Dinner Plans: Week 2

It’s Week 2 of Dinner Plans and we are easing back into our regularly scheduled programming. We had a pick-up for Stepping Stone Farm Thursday and Riverdog Farm CSA pickups will resume this coming week. This schedule came in handy as we work through getting back on schedule this week.

Seasonal Cooking Tip: Prepping Root Veggies with Ease

When it comes to seasonal cooking, this year I'm sharing a weekly tip here focused on preparing ingredients, preserving foods, and kitchen hacks that help you save time.

This week we're talking about root vegetables. We find them in abundance in our CSA boxes this time of year. Beets, potatoes, radishes, turnips, and carrots are a few that we have received in recurring fashion. Rather than planning a daily dish using them all, I tend to plan menus around one of the following meal prep techniques:

• Batch Roasting in Sheet Pan: I love doing this for batch meal prep. This works well if pairing vegetables. For example, I'll roast a sheet pan of diced beets alongside butternut squash. Carrots and potatoes alongside turnips also make for a great mix. Peel and dice the root veggies into ½ inch or 1 inch diced chunks. Layer on a parchment lined rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and season with a generous pinch (about ¾ teaspoon) kosher salt. Roast in a 375 degree Fahrenheit oven for about 30 to 40 minutes until edges begin to caramelize. Cool completely before storing in an airtight container. The roasted veggies will store well in the fridge for the week's meals. Ideas: grain bowls, a simple side of roasted veggies alongside grilled or roast protein, or pureed with stock or broth to make a roasted root veggie soup.
• Prepping to Freeze: Some weeks, I don't have an immediate game plan for the veggies. Enter: freezing them. With the beets, for example, I will peel and remove stems. Then, I'll dice them into ½ inch diced chunks. I'll toss them in a freezer safe bag and use them in smoothies or can roast them from frozen when I've got a dinner idea for them. You can even freeze the beet greens to use for smoothies or sautes.

Dinner Plans for the Week

This week we had our Stepping Stone Farm Box and I ordered a couple extra heads of savoy cabbage for some recipe testing for the week ahead. Winter produce in Napa is big on the leafy greens and cruciferous veggies. At the farmers market, winter citrus makes its triumphant return and I'm picking up all the lemons and oranges for juices, curds, marinades and dressings. Here's what we found in this week's CSA box:

• Japanese Negi: The Japanese version of Green or Spring Onion. At first glance it looks like a miniature leek but has the flavor of sweet onion. I love knowing that the entire plant is edible.
• Rainbow Chard: That quintessential winter green. I'll use it in a quiche this week.
• Merveille de Quatre Saisons: French butterhead lettuce whose name translates to "Marvel of Four Seasons." As Patrick noted in our weekly CSA member email, it's suitable for planting throughout the year, but it's in Winter where this leafy green truly shines. The leaves are buttery and delicate. Perfect for light winter salads or a hearty sandwich.
• Scarlet Purple Tatsoi
• Napoli Carrots: These are the most delicious carrots I've ever had. Full stop.
• Sprouting Broccoli
• Daikon Kimchi from MicroLife

Our Game Plan for Dinner this Week:

Sunday: Grilled Flank Steak with Broccoli Slaw (recipe for slaw inspired by The Essential Napa Valley Cookbook, 2nd Ed.)

Monday: Quiche with Rainbow Chard adapted from this recipe on the blog

Tuesday: Black Bean Tostadas with Slow Cooked Shredded Pork and Salsa

Wednesday: Roast Golden Beet Salad with Roast Turkey Tenders

Thursday: Easy Turkey Chili

Friday: Roast Carrot Tart in Puff Pastry with Winter Green Salad

Saturday: Pizza with Spinach and Arugula Pesto and Crumbled Italian Sausage

From favorite recipes to new things with a wide variety of ingredients, cooking delicious food with our CSA definitely gets us out of a dinner rut and reduce food waste. I share meal ideas for our busy weeks with our weekly newsletter. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to be in the know when they’re live. 😉