Fresh Fork Market » Life Lyn Style

Fresh Fork CSA–week 14

Sep 012011

We picked up our Fresh Fork CSA today.

Here’s what we were expecting to receive this week:

Small CSA:

6 ears super sweet Miria 301 corn
3 lbs. Yukon gold potatoes
1 lb. grass fed ground beef
2 ct. green bell peppers
1 lb. green beans
Approx. 1.5 lbs. Flaming Fury Lucky 13 and John Boy peaches (freestone peaches)
2 ct. cucumbers
2 ct. yellow summer squash (probably last of the summer already)
8 oz. bag or bunch of kale
1 pint heirloom cherry tomatoes

Here’s a group shot:

Our beef was partially thawed by the time we got home, so I am going to cook it tomorrow. We’ll probably make potato salad for the holiday weekend with the potatoes.

We have these 6 ears of corn, plus a few left from our Tuesday pick up, so we will be having corn tomorrow. I have a local steak to cook also. The peaches are still firm, but will be quite nice in my oats.

The tomatoes will disappear into Stephen’s lunch. I’m in the process of cutting and freezing lots of peppers since we went picking yesterday. I’ll add these to the bag.

Looks like we received zucchini instead of yellow squash. It’s very similar and doesn’t make a difference in my uses. I think we’ll make squash fritters. I haven’t had them in a couple of weeks. We’ll use the cucumbers in salads.

I may try the kale in vegetable lasagna this weekend. I’ve enjoyed making a lasagna and having it for a few meals during the week to help with planning and cooking. We’ll enjoy the green beans when we grill out on Sunday.

The yogurt ($5) was an add on for us this week. We like this yogurt and are trying to stay away from the high sugar varieties. For this yogurt, we’ve been adding homemade jam sweetened with honey to taste.

I think we’ll do ok this week. I need to prep some items in our fridge and keep close tabs on our produce use since we have a few meals planned away with the holiday this weekend.

Fresh Fork CSA–week 13

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Aug 252011

We picked up our Fresh Fork CSA today. In addition to our regular “small”, we also picked up the items from our vacation credit. We were off week 10.

Here’s what we were expecting to receive this week:

Small CSA:

1 yellow doll watermelon
2 ct. eggplant, some mixed colors may be included
1 quart hot Hungarian peppers
1 lb. clover honey
1 medium cantaloupe
Approx. 1 lb. heirloom tomatoes (about 1 large or 2 small)
2 summer squash
1 pint mixed baby sweet peppers
Quarter Peck Golden Supreme apples (about 5 to 6 apples, very crisp, yellow apple)
Approx. 1 lb. slicing tomatoes

Here’s a group shot:

I’m going to make my favorite cole slaw recipe and it uses a couple of apples. The rest will probably go into my oatmeal and/or be made into a quick applesauce for the kids. We also got eggplant on Tuesday, so I think I’ll be making a veggie lasagna tomorrow.

I’m not sure about the squash. If it doesn’t end up in the lasagna, we’ll probably grill it. All of the tomatoes are going into sauce since I have a stock of them from Tuesday’s CSA as well.

The sweet peppers will get added to my sauce. I’m never sure what to do with the hot ones. I don’t like to make things that aren’t kid friendly (and Lyn friendly).

I don’t cook with refined sugar, so we use lots of honey. I’m excited to try the clover honey that we received.

Yum! We are certainly enjoying our local melon this year. I’m curious to try the watermelon since it’s “yellow” and I’m not sure what to expect.

In addition to our share above, we had $25 to spend on items from the on-line store since we were on a planned vacation a couple of weeks back. I decided on lettuce ($2.75), 2 cantaloupes ($3.60 ea.), 2 packages of Chorizo sausage ($12.40) and 2 quarts of yogurt ($9.90). The total was $28.65, so I paid Robert $3.65 at the truck.

It was fun to stock up on Chorizo and yogurt since we were out of both. Neither of my CSAs received lettuce this week, so I was glad to have it as well. I love the vacation flexibility with Fresh Fork!

Fresh Fork CSA–week 12

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Aug 182011

Originally, we were going to be “on vacation” from week 12 of our Fresh Fork CSA. But, our plans changed and we were able to cancel our vacation and pick up our share. Next, I’ll need to place an extra order to use the funds from our week 10 vacation.

