We have been a part of a CSA off and on over the past two
decades. We have been in our current CSA
for two years, but we have had a relationship with the Jutz farm in Solon going
back many years when we bought pigs from them.
Their kids raised them through 4H and our kids grew up eating their
pork. We still think those are the best
brats, and I haven’t really eaten them since because those were the gold
standard and not much has been commensurate.
The same is true for the breakfast sausage. But their vegetable CSA has been a new and
great experience. It has spawned
innovation in our kitchen. We have
expanded our repertoire for summer squash as never before. Every New York Times recipe that highlighted
squash was on our table within a week or two.
We have regularly had dinners with three to four side dishes made
entirely with local produce. Everybody
wins with that. Not only does it keep us
knee deep in vegetable dishes all summer, we also got a homemade loaf of bread
and a dozen eggs every week. That can be
a meal in itself. The CSA partners with
others to provide options that they cannot.
We get chickens and fruit that are fantastic too. So we can round out our table with one stop
shopping. In the summer, the traditional
market shopping lists are short and our visits are few and far between. What is not to love? We are tapering off to every other week for
the fall, and all too soon it will come to an end until spring (I live in Iowa
after all), but while it is something to miss, it is also something to look
forward to as well.
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