CSA Update

At the beginning of the summer I imagined I would write often about our experience subscribing to a CSA for the first time. Well, that didn't quite work out. How does summer manage to change so between April and July? Imaginary summer is a magical place where time and energy are endless. Actual summer is more hot and tired and smelly and loud and argumentative and sassy.

Now that my kids are back in school, I can tell you about what we're eating.

Thursday is pick-up day so our fridge is full. This week's highlights: slicing and heirloom tomatoes, basil, corn, lettuce, eggplant, bell peppers, haricots vert (green beans). It's almost like a normal grocery store trip except everything just came out of the ground a couple days ago.

We have a holdover from last week: beets. It's the third round of beets this summer and I think there are more in the pipeline. I have not found a great way to get the family interested in beets yet. My plan for the current stash is Beet Rosemary Roesti. I found it in a Mark Bittmann cookbook on a list entitled "Vegetable Recipes That Will Make Converts." It looks like a potato pancake where potatoes are switched out for beets. And it's cooked in butter.

Butter seems to be the common denominator in beet recipes. I've read many a beet cooking plan with the phrase "slathered in butter." Maybe that's what I'm missing. The slathering.

The eggplant might be a challenge too. I think Ben is eggplant-averse. Maybe if I sneak it in with enough tomatoes and cheese and pasta he'll barely notice. Technique seems to be very important with eggplant, the difference between bitter & soggy or mild & creamy.

The kids, happily, have developed no anxiety about my farm trips. There is enough that they like (corn! green beans!) and the rest is usually low-pressure. The beet roesti might throw them. But good marketing could win that. I could call it Purple Pancake Dinner. Maybe serve it with purple milk.