Green Door Gourmet CSA Week 5

Green Door Gourmet’s Week 5 CSA (Week 3 for me since I pick up every other week becauseI have a 1/2 share) is as follows:

Photo Credit – Green Door Gourmet

I can’t wait to pick up my food this weekend.  I will receive zucchini, summer squash, patty pan squash,caraflex cabbage, savory cabbage,collards, kale, and broccoli.

While Green Door Gourmet has been growing organic food, this week’s produce now has the official certification. Congratulations, Green Door Gourmet.  You can read the announcement CSA members received below.

Dear Friends of Green Door Gourmet,

We are excited to share that Green Door Gourmet has officially been awarded Organic Certification from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Green Door Gourmet is the only farm of its size to receive organic certification in Metropolitan Nashville.

As you know, Green Door Gourmet grows a wide assortment of fresh produce, including up to 80 varieties of herbs and flowers, grown using natural methods which follow an organic, holistic model. As a local farmer providing fruits, vegetables and herbs to our customers through Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), farmer’s markets, and 22 local restaurants, it is essential we provide the finest quality organic grown and harvested products. Receiving USDA Certification further aligns with our mission of feeding Nashville, as well as providing customers the confidence of buying organically sourced food.

Green Door Gourmet encourages consumers to not only look for the Organic Certification label but to also investigate deeper when making buying decisions. Increasingly consumers are looking for not only chemical-free food, but food that has been produced with minimal negative impacts on the environment. Knowing how food is produced, including being able to talk directly with farmers, is the best way for people to buy food that is GMO-free and has been grown or raised in the most sustainable manner.

“Organic” is a labeling term for food or other agricultural products that have been produced according to the USDA organic regulations. These standards require the integration of cultural, biological, and mechanical practices that foster cycling of resources, promote ecological balance, and conserve biodiversity. Organic certification verifies that a farm or handling facility complies with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) organic regulations and allows the farm to sell, label, and represent products as organic. Consumers choose to purchase organic products with the expectation that they are grown, processed, and handled according to meet USDA organic regulations.

Please let us know if you have any questions. We want to be your farmer, your CSA, and part of your weekly shopping as we provide local artisan foods in our farm-cooperative community setting.

 Thank you,

Sylvia Ganier

My Second Week of CSA Produce from Eaton’s Creek Organics Farm

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Today was my second CSA pick up for the half-share CSA with Eaton’s Creek Organics, and as with my first, I’m thrilled.

Pick up is at the Country Crossroads Farmers Market located at the intersection of Whites Creek Pike and Old Hickory Boulevard, Whites Creek, Tennessee (northwest Metro-Nashville). Here is a photo made today of the smiling faces of those working the market from the farm.

Eaton’s Creek Organics Farmers’ Market Booth

The email preview of what was expected to be in today’s CSA listed the following: beets, chard, fennel, kale, garlic scapes, lettuce, carrots and mint. This is what I received with two exceptions.  Instead of mint, I received some absolutely gorgeous parsley. I was excited to also find a vegetable I’ve never cooked (or eaten) before: kohlrabi.

Here is a picture of my basket of fresh (harvested this morning), local, organic produce after I set it in my (hot) car.  (I got the air going ASAP). I really get a lot of food.  I weighed this basket of produce after I got home, and after deducting the weight of the container, I had almost 10 pounds of fresh goodness.

My week 2 (half share) of CSA produce from Eaton’s Creek Organics

In addition to Eaton’s Creek Organics, there are some other lovely vendors at this small market.  One is an old friend from the Clarksville, Tennessee, market: Louise’s Bread. I’ve met a new friend from whom I have bought local honey today; his farm is Hayzyhaven Farm in Greenbrier, Tennessee.  With approximately 60% of the hives in Tennessee lost in the last several months, I am thrilled to find local honey at this market.

Hayzyhaven Farm Honey

 

I encourage you to get out at your local farmers’ markets and get to know your local farmers and other vendors. Remember that when you buy from these people you support local people and farms, and you eat my healthily, too.

Recipe Finds for Enjoying CSA Fresh Produce

I spent yesterday and today cooking to take advantage of all the wonderful fresh produce obtained from the two 1/2-share CSAs we have bought from Green Door Gourmet and Eaton’s Creek Organics. Prior to cooking, I searched the Internet for recipes that seemed to be tasty and were not too complicated to make and that had good reviews.

