Week 18 of the Redfearn CSA includes (beginning in the top left of the pictured large share):Lettuce Heads, Radishes with greens, Zucchini/ yellow squash (pictured; CHOICE of Zucchini/ Yellow Squash OR Cucumbers), Green Beans, Sweet Peppers, Garlic, Tomatoes, Broccoli, Leeks (pictured: CHOICE of Leeks, Beets OR Spicy peppers), Mini Decorative Pumpkins and Bok Choy (pictured; choice of Bok Choy, Baby Arugula or Stir-fry greens ). On the choices; large shares choose 2 bags, small shares choose 1 bag for EACH of the Choices. For example: a small share could choose 1 bag of cucumbers, 1 bunch of beets and 1 bag of baby arugula, in addition to the items already in the crate. Large shares can choose 2 bags or bunches from each of the choices, in addition to the items already in the crate.
Lettuce Heads: Store in plastic bag in the refrigerator. Wash before eating, and dry well. Lettuce (torn into bite-sized pieces) and combined with some of the arugula, makes for a salad mix similar to last week’s salad mix. For salad inspiration, look at this:Mesclun Salad with goat cheese, or Chart of Salad Toppings Combinations.
Radishes: The roots and greens are both very good to eat. Store in plastic bag in refrigerator, the roots separate from the greens. Crisp radishes in ice water. You can just eat them straight with butter and a sprinkle of salt. Sliced radishes add great flavor to salads. There are many variations of radish salads, here are a couple: Radish and Mint Salad , Smitten Kitchen’s chopped salad, Radish, Cucumber and Orange Salad, and my favorite radish salad is this Rockin’ Radish Salad. Radishes can be sliced and sauteed to reduce their spiciness, or roasted. Here’s a recipe utilizing both the radish roots and tops: Radish and Radish Top Soup
Cucumbers: Store in plastic bag in refrigerator. Pair with tomatoes in an Israeli Salad, Cucumber, Tomato, and Avocado Salad, Panzanella Salad. Cucumbers are the base for the Mediterranean sauce, Tzatziki. Cold Cucumber Soup is also a refreshing way to use cucumbers.
Zucchini/ summer squash: store in plastic bag in refrigerator. Zucchini is great raw or sautéed, grilled, or baked into zucchini bread (my kids favorite way to eat zucchini!). Raw zucchini/ squash makes a fresh, flavorful salad as in this: Summer Squash Salad with Lemon Citronette. Zucchini (sliced and broiled or pan fried) can take the place of pasta in lasagna. If you want more ideas, you can try Baked Zucchini Fries, Squash baked eggs or Zucchini Fritters or Chocolate Zucchini Bread or these main dishes Baked Penne with Roasted Vegetables (this is a great recipe to use a lot of vegetables, including zucchini, yellow squash, eggplant, peppers, onions and garlic), Cheesy Zucchini Casserole (which we make with shredded sharp cheddar, instead of Velvetta). Here’s a couple other zucchini recipes, recommended by CSA members: Curried Zucchini Soup, Zucchini Tots, Sauteed Zucchini with Cherry Tomatoes (don’t overcook the zucchini!), and Zucchini Chocolate Rum Cake. To preserve: Zucchini or Yellow squash can be shredded and frozen to use in Zucchini bread recipes.
Green beans: store in plastic bag in refrigerator. Basic cooking instructions: trim the stem end off and leave beans whole or snap into shorter pieces. Heat a pot of salted water to boiling, add beans, and boil 2 to 4 minutes, until almost tender- crisp. Drain beans very well (if you will be finishing the beans later, cool the bean beans to prevent further cooking, beans can also be frozen at this point). Heat butter and olive oil in a skillet (about 1 T each, can be increased or decreased to taste) over medium heat, add beans and salt and pepper to taste, and stir until tender, toward the end of cooking add 1 or 2 cloves garlic (chopped) if desired. Additions: crumbled bacon, toasted slivered almonds, stirred into the beans after cooking. Also, these Roasted Green Beans are great.
