A few more photos...

Green beans with gorgonzola and walnuts and roasted pumpkin stuffed with a quinoa pilaf and topped with pumpkin seeds. Yum!

Better Late than Never

Chanukah is but a distant memory, but I can't close 2010 without a note about just how tasty veggie latkes and chunky homemade applesauce were this year.

I love a mix of white and sweet potatoes, zucchini, carrots and onions. How do you like yours?

Just Like Bubbe's Kitchen?

One of our wonderful B'nai Israel members sent me this article today. What do you think? Are you bringing kishkes back into your kitchen?

PS There are some really nice Chanukah recipes linked to this article - be sure to check them out!

Let's Talk About Eggs

Every once in a while we have the pleasure of finding ½ dozen eggs in our CSA bags. And for those who want delicious local eggs on a more regular schedule, Sandhill Farm is now able to offer eggs from Two Cedars Farm on a weekly subscription plan.

CSA members tend to go crazy for these eggs. The color, texture and flavor are completely different from grocery store eggs. And those who have done some reading on industrialized food production know that even “organic” “cage free” eggs aren’t all that they’re cracked up :) to be. I’d also like to mention that I highly recommend Jonathan Safran Foer’s Eating Animals if you’re exploring issues of personal food choices, and specifically, the egg issue.

The fresh eggs I most recently received in my CSA bag were absolutely gorgeous - so gorgeous in fact that I insisted upon making the “Egg in a Hole” AKA “Bird’s Nest” of my childhood for dinner one night last week. I just wanted to taste them straight up with some toast and a little salt and pepper.

There was no blood in sight in my batch, but I heard that Sherry found bloodspots in a few of her eggs, and that got us talking about kashrut…

Commercial eggs do not come from fertile hens, so for most of us today, there’s no need for concern about bloodspots. However, the fresh eggs we sometimes receive from local farms do come from fertile hens. In these fertile eggs, there is a chance of bloodspots, which may signify the beginning of a new embryo, making the egg unkosher. So, for kashrut purposes, the rule is to crack one egg at a time so that you may discard an entire egg if it has a bloodspot.

Yes, it may feel wasteful, and yes, it may be quite disappointing, but I think there’s something rather special about the “old world” practice of having to check each egg and discard those with bloodspots. In an age when more and more grocery store products are marked kosher, most of us don’t have to give all that much consideration to the food we bring into our homes. And for me, there’s something nostalgic and meaningful about the notion of checking each egg the way my Great Grandma Rose did. But that’s just me – what do you think?

Green Beans Galore

With CSA participation we're eating seasonally, and part of that seasonal experience includes an overabundance of a particular veggie for a few weeks during the height of its season. For the past several weeks we've been blessed with big beautiful bags of crunchy green beans. As much as I love green beans, I've found myself at a loss for what to make next with my plethora of beans. My dear friend who lives in Canada recommended that I start canning - it sounds quite appealing but as a novice canner with a busy schedule, this wasn't the week to try it out. Have any of you had any luck with canning?

Here's a nice idea from the Rudin-Rush kitchen:
Green beans with walnuts and bleu cheese or Roquefort
1 lb green beans
1.5 cups toasted walnuts
1/4 pound cheese
oil
pepper

Bring water to boil and cook beans for 2-3 minutes so they remain nice and crunchy. Cool beans.
Heat 2 Tablespoons oil in sauce pan. Add beans to pan and cook for two minutes.
Add cheese and heat for 30-60 seconds until it starts to melt.
Toss with Walnuts. Add lots of pepper and serve.

I'm trying out lots of things but my green beans go-to dish remains this simple stir fry

With Elaine Kaplan and company in the kitchen whipping up a big batch of her famous veggie chopped liver, I'm reminded that those green beans would be great in a veggie pate as well.

Other green bean ideas? Comment or send me a message and I'll be happy to share.

This Week in My Kitchen

Mmm…Here’s what I’ve been up to with my Sandhill Farm Veggies:

Pad Thai with stir fried Chinese cabbage, tofu and local eggs.

