Produce Basket Menu May 14 - 22

Hopefully I have found ways to use up all the great fruits and vegetables I received in my basket Saturday morning. Even my husband was excited and made suggestions for meals that would include our basket items.


I used most of the blackberries for canning blackberry jam. Saturday night we had BBQ chicken, corn on the cob, baked beans, and grilled sourdough slices. Sunday morning I got up and made chiliquiles, a Mexican breakfast dish I fell in love with while on vacation. I made salsa verde for my chiliquiles, but could have used a red sauce.




We're really looking forward to this week's menu.




Sunday: Steak Tacos, Mexican Rice, and Blackberry Lemon Pudding Cake

Monday: BLT's and Sweet Potato Fries

Tuesday: Beef and and Vegetable Pot Pie

Wednesday: Spicy Shrimp and Pineapple Skewers, Rice Pilaf

Thursday: Slow cooker Red Beans and Rice, Salad

Friday: Dinner out for Friend's Birthday

Saturday: Jerk Chicken with Mango Salsa and leftover Red Beans and Rice

Sunday: Grilled Pork Chops with Homemade Apple Sauce and Parmesan Noodles

New Produce Co-op

My aunt called a couple of weeks ago to tell me that a food co-op that she and her daughter participate in up north has moved into Casper. This co-op sources produce from around the Western U.S. and Mexico. I signed up on line and picked up my first basket this morning.
Wow! I did not expect to receive nearly as much as I did.

The basket contained 6 ears of corn, a 3 pound bag of Washington apples, a container of blackberries, a pineapple, a cantaloupe, 3 mangoes, 3 artichokes, 2 cucumbers, 3 bell peppers, 8 Roma tomatoes, and a head of romaine lettuce.

I added the Mexican basket and recieved 4 avocados, a bunch of green onions, a bunch of cilantro, a head of garlic, 2 red onions, 10 limes, 4 jalapenos, 8 chilies that I can't identify, and 9 tomatillas.

Because I never know when to say "when," I also picked up a case of blackberries. I plan to can jam and syrup and make a couple blackberry desserts.

The final addition was 5 loaves of sourdough bread. I will freeze these and take them out as needed.

The quality of the fruit and vegetables in excellent. Everything looks fresh and unblemished. The ingredient list for the sourdough was very short. I am super excited to plan a menu around the variety in the baskets and try a few new items. I've never cooked or eaten artichokes other than the canned hearts.

My total expenditure was $53.00. I'm guessing that buying the same things at the grocery store would run $90.00 to $100.00. My true challenge now will be to use everything in the next week or two. This morning, we have already had an apple in our oatmeal, and I plan to have corn on the cob for dinner. I'm excited about the Mexican ingredients and hope to find a good recipe for fajita marinade and chilaquiles.

With any luck, I'll post a menu plan when I decide how to use everything.