So, I found out a couple of things about signing up for a CSA:
- You need to do it relatively early in the year, say February or March. If you wait until the week before you expect to take delivery on the food, the slots will be all filled up. Good to know.
- Mark and I don't eat enough vegetables to warrant buying even half a share. The week we were thinking of buying a share into a local farm we were only home for dinner one or two days. As we were considering this option, we both knew we'd end up with a bunch of delicious food that would go to waste; or that we would have to find a home for. Kind of defeats the purpose.
- If you miss the sign-up deadline, the whole thing is moot.
Now don't get me wrong. We eat our fair share of fruits and veggies. I'm just not sure that we have the kind of lifestyle that is tied down to eating a complete dinner at home every night, which buying into a CSA seems to demand. This doesn't mean that we eat out a lot, either. What it does mean is that we eat a lot of quick meals, including leftovers, that get us on our way to whatever it is we're doing that evening. We probably cook 2 or 3 meals a week, leftovers and sandwiches the rest of the week.
Since the CSA is not a good fit for us, our current plan is to support our local Farmer's Market. That way, we buy the fruits and veggies we know we'll eat and we are supporting the small farmers here who are making their living off the land. Bonus: the fresh food tastes really, really good.
Which we did last Saturday. I not only came home with two big bags of fresh spinach, a bag of romaine lettuce, a block of Edam cheese, two pounds of sugar snap peas, a four-pound bucket of pie cherries, and a yummy loaf of asiago-basil bread, but we also had a great time. We met Nicole, Beccah, and Barty there as well as our good friends Kody and Kelley. Mark rode his bike there and back--a 48-mile round trip--and we enjoyed the sunshine, the enthusiastic crowd, and the good conversation.
The best part was the cherry pie I made for dessert last night. Mmm. Mmm. (The spinach salad wasn't bad, either.)
Oh yes, and just to let you know, I'm completely finished with Lean Cuisine. Unlike giving up bananas, this commitment is definitely going to stick. We're gobbling up more leftovers, and even though there is a huge variety of choices in Lean Cuisine, I have rediscovered that there is even more choice in my own refrigerator and pantry.
Mmm. Mmm. Indeed.
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