Here’s what we were expecting to receive this week:

Small CSA:

1 pint blackberries
1 quart yogurt
1 lb. nitrate free bacon from Berkshire hogs
Approx. 1.5 lbs.slicing tomatoes
1 head leaf lettuce
3 lbs. new potatoes, red norland or yukon gold variety
1 bunch swiss chard or 1 bunch chiogga beets (candy cane striped beets)
1 pint heirloom cherry tomatoes
Approx. 1.5 lbs. peaches

Here’s a group shot:

We picked 1 bushel of tomatoes today, so these will get added to that bounty for canning. This is a “fluffy” variety of lettuce and looks extra fresh. I can’t wait to have it on a salad tomorrow.

When I left for Mom’s Night Out, Nick was asking for more blackberries. I haven’t checked the fridge to see if they made it past dinner. This yogurt is turning into a family favorite. And, we had been having cottage cheese this week, so it’s nice to have more yogurt in the house. We’ve been sweetening it up with a bit of homemade jam. I also use it in my overnight oats.

I just finished processing my peaches from the peck that we picked on Saturday. I still have to make the jam with the peaches that I skinned this morning. These peaches will soften up in a day or two and be great as a snack or in my oatmeal. We are stocked with cherry tomatoes at the moment. We got a pint at our pick up on Tuesday and it’s one of the items that has survived in our garden. I’m not a fan of the texture of raw tomatoes, but Nick and my husband both like them. I just need to remember to serve them!

We haven’t really had potatoes much lately. I can’t decide between mashed potatoes to go with some Fresh Fork pork that is thawing in the fridge or German Potato Salad. We have some other beets in the fridge, so I will combine them and probably make our standard Harvard Beets. I think there was a choice between beets and Swiss Chard and I asked for beets so we could make a decent amount for a dinner side one night.

Lastly, we got bacon. So, this week was themed BLTs, but I’m not sure if they will appear on our menu or not. I did recently read about cooking bacon in the over on a rack and I just might have to try that with this bacon.

I think this is an easy week for us and that the items are easy to use and store. It’s a good thing because we have a few other items from Tuesday to use up and have a busy weekend coming up.

Fresh Fork CSA–week 10 and 11

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Aug 112011

Last week, we took a vacation from our Fresh Fork CSA. There is a generous vacation plan. In a nutshell, you can miss up to 4 weeks as long as you give advance notice. When you return, you can double up a week or place a la carte orders for the dollar value.

Here’s what we would have received last week:

Small CSA:

1 lb mild Italian sausage, ground
8 oz grassfed Gouda cheese from Mayfield Road Creamery
1 bunch of leeks
1 pint cherry tomatoes
Approx a quart of hot hungarian peppers (6-8)
2 Patty Pan Squash
1.5 lbs slicing tomatoes
1 pint blueberries
1.5 lb peaches

In my opinion, it wasn’t a bad week to miss. We love the sausage and cheese, but can easily get that on a special order or buy it from the back of the truck. This time of year, we get tons of tomatoes, and our freezer is well stocked with blueberries. I picked up some local peaches at Whole Foods over the weekend. I have a hard time using hot peppers. I’ve successfully used leeks before, but I’m fine without them. I really liked the Patty Pan squash a couple of weeks ago. It made the best veggie lasagna.

Now for this week:

Small CSA:

1 4-oz. package goat chevre cheese from Lucky Penny Farm
1 watermelon or 1 pint of blackberries
6 ears corn
1 pint heirloom cherry tomatoes (multi-color)
2 ct. zucchini (dark green, light green, or golden…we have a good mix this week)
2 ct. yellow summer squash
Approx. 1.5 lbs red slicing tomatoes
Quarter-lb. basil
2 green bell peppers
1 large black opal eggplant
1 large candy onion

Here’s a group shot:

We bought 3 watermelons on sale this past Sunday. We also got a watermelon on Tuesday in our CSA pick up. We’ve eaten almost 2 watermelons so far. We may end up freezing some for a watermelon frosty or two.

I think I’m going to use the tomatoes (along with the ones from Tuesday) and make some sauce to use in some eggplant/squash lasagna. I think we have everything we need except cottage cheese.

I love the color on the golden zucchini. I’m not sure I’ve ever had this variety. I’m excited to try it.

I saw a recipe for corn fritters this week. I think I’m going to combine that idea with my squash fritter recipe for a new fritter this week.

I’m sure the Cheve cheese will be tasty. We enjoyed the corn for dinner.

