WIAW #60: Meeting New Vegetables

First, don't forget that it's your second-to-last chance to enter my organic cheese giveaway for non-GMO month!

Second, it's my sister's 21st birthday today!!!

Wow, how time flies. I turn 20 this year. I can't believe how grown up we're both getting!

Another grown-up thing? Remember when I tried my first CSA share? I got to try the CSA share from Red Fire Farm, too, and with all this delicious organic veggie haul, I'm really starting to feel like a proper yuppie!

Red Fire Farm does its shares differently than the other shares that I know. Instead of delivering your veggies to your door, they have various pickup locations in Western Massachusetts and the Boston area (though certain areas do have a home delivery option). 

If you choose to pick up your share yourself, you're told how much of each veggie is allotted to you and then you get to pick them out. Everything looked so fresh and I was quite surprised by how much there was! 

And even more surprised that I somehow managed to stuff it all in this plastic bag.

Here's the haul:

And here's a more complete picture of the haul (the blender and paper towels are just photo-bombing):

Do you see those green thingies in the cool looking wrappers?

Tomatillos! I've never had them before, so it was cool to be introduced to a whole new veggie - I wasn't expecting that!



Though they're in the tomato family, they don't really taste like tomatoes. They're more tart? And the inside is fleshier (not watery), which I preferred since it meant I wasn't as likely to make a mess.

And it was pretty fun to pop it out of its papery dried-leaf wrapper :)

Here's another new-to-me veggie!

Baby Bok Choy! I've had Bok Choy before, but not Baby Bok Choy - and I've never made Bok Choy before. Baby Bok Choy tastes like Bok Choy, but it's milder and more tender. I like it better!

It's also really easy to prepare. I just rinsed them off, sliced them down the middle, then braised them in some canola oil (oh, and I chopped in one of the tomatoes, too). Spice with salt and pepper to taste and voila - a tasty veggie side!

Has anyone tried Bragg's Liquid Aminos? I haven't but from what I hear of it, I could imagine it tasting good with Baby Bok Choy...

There was also something really funny in my haul:

No, not the lumpy carrots. The cilantro! I had just read a paper for my organismal and evolutionary biology class about a study of cilantro preference (apparently a part of cilantro preference is related to genetics - some people, largely of European descent, are sensitive to odorants in cilantro that cause them to taste it as 'soapy,' 'pungent,' or 'dirty').

But I do love the lumpy carrots!



They were so sweet and flavorful, just like the ones from my grandmother's garden in Germany. I miss Germany!

And, of course, zucchini love.

Zucchini is super awesome roasted (brush it with coconut oil first!) or grated into baked goods. Zucchini bread, anyone?

I love that it's fall, with cooler temps and lots of bake-ortunities!

And I really like Red Fire Farms produce. The only veggie that I didn't love was the tomatoes - I just didn't find them to be very flavorful. Everything else was delicious, though, so if you're in Western Massachusetts and you want to support local farmers (and eat some really delicious, really fresh, really flavorful produce), I strongly recommend giving Red Fire Farm produce a try!

Who knows? You might just be introduced to a new vegetable (or two)!

There were, of course, also some non-veg eats.

Like ice cream sandwiches dunked in peanut dip.

Study snacks of Quest Bars, cereal, and walnut butter, eating with a side of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology.

That x100.

I got a dehydrator (!) and tested it out on some peas - I'll be sharing my experiences soon! Served on sweet beans with cacao nibs, almond butter, and sweet almond milk. By the way, I'm going to give away a dehydrator, too, and that will probably happen this weekend. So be sure to check back!

And, course, cereal-trail mix-Chobani bowls with walnut butter = delicious.

So that x100, too.

And a yummy new bar-and-kaboch snack (buttercup squash instead of kabocha, since none of the stores around me seem to be carrying it at the moment).

The bar review is coming soon! Do you have any guesses of what bar it is?

Have you ever tried a tomatillo?

Do you like cilantro?

What's the most unusual/exotic vegetable that you've ever had?