Week 9

Onions
Radicchio
Cabbage
A lot of summer squash
Cucumbers
Basil
Greens

Just when I thought I was getting caught up, here comes a bunch more squash, more cukes, and another cabbage. Plus I've still got last week's beets, not that I'm complaining. But here's the problem - last weekend I cooked up a storm preparing meals for the week. Really enjoyable meals. Then Wednesday I ran to Trader Joe's (hungry, big mistake) and came out with a packet of the plump, juicy, tasty hot dogs they were sampling. On the way home I realized, "when am I gonna eat hot dogs?" I had a fridge full of nice meals. So I put the wieners in the freezer for a future grocery emergency.

On the one hand, I had hoped that joining the CSA would force me to eat healthier. Barring the amount of butter it takes to make turnips enjoyable, I have been eating more good stuff and less take out. On the other hand, using the produce efficiently requires a lot of planning and doesn't leave a lot of opportunities for satisfying spontaneous Thai food cravings. I'm still working on finding a strategy that allows me to waste as little as possible, while being flexible during the week.

I do have some new reference material for this mission. In the car today, The Splendid Table was interviewing Tamasin Day-Lewis about her new cookbook. It's about making the most out of scraps like bread crusts, chicken bones, and leftovers. I was not impressed at first because a) yeah right she's eating leftovers and b) Daniel Day-Lewis doesn't eat food, so his sister can't be that great a cook. But she was convincing enough, and I was close enough to the bookstore to stop and check it out, since I'm trying to use more of what I have. Then there on the shelf next to her book, was the sequel to Twelve Months of Monastery Soups, Twelve Months of Monastery Salads! Just like the soup book, it's arranged by what's seasonal each month. I'm looking forward to trying June's Pesto Deviled Eggs and picking out some recipes for all that squash.