Meal Plan 6/16-6/21

I did a little dance when I unloaded our Local Box this week. We got okra, peaches, basil and two kinds of tomatoes. It doesn’t get much summery-er than that. Rami and I made short work of the tomatoes and ate those in a sandwich already. The summer peas aren’t far behind– they’re made up in a salad in the fridge and I’ll be eating them as soon as I publish this post.

Here are the ingredients I’m working with:

Peaches – Caskey Orchards
Okra
Assorted Summer Squash – Massey Farm
Basil – My Father’s Farm
Mango – G&S Groves
Valley Girl Tomatoes – My Father’s Farm
Juliette Tomatoes – Hillside Farm
Summer Peas – Just Peachy Farm
Spring Onions – Acadian Family Farm

Here’s what I’m making:

Thursday: Tomato Sandwiches, Fresh Black-Eyed Pea Salad

 

Friday: Stewed okra and tomatoes, buttermilk biscuits

Saturday: Summer Squash Soup, sliced tomatoes with salt and pepper, peach cobbler (I’ll probably toss the mango in with the peaches)

Sunday: Vegetarian Penne

Monday: Picadillo (South American hash made with venison, onions, tomatoes, garlic, etc.), Tortillas

Tuesday: Leftover awareness night!

Breakfast: We’re on a toast and cream of wheat kick, embellished with homemade jams galore from the spring canning season and ATX Foodswappers

Meal Plan 6/9 – 6/14

Is there anything sadder than tossing a slimy, spoiled head of lettuce into the trash? Of course there is, but that’s not keeping me from wallowing in culinary pity. I forgot my cooking at home last week because of all the food blogging activities in Austin (ironic, right?) and now I’m  dreading cleaning the uneaten, spoiled food out of my kitchen. Last week’s peaches on the counter are more brown than peach, and I can’t tell whether the beets in my crisper have farm dirt on them or something else. I’m procrastinating the monumental food-toss-clean-out by listening to music by The Moldy Peaches, and by looking forward to the week ahead.

We’ve got new, non-moldy peaches, blueberries, and two kinds of tomatoes in the kitchen, and I’ll be able to get cooking with those just as soon as I make a little room. Here’s what’s in the Local Box this week. Thanks to Stephanie for putting all the hyperlinks for the farm websites.

Peaches – Caskey Orchards
Blueberries – Berry Best
Yellow Onion – Gundermann Acres
French Carrots – Gundermann Acres
Large Cucumbers – Acadian Family Farm
Valley Girl Tomatoes – Fruitful Hill Farm
Golden Cherry Tomatoes – Acadian Family Farm OR Tecolote Farm
New Potatoes – Gundermann Acres
Red Beet Bunch – Acadian Family Farm

Here’s what I’m planning to cook:

Thursday: Homemade tortillas with picadillo, a traditional South American hash made with venison, onions, peppers and squash.

Friday: Potato Chickpea Curry, Rice, Carrot Halwa

Saturday: Picnic! We’re having our favorite tomato sandwiches, potato salad, icebox pickles, and molasses cookies. Hopefully Rami will make sun tea. He learned how a few weeks ago and since then our large mason jar has had a new flavor of sun tea in it every few days!

Sunday: An informal group of food bloggers and tweeters, including me, are meeting at SWAD on north Lamar for a late lunch at 2 PM. There’s no invitation or formal guest list, so please join us if you want to! There are 8-10 of us planning to go so far.

Monday: Vegetarian Borscht, beer bread, peach crisp

Tuesday: Leftover Awareness Night!

Meal Plan 5/26-5/31

Happy Wednesday, everyone! I am in a great mood today for many reasons. The top three are (1) the week is halfway over, (2) we get the day off on Monday! and (3) Rami’s and my first wedding anniversary is on Monday!!!!!! It seems like just a few months ago that we were planning our wedding in Iowa. I smile every single time I see a lemon because they remind me of our marriage, and I’m planning to make some lemon bars over the weekend so we can relive that part of our wedding day. 🙂

Rami and I were talking today about whether either of us was surprised that the first year is nearly over, and while neither one of us doubted that we’d still be married after one year (whew!) we both agree that the year has gone by really quickly. It’s also a little shocking to be married for a year because that’s something that grown-ups do. Even at 26 years old, I am surprised when I have moments that define me as a grown-up.

