Soup and Frittatas!

What do can you do when you’ve got more veggies than you know what to do with? My favorite solutions are soup and frittatas!

The first time I ever worked on a farm I also got to be a CSA member of the farm. My housemate at time taught me a great trick for managing our excess produce each week which was making a big soup every Monday (our new box came on Tuesdays) with whatever was leftover, it was simple and tasty way to avoid waste and clear out the fridge for the next box.

But for those days when soup even feels like too much work, I highly recommend the frittata. It sounds fancy but I think its one of the quickest simplest recipes I know. I often make a big pan for dinner and then slice it up and have it for breakfast or lunch for a few days.

So in case you want to give these a shot - I am attaching a few template recipes for those below. 

And now a bit about whats on for this week - I can hardly believe it, but we only have 2 more weeks of our Summer CSA (winter CSA signups will come out this weekend!). It has been such a delight getting to share in the abundance and journey of the farm with you all this season and we hope you have enjoyed eating along with us! 

This week we will be highlighting the ACORN SQUASH. This is one of my favorite winter squash varieties. In my family it's been a staple ingredient in our Christmas or Thanksgiving dinners. We cook it quite simply - just slice it in half and then we put a pat of butter in the center, sprinkle it with brown sugar, bake it and then toss steamed peas inside the center once its done. We will also be continuing to offer bulk winter squash boxes (20lbs for $25) as well as an ornamental squash medley, a mix of mini white pumpkins, and gourds for $8 - great for a fall table decoration!

BASIC FRITTATA TEMPLATE RECIPE:

Using a 10ish inch oven proof pan (I like cast iron for this)

• 10 eggs
• 1/4-1/2 cup milk (optional)
• 1-2 tablespoons of oil or butter
• cheese (optional)
• 1 onion
• any veggies you’ve got around 2-3 cups chopped
• any spices or fresh herbs you have on hand/feel like
• salt and pepper

1. preheat oven to 375
2. whisk and mix your eggs up in a mixing bowl add a bit of milk to bulk it out if you have it/want to, season with salt and pepper
3. cut up all the veggies you want to use
4. heat your pan and melt your butter (or heat oil)
5. starting with onions and sauté until soft
6. if you are using any spices nows the time to start seasoning with those
7. next add your more crisp veggies like broccoli, peppers, or delicata squash and sauce them until they have reached your liking
8. Then add any greens such as kale, chard, or spinach which will cook quite quick
9. Finally toss in any herbs you may plan to use
10. pour the eggs over all the veggies to cover and then sprinkle in cheese if you are using it
11. cook for a few minutes until the eggs begin to set around the edges
12. pop it in the oven until it looks firm and you can stick a knife in and it comes out clean about 10-20 mins
13. enjoy!

BASIC SOUP TEMPLATE RECIPE:

• Onions chopped and garlic minced
• 1-2 tablespoons of oil or butter
• spices (you can take your soup in any direction you like!)
• any veggies (chopped up) that you’ve got to use up
• dry beans (optional)
• broth or water

1. Heat your pot and add oil or butter
2. Sauté your onions until soft
3. Add garlic salt and pepper and any spices you like - sometimes I also like to add a few tablespoons of tomato paste at this point as well depending what flavor profile I am going for
4. now add your veggies and begin to sauté them (if you are using greens keep these out until the end)
5. cover with a rich broth (or water if you don’t have any broth on hand)
6. if you are using dry beans add these now too
7. bring to a simmer and let it simmer around 30 mins - a a few hours until flavors develop and broth thickens to your preferred thickness
8. if using any greens add those about 10 minutes before serving
9. enjoy!