CSA Box: What I Got, What I Made

This past week I picked up my first CSA (community supported agriculture) box, which I'm sharing with my friend, Kim, who's received it for months already. I like vegetables, but have been pretty limited in using them and usually go for the trusty, steamed broccoli as a side to mostly anything I make that consists of meat and potatoes, which is about 80 percent of the food I cook for my husband and I. We're Midwesterners, what can I say?

Enter the CSA box from Be Wise Ranch and its bounty of fresh produce. What will I do with: 

• Baby Bok Choy
• Chard
• Satsumas (had to look this one up)
• Avocado
• Carrots
• Apples
• Green Beans
• Beets
• Butternut Squash
• Dates
• Lemons
• Spring Mix
• Zucchini
• Radishes

So far, I've used a less than half the items. The zucchini I used to make zucchini bread, kind of a cheat, since I'm baking it into something and not eating it in its natural form, but rather, shredded and mixed with wonderful things like sugar, butter and nuts. The bread turned out well, but the consistency lumpier than I anticipated and different than zucchinis breads of my past. 

This isn't too much of a surprise since my baking skills aren't that great. I messed up sugar cookies a few weeks ago. The kind where you just add egg and oil to the mix. They all melted into one, large sugary cookie, which I covered with frosting and tasted incredible. 

I think this is due to my problem with patience and exact measurements. I am an oven peeker to see if things are done cooking and I eye measurements and toss them in as I go. No nos in the world of baking, I guess.

I topped the spring mix with a dressing I made of balsamic vinegar, onion, pepper, lemon (also from the box!) and oil drizzled in. I added in random stuff like artichoke hearts and satsumas (oranges from the box), all which turned out pretty tasty. 

Finally, I made bacon-wrapped dates because how else are you supposed to eat them? 

Let me know if you have recipe ideas for what I can do with the rest of the ingredients!

New Year, New Recipes: Meatballs and Rice

Dieting has never been a resolution of mine because I just enjoy food too darn much. However, I did make a food resolution: try one new recipe a week. This helps me with my endeavor to cook more and eat more vegetables. 

My first recipe, though not vegetarian, was a success! I don't know if I can call it a new recipe necessarily, but since it's a short week, I am going to count it. 

Meatloaf is one of the easiest things to make. You only need ground beef (or turkey), an egg, breadcrumbs, and seasonings. I never make my meatloaf the same way -- I use what seasonings I have on hand and whatever additions I think I need.

I also never keep a refrigerator full of groceries because they usually go bad before we can use them, so I only shop for a few days at a time. I got one of those meat logs and divided it into thirds, the way my mom taught me, and used one-third to mix with the above mentioned ingredients and make meatballs. 

Voila new recipe! 

Meatballs and Rice

It's simple, easy, and most importantly delicious. 

You need: 

1 lb. (roughly) of ground beef
1 egg
1/2 cup or so of bread crumbs (I used the regular, unseasoned kind)
any spices that you think might be good (I used salt, pepper, garlic powder, and seasoning salt)
a few shakes of parmesan or cotija cheese

If you want measurements on the seasonings, I'd say about a teaspoon or two of each, but heavier on the pepper rather than salt. Mix all ingredients by hand until everything is incorporated and roll into meatballs. 

Cook on a baking sheet at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes until brown and cooked through. Option: the last five minutes of baking, pull out the meatballs and add BBQ sauce, then finish cooking the last few minutes.

Serve with rice, steamed veggies, and garlic bread. All of this is a meal for two for under $10! 

I would've taken pictures of the cooking process except another one of my 2015 goals is to take better pictures. That and my cooking mostly tastes better than it looks. 

Enjoy the eats!

Randomness + a Recipe

Most of my blog posts are focused with a theme so to speak. Whether it's the latest book I didn't like or the best thing about the vacation I was just on, I have some kind of central topic I am discussing.

This post is not like that.

It is random (or more random than the others) because writing is calming, soothing, therapeutic. It's my favorite thing to do before bed, when I first get up and all the time in between. 

There are times when I have these genius thoughts and I think, "I should write that down!" and then when I go to write it down it is not nearly as smart as it had seemed in my mind.

Last month was a gem compared to April. Susan Miller, astrologer extraordinaire, says it was due to the eclipse, and I think she was right! April was kind of a pisser. 

Why, you wonder? Let me just say for this first year as a full-time freelancer, it is like standing on the edge of a cliff. Maybe not a long ways down cliff, but at least if I fell, my leg would break or at least I'd sprain my ankle. On one side, there is solid ground and on the other side is something unknown. 

If I reach the other side, will I fly for a second? Fall with a thud? Or, somehow come away unscathed and feeling invincible. I'm sure you can guess which I'm aiming for here in my freelance/cliff dwelling metaphor.

Fortunately, May brought some relief and the chance to meet my new baby niece, still not yet two months old, and she brought such joy that I could hardly think of anything else. My family makes me feel like home no matter where we are. Spending time with them is one of my favorite things in life.

Now we're on to June, so quickly like I was pushed through April and May to avoid the chance of too much damage. I made it through the other side and here I am in a new month with a fresh outlook and reaching out for countless opportunities. 

And just like that, being invincible doesn't seem like quite a pipe dream.

Before I leave you from this random, rambling blog post, I shall leave you with a recipe. I do this because I always seem to make the same things: spaghetti, tacos, baked chicken, repeat and I guess you might, too. We could all use new recipes now and then.

Today, I made baked salmon with pesto served with roasted Brussels sprouts and corn on the cob. Simple and delicious, not to mention inexpensive due to all items being on sale.

If you want to follow this recipe, you have to follow it precisely or it will turn out like crap. Just kidding, if you don't follow the recipe exactly, it will taste much better.

Simple Summer Lunch for When You Only Have Six Bucks

This beautiful meal is on the oldest plate I have.
I made it from a paper plate in 1987 in school.
No, I'm not making it up. It says my name.

- one package of salmon (two pieces per package) on sale at Fresh and Easy

= one container of pesto

- one package of Brussels sprouts

- one package of corn on the cob

Line a baking sheet with tinfoil. I do this so that it is easier to wash it. I do not have a dishwasher and any little thing helps. Place salmon and cut up Brussels sprouts on the foil and drizzle with olive oil (the good kind, for the love!) and salt and pepper. Butter, salt and pepper your corn on the cob, wrap in separate foil, but put on the baking sheet as well. Cook everything at 375 degrees for 30 minutes. 

Take it out and look at it. If it looks like it could use a few more minutes, stick it back in. 

If you want to something extra delicious, mix your butter with cotija cheese and chili powder first and then lather up your corn cobs. Use the pesto as a side to the salmon or put it right on top when baking like I do.

It's cheap. It's delicious. And you don't feel like crap when you eat a few extra spoonfuls of Ben & Jerry's - Salted Caramel Core or Karamel Sutra Core, if you know what's good for you.