Now What?! Recap

I love doing this workshop! The members who attend are always so eager to learn! This year was no different! People shared their ideas and asked lots of great questions! How to use all the lettuce definitely came up once or twice! I recommend using the salad mix first and save the full heads of lettuce until later in the week. Figuring out which greens should be used first, and which ones can wait is part of the CSA learning curve!

We talked about what types of containers to use to store our produce. I love the Rubbermaid ones with a little shelf on the bottom.

I also attempted to emphasize what a unique experience it is regarding how each member handles their share – being a CSA member is not a one-size-fits-all experience! But with that being said, we can learn soooo much from each other! So please, talk to each other in the pickup room or as you are doing your u-pick. I know that I learn new things each year from other members!

Of course, the workshop would not be complete without food! I shared BBQ Zucchini Chips and dehydrated tomatoes when we briefly spoke about using a dehydrator. I would love to hear from any member who has used their air fryer as a dehydrator!

I suggested that members use the center rib of the Kale for something like Kale Stem Pesto – which I had some to share! And I also shared a newer family favorite – Kohlrabi in a Peanut Teriyaki sauce. I promise the recipe will come in a future newsletter!

Overall, I hoped to try to encourage members to think outside the box regarding using their share. I will confess that until maybe 5 or 6 years ago, whenever Bok Choy was part of our share, the only thought I had was “make rice for stir fry”. Now I use Bok Choy in so many ways – using the leaves for a wrap, having the stem with peanut butter, or using both leaf and stem in a Mexican Casserole! Look for the recipe on the Recipe page: Bok choy Mexican casserole. Or using the Bok Choy leaves to wrap the Kohlrabi in the Peanut Teriyaki sauce mentioned above!!! Swapping out a mild green you don’t have with a mild green you do is a great way to modify a recipe! Same thing goes with bitter greens. Heck – experiment with your recipes and swap in a bitter green instead of using a mild green. Live life on the wild side!

Blanching greens to freeze and save for later was also discussed. I don’t mean to diss the turnip greens – but with all the yummy produce we are getting in our share, they are not on the top of my list of what I want to eat. But I am so grateful in the winter that I had blanched them, squeezed out all the water and froze the little ball in a Ziploc bag or a mason jar! Yes – you can use Mason Jars in the freezer! That is real canning jars – not the ones the tomato sauce comes in and just say “Mason” on the side.

I also shared my number one “go to” reference: From Asparagus to Zucchini: A Guide to Cooking Farm-Fresh. And when I say number one – I really do mean it – as in even before google!

And there were things I didn’t talk about – like using your u-pick herb share! Don’t skip over it! And speaking of herbs – I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of Papalo and Sorrel!

Thank you to everyone who attended – I had a fabulous time and I hope you did too!