Sweet peppers: Store in plastic bag, in refrigerator. Meal idea: sauté sliced candy onions and sweet pepper for a tasty Philly Cheese Sandwich or Fajitas. Stuffed peppers are also a favorite main dish at our house; zucchini/ yellow squash can also be stuffed using the same recipe. Sweet peppers can easily be preserved by freezing and they can be frozen raw, without blanching first. Cut peppers into the desired size: diced for adding to winter casseroles, soups or sauces; sliced for fajitas; or halved (or the tops cut off) to be used for stuffed peppers (also, after freezing there is no need to parboil peppers before stuffing) and freeze in freezer bags.
Tomatoes: Store at room temperature, NOT in a plastic bag.
Broccoli: Store in a loose plastic bag in the refrigerator. Peeling the stems with a pairing knife is a great way to make the stems more tender. Here’s a couple of recipe ideas: Broccoli Salad and Roasted Broccoli. Broccoli can be paired with leeks as in this Potato, Leek and Broccoli Soup.
CHOICE of Leeks, Beets, or Spicy Peppers:
Leeks: store in plastic bag in refrigerator. Leeks are a kind of onion and can be used in many recipes (quiches, tarts, soups) interchangeably with onions. Here is a recipe for Leek Potato Soup . Typically the white and light green sections are used, but the dark green leaf portions can be used to season vegetable or chicken stock. Leeks need to be washed well, since dirt can get in between the layers.
Beets: Store in plastic bag in the refrigerator. Both the roots and leaves are great. Here is a compilation of recipes: Huffington Post Beet Recipes (we have enjoyed recipe #4, French Peasant Beets). Beets make a great addition to salad, as in this Roasted Beet Salad with Pea Shoots and Beet salad with Goat Cheese .
Garlic: store at cool room temperature.
CHOICE of Arugula, Stir-fry greens, or Bok Choy (large shares choose 2 bags, small shares 1 bag):
Arugula: store in plastic bag in refrigerator. This slightly spicy salad green is wonderful in this Roasted Sweet Potato Arugula Salad! Arugula is also wonderful topped with thinly sliced steak, as in this: Skirt Steak Salad with Arugula and Blue Cheese. Combine arugula with pasta in this Goat Cheese and Arugula over Penne dish. Arugula can also be sautéed in olive oil with some garlic just until wilted. Arugula is great in this Arugula Soup that our whole family enjoys (2 onions can be substituted for the 6 shallots in the recipe, larger potatoes can be used instead of the salad potatoes). Some other ideas are listed in this: Top 5 Uses for Arugula Besides Salad.
Bok Choy: Store in plastic bag in the refrigerator. Here is a basic bok choy recipe with great instructions: Stir-fried Bok Choy. Cooked (leftover) Bok Choy can be added to fried rice. Bok Choy can also be cooked and used inside egg rolls (I just followed the instructions on the back of the package of egg roll wrappers). Bok choy can be sliced and added to soups during the last few minutes of cooking.If you would rather eat bok choy raw; it can be chopped and dressed with an asian- style dressing: Bok Choy Salad
Stir-fry greens mix: Store in plastic bag in refrigerator, use within a couple days. This greens mix contains a variety of mustards, bok choy, and cabbage family greens. Basic cooking instructions: wash and spin dry, slice or chop greens, heat oil (olive or vegetable) over medium-high heat. Gradually add chopped greens, stirring to just wilt. Season with salt and pepper. Variations: add chopped garlic when you add the greens. Top the cooked greens with a fried egg(s). Here’s a detailed sir-fried greens recipe. This recipe for Greens cooked with tomatoes and topped with eggs has helped many people enjoy greens. It is a highly adaptable recipe, and can be used with nearly any type of leafy cooking green, from spicy mustards to mellow chard. Also, some recipes that call for mustard greens can be substituted for this stir fry mix, such as: Indian Saag or Curried Mustard Greens with Kidney Beans.