Skip to main content

First CSA Box of the Summer aka Let the INSPIRATION Begin

I was so excited to get my first ever CSA share on Thursday. I am sharing it with my sister Katie and we were anxious to see what the "Chica" box from Featherstone Farms included. We were also a little nervous because we didn't know where to pick up inside Seward Co-Op, who to ask, etc. Now, we are pros.
The box included, lots of salad greens, some spinach, asperagus, rhubarb, radishes and cilantro. Before we divided up the goods, we made a few things.
The first thing was radish salsa, a recipe from Featherstone's blog "Cook from the Box". Historically, I am not a fan of radishes, but I made a promise to myself that I would try everything I got this summer. The salsa was REALLY good. It had chopped radishes, cucumbers, red onion, jalepeno and cilantro (2 of the box items). Then I salted it and squeezed and zested a lime. It was wonderful! Salt and lime is a must. It even would be really good with diced avocado.
The next ingredient on our list... RHUBARB! I love it. I love the sour sweet taste. It reminds me of being a kid and dipping it in a bowl of sugar and taking a big bite. Not going to lie, I did that with this batch. A LOT more sour than I remembered. My Mom would make a cake with it that I loved. It is really easy too. Take a yellow cake mix, make the batter as the box instructs. Chop up 5 cups of rhubarb ( we didn't have enough rhubarb and next time I would add less sugar). But that in the bottom of a 9x13 pan, greased. then put a box of strawberry jello mix and 3 cups of small marshmellows (I just used the whole bag) and a cup of sugar. Then pour the cake batter over the top. Bake for an hour in a 350 degree oven. My oven runs hot, it was done in about 45 min - so watch it. The top gets pretty browned. Serve it upside down with ice cream. I am not a baker (too scientific and need to follow recipes) or a typical dessert fan, but I LOVE this cake.
With the greens, I made a couple of salads. More adventures in vegetables coming soon!!!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Memorial Day Weekend Fare

This lovely weekend is the official start to summer. Today, I made my first trip to the Minneapolis Farmer's Market. I was able to make it for the best asparagus in the world. I can't wait to cook with it this week! My sister Jennifer hosted a BBQ tonight and I wanted to make one of my favorite spring dish to share. Watermelon Gazpacho. The inspiration for this was a gazpacho at Macy's Marketplace. It was watermelon, but it lacked the texture of traditional gazpacho. So my version has chopped up watermelon (make sure to remove rind and seeds), chopped yellow and orange pepper, sliced cucumbers, shallot, garlic, chopped tomatoes ( I used yellow and red medium sized ones I bought at the farmer's market), a can of Ro-Tel tomatoes (with peppers) and half of a jalepeno with seeds. To season, salt, pepper, lemon and lime zest and juice (one of each) and red wine vinegar. I also add some olive oil at the very end. I use my food processor in batches. I puree the watermelon fir...

Happy Mother's Day!

I come from a family of food lovers. We are huge fans of grazing and breakfast food. For Mother's Day, we went home to Stillwater to cook for Mom. Her request was ham, mushroom and cheese omlettes. I am not a huge fan of omlettes but mostly I am not skilled in omlette making(so didn't want to set myself up). I diplomatically suggested to Mom that a scramble would be better, she was game. I am a firm believer that eggs should not be overcooked and dry. The key is adding the ingredients before the eggs are cooked completely. My favorite ham right now is the Boar's Head Honey Ham from Lunds. I like to get it shaved, the thinner the better. In addition to ham, I added shredded sharp cheddar cheese, mushrooms (saute before adding), fresh spinach (also cooked before) and fresh cherry tomatoes(chopped). For the side, I roasted potatoes. Seriously, I have never met a potato I didn't like. I like all versions of them. For Mom, I roasted them diced with shallots. First, I drizz...

Christmas Drink aka Buttered Rum

In our house as kids, my parents were big fans of the traditional "Tom & Jerry" drink mix. I remember them making an alcohol-free version for us that had a light sprinkle of cinnamon on top. It was the epitome of Christmas season for me until I had my first sip of buttered rum. It was like liquid brown sugar with a shot of buttery goodness. I thought though, I think I can do better. I took it on as a personal mission to perfect a recipe. The first time I made it, way too much butter. When I melted it in with hot water and took a sip, my lips were shiny with a buttery sheen and my lips felt like I had Vaseline on them. Then, I made one with too much brown sugar, taste was good and fine, but it didn't mix quite the way I wanted it to with a frothy creamy look. So I did some research online with ingredients. Some of them had vanilla ice cream in them. So I decided to give it a whirl. Take in mind, this is in no way a healthy drink. This holiday season, it was perfected. ...