I apologize for the lack in updating this past week.  My husband’s best friend, his wife, and their 6-month old were visiting northern Michigan for a wedding and stayed with us for a few days. Combined with a few shifts at my 2nd job…I’ve been a tad busy! To the point where I haven’t done as much cooking as I normally would – but at least, I have cooked some.

Here’s what I’ve done so far with Week 1’s CSA. A lot of my choices were made based upon recommended shelf life, so I still have a few things that remain.

Fennel (1 bulb) – TBD – still thinking on a pasta dish

Kohlrabi (3 bulbs) – 1 down, 2 to go – I tried a slice of the vegetable raw, and wasn’t the biggest fan of it. I used 1 purple one in an Asian stir fry, along with tofu, snap peas, peppers, bean sprouts, garlic, ginger, a garlic scape, and a variety of different asian sauces & spices. I LOVED the kohlrabi in the stir fry, to the point where I’m considering blanching the rest of them to freeze, for future dishes.

Kale (1 bunch) – Will be cooking up tonight with a garlic scape, to make room in fridge

Romaine (1 bunch) – Used as a base for taco salads, which were useful for Mike’s lunches

Swiss Chard (1 bunch) – Cooked with a garlic scape and some olive oil. I made sure to eat the chard first, as I read online that the taste of freshly picked swiss chard was incomprable to that which you find in your common grocer.  I was surprised by the variety of color of the swiss chard; I didn’t realize that it came in colors other than red and white! The only downside to swiss chard, which I didn’t realize before, was that it cooks down a lot, even moreso than spinach. We both enjoyed the chard cooked this way, but it was disappointing that there really wasn’t a lot to eat once dinner was ready!

Swiss Chard with Olive Oil & Garlic Scape. The pan was full when the chard was raw…look how much it shrunk!

Garlic Scapes – Up until the past week, I thought that garlic scapes were sold at farmers markets for decoration, and not for eating.  They’re the tops of the growing garlic plant, harvested once a year. Thanks to Kathy at the farm, I learned that they were used like green onions, but with a garlic flavor rather than onion. The verdict? Completely awesome! I’ve used these in several dishes over the week – stir fry, breakfast skillet, tacos – and I am now a true-to-form fan.

Garlic scapes! Cut off & discard the flower, and eat!

I’d consider Week 1 almost a success. I wish I had more time to use the vegetables, but thanks to research, I know that the ones that are left over will keep just a little longer in my refrigerator and they won’t go to waste!

QotD: What’s your absolute FAVORITE type of salad?