Bountiful Baskets: This Week's Basket

This week our Bountiful Basket contained:
1 bag of onions + 1 extra
1 bag of carrots
1 bunch of mustard greens
1 bunch of spinach
1 bunch of radishes
11 persimmons
10 bananas
8 apples
7 pears
5 oranges
1 cantalope

I split my basket with my mother again, but that is still a lot of persimmons! So, here are some recipes and ideas I found for using them up:
Persimmon Salsa as an accompaniment to fish
Persimmon Jam, or this version without pectin
There are also several recipes floating around for persimmon desserts that you could try.

As for the mustard greens, one woman mentioned green smoothies when we were picking up our baskets. If you are into that, you could definitely try it out, but the mustard greens have a little bit of a spicy after-bite. Here are some other recipes that look more like what we will be trying out:
Balsamic-glazed Chick Peas and Mustard Greens
Mustard Greens Salad with Quinoa, Feta & Lemon Vinaigrette
Mustard Greens with Beans and Quinoa
Apparently, mustard greens pair well with garbanzo beans (chick peas) and quinoa!
Warm New Potato Salad with Bacon and Mustard Greens
Mustard Greens (with onion, garlic and sesame oil)
Mustard Greens and Pumpkin Pasta

The rest of our basket was pretty straight forward, or things that we commonly eat. And, I came across this recipe in my searching. I am, actually, secretly hoping to get brussel sprouts one of these weeks.

Clean from the Kitchen!

I am so running into my kitchen to try this one out.

Fill a bucket with 4 L of warm water, add 1/2 C white vinegar. Soak bath toys for 10 - 15 minutes. Gently wipe with a soft cloth or kitchen rag. If needed, scrub deep with an old toothbrush.

Bountiful Baskets

Today I received my first basket of produce from Bountiful Baskets. It was great! We received:

2 bunches of celery, spinach, heads of cauliflower, kabocha squash

1 cantalope

11 bananas

12 plums

6 apples

8 oranges

3 pomegranates

7 pears

My mother and I split 1 traditional basket and still had plenty for each of our families. I am so excited about doing produce this way. It will help us to have more variety in our diets, and have plenty of options for each meal.

And, here is what I am thinking of trying out this week:

Spinach, Bacon and Cheddar Frittata (along with some great spinach salads)

Roasted Cauliflower

Sweet and Spicy Raosted Kabocha Squash

Plum Applesauce

Baked Cheese Crepes

I call this "South Beach Manicotti!" It is perfect for Phase 1 or anytime after that. You use a flourless egg crepe instead of a pasta noodle, and roll it up like manicotti would be.{Baked Cheese Crepes}
based on this recipe
6 large eggs
1/3 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
unsalted butter
8 ounces fontina cheese, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
8 ounces fresh water-packed mozzarella, drained, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil leaves
1 cup Marinara Sauce (I like Newman's Own brand)
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Whisk the eggs, milk, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl. Heat a 6-inch nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Brush the skillet with some butter. Working quickly, pour 3 tablespoons of the egg mixture into the pan, swirling to coat the bottom of the pan evenly. When egg begins to set, flip crepe to cook other side. Slide onto a plate and repeat to make 10 crepes total, brushing the skillet with melted butter as needed and stacking crepes on the plate.

Butter a 13 by 9 by 2-inch baking dish. Arrange 1 egg crepe on a work surface. Place some of the fontina and mozzarella cheese in the center of the egg crepe, then sprinkle with some basil. Roll up the crepe. Place the filled crepe in the prepared baking dish, seam side down. Repeat with the remaining egg crepes, cheese, and basil. Spoon the marinara sauce over the crepes. Sprinkle with the Parmesan and top with more basil. Bake until the cheese melts and the top is golden, about 15 minutes.

*You could also grate the fontina and mozzarella cheeses. Just place them in the freezer for a few minutes to harden a little before grating. Sprinkle any remaining cheese over the top of the crepes.

This Week's Dinner Menu

Sunday - Hotdogs a la Rose, Cucumbers and hummus
Monday - Asparagus Risotto, Crunchy Garlic Chicken, green salad
Tuesday - leftovers, the huband has a work dinner
Wednesday - Tuxedo Salad
Thursday - Ricotta Gnocchi with Pancetta and Basil Cream Sauce, green salad
Friday - Pizza & Movie Night
Saturday - still thinking . . .