Linguine with zucchini, eggplant, garlic and tomatoes – so simple and always so tasty! (I recently had a similar combination at a friend's house, and she added olives and golden raisins - fabulous "secret ingredients")

Spicy lentil stew with sweet potatoes

Garlicky sautéed green (and purple!) beans, roasted sweet potatoes (so delicious when simply roasted with skin on and ends trimmed), pecan-encrusted tofu and corn bread

Roasted green beans and peppers topped with balsamic reduction

What have you been up to with your CSA bag? Specifically, how are you using up those large bags of green beans?

First Fruits of the Season

It was an absolute delight to bring home the first fruits of the CSA season this week. Greens aren’t quite ready yet, but there was plenty of interesting and beautiful produce in the first CSA delivery to keep me busy. Here’s what I’ve done so far:

Shiitake and Seminole Pumpkin Risotto
I roasted small cubes of pumpkin (butternut squash would work equally well) in the oven and sautéed the (gorgeous!) shiitakes and then set these veggies aside once ready. Meanwhile, I spent about 25 minutes standing at the stove stirring my risotto (look for the directions on any container of arborrio rice or simply google “risotto” – recipes abound). Once the rice was nice and soft and had absorbed all the broth, I stirred in the squash and mushrooms. While the oven was warm I gently warmed figs stuffed with goat cheese. Along with a simple salad, it was a delicious and cozy Fall meal.


Roasted Eggplant with Pomegranate Vinaigrette
Victor shared this great recipe and I decided to put it to use right away. Our CSA eggplant was perfect on its own (no bitterness at all), but it was out of this world with this “dressing” on top. Though not local, pomegranates are in season and on sale - not to mention their beauty and Judaic symbolism – so now is the time to enjoy them. Per the recipe notes, simply skip the chorizo for a vegetarian/kosher dish. I mixed the leftovers with some salad greens for lunch today, and it finally hit me – the topping is a sort of exotic and tart charoset – delicious, familiar, comforting.

What has your first taste of the CSA season been like? I look forward to hearing about your mealtime adventures and sharing the upcoming CSA season with you.

When In Doubt, Throw It On The Grill

Saw this article which features wonderful ideas for grilling seasonal produce, and I just had to share. Victor seems to be our CSA grillmaster, but I thought these ideas might encourage more of us to fire up the grill as we enjoy our summer produce over the holiday weekend.

As the CSA Season Winds Down

As the summer heats up, we're anticipating the close of our CSA season.

Bags will definitely be available next Thursday, July 1. And it looks like we'll probably have an option to pick-up produce the following Thursday, July 8, but we're just not sure yet. We have to wait and see how the garden does this week...Sandhill Farm will keep us posted and I'll send everyone a message when we know the definitive closing date. Thanks for your flexibility!

As a reminder, the Fall season will begin in late October. Is it just me, or are you also anticipating CSA withdrawl symptoms? Well, it gives us a great opportunity to shop the farmers markets and local groceries in search of fresh, local food.

What to do with CSA Marmalades and Syrups

Several CSA members have been exchanging ideas about what to do with the marmalades and syrups we've been receiving in the CSA bags. The flavors can be intense and perhaps a bit more spicy or bitter than you're used to, so many of us are looking for ways to pair them with other flavors.

Alicia Rudin suggested using the Meyer Lemon Syrup as a glaze over a cake or even working it right into a simple cake batter.

Jodi Oren suggests serving the orange marmalade over steamed or roasted carrots.

Other ideas? Please post them or send them to me to distribute to the group!

PS If you haven't tasted the pear butter from this week's bag yet, you are in for a real treat!

Volunteer with Lev Tov

Thank you to Rebeca Shalom for this reminder and for continuing to coordinate the Lev Tov project.

As we approach the summer months, we'd like to remind you that hunger and homelessness is a year round problem. We at B'nai Israel continue our efforts by collecting non-perishable food throughout the year and by preparing and serving the evening meals twice a month for the residents of St. Francis House. B'nai Israel volunteers serve on the first and third Wednesday of each month, and we invite you to join us.

Thanks to all of you who donate and help with both efforts.