Still, grown-up I am, and that means making a menu plan. Even on wedding anniversary week! Here’s the produce I’m working with from the Local Box:

• Peaches – Lund Produce
  Blackberries – Wheeler Farm
  Fiesta Beets – Tecolote Farm
  White Onion – Gundermann Acres
  Mixed Carrots – Lund Produce
  Flat Leaf Parsley – Tecolote Farm
  Corn – Acadian Family Farm
  Radish Bunch – My Father’s Farm
  Red & Green Basil – My Father’s Farm
  Romaine Lettuce – Bar W

Here is what I am planning to eat and cook:

Wednedsday: we went out to Chuy’s for dinner. Creamy Jalapeno is my friend.

Thursday: venison meatloaf, pickled beets, lettuce salad, baked sweet potato

Friday: Corn Radish Salad, Zucchini quick bread, pickled beets

Saturday: Picnic: Corn Radish Salad, Peanutty Carrot Tea Sandwiches, Beet-and-Pecan Tea Sandwiches, Basil Goat Cheese Tea Sandwiches

Sunday: Leftover Tea Sandwiches, Pesto Pasta Salad on a bed of lettuce

Monday: Blackberry Peach Cobbler, Roast Chicken with beets and carrots, Lemon Bars

Tuesday: Leftover Awareness Day!!

Breakfast: oatmeal! I am doing really well at eating breakfast at home lately. Three times this week!

Meal Plan 5/18-5/25

It’s officially summer at our house. The students are mostly gone from the university where I work, and Rami’s teaching schedule is wrapping up, too. That’s not to say we won’t be busy for the next few months; summer for us doesn’t mean  a break so much as a shift in the usual routine. Last weekend was the first of several picnics we’ll be taking, and starting next week we’ll be spending every Wednesday night together watching “So You Think You Can Dance.” (Seriously. We love that show.)

The local food scene is starting to shift into summer gear, too. I’m seeing more and more tomatoes at the markets, and the grocery store in my neighborhood had “local” blueberries from far south Texas this week. I’m psyched about all the new flavors the warm weather brings.

This is what we’re getting in our Local Box this week. Thanks so much to Stephanie over at Eating Out of the Local Box for all the farm links in this week’s line-up.

Red Beet Bunch – Tecolote Farm
Salad Mix – My Father’s Farm
Summer Squash – Texas Natural
Green Beans – Acadian Family Farm
Sweet Potatoes – Homestead Farm
Kale – Green Collier
Heirloom Tomatoes – Bluebonnet Hydroponics
Mango – G&S Groves
Fennel – Fruitful Hill Farm

Here’s what I’m making:

Wednedsay: Four bean salad, Grilled goat cheese and tomato sandwich
Thursday: Summer squash tacos
Friday: Red lentil and sweet potato stew
Saturday: Picnic: Pickled beets, Shaved fennel salad, Sliced tomatoes with salt & pepper, homemade wheat bread
Sunday: Lettuce salad with garlic vinaigrette and leftover roasted beets
Monday: Death by garlic pasta
Tuesday: Pancakes, scrambled eggs, mango banana smoothies
Breakfast: I’m going to try making a root vegetable omelet based on this recipe and see if it reheats well throughout the week.

Meal Plan 5/10-5/17

It’s raining in Austin right now! We desperately need some rain, and all the clouds from this cold front are expected to stay for the rest of the week. Hooray! More good news: Rami and I cleaned out our kitchen last weekend and I found a picnic basket in one of the cupboards above the fridge.We decided that picnics would be fun, cheap dates for the summer and we have resolved to take picnics together on the weekends. Any good ideas for picnic locations in Austin?

Of course, there are other meals to plan besides picnic dates! Here’s what we’re getting in the local box:

Yellow Beans – Animal Farm
Kale – Green Collar
Carrots – Acadian Family Farm
Red Beets – Massey Farm
Purple Top Turnips – Gundermann Acres
Watermelon Radish- Tecolote Farm
Radicchio – Tecolote Farm
Red Leaf Lettuce – Acadian Family Farm
Spring Onions – Bar W Ranch & Farm
Garlic – Fruitful Hill Farm

Here’s what I’m making:

