Turning over a new leaf.

I was initially warned by friends after I signed up for my CSA that I would be totally overwhelmed by vegetables. I pictured myself trapped under a pile of kale and strawberries, digging my way out with a paring knife and steamer basket, trying to force garlic scapes and beets down my family's throats. Kind of a Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout situation, but in a much more sanitary way.

But it didn't happen that way. I used almost everything in the first week. The exceptions were a small bunch of chard (hanging on for dear life as I write), a bunch of cilantro (which I'm freezing in my first herb-preserving experience) and extra cornmeal (which thankfully keeps well in the freezer). My first CSA box was impressively full, too. The sheer volume of produce that I cooked is not the only surprise of the week, though.

Creative Cooking
I had never purchased some of the veggies that I used during the first CSA week. I was absolutely determined to cook (and hopefully enjoy) everything in my box. One of my on-going goals with the CSA is to broaden my family's veggie selections. We've always been good about eating vegetables, but I had fallen into the broccoli-zucchini-peas-corn cycle that I was afraid would spiral into oblivion. But last week we ate swiss chard. And beet greens. And pac choi!! And, they tasted great in a fresh, we've-done-something good-for-ourselves-and-community sort of way.

Shopping Habits
Keeping in line with my goals of being more conscious about wasting food and simplifying our food supply (e.g. we do NOT need 10 boxes of crackers in the pantry), I tailored meals around the CSA produce first, then incorporated what we already had in the house, and used a "quick trip to the grocery" as an absolute last resort. I've emptied out our pantry and freezer of some items that have been lingering there for ages, making me feel more organized and in control of my own kitchen. It also...

Saved Us Money
Hallelujah. Grocery spending has always been one of my family's largest budget items, ridiculously so. In addition to the minor benefits of supporting local farmers and eating healthier and better-tasting food (that was sarcasm, by the way), I was also hoping to lower our grocery bill with the CSA. The first week of our farm share our total grocery spending was almost 20% lower (and that includes the weekly cost of the CSA). This was partly because the CSA cost really is incredibly competitive. But as mentioned above, it was also because of creatively cooking what I already had in the house and a conscious effort to use the produce as a centerpiece of cooking rather than wandering the grocery aisles looking for inspiration.

Eating Habits
This change really makes me the happiest. I'm incorporating vegetables into more of our dishes and am proud of showing my kids a healthy way to eat. I even did a pac choi stirfry to go with our take-out Chinese food. That has never happened. That example also goes to show that not all of our eating habits have changed. But hey, we'd go crazy without a crab rangoon now and then. Overall, though, we are happier and healthier eaters, and feel good about the changes we've made.