Though I’m still eating those cheddar jalapeno biscuits and our house is full of food, I had to scurry across Edwardsville yesterday to pick up our CSA share (I say across Edwardsville – it’s like five miles). After skipping last week’s CSA because I was out of town, I spent more than usual at the grocery store on Sunday. However, I made sure to skimp on produce purchases, because I knew a box full of freshness was coming yesterday!
Yes, you can tell it’s summer by the vegetables in the CSA. Greens are on their way out and squashes and cukes are in. This week we received quite a few new items, including the above cucumbers, zucchini, and summer squash, plus…
cilantro (time for tacos!)
carrots (recipe to come!)
and fennel (not a huge fan of fennel, so I need your help!).
We also received:
- head lettuce
- cabbage
- scallions
- curly kale
I’ll have a recipe using a few of these ingredients by Sunday. I also managed to make it to the Edwardsville farmer’s market today and was thrilled to see not one but two chicken vendors! Here’s what I purchased today:
- Cheese bread
- One whole fryer chicken, cut-up
- One individual strawberry Greek yogurt
- One pound chicken breasts
I am especially excited to try the chicken from Cock and Bull Farms. And I love that they also sell Windcrest Dairy’s yogurt!
Life Update!
Work: I don’t talk about work much on this blog, but I’m a full-time social worker and my workplace not only merged with a large organization but also moved buildings a couple of weeks ago. With the merge/move, my work schedule has been flipped on it’s head. Everything goes back to normal in July, which is exciting but doesn’t mean I’ll be any less busy!
Extracurricular: I’m also still taking classes to earn my BCBA (Behavior Analyst) certification and doing some freelance writing on the side (more on this to come!). Add planning a wedding, volunteering with Slow Food, and planning the upcoming Food Media Forum to the list, and you can imagine how little free time I’ve had lately!
Concert Season: On top of all that, we’ve officially entered concert season. For new readers: I traditionally spend my summers going to concerts across the country. Last summer was an exception, as a few major bands didn’t plan full tours. I do still post concert photos from time and time, and you can read more about my concert posts on my music page. That said, we embark on a few tours next week, so there’s more concert photos to come!
Question: What’s going on in your life this summer?
Question: How do you use fennel? (I’ve used it in soup before, but I need more ideas!)
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ugh, we had SO many good concerts in our area last summer, and this summer it’s like…NOTHING! so disappointing.
I saw your post about grilling the fennel, so I’m probably too late with this suggestion, but in case you get another one, you can use the leafy fronds to make pesto:
http://hergreenlife.com/2012/05/18/fennel-pesto/
We usually quarter and roast the bulbs, which probably has a similar effect to grilling.
I found a recipe for a kale and farro salad that called for fennel as well. Unfortunately, the organic foods market I was in actually didn’t carry any fennel so I just used a yellow onion seeing as I figured the two seemed to be related. It tasted good but I was really curious about how the salad would have tasted with the incorporation of fennel.
How do you find a CSA? I am in STL too (SoCo to be exact). Your grilled veggie pictures look amazing! I am trying to lead a more natural life too. :)