This is the eleventh year, I think, that we've been part of our CSA, and the kids all smile wanly when they hear me talk about it. They agree that it's a good thing, in the abstract -- good to know the person who grows your food, good to buy local, good to support sustainable agriculture and small family businesses. And yet they sometimes yearn for a life with a little less chard.
Last night was the first CSA pickup of the year and I had an idea: what if instead of a whiteboard list of veggies glowering at me, I made a loosey-goosey whiteboard menu plan with the kids' input?
And so:
"You do not have to eat any lettuce," I told them. "I'll be in charge of eating the lettuce when I have lunch." They approved of this plan.
"But there's rhubarb," they sighed. "You like rhubarb some of the time," I answered briskly. "Tell me what you want me to do with it, and when you want to eat it."
"Not rhubarb ice cream," said one with a shudder. "Or rhubarb GELATIN," said the other, with a subtle revulsion convulsion. "How about crumble?" I asked, and they agreed that rhubarb crumble would work. I used this recipe, and it was a hit. If I make it again I'll add a spoonful of flour or cornstarch to the apple-rhubarb mixture, which threw off a fair amount of liquid.
Pete volunteered to turn both bags of spinach into palak paneer tonight, and I made a beet-walnut-feta salad to serve alongside.
We have agreed that the cooked-down beet greens will go into a nice cheesy soufflé, and the lambs' quarters will get blended into potato soup and served with fresh bread.
"Onions aren't hard to use up," Pete said, and I agreed.
These are all ideas I would have considered if I hadn't consulted the kids, but I'm hopeful that they will say, "Oh, potato soup with greens; we talked about that," and not "WHY OH WHY are there so many green things on the menu this week?"
I'll let you know how it works out.
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