To volunteer to prepare either a main dish, side dish, salad, dessert, or bread, spread, milk and juice, please visit our Lev Tov web page, or contact Rebeca at rebeca.shalom@gmail.com or 352-335-9505.

Let's think about doing a CSA Lev Tov night! Several of our CSA members volunteer regularly with Lev Tov. Perhaps we can choose a night or two during the summer when we as CSA members prepare and serve the meal together. Our CSA growing season is winding down, but perhaps we could make a commitment to preparing dishes with fresh, wholesome, locally-grown ingredients from the farmer's markets/Wards. Let Rebeca know if you're interested and/or sign-up online.

Check Out the Hazon Food Guide

I received an email this morning from Hazon that included a link to a comprehensive food guide for Jewish institutions looking to change their food practices. There are tons of great ideas here. If you're interested in getting more involved in all things related to food at B'nai Israel and in our local community, check out the food guide. Let me know if you're interested in leading any of these efforts!

Fennel Apple Quiche!

Thanks to the Cohen family for sharing this great quiche idea:
We made a fennel apple quiche yesterday, and it was superb! It was actually a little sweet. Saute grated apple, minced onion, and minced fennel bulb, add a little salt, and substitute them for the vegetables in your favorite quiche recipe.

For Next Shavuot...

I just came across a recipe for chevre blintzes with rhubarb sauce from Ten Apple Farm. It looks absolutely amazing. I regret that I didn't have this recipe last week for Shavuot, but I will hold onto it for next year.

Haven’t used your beans yet? Run – don’t walk – to make this delicious, easy stir fry!

If you’re like me, you admired the elegant beauty of the golden or purple green beans that appeared in your CSA basket this week, but you had no idea what to do with them.

Finally, inspiration hit and I knew I had to get those beans in a simple, garlicky stir fry. So quick, so easy, so tasty!

I put some brown rice on the stove. Then I pressed the water out of block of tofu, coated the tofu in tamari (similar to soy sauce, but a richer and more complex flavor – give it a try in place of soy sauce) and popped it in the oven. I trimmed the “royalty purple pods” though that wasn’t even necessary and sautéed them for about 2 minutes with lots of garlic and ginger and some tamari. I finished them off with a generous squeeze of lime and the Thai Basil I recently planted in my garden. Delicious. I can’t wait to eat the leftovers tomorrow.

If You Ask Me, Summer Resides in a Cucumber Sandwich

There’s something so refreshing and satisfying about the simplicity of a cucumber sandwich. Just a little cheese on some homemade or good bakery bread, lots of thinly sliced cucumber, and maybe one other item. I added kimchi to the sandwich last week and really liked it. This week I’ll try watermelon radish slices with the cucumber, and later in the summer, I’ll probably go with cucumber and tomato. It just makes the perfect meal when it is as warm as it is now and you can’t stand the thought of standing in front of a hot stove.

This week we were fortunate to receive an abundance of big beautiful cucumbers in our CSA baskets! My mom sent me this link for a blended cucumber beverage recipe, along with promises that she'd send me more cool cucumber recipes this week.

How are you using your cukes?

Love at First Fennel

I’m not a big fennel eater. I’ve probably only bought fennel bulbs a handful of times – always because I came across a recipe (usually for a salad) that included a little bit of raw, thinly sliced fennel. It often works well enough in the particular recipe, but it’s not a flavor I ever crave.

The first fennel bulbs of the season arrived in our baskets last week. They were so beautiful! Our farmer, Susan Ross, directed, “Eat them raw or lightly sauté them.” Having done the raw fennel thing in the past, I was up for a sauté this time.

I found a super easy recipe with a google search. Saute the thinly sliced fennel in some olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and let them cook down and caramelize a bit. Once they’re almost cooked through, add some garlic and then deglaze the pan with a squeeze of lemon juice. Top with a little freshly grated parmesan cheese. YUM! I served mine over red quinoa, but the fennel would be great with a pasta or as a simple side dish with any fish or meat (you could easily do without the parmesan cheese).