Usually, I end up freezing herbs like basil. But, this week I wished I had some fresh more than once. I currently have it in water on our kitchen table and I’m hoping it lasts for Peach Vinaigrette salad dressing and Lemon Basil Egg Salad. I’m hoping to make both this week.

Due to more company next week, we have week 12 as a vacation day. Then, I need to figure out the best way to spend our credits. They are worth the full value for 4 weeks.

Meanwhile, our fridge is well stocked and we have plenty of watermelon!

Fresh Fork CSA–week 9

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Jul 282011

Today was week number 9 for our Fresh Fork CSA. Robert who works at the truck was back today. He seems to be going better. It was nice and smooth to have him in his usual position. There was only one person ahead of us and everything was smooth at pick up.

As usual, we received our list of contents on Tuesday. It’s nice to know what we have to work with between our CSAs by Tuesday night.

Here’s what we were expecting:

Small CSA:

1 package Mild Italian Sausage links, 4 to a pack
1.5 lbs apricots
1.5 lbs Red Haven peaches
1 dozen pasture raised chicken eggs
6 ears Mira 301 Super Sweet corn
1 candy onion
1 head leaf lettuce
1 lb green beans
1 bunch kale, either Curly or Black Tuscan

Here’s a group shot:

Apparently, the Italian sausage is really good. I don’t think we’ve had it yet. Always happy to see peaches.

We still have onions to chop and freeze and the corn is already gone.

We were almost out of lettuce, so I see a couple of salads in our future. I don’t think I’ve ever had fresh apricots and certainly not local ones. I’m looking forward to having one at breakfast.

Curly kale might make for another batch of kale chips, The last batch was ok, but I’ve read a few other variations lately and may have to experiment again this weekend. I’m in love with local eggs and just used our last two yesterday, so these were especially nice to get.

Everyone in our house likes green beans.

In addition to our small, we purchased 2 packages of chicken brats. These were $7 each. They were amazing when we had them in our box a few weeks back. We’re having company next weekend and I stuck these in the freezer for grilling. We also paid for our cream cheese ($5) that we picked up 2 weeks ago.

I’m happy that we had a week off of squash and tomatoes. I still have some to use up from our Tuesday CSA pickup. Next week we are “on vacation” from Fresh Fork and I hope that gives us a little extra time to regroup and make sure we are caught up in the fridge.

Fresh Fork CSA–week 8

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Jul 212011

Today was the 8th pick up for the Fresh Fork CSA. There was a line at the truck today. Usually, it just takes a couple of minutes to pick up our goods. It was so hot, but the kids were troopers. We missed Robert at the truck today. Usually, we check in with him. Apparently, he got hurt as they were getting ready to come to the stop. We sure hope he’s ok and hopefully, we’ll see him next week. It’s always much smoother with the regular crew in their spots.

Usually, we get a list of what to expect at our pick up on Tuesday. This week it came on Wednesday. This was due to changes that had to occur due to the storms. I live in Mayfield Heights and we didn’t really have much in the way of rain Monday, but south of here was hit really hard. It is devastating to farmers to have too much or too little rain.

Here’s what we were expecting today.

Small CSA:

1 bunch multi-color Swiss chard
1 pint maple syrup
1 package boneless pork chops, approximately 1 lb. each package
1 quarter peck Lodi apples (5-6 apples)
Approx. 1.5 lbs. cling peaches
1 candy onion
1 bunch mustard greens
1 pound beans, either green, purple, dragon tongue, or yellow
2 slicing cucumbers

Here’s what we received:

The Lodi apples look great. They are the first apples of the season in our area. The maple syrup leaked and created a sticky mess.

These are the mustard greens. I don’t think I ever had them before.

Dragon beans – another new item for us!

So, our list was dead on this week and our only surprise was that we didn’t get to see Mr. Robert (that’s what Nick calls the guy at the truck). We also didn’t pay for the cream cheese yet, but I’ll get a price this week. This is our first week without squash or tomatoes. It’s fine by us as we enjoy the variety.

Most of these items will be easy for us to use. I’ll probably start with the Swiss chard since we got it in both of our CSAs this week, so it’s taking up room in our fridge! Friday and Saturday are about using up the perishables and bulk so we can be more organized the rest of the week.

Fresh Fork CSA–week 7

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Jul 142011

Today was the 7th pick up for the Fresh Fork CSA. It’s hard to believe we’re 1/3 through the season already. As far as CSAs go, we’ve been receiving many familiar and easy to use items this year. Here’s the list of what we were expecting today.

