Fresh Fork CSA Week Three And Tomato, Corn, Onion and Cilantro Salsa {Recipe}

June 30, 2013 / Melissa (I Crashed the Web) / 6 Comments

Week Three of Fresh Fork was great! I’m so excited to be getting all of this fresh produce and meat each week and not have to plan meals. It’s so easy to just use what I have as opposed to making a trip to the grocery store to pick everything up. Yup, I’m drinking the Koolaid.

closeup of B’s favorites – the cheese, corn chips (“crackers”) and ground beef

check it out! More strawberries, plus lettuce, RADISHES, cilantro and some more yum yums

Can’t tell from the picture what we got? Week Three included:

1 lb grassfed ground beef
1 bag heirloom corn chips
1 piece, 6 oz, aged sharp cheddar (called Hull’s Trace)
1 bunch swiss chard
1 head green leaf lettuce
1 bunch radishes
1 bunch cilantro
2 ct zucchini
1 quart strawberries

So what did we make this week?

Corn chips: Were eaten with the sharp cheddar (B liked, but I wasn’t a huge fan. I prefer less sharp -softer?-cheese) and we also ate with the corn, onion, tomato and cilantro salsa.
Grassfed beef: B made some burgers on our grill over the weekend. I had turkey burgers, but had a bite of the grassfed beef and was pleased – it seemed pretty good!
Lettuce and radishes: used for salads and snacks. I LOVE radishes just cut up as a snack so those were gone immediately.
Swiss chard: I cooked it up and we had it for dinner one night with some chicken I marinated. B liked it a lot!
Zucchini: I roasted some to serve with the chard and chicken.

Chicken, zucchini, swiss chard and lentils

Cilantro: This was a tough one because B is not a huge cilantro fan. So I put it on a few salads and added it to a few dishes that I was eating on my own. I did make a salsa to serve with our burgers and chips with some cilantro that was pretty good. That sorta/not-really-a-recipe is below.

tomato corn onion cilantro salsa

Tomato, Corn, Onion and Cilantro Salsa

Here’s what you need:

2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 ish Tablespoons of red wine vinegar
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp lemon or lime juice (I bet lime would be great! I used lemon. Because that’s what I had on hand)
2 tomatoes, diced
1/2 red onion, diced
1 15 oz can of corn (or if you want you can grill up some corn on the cob and use about 2 cobs worth of corn!)
As much cilantro as your heart desires (if you’re like B, the answer is none. If you’re like me, it’s more like 2 bunches…only sorta kidding)

Here’s what you do:

In a small bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar, lemon juice and minced garlic.
Finely chop onion and tomatoes. Taste the onion – if it’s too spicy (B thinks that red onions can be too spicy at times) soak it in ice water for a little while.
Combine chopped onion, tomatoes, and corn. Mix with dressing.
Add cilantro to taste.
You’re done – enjoy! It’s a nice refreshing salad that we served with our grilled burgers and corn chips.

Optional: Chop up 1-2 avocados and add those as well.

tomato corn onion cilantro salsa

For other Fresh Fork Recaps:

Fresh Fork CSA Week Two And Kohlrabi Slaw {Recipe}

June 21, 2013June 21, 2013 / Melissa (I Crashed the Web) / 5 Comments

B and I picked up our third week of our Fresh Fork Market CSA goodies last night and have already started to enjoy some of the new goodies. But you’ll have to wait to hear about that – because this post is to share with you what we did with week two. (Week one, plus my roast chicken recipe is here)

Stuff at the Fresh Fork pick up (Week 2)

So, what did we get last week? Week Two included:

1 package pork chops
1 bulb kohlrabi (yes, it’s a thing that you eat, not an alien like it sounds or looks like as I will prove to you below despite what B thinks)
1 bunch collard greens
1.5 lb. bag organic rolled oats
1 bunch garlic scapes
1 bunch spinach
1 bunch mustard greens
1 quart strawberries

Let me show you:

Fresh Fork Week 2

So what did we make this week?

Strawberries – we just ate those. B actually ate them exactly a week after we picked them up – he likes strawberries when they get a little overdone and start to taste like they have champagne or something in them. It’s gross. Don’t get me wrong – the idea of strawberries soaked in champagne is awesome (and I know it’s been done) but the idea of strawberries a little overripe? Ick. But that means I can eat them when they’re fresh, B can eat the ones I don’t finish when they’re ripe. We make a good team like that.
Spinach – I sauteed it as soon as I got it and ate it for breakfast the next morning with my usual eggs and lentils for breakfast.
Collard greens – I made B some oven “fried” chicken, with collard greens and mashed white beans for dinner one night. I sauteed them with some leftover chicken stock from last week’s chicken, plus some oil and garlic. Not too bad!

oven fried chicken white beans collard greens

Oats – tbd. May make some cookies. Or oatmeal. Or oat bars. Who knows! I have plenty of recipes in mind, like Special K cookies, Monster cookies, chocolate peanut butter caramel oat bars, or perhaps something new.
Pork, mustard greens and garlic scapes – B made a delicious mustard pork with the mustard greens and garlic scapes. I am not typically a pork chop fan – but it was really good!

fresh fork pork, mustard greens and garlic scapes

Kohlrabi – Kohlrabi slaw! Yup. Kohlrabi slaw. The newest best refreshing unique side dish to bring to your summer bbq. Or just to lunch. See below.

This is a picture of Kohlrabi from Wikipedia. The entry “alien” also directs there. (kidding)

Kohlrabi – the alien vegetable. What do you do with it? How do you cook it? How do you know it’s not an alien? B doesn’t think it looks like an alien but take a look at the side by side comparison I’ve shared with you, below.

