When you’re part of a consumer supported agriculture group for long enough, you learn that some CSA seasons are less plentiful than others. The abundance and variety we’ve been treated to in previous years isn’t happening this go around. That’s part of the deal—some seasons are just better than others.
But in what I’m calling “Lucky Week 13,” that all changed! We got all kinds of great produce that hadn’t yet showed up, such as carrots and edamame. Hopefully, as we head into the cooler part of the CSA season, we’ll get more variety. I mean, just look at this list of the great foods we got in Week 13!
Week 13 Haul:
- Squash
- Eggplant
- Bok choy
- Edamame
- Tomatoes
- Carrots
- Cucumber
- Bell peppers
- Lettuce
- Chiles
What Rolled Over?
As in previous weeks, there wasn’t too much rollover from Week 12 to Week 13—only two cups of corn, which I sautéed with tomato and jalapeño and served with a piece of grilled chicken for a solo dinner one night. It was the perfect supper for one, with a bit of the corn leftover for my husband to throw into eggs over the long weekend.
Tomato Count:
This week: 7
Season to date: 134
We got a lot of paste tomatoes this week. Those are the Roma variety, and they’re great for making red sauce. I’m holding on to them for exactly that purpose, mostly because I didn’t do as much cooking over the long holiday weekend as I usually do.
What I Made (Italics represent CSA vegetables used)
- Grilled chicken, sautéed summer squash, sourdough bread with seasoned olive oil for dipping
- Grilled chicken and sautéed corn with tomato and jalapeño
- Teriyaki chicken, sesame bok choy and bell pepper, jasmine rice
- Southwestern grilled chicken salad with lettuce, bell pepper, tomato, cucumber, green onions, kidney beans and cornbread
- Lettuce cups with ground chicken, carrots, chiles, bell peppers and water chestnuts; edamame; jasmine rice; rice wine vinegar-marinated matchstick cucumbers
- Baba ganoush
Technique of the Week: Divide and Freeze
The nature of being a member of a CSA or farm share is that you spend a lot of time prepping and cooking all of those vegetables. I enjoy the work, but it’s still work. I have a full-time job, and I run my household without help, so there are definitely days when getting dinner on the table needs to be a simple affair.
One of my tricks is keeping individually wrapped chicken breasts in my freezer. I can defrost them in cold water in 20 minutes, and then toss them in a quick marinade while I’m prepping and cooking side dishes like that corn and tomato sauté.
Standout Dish of the Week: A Quick and Easy Chicken Recipe
Our household has been busy with work, and it’s been so hot here on the East Coast, so it was nice to simplify cooking a bit with this easy chicken dish. The marinade is so easy to make, but it never fails at turning out a delicious piece of chicken. So I’m sharing it with you!
Ingredients:
- 1-2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, about 3-4 ounces
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 2-4 teaspoons red wine vinegar
- Kosher salt
- Fresh ground black pepper
Directions:
Mix all ingredients together, cover, and refrigerate for 10-20 minutes before grilling the chicken and discarding excess marinade.
One night I served the chicken with simple sautéed summer squash seasoned only with salt—it didn’t need anything else. As a side, I sliced up a loaf of sourdough bread and tarted up some olive oil with crushed red pepper.
Another night, that same chicken was sliced up and served over a Southwestern-style chopped salad, along with the last of the cornbread I’d made in Week 11. It all made for some very tasty dinners with minimal effort, which was just what I needed as the summer was coming to a close.
Join me here each week, as well as on Twitter and Instagram, as I wash, chop, cook and eat my way through my CSA using the hashtag #CSASurvival. Got questions for me? Ask away!
