January 16th--Our first CSA box

Yes, it is the sad truth. It took me months to finally start my CSA deliveries. Remember my dilemma post back in August? I made a decision a few days later (with the prompting of Carl), and yet I never managed to call with my credit card number, or send a check. I tried to call a few times, but just got voicemail, then I was not available when my call was returned.

It took the gift of a 4-week subscription for Christmas for me to finally send in the gift certificate, and my check for the next 12 weeks after that. After getting there and getting processed, January 16th became my start-date.

My pickup location is convenient, which is nice. And the produce is wonderful.



Our first box included:

• Pink Lady apples
• satsuma mandarins
• broccoli
• red kale
• red turnips
• lettuce
• Polar Bear spinach
• bok choy
• dried hot peppers!
• arugula
• sweet potatoes

The first thing I noticed was that I am so used to "supermarket produce", as this was truly off-the-farm--it had dirt on it! Organic dirt, yes, but dirt nonetheless. Of course, it was very easy to wash.

The second thing I noticed was that Cutie Clementines have nothing on these Satsuma tangerines. Wow. I singlehandedly ate most of them, and was relieved to learn that they'll be in the next box, too.

Since I'm writing this nearly a week later, I can report that it was all fantastic. The apples were so sweet, crisp, and juicy. The broccoli was so flavorful. The turnips, lettuce, and arugula made a fantastic salad. We sauteed the spinach and the bok choy; both were great (though Erik wasn't sold on the spinach--it did have a different flavor than what he's used to eating). We haven't had the kale or the sweet potatoes yet, though I'm sure they will be fantastic as well. Oh, and it wasn't until I looked at the picture that I remembered the leeks. They weren't on the list. I might make a risotto with the kale and leeks. Or I'll just saute the kale, and use the leeks in a soup.

I was surprised at how good it was. Not because I expected it to be bad, but we already eat mostly local, mostly organic produce; I didn't expect this to be so much better.