Wednesday: Death by Garlic Pasta (I’ll add radicchio to this recipe)
Thursday: Steamed beets, Venison meat loaf
Friday: Vegetable Pot Pie w/ turnips, carrots, onions, yellow beans
Saturday: Picnic dinner! Spanish-style beet, carrot and egg sandwiches, apple slices with honey, cava
Sunday: We’re eating out before the Texas Rollergirls Bout! My friends Rebecca and Brooke will be playing and we are psyched to see them kill! kill! kill!
Monday: Rustic Radish Tart , lettuce salad with garlic vinaigrette
Tuesday: Leftover awareness night

Meal Plan 4/27-5/3

It’s been a few weeks since I did a menu plan, and man am I feeling the burn! My fridge and pantry are a little bit of a mess because our meals have been so disorganized. Instead of sitting around feeling sorry for myself, I’m gonna get right back on the meal planning bandwagon and focus on using up some of the random groceries hanging out in my kitchen.

This is what we’re getting in our Local Box this week. Thanks so much to Stephanie over at Eating Out of the Local Box for all the farm links in this week’s line-up.

• Spring Lettuce Mix – Tecolote Farm
• Chard – Bradshaw Farm
• Green Beans – Hillside Farm OR Naegelin Farm
• Summer Squash – Acadian Family Farm
• New Potatoes – Green Gate Farms
• Flat Leaf Parsley – Tecolote Farm
• Heirloom Tomatoes – Bluebonnet Hydroponic
• Mango – G&S Groves
• Crisp Green Leaf Lettuce – Lund Produce Company

Here’s what I’m making:

Wednedsay: Venison sloppy joes, sauteed summer squash & onions
Thursday: dinner en route to work event
Friday: Toasty parmesan chickpea salad, lettuce with vinagrette dressing
Saturday: Three Bean Salad made with fresh green beans, Corn bread
Sunday: Tabouli salad on a bed of lettuce, pita bread, hummus
Monday: Potato soup, steamed chard, beer bread
Tuesday: Pancakes, scrambled eggs, mango banana smoothies
Breakfast: I’ve been eating a lot of cream of wheat for breakfast lately.

Meal Plan 4/5-4/11

Uh, I wrote this whole post last night while I was on dinner break at my job. Then I forgot to hit “publish” before I stepped away from my work computer. Kind of par for the course yesterday. Hopefully things will be a little less hectic today, starting with my trip to the farmer’s market tonight to celebrate bake sale victory with my foodie friends. Can’t wait to hang with them for a while, pick up some awesome veg, and eat some Bola Pizza.

This is what we’re getting in our Local Box this week:

• Green or Red Leaf Lettuce- Acadian Family Farms
• Romaine Lettuce – Tecolote
• Strawberries (In addition to the Local Box pint, I’m buying some more at the market. Stawbonanza!!)
• Chard – Bradshaw & Naegelin
• Multi Colored Beets – Animal Farm
• Heirloom Green Garlic – Lund Produce
• Easter Egg Radishes – Animal Farm
• Spring Onions – Naegelin
• Pea Shoots – Acadian Family Farms

Here’s what I’m making:

Wednedsay: Bola Pizza from the Triangle Farmer’s Market
Thursday: Happy hour at Red House Pizzeria
Friday: Lettuce salad with roasted beets & radishes , strawberries
Saturday: Dinner at Asti
Sunday: Savory cheese and scallion scones, Candied pecan & strawberry salad
Monday: Warm beet and chard salad (tossing the pea shoots in here, too), beer bread
Tuesday: Pancakes with strawberry syrup, scrambled eggs & shallot tops

Breakfast: I’m doing a horrible job of actually eating the breakfast I make. When I remember to eat breakfast, I’ll probably have cream of wheat with strawberries and a little milk, or a savory cream of wheat with the tops of the green garlic, cheddar cheese, and some chopped bacon I have in the fridge.

Meal Plan 3/16-3/22

It’s definitely spring time in Austin! The weather is nice and warm, and there’s no frost in the forecast until later in the year. The winter greens like bok choy, spinach, and mustard are still coming fast and furious, but now some more tender plants like tomatoes are here, too! We’re on our third straight week of tomatoes in the Local Box, so I guess I can quit pinching myself and cook them, already. For the past two weeks, I’ve been eating the tomatoes as soon as they arrive on my doorstep, sliced with a little sea salt. They taste like sunshine. I’m not sure Rami is even aware that we’ve had tomatoes in the house, though, and I bet he’d like me to share starting this week!