You tell me. Kohlrabi? Or alien?

Apparently it is a vegetable (B is always right but don’t tell him I said that) and you can roast it (which I did … it was delish!) or make a slaw (which I also did, that B liked). The slaw was super easy and required practically no ingredients, so I’m sharing it with you!

So here’s a recipe for you to enjoy the next time you find yourself with this funny little alien vegetable.

easy kohlrabi slaw {i crashed the web}

Easy Kohlrabi Slaw

Here’s what you need:

3 Tablespoons of olive oil
2 Tablespoons of red wine vinegar
2 Tablespoons dijon mustard
1 kohlrabi
4 carrots
salt and pepper to taste

Here’s what you do:

In a small bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar and mustard.
Peel kohlrabi and carrots. I used a carrot peeler for the carrots but a knife for the kohlrabi to make sure I removed the entire outer hard shell.
Grate the kohlrabi and the carrots into the salad bowl. Mix well until the carrot and kohlrabi are well coated with the dressing. Add salt and pepper to taste.
You’re done – enjoy! It’s a nice refreshing slaw that goes well with burgers, chicken, or even on its own!

kohlrabi carrot slaw

First Week of our First CSA and my First Roast Chicken

June 10, 2013June 9, 2013 / Melissa (I Crashed the Web) / 6 Comments

As you can tell by the title of this post, it was a week of firsts! This week B and I picked up our first CSA pickup. I’m excited that we finally signed up for the small share of Fresh Fork and the pick up is just down the street from where we live. It really is perfect!

The first week included some strawberries, red kale, broccoli, black turtle beans, lettuce, eggs and a whole 5+ lb chicken. That’s right, I got a 5+ lb organic pasture-raised chicken to use!

our first week’s CSA goodies

what we’ve done so far with our 1st week of Fresh Fork (ignore the shadow of my hand taking the photo)

We have of course been eating the lettuce for salads, eggs for breakfast, strawberries for snacking and I immediately made the beans to enjoy as part of nearly every meal. The chicken? I had to call / email my mom for her thought – and she suggested I roast it. I figured she was right – she IS my mom, and roasting a chicken is one of the easiest things you can do – plus I’d never done it before!

How did it go? It ended up tasting delicious and we’re halfway through the leftovers. But it wasn’t as easy as it looked. Sure, seasoning it and cooking it? A piece of cake. But cleaning it out? Finding the so-called giblets (pronounced with a soft G, not like I was saying – glib-lets)? I still have no idea if I found them. I had to call my mom and ask her what they looked like and how to take them out. I even took a picture of the inside of the chicken just to share with her so she could tell me where I may find them and how to get them out. Here’s how our conversation kinda went.

Me: I just sent you a picture.

My mom: Of what?

Me: The chicken.

Mom: Is it done?

Me: No, I can’t find the gliblets.

Mom: Giblets? They’re in a bag.

Me: No, this chicken doesn’t have a bag inside it. It’s a REAL chicken. No bags. It’s natural.

Mom: Oh I just got the picture. Eeew! That’s gross. I’m deleting it.

Me: No! Wait! Where are they?

Mom: I see them! See that white thing? Just down the back past them!

Me: Where? I don’t see them!

Mom: Eew, clean it out better, some parts are still red.

Me: Again? I just want to find the giblets!

Mom: They’re right there!

Me: They should have them come painted green or something so you know to take them out. And can find them.

Mom: Then it’s not natural if it’s painted?

That’s pretty much it. Word for word. I know now you’re probably wondering what recipe I used to roast the chicken, right? Because your mouth is watering after hearing that whole conversation? Well, here you go. It’s below. It’s a combination of my mom and Ina Garten’s recipe – and it’s delicious!

My First Roasted Chicken

Here’s what you need:

1 5-6 lb whole chicken, ready to be roasted
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tbs garlic powder
2 tbs parsley
4 tbs thyme
2 tbs (1/4 stick) butter, melted
3 tbs paprika, mixed with water so it’s turned into a paste
1 lemon, quartered
3 bulbs of garlic
1 large yellow onion, thickly sliced
4 carrots cut into 2-inch chunks
4 stalks of celery, cut into 2-inch chunks
1/2 c of chicken broth

Here’s what you do:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Remove the chicken’s neck and giblets. I’m told that if you buy a roasting chicken at the store it will come in a baggy or something … if not, call your mom for help.
Thoroughly rinse the chicken inside and out. Pat the outside VERY dry.
Liberally add salt and pepper and 2 tbs (approx) of thyme the inside of the chicken. Stuff the chicken with the garlic and lemon quarters.
Brush the outside of the chicken with the butter and the paprika paste. Sprinkle again with salt, pepper, garlic powder, parsley and remaining 2 tbs (approx) of thyme.
This is where Ina and my mom suggest that you tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken. I didn’t have kitchen string and since I’ve seen Bridget Jones Diary I know better than to use any old string. So I didn’t — and it turned out alright!
Place the onions, carrots, and celery in a roasting pan. Pour chicken broth over vegetables. Spread around the bottom of the roasting pan and place the chicken on top. Put it back/but side down and belly side up!
Roast the chicken for 1 1/2 hours, or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh, or the thickest part of the leg/thigh is 160ish degrees with a meat thermometer. Remove the chicken and vegetables to a platter and cover with aluminum foil for about 20 minutes.
Slice the chicken and serve it with the vegetables.

Ready to go in the oven .. sorta! I texted the photo to my mom and she called to tell me it was upside down. Whoops! And that it should “go on its back not its belly” which is what Ina’s recipe should’ve said in the first place