I very rarely eat fish, and haven’t had the desire for fish in several months, but suddenly found myself thinking “This would be absolutely delicious over salmon or snapper!” I just have to say that I love this about the CSA: not only am I eating foods that appear in the basket that I wouldn’t otherwise buy, but the unfamiliar CSA items lead me to other unlikely items – it’s kind of like a cook’s choose your own adventure with many twists and turns.

Is it just me, or did you also fall in love with your first fennel?

Massage Your Kale, Talk to Your Vegetables

It never fails. Every time I share my recipe for kale salad, it is received with giggles. “…and then I massage the kale.”

The recipe was shared with me by a former Esalen Institute chef who lovingly prepares three delicious meals a day at the week-long Dance Camp I’ve attended the past several summers in the Sierras of Central California. I love everything that she makes – but kale salad is the one “camp dish” that I consistently recreate at home throughout the year.

Wash, dry and chop a bunch of kale.
Wisk together a dressing with the juice of one lemon and olive oil. I like a ratio of about 1:1 but you can adjust to taste. You’ll also want to add a good pinch or two of salt and a few grinds of pepper. Minced garlic and/or honey can also be added.
Use your hands to coat the kale with the dressing – and here it is! – spend a few minutes massaging the dressing into the kale. The kale will soften significantly and will glisten, now evenly coated with the dressing.
Give it a taste – it might need more acid (lemon juice) and/or salt. Don’t be afraid to season generously – it should have a nice flavor. And don’t be afraid to spend some time getting to know your kale – really massage it – it’s fun to play with your food, anyway.
Then you can add any “toppings” you like – I often mix and match depending on what I have on hand. I always add either pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds or sliced almonds. Sometimes I add corn kernels, or golden raisins, or dried cranberries. I really like it with some diced ripe mango and/or red pepper.

So much of what we’re doing as CSA members is celebrating foods and flavors. You might say that we’re blessing our food every time we admire our new CSA baskets and every time we thoughtfully prepare a meal. In a lot of ways we’re already “massaging our kale and talking to our veggies.” So, let’s continue to love and appreciate our veggies…and be sure to give them a little massage every once in awhile.

The Land must Rest

This past shabbat we read from the concluding chapters of Leviticus. We are given clear instructions that every seventh year the land must rest. It is to be a sabbath for the land (we call it shmittah). Of course, today we understand that letting the land rest is part of responsible agriculture but in the Torah responsible agriculture is no option - it is a commandment! The Torah understands that our connection to the land is not only necessary for physical nourishment but it is part and parcel of our spiritual nourishment as well.

This week, as we marvel in the bounty of food brought forth from the earth let us fully appreciate the deep soulful connection of our ancient Jewish tradition and the earth's produce.

Rabbi K

From the Pickle Barrel

Calling all CSA members and prospective picklers! Would you be interested in a 3 hour pickling workshop (to include kraut, kimchi, vegetable pickles) with Sandhill Farm? It would be scheduled for later on this month (probably a Sunday afternoon) and might take place on the farm in Micanopy or at B’nai Israel (depending on scheduling issues and the interests of participants). There would be a fee for the workshop but you would take home several jars of fermented veggies. If you’re interested please contact me: erin@bnaigainesville.com

Great, Easy Recipe for Greens and Herbs

The Lag B’Omer Picnic at Sholom Park in Ocala last Sunday was absolutely lovely! The beautiful surroundings, good company and fresh delicious food by Ibti with lots of local veggies and herbs inspired great culinary/CSA conversation.

B’nai Israel member, Gilda Josephson, who looks forward to joining the CSA come the new season this fall, shared this recipe for Green Herb Squares. What a great way to use your cooking greens and herbs!

Thanks, Gilda!

Weekend Fun with our food basket.

Meals from the Thursday basket.
Friday an excellent salad that only needed oil and balsamic vinegar.
Saturday to complement the Ma' Po I made I used the Kale and Chard to make a simple stir-fry vegetable dish. Basic recipe, Garlic (used the fresh garlic from the week before) Ginger, Scallions both chopped up. Heated the wok to high heat added Peanut oil stir fried the ginger, Scallions, Garlic for 15-30 seconds then added in the Chard (on advice from Alicia), with Soy Sauce, Home made chicken stock, old wine and a dash of Sesame Oil. Let cook 2 minutes. Add in Kale cook 2 more minutes and serve!