Here’s what we’re getting in the Local Box:

Slicing Tomatoes – Gundermann
Lettuce Heads – Fruitful Farm
Spinach – Naegelin Farm
Mustard Greens – Gundermann
Shallot Scallions – Lund Produce
Navel Oranges OR Grapefruit – G&S Grove
Bok Choy OR Green Cabbage OR Collard Greens – Naegelin Farm
Green Garlic – Texas Daily Harvest
Multicolored Carrots OR Beets – Animal Farm

Here’s what I’m making for dinner:

Wednesday: SXSW party and barbecue for dinner. (I feel so hip just writing that!)
Thursday: Spaghetti with raw tomato sauce and romano cheese
Friday: Savory granola with roasted beets/carrots, served over lettuce
Saturday: Mustard Green and Lentil Sprout curry, rice
Sunday: Serrano creamed spinach/collards, corn bread
Monday: Venison meat loaf, steamed greens, corn bread
Tuesday: Leftover awareness day!
Breakfasts: Cheddar Kale Muffins made with some other greens instead of kale

Disclosure: Greenling Organic Delivery is a sponsor of my blog. I love working with them because they’re a great purveyor of organic produce that’s grown right here in Central Texas.

Meal Plan 3/3-4/9

Hey y’all. Sorry for my lack of posting lately. I have been pretty sick with mono, and I have lost my will to cook anything besides chicken soup. That compounded with the fact that my husband/sous chef/ blog-helper-extraordinaire is out of the country means things have been pretty bleak in the kitchen as of late. However, I am on reduced work schedule and some sweet drugs, so hopefully I’ll be back in my apron as usual soon. In the meantime I am cooking easy, familiar recipes with my produce.

Here’s what we got in our Local Box yesterday:

• Basil (potted Plant) – My Father’s Farm
• Tomato – Gundermann
• Green Onions – Green Gate
• Green Kale – Naegelin
• Green Cabbage – Naegelin
• Bibb Lettuce – Bella Verdi
• Turnips w/ Tops – Gundermann
• Chard – Naegelin
• Oranges – G&S
• Cilantro- not sure where this is from

Here’s what I am cooking:

Thursday: Grilled cheese and tomato sandwich, orange
Friday: Chickpea salad sandwich with lettuce and tomatoes
Saturday: in Houston for work
Sunday: Root vegetable kugel, orange juice
Monday: Chard tacos
Tuesday: Spaghetti with kale and green onion pesto

I’m using the cilantro to make a mojo de cilantro, which I’ll save in a jar for later and probably serve with cream cheese during March Madness. I’ve got the cabbage saved in a Debbie Myers green bag and it should keep just fine until next week.

Menu Plan 2/23-3/1

Photo: Liz Love

Woohoo! I’m finally feeling better. I missed making a menu plan last week because I was sick, so I’m extra enthusiastic with this week’s menu preparations. It helps that we’re getting our first round of local strawberries this week. All the vitamin C in the strawberries will chase away any lingering ickies for sure. And although every time I buy strawberries I want to make popsicles (see above), I’m going to use this week’s haul in a very responsible and healthy spinach salad. Here’s what we’re getting in our Local Box:

Strawberries – Gunderman Farm
Avocado – G&S Grove
Spinach – Orange Blossom
Planting Onions – Orange Blossom
Collard Greens – Gunderman Farm
Fennel – J&B Farm
Mushrooms – Kitchen Pride
Bok Choy – Gunderman Farm
Grapefruits – G&S Grove
Meyer Lemons – G&S Grove
Multicolored Carrots – Animal Farm

Here’s what I’m making! Note the large amounts of social activities coming up this week. Basically all of March will be a marathon of SXSW-related food fun, so I’m considering this week a ramp up.

Wednesday: Avocado Soup
Thursday: Gluten Free Pizza Party!!
Friday: Boiled collard greens, cornbread
Saturday: Strawberry Spinach Salad , roasted fennel
Sunday: Oscar party! Eating pizza with my friends. Making greyhounds and salty dogs with our grapefruits.
Monday: ATX Food swap! I’m using my Meyer lemons for these cookies and also taking a few sweet potato pound cakes and some ground wild venison from my family’s farm in Iowa to the swap. There will be plenty of noms for dinner there, too.
Tuesday: Bok choy with mushroom sauce
Breakfasts: Sweet Potato casserole with oatmeal strudel. (Probably healthier than McOatmeal, but not by much. At least my eggs, sweet potatoes and pecans are local and organic.)