Delivery 3

A few awesome parts to this new delivery. Also starting to build a backlog in the fridge. Maybe I'll start blanching and freezing.

Here's the list this week:

Red Sails Leaf Lettuce - 1 head**
(Green Towers) Romaine Lettuce - 1 head
(Butter Head) Buttercruch Lettuce - 1 head
Encino Lettuce - 1 head
Summer Spinach - 1 bunch
(Bright Lights) Swiss Chard - 1 bunch
Garlic Scapes - 6 scapes
Golden Purslane - 1 bunch
Kohlrabi - 1 bunch
Summer Squash - 2 pcs

** I couldn't deal with four different types of lettuce this week. Red Leaf has been my least favorite of the bunch, so I took advantage of the swap table and got a second bunch of the Swiss Chard. To be honest I've never had chard before but it looked so damn pretty.

Here are my highlights:

Summer Squash: I may not have been the best CSA-mate and selected two of the biggest of the crate to take...I'll be better in the future. But I'm just so excited for a non-leafy. I have a squash soup I love to make, but it's been super hot here lately. Maybe pickles? Or just a saute in some butter...

Spinach: This makes me happy like kale. I've had quiche on the brain lately. And then I see the butter and cream AND cream cheese in that recipe and am thinking more of a tart? I have a removable bottom tart pan that needs to get used.

Kohlrabi: Related to broccoli and cabbage. From the CSA email:

The variety is Kossak which yields a larger Kohlrabi. They look like they should be a root crop but really grow on top of the soil on a short stalk. They can be eaten raw or cooked. They taste a bit like broccoli stems. Peel them, slice and add to a salad. Or cube and roast. The greens are edible as well. Wash, slice and boil.   

Reading around a little online, people are comparing the crisp texture to a water chestnut or granny smith apple- under that very tough peel. So raw with a little salt? Though there are neat looking salads, pickles, or use it in spring rolls!

Encino Lettuce: Frilly Lettuce. Is it bad that when I google this I just get a bunch of lists from the farm that does my CSA for this week's delivery? I'm running out of ideas for lettuce is what I'm saying, and I wish the internet would understand and help me out here.

Purslane: It's a succulent, which is exciting. There's some good inspiration here, oh hey a chilled zucchini soup. I'm generally happy I have an excuse to buy and eat tomatoes here as well with a salad. Apparently you can sub it for spinach in tarts and whatnot. There may be another ingredient fight.

There's a spiffy bit on wikipedia about it:

At night its leaves trap carbon dioxide, which is converted into malic acid (the souring principle of apples), and, in the day, the malic acid is converted into glucose. When harvested in the early morning, the leaves have ten times the malic acid content as when harvested in the late afternoon, and thus have a significantly more tangy taste.

Mine are not that tangy, but this seems to happen more in dry times- and it's been pretty wet here. Ah well.

Swiss Chard: Taken in by the lovely colors. I asked the volunteer if there was a difference between the flavors stems based on color (they ranged from a light yellow to deep purply red), she said she thought the redder ones had a mild beet flavor, so I was all over it. Pickling the stems, sauteing the greens. This may be the week of tarts and here's one with zucchini, too.