Here are links to some of the recipes I used, comments, and a few pictures.

Mint Syrup: Simple and tasty, I can’t wait to try the mint syrups I’ve made in recipes other than tea. If you like, this can be used in making Mint Juleps.

Chocolate Mint Syrup
Photo by Angela Johnson

Cheesy Spinach and Bacon Puff Pastry Quiche: This spinach quiche is awesome! I ended up eating 1/4 of it as brunch this morning.

Cheesy Spinach and Bacon Puff Pasty Quiche (after 3 pieces were eaten) Photo by Angela Johnson

Kale Pesto: This was my first attempt at making homemade pesto, and even I was able to do it.  I’ve not used the pesto yet, but the plans are to mix it with pasta for lunch or dinner one day this week.

Kale Pesto
Photo by Angela Johnson

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower: In the oven now is Roasted Garlic Cauliflower; it smells yummy. I did add some cumin and cayenne pepper as additional seasoning.

Roasted Beets and Sautéed Beet Greens:  This was my least favorite of the recipes tried, but I don’t think it was fault with the recipe. First, I’m not really a beet eater, and I waited several days after picking up the beets to cook them; I was hesitant to give them a try.

Roasted Beets and Sautéed Beet Greens

Give these a try and let me know how you like them, or send me your tried and true recipes for me to use.

 

 

 

Another Week of CSAs: Today’s Fresh Goodness from Green Door Gourmet

This afternoon, I made my drive to Green Door Gourmet’s Farm Store to pick up my CSA box for this week and a couple of tomatoes to compliment the contents of the box.  Here is what I received.

Green Door Gourmet Week 3 CSA – photo credit goes to Green Door Gourmet

• Carrots
• Cabbage
• Cauliflower
• Collards
• Green Curly Kale
• Lacinato Kale
• Lettuce
• Strawberries

Now, what I am going to do with all of this kale? Between my two 1/2 shares of CSAs, I’ve received five (5) bunches of kale in the last two weeks, and I expect another bunch on Wednesday. I’m running out of recipes!  My poor hubby was afraid to eat anything by the middle of this last week, while he was working from home, for fear that it had kale hidden in it somewhere.  Does anyone have some wonderful ideas of how to use all of this kale in tasteful recipes?

Well, I’m off to wash and store all of this wonderful green freshness, and then I need to find recipes to use and plan menus for the week.

I hope you are enjoying fresh, local, healthy produce as springs is quickly moving toward summer.

 

 

First CSA 1/2 Bushel from Eaton’s Creek Organics

Here is what I received today from Eaton’s Creek Organics, and I am quite pleased.

 

CSA from Eaton’s Creek Organics

Included in the basket above are the following:

• 1 bunch kale
• 1 head lettuce
• 1 bag of spinach
• 1 bunch escarole
• 1 bunch (4)  beets with leaves
• 1 bunch radishes
• 2 large green onions
• 1 bunch of mint
• 1 quart strawberries (with a bonus quart)

How will I use all of this bounty?  The lettuce, escarole, and radishes are salad bound for sure; the spinach and green onions may be a part of the salad mix, too. Strawberries are “melt in your mouth” good, so they will be washed, topped, and sliced.  We’ll eat what we can today and tomorrow, and the rest will be frozen for later use.

I have several recipes for using kale, so I’m not sure in which one this bunch will be used, but since I  still have another bunch and a half of kale from last weekend, I’ve got to do some cooking. I’m looking for recipes to use the mint and beets; I’ve never cooked beets, so this is an experiment. At AllRecipes.com, I found this recipe, which uses the beets and the greens of the beets, and it looks like one I may try. This is another recipe I may try in order to use two or three different types of greens.

Frittatas Using Fresh, Organic Produce

While not a vegetable in my CSA this week,  I did snag a bunch of fresh, local, organic asparagus, so I’m also looking for new ways to cook asparagus. I decided to try my hand at coming up with a workable recipe that would use some of the asparagus, so I made frittatas.

The ingredients used are listed below. As always, I encourage you to use local, organic products when possible.

