How to Eat Local: My CSA Share Diary
An abundance of vegetables can be overwhelming! Whether you pick up your veggies weekly in a Farm CSA or grow them in a garden, it’s easy to get flustered by the sheer amount of produce in your fridge.
Last year, I tracked everything I received in my weekly Garden City Harvest CSA share and how I used it. It was a fun exercise that’s now coming in handy when I’m not sure what to make. Below, I share examples from a few weeks each season (spring, summer, and fall) and how I used the produce, plus a few general tips for making the most of your abundance. While I’m using a CSA share in these examples, plenty of this applies to gardeners who have a similar variety of produce at their fingertips. Hopefully, it will provide some inspiration and make the bounty less intimidating!
General Tips
Quick Hacks:
I have a few “hacks” to get through a lot of veggies at once. This works anytime of the season.
Salads! With the abundance of greens in the spring, this is a no-brainer. It’s all about the dressing, though - find a few different dressings you like or learn to make your own and salads won’t get old. During salad season, I also recommend stocking up on seeds, nuts, cheeses, and other yummy toppings to add a variety of flavors and textures. Sometimes I make it a full meal by adding lots of protein or sometimes I just eat a side salad with every dinner. Check out this handy diagram with ideas for changing up your salad game.
Peanut sauce - Read below for the recipe. I love using this for dipping, noodle dishes, and more.
Sauces and dips in general - Pesto, chimichurri, hummus (beet hummus, anyone?), salad dressings with fresh herbs…Whenever I can, I make a sauce with veggies or herbs. They’re versatile and can easily add some flavor if you’re cooking a quick and simple meal.
Frittata - If you like savory breakfasts or an easy leftover lunch, this can be a game-changer. This is an quick way to eat a bunch of greens for the first meal of the day. Read below for the recipe!
Pasta, rice, or other grain base - When I don’t have time to make something complicated, I sauté or roast whatever veggies I have on hand and throw them in some pasta or on some rice. This is where those sauces come in handy!
Save it for Later:
You’re probably not going to use every single item in a week, and that’s okay! Learn which items have better long term storage and work through them slowly. For example, root crops (separated from their greens) and hardy greens like kale and collards tend to stay fresh for longer in the fridge. Consider freezing some items as well to eat in the winter months. This post walks you through the basics of blanching and freezing a variety of veggies.
Share it or Skip it:
It’s okay not to take every vegetable every week from your CSA, especially if you’re feeling overwhelmed. I’d always encourage you to try out those veggies you’re less familiar with, but even I sometimes abstain from taking even more greens when I know I have more than enough in my fridge. I also often share produce with friends, co-workers, or cook with others to spread the bounty around.
Spring
What I Made
The lettuce, spinach, and radishes all went into salads, which I ate for lunches.
I sauteed the bok choy with more greens (e.g. kale, chard, beet greens, collards) and added them into a peanut sauce noodle dish.
The napa cabbage, kohlrabi, and green onions (along with the next week’s kohlrabi - kohlrabi has a long shelf life in the fridge) I made into a slaw that I added to fish tacos. I added the next week’s cilantro as a garnish as well. I loosely follow this recipe and adjust to taste.
The kale and chard went into my secret weapon for getting through a lot of greens - frittata! Throughout the summer, I regularly make a frittata to eat for breakfast every morning. I use this recipe and add whatever greens or other veggies I want to get through.
June 13th Vegetables
Spinach
Head lettuce
Radishes
Green onions
Bok choy
1/2 head napa cabbage
Kohlrabi
Kale
Chard
A frittata topped with feta cheese and shrimp tacos with a kohlrabi/cabbage slaw, CSA cilantro and green onions, and side salads.
What I Made
Once again, the lettuce, spinach, and radishes went into salads. If you can, make or buy a couple different salad dressings for the week to keep your salad-eating interesting.
The collard greens I saved for a few weeks (they store really well) and sauteed with beet greens for a side dish. I like to lightly saute them with garlic and salt, then add a little lemon juice and water, cover and let them steam for a few minutes before I remove the lid and let them turn a vibrant green.
I experimented with the boy choy and made a bok choy kimchi. It turned out pretty good and I ate it as a side/on salads and sandwiches for a few weeks. Check out this post for a kimchi recipe + other fermentation ideas!
The green onions, scapes, and some of the cilantro all went into an easy ramen. This is the recipe I like to use.
June 20th Vegetables
Spinach
Radishes
Kohlrabi
Collard greens
Bok choy
Cilantro
Head lettuce
Green onions
Scapes
Summer
Peanut sauce ingredients
July 25th Vegetables
Carrots
Beets
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Summer squash
Cucumbers
Red cabbage
Green onions
Lettuce
Parsley
Green beans
What I Made
I made a stir fry with the some of the broccoli, carrots, and green onions. This is a go-to meal for me to use up a lot of veggies.
Another one of my secrets is peanut sauce! I use it as a dipping sauce, noodle sauce, and sauce in fresh rolls, which we’ll get into later. To taste, I mix together: peanut butter, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar, lime juice, chili paste, garlic, and ginger + water to create the consistency I want. For this week, I made a batch of thick peanut sauce and dipped carrot and cucumber sticks in it as a snack after work.
The beets and cauliflower I roasted and ate with chimichurri (more on that in the next section).