Sunday... dragged out the last of the lamb that I purchased live , and had butchered locally. Modified a recipe by Rick Bayless (best Mexican restaurant in all of Chicago)!
Chop up some root vegetables, Carrots, Turnip, Onions and garlic (all CSA) , some old Parsnips, and some red potatoes. Place in an aluminum drip pan and add water to about half an inch up.
Started up the Grill and placed the drip pan with water and veggies below the grate (you can place it on the coals if you want). Above the grate put the lamb shoulder. Cooked for 3 hours at 250 degrees.

Removed Lamb and wrap in aluminium foil (THIS IS A MUST) let sit for 30 minutes.
IN the meantime take the drip pan (that has received the juices from the lamb) from the grill. skim off fat and place a cut up chipolte chili and 1/4 cup of coriander.
We then took the lamp and chopped it and placed in bowls with the "soup" from the drip pan. Very tasty.
We also had another lovely salad. Who needs dressing when you have veggies like this!

Additional notes. all veggies disappear (in fact they go faster than the meat).

cheers, Victor

Sweet, Sweet Sugar Snap Peas

I know that we’ve all been enjoying those sweet, crispy sugar snap peas in our last two baskets (and served at Kiddush lunch this week). The only complaint I’ve heard is that there aren’t enough of them – they’re so delicious that they often get gobbled up raw, as a delightful snack, either while driving home from CSA pick-up or while unpacking the week’s produce. I know I could eat the whole bunch in one sitting, but I’ve been trying to incorporate them into meals, stretching that sweetness as far as possible.

Last week, I blanched my snap peas super quickly (about 20 seconds or so) and shocked them in ice water, bringing out their vibrant green color, though they would have been just fine completely raw. They went into a cold soba noodle dish, along with pan-fried tofu, raw carrots, red bell pepper, cucumber, scallions, cilantro and a squeeze of lime. It was all tossed in a light dressing quickly made in a saucepan – I cooked a few cloves of garlic and a tablespoon or so of fresh ginger in grapeseed oil, then I added soy sauce and orange juice.

Tonight my sugar snap peas made their way into a pad-thai, inspired by Mark Bittman’s recipe, though I made many substitutions for vegetarianism/kashrut/what I had in my fridge and pantry.

Since the portion of snap peas in this week’s basket was a bit bigger, I even have some saved in the fridge for snacking or to be added to a salad later in the week – and I can’t wait to enjoy them again.

Coo coo for Kuku

The following meal idea comes to us from our CSA member, Jean Quillen.

Have you ever heard of kuku, a Persian omelet, sometimes called eggah? Basically you lightly cook and season some vegetables with or without onion, garlic, herbs, then add some beaten eggs and cook all together either in a non stick frying pan or in the oven. It's best to cover whilst cooking, then when the eggs are set you can turn it over or brown under the broiler. It's not wet or soft like an omelet but firm like a cake. It can be served in wedges either hot or cold. (When it's cooked with just potatoes it's called Tortilla Espanole!) The recipe is not unique to any particular culture, but it is always delicious.

Jean recommends Claudia Roden’s recipe for Spinach Eggah, which can be found in New Book of Middle Eastern Food.
There are lots of other recipes for kukus and eggahs using cauliflower, meat, chicken and noodles, herbs, etc. An eggah could be served as a main dish, appetizer (cut up in small pieces) or cold as part of a picnic.

I’ll also add that this week Jean shared with me a copy of Riverford Farm Cookbook: Tales from the fields, recipes from the kitchen by Guy Watson and Jane Baxter. I didn’t get a chance to put any of the recipes to use this week, but I did enjoy browsing the gorgeous photos and learning LOTS about many different varieties – seasonality, storage and preparation. As I type this, my mouth is watering over the description and photo of Salad of French Beans and Grilled Leeks with Tapenade Dressing! Thanks, Jean!

