Squash Progress and Arugula

First of all, I posted about the squash that we had two weeks ago and we are still getting it each week at the CSA. I wanted to post a picture to show how huge they have grown so quickly! The yield is really high and there is so much to eat, so I'm really hoping that we get some more that are even bigger this week.

Anyway, what I really want to focus on is arugula because we have had this coming through the past few weeks and I want to know some information about it. I noticed that it has a peppery flavor, and it can be used in either a salad or cooked. This particular batch was a little too bitter for me to eat directly into a salad, but I steamed them with some garlic and lemon, as you would with spinach, and they tasted great. Apparently the larger the leaves are, the more potent the peppery taste is and the smaller leaves have a milder taste, and that makes sense since this arugula was a little bit aged.

 I made sure to cut the ends of the stems off because according to some research I did they can be tough to eat if they get too hard. They should be able to last about a week when refrigerated, but I wanted to eat them quickly just in case. This was a great dinner side, so I'm hoping that we have another bunch for next week!

Pumpkin Blossoms at the Tempe CSA!

pumpkin blossoms

This week we received pumpkin blossoms as one of our shares at the Tempe CSA, and we were all quite intrigued with them! Many of our members have never eaten them or cooked with them before, and neither have I, so I decided to look up some recipes to make sure that we are all using them to their full potential. First, I was amazed to find out that these are totally edible raw and they actually taste great! They are sweet and have a mild pumpkin taste, especially in the bottom near the root. I would recommend putting them in a salad either whole or after chopping them if you agree with me and enjoy their raw flavor.

Another great way to eat them that some of our members mentioned to me while they were passing by is to stuff them with cheese and bake them at 350 for about 20 minutes. The ones that we received at the CSA were on the small side, so I am not sure if they will need to be left in as long as those that have grown to be larger. Another suggestion that some of the members gave was to dip them in batter and fry them in oil, although that kind of defeats the purpose of having fresh and healthy vegetables! Further, they can be used to make a pumpkin blossom omelet or put on top of a pizza. They are extremely versatile and totally edible, so consumers can feel free to get creative when they start using these awesome vegetables.

A Fabulous Selection of Squash!

Welcome to the Tempe CSA blog! My name is Hannah and I am completing a summer internship with this awesome, community based organization, so I decided to start a blog so that I can update everyone on the daily/weekly happenings of the group as well as my experience with them! PLEASE feel free to comment with questions, suggestions, comments, recipes, or anything else, and tell your friends about us so that they can experience the great benefits that Tempe CSA has to offer as well!

different summer squash selections and grapefruit

The best part about the Tempe CSA is that there are so many new foods to try every single week that are not easily found in a grocery store. For example, this past week we had quite a few different types of squash, and most were varieties that I had never had the option to try before. You can see some of them in this picture to the left: we had 8 ball (at the very bottom), yellow crookneck, patty pan (both mixed in the middle), and zucchini in a range of sizes (the top two boxes). The great thing about these summer squashes is that they require little to no cooking, so when you get them fresh from the Crooked Sky Farms like we do they can easily become a quick, last-minute meal! Zucchini is probably my favorite vegetable of all time, so I was extremely excited to eat them and even more excited that they were so fresh and DELICIOUS! Who wouldn't want to have the option to avoid a trip to the grocery store AND get the freshest, best tasting vegetables around?!

fresh bagels

Plus, there is fresh bread that is available for purchase through the website tempecsa.org! It costs an additional fee, but if you're planning on buying bagels or loaves of bread anyway the more convenient choice is to get it while you get your vegetables at the Tempe CSA, right? My favorite part about this bread is that it is LOCAL! It hasn't been sitting on a shelf for who-knows-how-long or shipped across the country. The people at Tempe CSA know the bakers and have it delivered directly to the pick-up location from the bakery. It can't get much better than that!

To all of our members and to everyone who is thinking about joining the Tempe CSA: don't forget to renew/purchase your membership soon because the early bird rates will not last long! All of the information can be found at tempecsa.org!