• 4 eggs
• 1/4 cup milk
• 3 slices of turkey bacon, cooked, divided in half, and each half cut into bite-size pieces
• 1/4 – 1/2 cup shredded cheese (your choice; I used a Mexican mix because it was open)
• 3 asparagus, rinsed and cut into bite-size pieces
• 1/8 green bell pepper, rinsed and cut into bite-size pieces
• salt and pepper to taste
• a dash of Italian seasoning

Instructions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Grease or line six muffin tins according to your preference; I used Pam.
3. Cook bacon. Drain on paper towel while cooling. Cut into bite size pieces as noted above.
4. Beat eggs with milk, adding seasonings as desired.
5. Divide evenly into greased/lined muffin tins in the order listed bacon, bell pepper, asparagus, and cheese.
6. Pour egg mixture into each muffin tin evenly over other items.
7. Bake for about 20 minutes, checking often as ovens cook differently.

Makes 6 frittatas. Below are the pictures of mine before and after cooking.

Bacon, Asparagus, Bell Pepper Mini Frittatas

Mini Frittatas by Angela Johnson

 

 

Cooking Using CSA Foods: Using Kale in Corn, Kale, and Green Onion Fritters

This weekend, I picked up our first CSA box of organically grown fruits, vegetables, and herbs for the season.  What was in my box? Here is the list.

• Two quarts strawberries
• A bunch of mint
• A large bunch of purple kale
• A large bunch of green kale
• A large bunch of collards
• A medium head of green cabbage
• A bag of various loose leaf lettuce
• Two stalks with multiple heads of broccoli

First, we used some of the lettuce for salad Saturday night, and I used more of it for a salad at lunch today.  There is more lettuce yet to use.

I washed, topped, and sliced the first quart of strawberries last night, and we have eaten those with cereal in the morning and with ice cream for dessert after meals. Tonight, I used some of the purple kale with organic frozen corn and fresh organic green onions to make the following recipe.

Corn, Kale, and Green Onion Fritters by Angela Johnson

I was surfing the Internet looking for new recipes to use items in the CSA box, and I came across a recipe by Just the Tip. I didn’t have any leeks; I even to the store, and they were sold out.  I wasn’t going to make the recipe, but as I read over it,  I saw things that I would modify and do differently. Then it came to me that a leek is in the onion family. I got some green onions and modified the recipe to suit myself, coming up with my own version of a fritter recipe.  Here is what I used and how I made the fritters pictured.  I thought they were pretty good.

Corn, Kale, and Green Onion Fritters

Ingredients (use all organic if at all possible):

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup yellow cornmeal
• 2 cups fresh (or thawed frozen) corn
• 2 cups finely chopped, firmly packed kale
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons sunflower or olive oil, plus more for frying the fritters, unless you choose to use butter (be careful, butter burns quickly)
• 2 cups milk
• 2/3 – 1 cup finely chopped green onions
• Sea salt and black pepper to taste
• Lemon for garnish (optional)

Instructions:

1. Sauté green onions in oil, and add kale to pan to wilt during the last minute or two. Let cool slightly.
2. In a large bowl, mix the flour, cornmeal, salt, milk, eggs (beaten), salt, and pepper.
3. Add the green onions, kale, and oil from skillet in which they were cooked, and stir to combine.
4. Finally, add corn to batter and stir.
5. Heat oil in a large frying pan. Drop about 1/4 cup batter per fritter into the hot skillet, adding more oil, or butter, as needed to keep fritters from sticking.
6. Cook until fritters begin to bubble and are browned on the bottom, about 3 minutes, then flip and cook until the other side is golden, 1 or 2 minutes longer.
7. Drain on paper towel on plate as each is removed from the skillet.
8. Keep cooking in batches.

Serve warm with a little squeeze of lemon if desired.

If you have any fantastic recipes that uses the items listed in this week’s CSA box, please feel free to share ASAP.

 

Re-think Meat Choices

Read about it here; meat prices are up due to several factors. Many people are cutting back on meat consumption due to the increase in the cost of meat. Why not take this opportunity to choose to cut your meat consumption as a lifestyle change that will be better for your budget, health, environment, and farm animals?

I’m not a vegetarian, although I spent about two years eating vegetarian.  I grew up on a family farm where we raised most of what we ate; we raised our own animals to provide beef, pork, and for a time, poultry. Why, then, you may wonder, do I suggest that you consider reducing meat consumption.