Not Vegan maybe healthy absolutely tasty

Last night I took those beets, and funny looking carrots (the ones that are not Orange) and the turnips and roasted them on my grill, just did the Israeli Olive Oil, salt, pepper and some balsamic vinegar. I added on a Flank Steak and made some pop overs to complete the meal. Family ate everything in sight. Should remember to take pictures next time.

Victor

What we made our first week after getting veggies from Sandhill Farms

Samantha and I picked up a "trial" basket of veggies. My first impressions on choosing which basket to take home is that each one is more beautiful than the next. As usual it took longer to get out of B'nai that planned - too much chatting ;->

At home I started unpacking. First thing I noticed was a small bag of snap peas, the kind that are totally edible - needless to say that between Izzy, Samantha, and I they were gone very quickly - so sweet & juicy!

That first night I made a salad with the greens and cooked some chicken breasts in wine, adding the small packet of fresh herbs - looked like chives, dill, marjoram, and I'm not sure what else, BUT, it tasted delicious.

Then I looked at the cooking greens (they'll get cooked a few days later with olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, and maybe a little chicken broth). Next were the multiple colors of carrots, beets & turnips (we had them tonight - sliced, drizzled with olive oil, salt & pepper then roasted on the grill along with the flank steak. Vic is certainly getting to be quite the master of his Big Green Egg!

Salad greens!!! Including edible flowers for a beautiful spot of color. The lettuce was gorgeous! Absolutely no waste - the outside tough very dirty leaves had already been trimmed away. The leaves needed a bit of a rinse to get the rest of the sand/soil off, but a quick spin in our salad spinner dried them off. I tend to only was the lettuce I plan to use for salad that day.

The fermented okra pickle - YUMMY!!! Similar to a real sour pickle from the pickle barrel - crunchy and delicious.

There was also a small bag of "young" spinach which I included in a quinoa pilaf with onions, mushrooms, and sweet potatoes which I brought over to some friends for dinner.

It is Tuesday - we still have some lettuce & the cooking greens. Maybe tomorrow will be greens with chicken sausage & pasta.

Happy Eating!

Alicia

A Week in the Life of a New CSA Member

What beautiful baskets of produce we took home during the first and second weeks of the CSA! While everything was gorgeous, I must say that I especially love the aesthetic of the edible flowers mixed into our bag of salad greens and the “Cosmic Purple Carrots” (the name alone is fabulous). Another highlight is the lovely and interesting “extras” that are included in our baskets– a rotation of fermented products and other prepared items such as salad dressing, pesto or jam. So far, all of these treats have been absolutely delicious!

For me, this project is as much about creativity as it is about nutrition, environmentally-sound farming practices, building community and supporting the local economy. Thus, I was determined to incorporate all of my first week items into meals (rather than enjoy them as stand alone snacks) and to make these meals art. Here’s what I did:

Swiss chard (stalky part as well as the leaves) sautéed with garlic and olive oil, and a touch of salt and pepper, served over a bed of angel hair pasta and topped with shaved manchego cheese. Loved the bitter, earthy flavor against the neutral pasta and just a bit of sharpness from the cheese.

Super Fresh Salad: Mixed greens with grated raw carrots and beets, tossed with the CSA Wild Orange Salad Dressing and slivered almonds. Great textures and flavors.

Grown-up Grilled Cheese: Tons of sautéed spinach on left-over toasted challah with some melted baby swiss cheese. Fun and flavorful.

Broccoli sautéed with garlic and olive oil and tossed with angel hair pasta. I added a handful of toasted walnuts for crunch, flavor and protein and sprinkled the tossed pasta with a few feta cheese crumbles. Simply sublime.

Greek Salad: Red romaine lettuce, balsamic vinaigrette (so easy – balsamic, good quality extra virgin olive oil or walnut oil, a touch of honey, salt and pepper mixed at the bottom of the salad bowl) diced red pepper, kalamata olives, fresh basil and dill, feta cheese. The bites with big pieces of basil were unbelievably refreshing and flavorful!

