Living Green-ish in the City: CSA Week 9

This week's CSA was probably my favorite yet.  Being Italian, a pasta themed haul is right up my alley!

Check out those flowers--could spring be here to stay?!



Greensgrow Haul Week 9

Produce: Basil - Herban Farms, Cheyney, PA
Spinach - Rineer Family Farm, Lancaster, PA
Kale Rabe - Greensgrow Farms, Philadelphia,PA
Parsnips - Elm Tree Organcs, Lancaster, PA
Baguette - D'Ambrosio Bakery, Philadelphia, PA
Tomato Sauce OR Arugula Pesto - Greensgrow Farms, Philadelphia, PA
Cheese: Romano Cheese - Mancuso's Cheese, Philadelphia, PA
Dairy: Yogurt - Pequea Valley Yogurt, Pequea PA
Dozen Eggs - Sandy Ridge Farm, Elizabethtown, PA         
Meat shares:
1 lb. Fresh Pasta - Porfirio's Italian Foods, Trenton, NJ

While I knew what to do with most of the haul, I still have no idea how to cook a parsnip--they get a pretty bad rap and so I'm not super psyched to try them.  Anyone out there have good recipes?

Aside from the parsnip dilemma, dinner was easy on Saturday!  I boiled up the pasta, threw together some meatballs, sauteed some spinach and toasted up the bread.  Of course, I grated some of the Pecorino on top.  Yumtastic all around!



I LOVE my Sophie Conran bowls and butter dish!  I got the butter dish for Christmas and was ecstatic.  My 21 year old self would have slapped me for that.



nomnomnom

I've been told I make a pretty mean meatball.  I just use 1lb. of ground beef, add 1 egg, a large handful of seasoned breadcrumbs, 3 cloves minced garlic (we love us some garlic over here), a pinch of parmesean or romano cheese if you have it on hand, pinch of salt and pepper, and last night I used some of the fresh basil as well.  Mix it all together-- you have to use your hands, that's where the love comes from.  Then just roll them and plop 'em on a baking sheet in a 375 degree oven for 15-20 minutes depending on how big those bundles of meaty goodness are.  That's it! Easy!



Just like mom used to make



When I sautee spinach this way I always SLICE the garlic and don't mince it.  It doesn't release as much juice and so isn't as strong.  You can eat it as it is without feeling like you're fending off vampires by eating a whole clove. 

Don't forget to leave parsnip recipes below!