First is the obvious; meat is more expensive than most other foods for which one might shop to feed his or her family. It costs more to produce meat and get it to supermarkets.  Next, there is a reasonable amount of evidence to show that a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and grains is needed for health, and meat is needed in small amounts, if at all. Additionally, raising large amounts of animals for human consumption is more detrimental to the environment than raising plant-based foods for human consumption. You can read about this here. Finally, current-day farming is not what it was on our family farm. Animals are abused and mistreated in factory farms. This is something about which I did not know for a long time. I ignorantly assumed that all the meat and poultry in the supermarkets came from farms like the one on which I grew up but were run on a larger scale.  It is nothing like that.  If you want to learn more about factory farms, click here. Please be aware photos may be graphic.

Use the current rise in meat prices to guide you and your family into eating less meat; you will save money while doing good for your health and the environment. When you do eat meat, support local farmers, like Tennessee Grass Fed Farm here in Middle Tennessee, who raise their animals humanely and do not inject them with growth hormones or needless antibiotics.  A dietician told me recently that this meat is better for us – better for our health.  Mr. Baggett’s prices, which include taxes, make his ground beef more affordable that the stuff sold in grocery stores and labeled organic that are still most likely from a factory beef farm much farther away than Tennessee Grass Fed Farm. When you do, not only will you know more about where your food comes from when you buy from local farmers, but you also help farm animals have quality of life and ensure that small farmers are able to earn a living.

Think about it. Research it for yourself. Make the change.

 

 

 

Why Wal-mart is the Last Stop Now Instead of the First

Wal-mart. Who doesn’t shop at Wal-mart? Heck, on our first visit to Porto Vallerta, Mexico, there was a Wal-mart across from the harbor.

When I first came to know of Wal-mart, it seemed like a good thing.  American made products were made available at affordable prices, and one could get many of things needed in one place without having to go to four or five different stores.  Then Sam Walton, the founder, died, and the reach and greed of Walmart grew.

Today, one is hard pressed to find American made items, and often other stores such as Dollar General are more affordable. The company has been accused of not being considerate of paying its employees a living wage. One of the newest news articles I have read is that in its greed, Wal-mart is now attempting to undermine and put out of business companies such as Dollar General and CVS.  I have a message for Wal-mart: I shop Dollar General first now; this store is getting the money I used to spend at Wal-mart.

Unfortunately, over the last 34 of the last 35 years, I have been one of those consumers who have continued to patron Wal-mart at the expense of smaller local stores, but as I have become more aware of inferior products produced in China and other countries at the detriment to the American manufacturing industry, I have shopped at Wal-mart less. As I have become more informed on food production and the poor quality of most foods found in grocery stores, much of which is being imported unnecessarily from places like China, my first choice for purchasing food is local farmers followed by stores that provide organic options from here in the U. S.

I’m not to the point of boycotting Wal-mart, but it my last stop rather than the first unless it is the only option in the geographic area in which I may be at the time.

I suggest that you re-think your shopping decisions.  After all, there is power in the way we spend our money.

How Many People Really Care About Our Environment?

In almost all things, I fall into the conservative side of things, but when it comes to our environment, I would be labeled a liberal – at least in the political arena.  That is okay with me because I think that one can be politically conservative and care about protecting and rejuvenating our environment.

Unfortunately, I think too many of us do not care, and that lack of care may be in great part due to lack of understanding that how we as humans live impacts wildlife and our natural resources. Modern developments such as plastic have brought about a great improvement in the quality of life, but there are aspects of life with plastics that are dangerous.  For example, many sea creatures such as dolphins and turtles have been found dead with plastic bags in their throats and stomachs. Birds have been found dead with plastic wrapped around them, and small mammals have died because they have gotten their heads caught inside Yoplait yogurt containers. Excessive use of plastics, of which I myself have been guilty but am trying to change, has added to our landfills and will not decompose in many lifetimes.

Insecticides being used to make farming easier are more than likely killing bees, which is kind of like the old adage of cutting one’s nose off to spite one’s face.  You see, without bees to pollinate our crops, we will  not have crops. Using genetically modified organisms such is commonly used in growing corn, soy, etc. is bad in and of itself, but when these crops cross pollinate with heirloom crops grown nearby, the damage cannot be undone.

The point of this is to ask you to consider the consequences of how you live and how we as a society live to make better choices for the good of our environment and for humanity’s future.