I sauteed the summer squash and added it to a pesto pasta. I also sauteed the green beans to eat as a side with some grilled salmon.
Cabbages store well, so I saved that for a future week. I gave the lettuce and parsley to friends.
August 8th Vegetables
Parsley
Green onions
Carrots
Beets
Cauliflower
Broccoli
Collard greens
Fresh onions
Eggplant
Cucumbers
Jalapeno peppers
Anaheim and poblano peppers
Basil
Garlic
What I Made
I love making various sauces from herbs and greens in my CSA. A particular favorite is chimichurri, a South American sauce made from parsley often served with meats. It’s vibrant, tangy, and can zest up anything from potatoes to steak! Here’s the recipe I usually follow. I save up the parsley I get in my CSA for a few weeks by putting the stems in a jar of water in the fridge, then I make a batch. When there’s extra parsley or basil (for pesto) on the farm, I make and freeze larger batches.
I roasted the cauliflower and beets to eat with that chimichurri. I put that on top of a white bean base, made by pureeing the beans with tahini, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, and salt.
The collards went into a breakfast frittata along with leftover veggies from previous weeks. I also sauteed some to eat in a quick pasta dinner.
I made a batch of quick pickles and used the cucumbers, fresh onions, and jalapeno peppers in that.
One of my favorite things to do with eggplant is make baba ganoush! It’s fairly easy and is a great dip for veggies, crackers, or chips as a snack.
I gave away the broccoli, basil, and garlic to friends. I saved up the anaheim and poblano peppers for enchiladas later on.
Finally, let’s talk about my favorite summer dish: fresh rolls! Fresh rolls are easy, use up a lot of veggies, and are refreshingly cool on those hot summer days when you don’t want to turn on the stove. Peanut sauce is the name of the game here to add some delicious flavor to all the vegetable crunch. Get your rice paper and julienne (chop into thin sticks) whatever veggies you have - I often use a mix of carrots, cucumbers, cabbage, sweet peppers, and green onions. I also add tofu but chicken or shrimp can work great, and vermicelli rice noodles are common as well. Add some fresh basil or mint leaves for an herb-y kick. Just wet your rice paper and add your fillings and sauce, then wrap it up tightly and chow down! I start making this dish the second I get my hands on a cucumber, and I usually end up making it all through the fall. I’m obsessed!
Fresh rolls, roasted cauliflower and beets with chimichurri on a white bean base, and a larger batch of chimichurri ready to freeze.
Zucchini boat (aka stuffed zucchini)
August 22nd Vegetables
Carrots
Leeks
Potatoes
Beets
Tomatoes
Onions
Cucumbers
Summer squash
Sweet peppers
Poblano peppers
Shishito peppers
Jalapeno peppers
Swiss chard
Salad mix
Cauliflower
What I Made
I was back on the salad train this week, thanks to the salad mix, carrots, cucumbers, and sweet peppers. If salad is starting to feel old for you, consider switching up your salad dressing or topping options.
I tried something new and made zucchini boats with the summer squash, tomatoes, onions, poblanos and other hot peppers. Add some beans, rice, and cheese and you’ve got yourself a full meal without too much fuss!
Enchiladas are one of my favorite recipes for poblano peppers - I’m partial to this black bean/sweet potato/poblano enchilada recipe.
I tried out a miso leek recipe this week as well since I’d seen it on the internet.
The potatoes, chard, and some shishito peppers went into a breakfast scramble. The cauliflower I roasted and ate with chimichurri again (we all have obsessive food phases, right??), and the beets I saved for later. Here’s a fan favorite beet recipe.
Fall
The bounty of a late summer CSA pickup!
What I Made
You’re not gonna believe this - I ate more salads this week with the classics: carrots, cucumbers, and sweet peppers, though all of those also went into fresh rolls the next week as well.
I made elote with the corn following this recipe, though I strip the kernels from the cob. It’s an easy side dish and an instant dinner party favorite.
Speaking of dinner parties, let me put you on to seared shishito peppers as an appetizer. Make yourself a garlic aioli dipping sauce to cut the heat and enjoy!
The kale and onions went into breakfasts and I froze the tomatillos and tomatoes whole. I saved the garlic and the rest of the peppers for a future week.
I breaded and fried eggplant rounds and ate them over a base of spicy greens with beans or lentils and one of the various sauces I had around.
September 12th Vegetables
Carrots
Corn
Spicy greens mix
Tomatillos
Tomatoes
Kale
Onions
Cucumbers
Eggplant
Sweet peppers
Hot peppers
Poblano and anaheim peppers
Shishito peppers
Garlic
Are we still going?
Yes, this is a lot of cooking! I like to “meal-prep” a few things over the weekend, and then I usually end up cooking a meal or two with other people over the course of the week - I’m not making a meal from scratch by myself every night - even I have limits!
I hope you’re feeling inspired and encouraged by this small sampling of recipes. When I’m feeling stuck, I ask my farmers, fellow CSA members, or fellow gardeners what they like to make with various veggies. You never know when someone might give you a new favorite recipe! For more breakfast recipe ideas, check out this blog post. You can also search The Real Dirt blog for specific keywords like “kale” or “bok choy” if there’s one crop you need some help with.
Now go forth and enjoy the abundance!