Community-Supported Agriculture
Back in April, and throughout last summer, I talked all about my lovely CSA through Sun Gold Farm. A CSA is Community-Supported Agriculture and it is an ultra-local way of getting quality food directly from the farm. This is just a friendly reminder to begin thinking about possibly joining a CSA, because chances are, sign-ups are already beginning and when spring comes around chances are it will be too late!
Menu Plan Moday: 7/14-7/20
Wow! It’s hard to believe that we are heading toward the ides of July already. From the perspective of the calendar, it seems that summer’s halfway over. In terms of the growing season, it seems we’ve only just begun!
My fridge is busting at the seams with local produce from our CSA and farmer’s market, and my freezer is full of meat recently purchased through our local Weston Price co-op. On Friday I took home a box of beef tallow for costing $0.50 per pound! This is top-notch organic, grass-fed beef with the second-highest levels of CLA (conjugated linoleic acid), which means that this tallow is really good for us! And at $0.50 per pound, it’s a real bargain!
Along with the beef, I just picked up my order for half of a lamb to store in the freezer. I estimated that we (my family of four) would get about 30 meals out of the lamb,and so it comes out to roughly $4 per meal for the lamb. That’s a great deal for such high quality, healthy lamb! By the way, if you are reading this and are local to Portland, OR, and you would like to know more about the co-op through which I am able to purchase these foods, please feel free to contact me.
All that to say, my goal this week is to use what I have on hand; especially my fridge full of produce including cauliflower, lettuce, broccoli, kohlrabi, beets, cabbage, and zucchini. I also have several eggs to use, so here’s hoping I won’t need to go to the grocery store at all this week!
Monday:
B: Pesto scrambled eggs
L: Refried baked beans topped with cheese, sauteed veggies (make extra for Tuesday’s lunch)
D: Cheeseburger wraps with french fries and salad
To do: Defrost and marinate lamb for Tuesday, make sauerkraut, soak pecans
Tuesday:
B: Hidden veggie smoothies with quinoa porridge
L: Veggie fritters (leftover sauteed veggies with leftover pancake batter)
D: Lamb kabobs with veggies and salad
To do: Go blueberry picking! Soak quinoa, make crispy pecans
Wednesday:
B: granola with milk and fresh berries, turkey sausage for Jonathan
L: qunioa tabouleh, cheese/veggie quesadillas
D: Lentil-pecan patties and a side of salad
To do: Defrost fish stock & whole chicken
Thursday:
B: breakfast sandwiches (sausages and cheddar sandwiched between leftover pancakes)
L: miso soup (fish broth, carrots, cabbage, scallions, kelp, miso)
D: Quinoa-stuffed roast chicken
To do: Pack snacks for beach day trip, start crock-stock with chicken carcass
Friday:
B: eggs fried in butter w/ cortido on the side
L: TBD–we’ll be at the beach (maybe we’ll bring leftovers?)
D: TBD– we’ll probably eat out; perhaps seafood?
Saturday:
B: waffles with hidden zucchini and fried eggs
L: leftovers
D: garlic hot dogs, steamed broccoli, salad
Sunday:
L: leftovers
D: green popcorn, cheese, apples, and chicken “fingers” (leftover chicken from Thursday)
For more inspiring menu ideas, visit The Organizing Junkie!
Menu Plan Monday!
It’s menu time again! This week, I’ll be capitalizing on using what I have on hand in the veggie department. We have been blessed with a steady supply of fresh veggies from our CSA and our local farmer’s market (my kids and I boarded the local lite rail last Wednesday and loaded up on fresh food!)
We also have some various cuts of meat in our freezer that were from the 1/4 cow we purchased back in December, and it’s high time those got eaten!
Monday:
B: Pesto scrambled eggs
L: Quinoa tabouleh, sauteed zucchini, leftover carnitas
D: Rib steak with salad and a side of pesto buckwheat risotto (leftover from last week)
To do: Defrost rib steak, soak quinoa, start lentil sprouts
Tuesday:
B: Green smoothies and quinoa porridge
L: Sprouted lentil salad and beef vegetable soup (beef broth, leftover rib steak, veggies)
D: Roast (heart) with carrots, celery and mashed potatoes with salad
To do: Defrost heart, defrost beef broth, soak pinto and kidney beans for chili)
Wednesday:
B: Meusli and Sardines for Jonathan
L: Leftover roundup (whatever’s on hand!)
D: Vegetarian chili (pinto & kidney beans with zucchini and other available veggies)
To do: Go to farmer’s market for veggies
Thursday:
B: Eggs and Breakfast Sausage from US Wellness Meats
L: Quesdadillas with leftover heart and sauteed veggies
D: Out to dinner! Friends are babysitting so we can go out!!!
To do: Prep waffles
Friday:
B: smoothies and “re fried meusli mush”
L: Quinoa tabouleh, sauteed veggies, leftovers
D: Swiss chard lasagna with a side of salad
Saturday:
B: millet/rice waffles
L: leftovers
D: US Wellness Garlic Hot Dogs with High Enzyme Salad
Sunday:
L: Fish fry @ a friend’s house (with Alaskan salmon she caught!)
D: Green popcorn, cheese, apples (with some additional leftovers for Jonathan!)
For more inspiration, visit The Organizing Junkie! Please let me know via comments if there are any recipes you might like links to! Happy Monday!
Name that Ferment (or Mason Jar Mysteries)
A cranberry-rhubarb relish
This is great on pork chops! Made with rhubarb from our CSA.
Beef bone broth
I got 40# of bones for $20 back in December, and those bones were from pasture-raised beef. I used the broth to make terrific blender tomato sauce (I’ll post the recipe soon) and minestrone soup.
Beet Kvass
Made with the beets we received in our CSA yesterday, Beet Kvass is a standard in every Ukrainian home. It is a blood tonic and cleanser; full of minerals and probiotics.
Kombucha
Also known as tea kvass, you can read all about kombucha here. This is a staple in our home and I credit this beverage (and God of course!) with my speedy recovery from childbirth!
Ruby lemonade
Stewed rhubarb and strawberries from CSA, a small amount of organic sugar and stevia to taste. This was cooked down to a syrup and then was blended with some lemon juice, water, and a bit of kombucha to add a kick. My kids love this! Very refreshing for such a hot day.
That’s all! But do try to guess what else I’ve got above!!
Coming up: I’m making a goal to post more often. I hesitate to say what’s coming up, but I’m hoping to start posting my weekly menu plan each Sunday night (from a new blog-inspiration, here!) Michele’s blog ROCKS, but please do come back and visit here once in a while once you get hooked on hers!!
