Local Box, 03.11.2009

STRAWBERRIES!!! Just-picked, local, and delivered to my door. Does it get any better than this? Makes all the cilantro seem worth it But back to those strawberries: If you haven’t snarfed them all already, I recommend letting them come up to room temperature before you eat them. Their flavor is excellent, but dulled by cold. (Want to read more on Texas strawberries? Click here.)

Also in the Local Box this week, we’ve got plenty of greens and a rogue avocado and grapefruit, too. It’s going to be a tasty week of local eating!

How do you plan to eat out of the Local Box this week?

Local Veggie Mish-Mash, with Quinoa

I heart quinoa. Last night I cooked some up using a new-to-me method from Paula Disbrowe’s book, Cowgirl Cuisine. Instead of rinsing it ’till kingdom come, she toasts it before cooking. (On a cookie sheet, 350 for 8 minutes.) After toasting, I dumped it into a pot of boiling water (3 cups water to 2 cups quinoa) to cook for 15 minutes. Yum! Until it gets so hot I’m loathe to fire up the oven, this method will serve me well. It did last night, especially under the mish-mash of Local Box carrots, scallions, and collards I cooked lightly, then spooned over it. I even added sliced avocado at the end. When the ingredients are this right, it’s hard to go wrong.

What did you eat out of the Local Box yesterday?

Local Box Lookout, week of 03.09.2009

Here’s what to expect in next week’s Local Box:

• baby carrots
• red-leaf lettuce
• cilantro
• green shallots
• kale
• collards
• strawberries
• grapefruit
• baby arugula
• yellow onions
• herbs
• avocado

If you haven’t already, you can still order next week’s Local Box through Saturday and later, depending on your zip code. Click here to check it out!

Local Box Lookout, week of 03.02.2009

Here’s the lookout for Local Boxes next week:

• spinach
• lettuce
• cilantro
• green shallots
• kale
• turnips
• green cauliflower
• oranges
• kohlrabi
• radishes
• Swiss chard
• avocado

Remember, you can still order this week’s Local Box through Saturday and later, depending on your zip code. Click here to check it out!

Lots of Bowl Action – and Some Plates, Too

The Local Box fed us well this weekend, as we stayed home catching up on household chores.

Friday night, we stir-fried last week’s bok choy and a sprinkle of salt in 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil, adding a sauce of 2 tablespoons water, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon oyster sauce, and 2 tablespoons butter per a simple-but-excellent recipe we found in the Gourmet cookbook. We served it over rice in big bowls and ate it with chopsticks – making a very fast meal feel festive.

Then Saturday, we washed and spun some Local Box spinach to make salads we dressed with last week’s then-green tomato, onion, roasted beets, hard-boiled egg, toasted bread cubes, and a homemade bacon vinaigrette.

For Sunday breakfast, we made a simple omelette filled with queso asadero, then topped it with my husband’s ingenious salsa of avocado, tomato, onion, and a spritz of Meyer lemon juice.

And finally, for dinner as we watched that other bowl last night, we feasted on pasta in an improvised sauce of Meyer lemon juice and zest, rosemary, onion, and red-pepper flakes. Alongside, we had turnips in a delectable glaze, per the recipe here. It was, we agreed, the best turnip preparation we’d ever tasted.

All in all, I’m poised to finish up last week’s Local Box before this one’s arrives. How are you progressing on last week’s Local Box? Anything you’re having trouble using?

Local Box Lookout, week of 02.02.2009

Here’s what to look for in this week’s Local Box:

• broccoli
• spinach
  
• arugula
  
• herbs
  
• green onion
  
• microgreens
  
• lettuce
  
• avocado
  
• oranges
  
• radish

Local Box, 01.28.2009

Is there anything prettier than a picture that includes BOTH avocadoes and cilantro??? Yum! Our plans this weekend don’t include the Super Bowl, but they do include a molcajete – my favorite bowl for guacamole-making! I’m happy to see Meyer lemons again, too.  I think I’ll make some lemon squares for Grandma – and maybe some more marmalade, too. The sight of Meyer lemons alongside rosemary inspires me, also, though to what end I’m not yet sure. A pasta dish, perhaps, with a lemon-rosemary sauce? And capers? We’ll see. Those collard greens and this cold weather point to polenta for dinner some night this week, and the spinach is so tender and flavorful that it’ll make excellent salads. I’ll hard-boil some eggs today so I’ll have them on-hand to make spinach salad into a quick, hearty lunch.

What is this week’s Local Box inspiring you to make?

Local Box Lookout, week of 01.26.2009

Here’s what’s to expect in this week’s Local Box:

• baby carrots
• spinach
• cilantro
• collards
• green garlic
• white mushrooms
• yellow onion
• avocados
• Meyer lemons
• turnips
• tomato

Local Box, 12.10.2008

The season’s first cabbage – in my kitchen, anyway – is a welcome sight. But will I turn it into slaw or kraut? I’ve been yearning for the tangy, vitamin-C drenched goodness that is sauerkraut here lately, so I may try my hand at making my own. I hear it’s wicked easy… Have you ever made it? Please share your tips, if you have!

Grapefruits, too, are good to see – and conveniently loaded with vitamin C, too. In fact, beets are also great sources of this antioxidant nutrient. Is it a coincidence there’s so much of the magical C to be had locally as we get into the heart of cold and flu season??

I might just turn this week’s apples and those I have leftover from last week into a pie, or perhaps a galette. And those lovely mixed greens? They look like a sautée waiting to happen – perhaps with a little bacon or smoke-dried tomato for added flavor. I’m glad to see avocadoes again, too, as my husband wants to try a crazy avocado pie recipe he found – it’s sweet, with a graham-cracker crust! To me, it sounds just crazy enough that it might be wonderful.

What have you got planned for your Local Box this week?

Local Box 12.03.2008

This might sound crazy: I am so glad to see more Meyer lemons in this week’s Local Box! We’re totally hooked on maramalade, and I think it’s going to make great holiday gifts. It’s quite a lot of fun to make, too, and not hard at all.  What else this week? More avocadoes are always welcome! This morning, my husband sliced some up with a green tomato that had ripened over an omelette for breakfast, and yesterday I ate half of one sliced up with greens and a vinaigrette for a simple lunch salad. I trimmed the kale right away so that it would better fit in my fridge. It will be so tasty roasted as “kale chips” – more on that later. I think I’ll roast up this week’s and last week’s beets tonight to use as sides all week long. And the baby bok choy? That was a surprise that’s got me thinking about stir-fry.

What have you got planned for your Local Box this week?