Eat Outside the box! CSA Greens
I belong to a totally wonderful CSA in Walnut Creek, called Eat Outside the Box. It's like Iron Chef every week! You get massive loads of in season Frog Hollow Farm's "legendary fruit, organically grown" as well as unusual and diverse crops from a 10 acre farm- Knoll Farms, as part of a bundled CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). It's forced me to try fruits and veg that I would never ahve considered at the farmers market. Both supply Chez Panisse and other top notch restaurants, so you know what you're getting is a good deal. One share is good for a single person or a couple that eats out a couple times a week. If you are vegetarian and cook a lot, the shares are on the small size. They have drop locations in Walnut Creek, Lafayette and Brentwood.
My sister is doing FullBelly Farms CSA since they have a drop off point near her work.
http://www.fullbellyfarm.com/index.html
It's also really great, and a slightly different selection of produce.
But here is a list of other CSAs that I researched that all have
delivery in either Berkeley or Oakland (I think they deliver other
places too but I wasn't paying attention to that):
Terra Firma Farm
www.terrafirmafarm.com
has S/M/L options which are all very reasonable. Our vegetarian friends get the large box which they enjoy tremendously
Eatwell Farm
www.eatwell.com
has member days where you volunteer time on the farm in addition to
paying for your box. a friend of mine does this one and likes it a
lot.
This week I got a bunch of greens in my CSA box so I'll be making an indian dish that normally uses spinach and potato. Instead I'm altering my ingredients to match what I have- amaranth and kabocha squash. We'll see how it turns out. I got the recipe from an interesting blog.
http://dailygirlblog.blogspot.com/2005/12/spinach-and-potato-curry-aloo-palak.html
but I've modified it slightly.
Ingredients:
* 3-4 garlic cloves
* Small piece of ginger
* 3-4 green chilies
* 1 Onion cut into small pieces
* 1 Tbs oil
* 1 lb Amaranth
* 1/2 cup Chicken stock
* Kabocha squash
* 1 tsp fresh grated turmeric
* 1 tsp Salt
* 1 tsp of cumin seeds
* 1 Tbs oil
* ½ tsp red chili powder
* 1tsp of coriander powder, cumin powder
* 1tsp of garam masala
Saute the garlic, ginger, green chilies, onions in oil, till onion is glassy and soft.
Add the greens and saute till bright and wilted.
Cool and puree with a food processor or a blender/immersion blender. Add chicken stock if necessary.
Cube Kabocha squash. Add turmeric, salt and mix them.
Sauté the cumin seeds in oil till aromatic. Add the greens and squash, cook over medium high heat. Toast garam masala, coriander powder, cumin powder, red chili powder over dry heat and add to pot. Cook for 15-20 mins covered until the squash absorbs the flavor and is soft.
Adjust salt to taste.