Roasted Root vegetables: A mix of beets, carrots, turnips, sweet potato, vidalia onion and a few whole garlic cloves lightly coated with olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper went into a 375 degree oven. Meanwhile, I sautéed the beet and turnip tops in olive oil with garlic. When the roasted veggies were done, I added a blend of fresh herbs from our lovely little sachet of herbs, and then topped the roasted veggies with the sautéed greens. Delicious and diverse flavors – every bite was a little bit different.

Tempeh Reuben-inspired Sandwich: I was confident that Isa Chandra Moskowitz's “Vegan With a Vengeance” would include a good recipe for Tempeh Reuben, and sure enough, I found the recipe on page 102. I marinated the tempeh per her recipe. Because I don’t like mayo, Russian dressing was out of the question, but I found that slices of ripe avocado added a similar creamy quality. In the end, my sandwich was comprised of leftover slices of challah, baby swiss cheese, marinated and grilled tempeh, sliced avocado and Sandhill Farm kraut. I served it with a nice salad – butter lettuce and mixed greens, balsamic/walnut oil vinaigrette, fresh dill and parsley, edible flower petals, almonds and dried cranberries. I should give the disclaimer that as a life-long vegetarian, I have never actually eaten a reuben. I realize that my version with the wrong bread, no Russian dressing, and tempeh in the place of corned beef could offend some deli connoisseurs. Please forgive me!

A week into the CSA experience, here are some of my reflections:
1. My cooking and cleanup this week was far more quick and simple than usual. Why? Because I used just a few simple ingredients, focusing on the fresh and natural qualities of the produce.
2. I made just one trip to the grocery store to get the staples and “support ingredients” I needed – what a relief, as it is not unusual for me to run to the store nearly every evening to pick up ingredients for dinner.
3. I tried lots of new things. For example: I had never before purchased and prepared turnips (they weren’t my favorite, but I’ll keep trying to cultivate an appreciation for them). And, although I frequently roast beets, I’ve always discarded the beet greens. This week, though, I discovered that the greens are as tasty (tastier?!) than the roasted beets. Finally, there’s the sauerkraut (something I would never think of buying or making) and the tempeh (another item I rarely cook/order).
4. I had bursts of creativity regarding the flavor combinations and aesthetics of my meals.
5. I was mindful of every food I consumed during the week. I really tasted the flavors and focused on the experience of eating.
6. I called my mother more than usual – to ask her food-related questions or to report to her on my culinary experiences.
7. I found myself thinking a lot about my grandmother’s kitchen – I think it was the Russian dressing issue that sent my mind there – a lot of what my Ama made included Russian dressing!
8. Enjoying the CSA produce prompted me to take an increased interest in my own (new) veggie and herb garden.

A note on recipes:
I rarely use recipes, unless it’s the first or second time I’m making something (or any time I’m baking). I found that simple roasting and sautéing techniques dominated my cooking this week. From there, I mostly mixed and matched flavors and ingredients. But, I realize that I might be a bit more comfortable with improvisational cooking than others. If you feel you need a bit more direction, consult one of the classics, such as The Joy of Cooking or The Moosewood Cookbook for tips and recipes for preparing some of the veggies you might find in your CSA basket. You might also want to check out the recipes page at www.hogtownhomegrown.com. And of course, I hope that we’ll all start sharing recipes and ideas on this site. Please check back often and post some of your favorite recipes.

In the Beginning...

Welcome to the B’nai Israel CSA Blog! We’re very excited to have partnered with Sandhill Family Farm of Micanopy, FL to offer a congregation-based Community Supported Agriculture program.

Together as a sacred community, we'll be experiencing locally-grown seasonal food. Our CSA program is at the heart of the Jewish food movement in North Central Florida, and it is my hope that our CSA will be a springboard for related programs including Shabbat potlucks, hands-on cooking/pickling/baking classes, food justice work and more.

I invite you to join me in sharing recipes, food memories, photos of particularly gorgeous culinary art, and stories of success/struggle as you embark on kitchen adventures.

I hope that my voice will be joined by others – please comment or submit your own posts. I’d like to suggest that we approach this blog as a metaphorical dining room table – a place where we gather to create community, exchange ideas and receive nourishment.

Here’s to the beginning of something very special!