I dread getting radishes in my CSA share, not knowing what to do with them but not wanting them to go to waste. I now have an excellent way to eat them- which even includes the greens!

Our delicious dinner.

Our dinner tonight consisted of BBQ chicken breast, sauteed kale, and roasted radishes in browned butter and lemon. The presentation on my plate is not as appealing as it could have been- the greens got fairly wilted as I waited for the chicken to be ready, and the radishes were fairly soft so some of them got squished. However, the flavour was amazing. There was just enough butter on the soft sweet radishes, and the lemon flavour really came through in the greens giving them a nice zing. They were also very pretty- I left a wee bit of the stems on each radish, and the colour was more noticeable once the radishes were roasted. We will definitely be enjoying this side dish again, although I plan to decrease the roasting time by a few minutes.

New Season

It's a new season of CSA, and we're once again participating with Rainbow Heritage Garden in their weekly CSA program. Last year we had a wonderful experience, and I am looking forward to it again! It was such a pleasure to go and pick up our first "haul" of the season. After a looooong winter of minimal truly fresh produce, and a long springtime of waiting, we are more than ready to dive into these beautiful fresh local veggies! (we did start going to the farmer's market a few weeks ago, and have had a little fresh produce from there, but getting the basket weekly is even better!!)

Hakurei turnips, easter egg radishes, scapes, arugula, mint, spring salad mix, dinosaur kale, and spinach!

I am very excited about the prospects of what we can make with these veggies! The hakurei turnips will be made into "turnip two ways", and the spinach and some of the scapes will likely turn into spinach and cheese casserole. I want to try either roasting or sauteeing the radishes- something I wanted to try last season but never did. The salad mix has already been enjoyed several times, although there's still a little left! I'm not sure what to do with the arugula. I find it too spicy-strong on its own, although in a salad mix it's ok. Suggestions welcome! :) The kale will probably find its way into a frying pan with a little butter and maybe some cabbage. And the mint will be made into tea and/or muddled with some limeade... refreshing!

We also enjoyed the annual farm potluck last Saturday. (There was also a tour, but our munchkin was napping.) It was lovely to be able to visit the farm, and chat with others who also love and appreciate fresh local produce. And we always love to talk with the people who grow our food. We saw Zach and Kylah (the farm owners) as well as some of their interns for the season. There is so much going on at the farm. In addition to the amazing food, there was a kids craft table that Susannah enjoyed.

Making some veggie prints with mom.

Some of the art supplies- sweet potato, apple, potato, broccoli.
There were also carrots and celery. The celery made pretty roses!

So proud of her veggie print painting!
Also note her appropriate attire- rainbow dress!

This season of CSA seems to be off to a great start! Can't wait to get cooking, and see what else the season brings!