man, i have been super slack lately with posting up the weekly csa loot and 3G project breakdowns. but it's been kinda busy around here. therefore, as the winter season of the csa comes to a close, i've decided to take a break for a couple of weeks, and will return with the new spring season csa in april. plus there are few new projects that have come up that i need to get rolling in a big way, and i need to focus on them for just a bit. in the meantime, i thought it would be fun to do a little winter csa/3G project review and look back at some of the highlights.
first things first, how did i do with the budget? i'd say i did pretty good, but not great. for the most part, i did stay with in the budget, going over some weeks, but then coming in under other weeks. there were some weeks that we probably ate out more than we should have, some weeks where the hubby went a little overboard with the cereal fixings, and then there was the week that we had a total grilled cheese and tomato soup craving that sent the budget packing. all in all, i have come to the conclusion, that $30 a week per person in the winter months is really tough. not completely undoable, but really tough. so as i take it up a notch in the garden, i'm also gonna have to hunker down in the kitchen this coming season. especially since i missed my raw milk enough to finally buckle under and spend the $10 per gallon to get it. that really puts a dent into the overall budget. after the $30 for the weekly csa and the $10 for the milk, $20 is all that's left. just $20 to purchase any other items needed to make a weeks worth of breakfasts, my lunches, and 2 person dinners. now i must say that i have been toying with the idea of increasing the weekly budget a bit to $70, even before going back to the raw milk. but i haven't decided on that issue yet. so while i think about that, let's take a look back......
let's start off with my new obsession, cashew butter. i had been eyeballing the cashew butter for weeks when i found out it was going to be included in the csa. i was a happy camper that day. when i got it home, i stirred and stirred until all the oil was incorporated, and the effort was well worth it. holy cow that stuff is delicious. i even had to immediately take a sample to the hubby. it has been delicious in the pb&j sandwiches i've made with the various breads we've gotten through the csa, which has become our go to dinner for when i am to tired to cook. it was also yummy as a snack on crackers with some of the honey that we got in week three of the csa.
another easy and quick go to dinner of ours, has been scrambled eggs paired with whatever veggie we got that week sauteed in a bit of butter. i generally have mine with a big cool glass of raw milk. speaking of which, if any of you have questions regarding raw milk feel free to ask me about it next time you are in the market. but beware, i do have a tendency to chatter on about it.
another delicious discovery i made this season is winter squash. now summer squash, i can honestly do without, but winter squash is my new found love. one day before the csa had started, we were in the store and maude had suggested trying the buttercup squash, and that's when the love affair started. sweet and delicious, i made a soup with the buttercup squash with the last of my home canned tomatoes, an onion, and a bit of rosemary and sage.
then came week 3 of the csa and an introduction to the hubbard squash. although this guy proved much harder to peel and prep than the buttercup, it led me to what would become a three week long addiction....
galettes!!!! rustic little pieces of tart like heaven. with the whole wheat flour we received week 9, i made quite a few savory galettes with the hubbard squash and onions, and then some sweet galettes with the apples from week 3. yep, i hate to say it, but the squash and the apples hung out in the frig for over a month before i got around to eating them. good thing those suckers have a nice shelf life in the frig.
week eight also provided for us, what has become the hubby's favorite squash of all time, the spaghetti squash.
this squash we took almost literally by name every time we got one. after roasting the spaghetti squash whole on a baking sheet in the oven for about an hour, i'd cut it in half, remove the seeds, and then scrape out the flesh with a fork and use it just like i would spaghetti pasta.
oh yeah, then there was also the pig jowl bacon from that week. i apologize now to all our veggie friends, cause that jowl was definitely some good eating.
and last, but in no way, shape, or form, least.... the pea/sunflower shoots. who know microgreens could be so tasty. not to mention a great way to get some fresh greens into your diet during the winter months.
i did about every preparation i could think of with the shoots. i used them as a topping for the lamb brats from week 4.....
lightly dressed as a side salad that i pair with a grilled cheese, made from the bread and cheese from week 6...
as a crunchy topping in a mushroom soup....
and sauteed in butter with the oyster mushroom, and topped with a honey mustard dressing to go with some scrambled eggs for dinner. i told you i did this lot for dinner.
and there you have it folks. now on to the spring season, with what i hope is even more experimenting in the kitchen with new and interesting produce.
