January 17, 2013

Backyard Produce

Recently I signed up for an awesome program called Backyard Produce - website here.

I have only received 2 boxes thus far, but so far I love it!  It's such a good vehicle to try new and healthy things.  I am currently enrolled in the "Flying Solo" program which is $25 per week.  At first that sounded kind of steep because this was all I got in my first box:

This is the box that appears on my doorstep each Tuesday.  It's like Produce Christmas once a week!
 
The first thing Grant said was, "...That's it?"

But then I realized I can order smarter than this.  So this was my next order:

Rainbow Carrots!  Butternut Squash!  Green beans!  Fresh bread!  Tangelos!  Cucumbers!  All organic!!!

This week the Flying Solo basket has proven to be more than enough food for a few dinner sides (and mains).  Mama knows how to stretch a dollar! 

My favorite part about this program is that it inspires me to make dishes I wouldn't have otherwise made because I wouldn't have otherwise bought certain vegetables.  Take for instance this amazing pasta I made last night.



Normally I would never make a) Pasta or b) a Vegetarian dish.  But boy was I glad I did!  I used this recipe from Giada - Penne with Butternut Squash and Goat Cheese - (but I used whole grain bow tie) and it knocked my socks off. 
 
If you don't watch the Food Network religiously like I do than you might not know this amazing tidbit - You don't need to add cream to have a creamy pasta sauce!  All you need to do is add cheese to hot pasta than add some of the pasta water that you cooked the pasta in.  The combination of those two ingredients makes a creamy sauce that coats each piece of pasta and provides decadence to the max.  Added cream and fat is for the birds!
 
I can't wait to see what I can get in my box next week.  This is so fun.  It's like a food challenge/mystery each week.  Challenge accepted!  It feels great to eat fresh, organic produce while supporting NC farmers. Win, win, win!...Then eat :)

3 comments:

  1. Can't wait to try this recipe! So, by ordering "smarter" did you just do it ala carte?

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  2. I did a la carte but also got less fruits and more veggies that I could spread over several meals. For instance, the green beans were more than enough for a hearty side for 2 people for 2 meals (4 servings). And the bread was so thick I was able to get about 6 slices out of each mound. The carrots I used for both snacks and a side (I roasted them and they were incredible!). The first time I basically just got fruit so by "smarter" I just been a bigger variety with more options to work with.

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  3. Im obsessed with backyard produce! I always order ala carte. It may be more expensive than buying veggies at the grocery store, but it forces us to eat in which ultimately saves us money!

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