Cornucopia

I know I go off all the time about how much I love the Brown Box Veggies folks, but here I go again.  I have been jonesin' for my veggies big time after I committed the cardinal sin two weekends ago.  Yes, I admit it.  I ordered a box and <gasp> forgot to go pick it up. To say I was devastated is an understatement the size of Texas. If I must force myself to find a bright side, it's that the Veggie Gals, as they like to call themselves, donate any unclaimed boxes to a charity.  But, dammit, that weekend, I wanted to be my own charity and I forgot.  

So, as you can probably guess, I've been pining away for veggie weekend ever since. I mean, we've been eating <again, gasp> grocery store produce.  But today was the day!  I wasn't going to have a repeat of last time.  I had a reminder and alarm set on my phone, a sticky note on the inside of the front door, and I had a small carrot tattooed on my index finger to remind me.  I even arrived early.

Yowza is all I can say.  When the Veggie Gal handed over the box, it was all I could do to carry that sucker to my car.  It was heavy.  Really heavy.  But I bolstered my strength with the eager anticipation of opening this treasure chest and carried that bad boy to the car. Once home, I cracked it open and it was like that scene when Vincent opens up Marcellus' briefcase.  

The golden light shone upon my face.  

So, getta load of this y'all:

I got squash, zucchini, parsley, Roma tomatoes, onions, over a dozen jalapenos (Neil is in heaven), cabbage, cucumbers, pea pods, peaches, apples, pears, and the largest head of romaine I have ever seen in my life.  Seriously, in the romaine world, you wouldn't want to pick a fight with this big guy. See for yourself.

Perfect lunch box sized pears & apples

Cabbage: the red-headed stepchild of the vegetable world. Undeservedly so. I see eggrolls and stuffed cabbage rolls in our future.

The largest head of romaine I've ever seen

Neil's dietary staple

Uhh, I'm thinkin' salsa? 

This amount of pea pods in the grocery would probably cost half of what I paid for my glorious Brown Box Veggies!

If you know me and my addiction to anything pickled, guess what I'm gonna do with these little cuties?

 Tonight we took advantage of yellow squash, pea pods (snow peas, you may call them) and coconut shrimp. I'm thinking it was a hit since there was NOTHING leftover.  As the cook, that's always a good sign. As a hater of leftovers, that's always a good sign! 

Ok, I realize I'm repeating myself, but if you haven't ordered from Brown Box Veggies before, get online RIGHT NOW! It's a killer deal, it's local produce and it is simply a joy to open that box and see what surprises you'll find inside. Oh, by the way, I was just jerking your chain about that carrot tattoo.  I doubt that even Peter Cottontail would pay money for that!  :-)

Dining al Fresco out of a Brown Box

Ok, I'm not IN a brown box.  But, I am in love with a brown box.  This past Saturday was my 2nd delivery from BrownBoxVeggies.  I am their new biggest fan. For those of you who are unfamiliar, the "Veggie Girls" stock up a big box of fruits and veggies to deliver on the 1st and 3rd Saturdays of the month.  They reach out to as many local farms as possible to grab what's fresh and being harvested right now.  Then, they pack the box FULL of what they've found and sell it to people like us for only $22!  I couldn't duplicate what I received for $22 in a grocery store and the produce was fresher and didn't go bad on me before I could use it all.

My first box was so beautiful, I almost cried when I opened it.  Even my little one got excited helping me unpack.
  

OMG!  Look at this!

This box contained broccoli, parsley, tomatoes, spinach, kale, Carolina Sweet onions, squash, zucchini, pears, oranges, potatoes and asparagus.  A true cornucopia.  We used every bit of it with delight.  So, this past Saturday was my 2nd go-round.  Sorry that I didn't take a photo of Box #2...we dove in and never looked back!  This time we received Carolina Sweets, cabbage, collards, oranges, grapefruit, tomatoes, radishes, Romaine, corn, strawberries, apples and dill.  Lots and lots of dill.  I'm talkin' about two humogous bunches each about 3" around and 12" long.  My head is reeling trying to figure out what to do with all of it.  This week might be the week I dive in and try to make my own pickles.

But, first, dinner.  Of course, when you think of dill, one of the first ideas you have is salmon.  Since my daughter is eating salmon (happily) I'm cooking it every chance I get.  I whipped up this dinner and we ate al Fresco on the patio.  NOW, my title makes some sense, huh?  Salmon with dill sauce, sauteed pea pods, and yellow rice.

Here's what I did.  I salt and peppered two 6oz. salmon fillets (skinless).  I placed them on foil and topped each with some slices of Carolina Sweet onions and lemons and wrapped up the foil tightly to enclose them.  I baked them for about 20 minutes or so at 350°.  While that was happening, I made this sauce:

2 Tbs light mayo
2 Tbs sour cream
1 Tbs white wine
1 1/2 tsp capers
1 tsp finely chopped Carolina Sweet onion
1/4 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp horseradish
1 Tbs fresh dill, chopped
1/4 tsp garlic salt
pepper   
 

Then, we just drizzled the sauce over our salmon and devoured it!  I'm a sucker for anything pickled, so I think I'll actually add a few more capers next time.  I have actually eaten capers out of the jar with a spoon before.  (The first step is admitting it, right?) Thank you Veggie Girls for my jam packed boxes of loveliness.  And, you may be the reason that I finally embark on this pickle making project.  The idea of canning is a little intimidating, but I can't let all this dill go to waste! If any of you need some dill, I can hook you up.