The Great Utah CSA Experiment - Week 9!

Week 9 was the long-anticipated week of double shares - twice the produce this week from both CSAs to make up for my missed vacation week in July, for a total of $40 worth of produce. I was especially excited to see how uniform shares really are: sometimes I'm tempted to peek in the boxes and bags and take what looks best! And I was sure that by mid-August, I'd have a great crop of tomatoes waiting for me. As you'll see, both shares were very similar, but I was totally wrong about the tomatoes. Instead I got a vegetable I wasn't expecting, but it made me happy anyways: eggplant! Here's the full scoop for East Farms:

	CSA SHARE-A	CSA SHARE-B					Price ('Normal')	Value
	1.04 lb Eggplant (1, Oriental)	1.16 lb Eggplant (2, Oriental)					1.59/lb (Globe)	$3.50
	1.23 lb Cucumbers	1.84 lb Cucumbers					3.53/lb	$10.86
	0.63 lb Green Beans	0.76 lb Green Beans					5.32/lb	$7.39
	0.68 lb Beets	1.0 lb Beets					2.45/lb	$4.12
	0.98 lb Onion	0.98 lb Onion					1.99/lb	$3.90
	0.57 lb Zucchini	0.63 lb Zucchini					1.49/lb	$1.79
	2.82 lb Corn (4 ears)	2.81 lb Corn (4 ears)					3/1.00	$2.67

This is clearly more than twice the produce I can eat, particularly with the slight backlog I've had in my refrigerator. I traded a few of the corn for a large zucchini from my mother (I know, I know - I'm going to regret it!), and I loaded up a small box with corn, eggplant, beans, cucumbers, and 1 bunch of beets for my brother. But I needed to own up to the fact that I keep giving away the beets I get, which doesn't technically meet the requirements of this project. At some point I have to work with them so I kept one of the bunches. I looked at them, with their wee reddish globes and limp green stalks. They looked at me. I looked at them - They looked at me. I looked at them - They looked at me. I stuck them in the back of the refrigerator.

So no tomatoes. But! I personally love eggplant - especially in Eggplant Parmesan, though Craig's not a big fan. Well, it was the week of my birthday, not his: so I got to make what I wanted to eat! Eggplant Parmesan, Glazed Green Beans with Tomatoes, and Summer Squash Stir-Fry with Onions. This week's recipe is Eggplant Chips, the first step to making Eggplant Parmesan.

You might ask me where I keep getting the tomatoes for the Glazed Green Beans recipe. I am ashamed to admit I'm still buying at the grocery store - I had really hoped to have some in my shares but it's just too early. Even my parents, who have at least 10 tomato plants every year, do not have enough to share - though they've got a great crop of green tomatoes. So I've been anxious to find a good local source.

A few days after I received this share, a friend of mine called up and suggested we hang out together for lunch, so I invited her over and brainstormed on tomatoes. There's actually a small produce stand very close to my apartment, closer even than the very close grocery store. So I decided to start by heading that direction, and see if I could get my tomatoes locally from the stand. If not, there was always the store. Sure enough, the stand had corn and tomatoes (though rather orange tomatoes) available, as well as strawberries, blackberries, and blueberries. Berries are a favorite treat of mine so I purchased a few cups. Then I asked the woman at the stand where the berries were from. Her reply? Oregon.

So much for assuming that any local produce stand offers only locally grown produce! For all I know she is purchasing them at Sam's Club and selling them at a markup to clueless consumers in Holladay. I passed on the tomatoes and got some from the store. At least the blueberries were tasty, but the blackberries were a disappointment. Hopefully, next time I stop at a roadside produce stand it will offer real locally grown produce. At least now I know to ask!

A few days later, I was surprised with the first peaches of the season, more summer squash, potatoes, corn, and some funny furry-looking beans. Total haul for Borski shares:

CSA SHARE-A	CSA SHARE-B					Price ('Normal')	Value
0.85 lb Peaches	.98 lb Peaches					1.99/lb	$3.64
0.95 lb Soybeans	1.02 lb Soybeans					4.78/lb (frozen, ORGANIC)	$9.42
0.82 lb Zucchini	0.94 lb Zucchini					1.49/lb	$2.62
0.84 lb Summer Squash	0.41 lb Summer Squash					1.99/lb	$2.49
2.08 lb Golden Potatoes	1.61 lb Golden Potatoes					1.49/lb	$5.50
2.13 lb Corn (3 ears)	1.71 lb Corn (3 ears)					3/1.00	$2.00

I had a suspicion about the beans. There's a bean that Ms. Kingsolver refers to a few times in her book as Edamame - and it's a fancy name for soybeans (or sometimes it's a specific reference to a way of cooking soybeans). Sure enough, a quick Google search confirmed it. It seemed a little gross to me to think of eating these hairy pods, no matter how they are cooked. I was relieved to find that you actually only eat the beans inside the pod. Glad I didn't start any culinary experiments on them before I did my research! Even so, soybeans are another vegetable I have never approached on purpose. I looked at them, with their soft slender furry pale green pods. They looked at me. I stuck them in the back of the refrigerator.

The peaches I was very excited for. The truth is I LOVE peaches but I never ever purchase them from the grocery store anymore. When I did, what I found was that they are very hard and flavorless, and if you leave them for a few days to soften, the outer 1/2" of the peach will become soft but the inside will still be hard as a rock. If you leave them a few more days to ripen, the outer 1/2" of the peach will begin to turn brown and rot, while the inside remains rock hard. It's gross. But then a few years ago when I purchased a small bunch from the local farmer's market. They were soft when I bought them, and I fell in love all over again.

So I was excited about the six peaches in little brown sacks, but my surprise turned to shock when I noticed these pale creamy pink orbs were hard! I felt betrayed! How could they?! I could only hope that these peaches were picked 3 days out from being ripe and they would soften in time, as opposed to the grocery store variety. Luckily my hope was not in vain, and the peaches softened very nicely and were deliciously sweet. In retrospect, soft peaches would probably be all squished from the delivery in grocery store sacks jostling alongside potatoes, corn, and zucchini. So that's okay.

There was a specific reason I was looking forward to peaches, though. Craig and I have this great "Peachy Rico" shake recipe, invented after we tried its namesake at Los Hermanos in Provo. Our Peachy Ricos require only four ingredients and whip up in minutes. But of course - unless peaches are in season, it's out of the question. So every summer I look forward to fresh peaches all season. I had never thought another fruit could rival my favorite strawberries but the truth is, in season: peaches win hands-down.

Recipes for Week 9:

-----Eggplant Chips-----


1 eggplant
1 egg
1 c. breadcrumbs
2 T. parsley, chopped

Beat the egg with 1 T. water in a shallow dish with a fork until uniform. Combine the parsley and breadcrumbs in a separate dish. Peel the eggplant, then cut into slices 1/8" thick. Dip the eggplant slices into the egg mixture, coating both sides, then into the breadcrumbs. Arrange on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 F for 10 minutes, then remove the sheet, turn the slices, and bake again until light brown around the edges. Serve with warm marinara dipping sauce. Serves 2-3.

-----Peachy Ricos-----

4 fresh peaches
3/4 c. milk
2 T. frozen cranberry juice concentrate
6 ice cubes
vanilla ice cream

Slice fresh peaches into a 4 quart blender, discard pits. Add milk and blend until smooth. Add juice concentrate, then add ice cubes 1-2 at a time until all are blended in. Top off with ~4 scoops vanilla ice cream to reach desired consistency. (I like mine as thick shakes, your blender's efficiency may be the limiting factor here). Serves 4-6.