CSAs

Meat CSA

Since we joined a monthly meat CSA with our friends Fredrica and Josh, I've been exploring more cuts of meat than I even knew existed. Here are some of the dishes I've made from the delicious meat we've been getting:

* Lamb Shank - Lamb Shank in an Oaxacan Red Mole Sauce
* Pork Shoulder - Puerto Rican Style Roasted Pork Shoulder
* Lamb Shoulder - Emeril's Stick-to-your-ribs Lamb, Potato & White Bean Stew
* Ground lamb - Tender Lamb Meatballs in a Fragrant Tomato Sauce
* Beef stew meat - Spicy Thai Beef Curry
* Beef Brisket - Barbecued Texas Beef Brisket

I've also made great dishes with these meat cuts:

* Pork Spare Ribs
* Pork tenderloin
* Country style pork spare ribs
* Pork Loin
* Whole chicken

As you can see, a meat CSA provides a wide variety of meats, some of which are difficult to find in the grocery store. In addition, the animals are grass-fed, which I think contributes to the quality of the meat, both in terms of the flavor and nutritional content.

Last month's meat load: pork spare ribs, chicken legs, lamb sausage, porterhouse steaks, t-bone steaks, and ground beef.

May's meat load: beef brisket, country-style spare ribs, pork steak (ham), pork chops, beef stew meat, ground lamb, ground beef, sweet Italian sausage.

FYI: we get our meat from Chestnut Farms.

Veggie CSA

The latest news is that we joined another CSA (Parker Farm) to get fresh veggies weekly. We joined in for a large share with our friends Mark, Melanie, and Bryan. So far, we've gotten:

* Russian red kale
* Yellow squash
* Fava beans
* Cabbage
* Yellow and orange carrots
* Parsley
* Spring onions
* Collards
* Beets
* Mizuna
* Strawberries

And it's only been two weeks! Aside from the squash and parsley, all of these are items I rarely, if ever, have cooked with before, so it's an interesting challenge. I've braised the fava beans and carrots with chicken stock and white wine (delicious), wilted/sauteed kale with shallots, garlic, and bacon (also delicious - but I feel like using bacon was a bit heavy handed), and grilled the squash. Some things unfortunately have gone to waste because I didn't use them fast enough (I'm sorry, collards), but hopefully in the weeks to come I will get better at using things quickly or storing them properly.

In the fridge this week:

* kale
* mizuna
* fava beans
* beets
* carrots

Plans for this week include:

* beet salad
* some pasta dish with the fava beans and carrots?
* braised kale with mizuna or a recipe for Calo Verde

Edit: The pasta dish ended up being fettucine with favas, escarole (store-bought), and sweet Italian sausage.