Small CSA:

1 lb green beans
1 bunch cilantro (last week we substituted green onions, this week it will be cilantro)
2 ct zucchini
2 ct squash
1 whole pasture raised chicken
1 head leaf lettuce
1 pint blueberries
Approx 1.5 lbs cling peaches
Approx 1.5 lbs slicing tomatoes

Here’s what we received:

There was a problem with the chicken order this week. Apparently, they don’t fair well with thunderstorms. One of the farms lost a bunch of them this week. So, we had the option of a whole chicken or a roast. We had a chicken thawing in the fridge already, so we opted for the roast. Also, last week, we were shorted our zucchini, so we have 4 this week to make up for it.

The pint of blueberries seems really small to us. Lately, we’ve been picking them by the quart or even gallon. Everyone in our house loves blueberries, so these will probably make it until breakfast tomorrow before they are gone.

I read a recipe for zucchini pizza dough the other day. I’m going to try it out this weekend. I’ll write it up if it turns out well.

We picked up a container of local cream cheese while we were at the truck. I don’t know how much it is, but I’ll let you know when I pay for it next week. It was offered as part of the large package this week and will be for sale regularly when we pick up. Robert wasn’t sure of the price, so we’ll settle up next week.

Fresh Fork CSA–week 4

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Jun 232011

Today was the 4th pick up for the Fresh Fork CSA. We were expecting the following items.

Small CSA:

1 package chicken bratwursts (1.25 lb)
1 bunch garlic scapes
Approx 1.5 lb tomatoes
1 quart strawberries
1 bunch green onions
1 bunch spinach
1 head leaf lettuce
2 ct zucchini or yellow squash
4 oz tub fresh chevre goat cheese

Here is what we received.

So, our cheese was different, but it should be tasty. And we ended up with one of each for the squash. I could tell that strawberry season was ending as they aren’t in the best shape. It’s another yummy week.

Also, we bought 2 bags of the corn chips that were included a couple of weeks ago. I have taco salad on the menu and these are delicious. They were $3 each – $6.

We did pretty good with last week’s items. I haven’t really thought about the new batch.

Fresh Fork CSA–week 3

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Jun 162011

Today was our third pick up for the Fresh Fork CSA. We were expecting the following items.

Small CSA:

1 lb grassfed ground beef
1 qt organic strawberries
Approx 1.5 lbs slicing tomatoes
1 head leaf lettuce
1 bag (16 oz) corn chips
1 bunch green onions
1 bunch cilantro
1-2 zucchini
1 bunch field grown spinach (braising greens)
1 half gallon milk

Here is what we received.

Update on last week: We didn’t blanch any radishes, so we need to use them up. We haven’t used our eggs or spelt berries yet. The sausage ended up in a quinoa salad dish. I’ll be posting that recipe this weekend. I think everything else was enjoyed.

Here’s our plan of attack for this week:

The strawberries were made into jam this evening. The milk we’ll enjoy with our cereals. The spinach is going into a Camembert cheese pasta dish. Most of the other items will be part of a Mexican themed dinner and I’ll freeze the left over cilantro if needed. A few of my cubes from last week were used as part of the liquid for quinoa and it was delicious. I haven’t decided about the zucchini yet.

Fresh Fork CSA–week 2

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Jun 092011

Today was our second pick up for the Fresh Fork CSA. We were expecting the following items.

Small CSA:

1 lb Berkshire chorizo sausage
2 lbs spelt berries
1 lb whole wheat linguini
1 bunch garlic scapes
1 head assorted leaf lettuce
1 quart strawberries
2 lbs hoop house tomatoes
1 dz brown eggs

Here is what we received.

The radishes were owed to us from last week since ours were missed. The yogurt was an add on. Most weeks, there are additional items for sale at the back of the truck. It was $5 and although it’s expensive, we really like it.

Update on last week: I ended up serving the tomatoes to my husband and son on their salads.

Here’s our plan of attack for this week:

We like the yogurt with jam mixed in and as the liquid for overnight oats. I’m going to make whole wheat honey strawberry shortcake with the strawberries I have radish top soup on the stove now. Some of the radishes will be used in salad and the rest will be blanched and frozen. The lettuce and tomatoes will get eaten in salad. The sausage and pasta will be eaten as a main course. We will sauté most of the garlic scape with other veggies during the week. We may make some garlic pesto pizza as well. Eggs and spelt berries are staple items and have a long shelf life, so we don’t have specific plans for them yet.

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