This week’s box included: kale, eggplant (or red onion), cucumbers (salad and cucumber), summer squash (yellow and zucchini), tomato, cabbage, green beans (or purple), potatoes
I heard that there was some variation in the boxes this week. Some got lacinato kale while our box had curly kale. Some had eggplant. Ours did not. We got one red onion which we’re delighted to have, and a handful of potatoes – which is one of my favorite things in the box this time of year. Given the crazy temperatures this week, I expect okra will be showing up any week now.
We did have the biggest red cabbage I have ever seen. Now I need a refrigerator just for cabbage! It’s funny that when I think of eating red cabbage, it’s almost always in a cooked dish, but it’s just as sweet as green cabbage and certainly more colorful, so use it in whatever cold salad you like. I made a cold salad with chopped red cabbage in a dressing of balsamic and olive oil, mixed with sunflower seeds, and it turned out to be a great sandwich topper and delicious on grilled hot dogs. Because I added a lot of vinegar, it’s been keeping really well, like a pickle, and I’ve also used it to top avocado toast.
Also those pretty grain bowls on Instagram? There’s often shaved red cabbage there for that pop of color. It’ll take a lot of grain bowls, though, to get through this huge cabbage.
And we got lots of beans. My standard first-of-the-summer recipe when beans and potatoes arrive is this potato and green bean salad from the Riverview recipe archive. This time around there won’t be arugula pesto, but I’ll use that kale to make kale pesto instead, and toss in some basil from the little pot on my deck. I haven’t checked the beans yet to see if they need stringing. Oftentimes they do, so please don’t skip that step.
And when I see the zucchini and yellow squash, I’m always thinking “cooked” but this recipe from Alexandra’s Kitchen is what is tempting right now in these crazy temperatures.
Shaved Squash and Pecorino or Parmesan Salad
Make as much or as little of this as you can eat within a day. It is best when freshly made and takes only a few minutes to put together so you can make it up fresh whenever you want to enjoy.
1 zucchini or several yellow squash
Salt and pepper
Pecorino or Parmesan, shaved
Extra virgin olive oil
Fresh lemon juice
Herbs such as basil, parsley or chives
Shave the squash with a mandoline or Y-peeler. Alternately, make zoodles. Arrange squash in a bowl and season with salt and pepper, then add cheese, drizzle with olive oil and add squeeze some lemon over everything. Taste for seasoning, add herbs, and serve.