A Visit to the Farm

This summer, we decided to buy into a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program at a local organic farm, called the Green Earth Institute. This means that every Wednesday we pick up our "share" for the week at a central location in Lombard, which is on the way home for Joe. It has been great!

We have experimented SO much with many different kinds of vegetables, some familiar and some new to us. Here are some of the delicious treats we've gotten in our share this summer and some meals we've really enjoyed:

• Zucchini - we really liked Sweet Corn and Zucchini Pie and we also tried zoodles (zucchini noodles) for the first time.
• Chives
• Kale - Kale Salad with Warm Cranberry Vinaigrette
• Patty pan squash
• Tomatoes and heirloom tomatoes
• Fennel - Julia LOVED the Pasta with Fennel, Kale, and Lemon
• Potatoes
• Summer squash
• Jalapenos
• Green and red cabbage - Hungarian Noodles and Cabbage
• Purple cherry tomatoes
• Green beans
• Bok choy
• Swiss chard - Swiss Chard and Onion Frittata (by far my favorite recipe of the summer!)

A few weeks ago, the farm started inviting CSA members to visit for U-Pick events. We ventured out one Friday afternoon to pick green beans. It was fun! I've honestly never seen an organic farm before, so it looked pretty different, as there are way more weeds than on a conventional farm. Makes sense, right?! That's what happens when you don't use weed-killing chemicals. We had lots of fun picking and exploring. The kids really got a kick out of it. And, last week, Joe and Owen went again to pick purple cherry tomatoes, while Jules and I hung out at home.

The Green Earth Institute, at McDonald Farm in Naperville

Our green bean bounty

Jules, showing off her picking skills

We had so much fun!

Owen and Joe were very serious about their picking

The fellas, with their purple cherry tomatoes

It has been a fun summer of experimenting, with lots of recipe hits... and a few misses. Mostly though, it has been great eating healthy food and exposing the kids - and ourselves - to some new veggies. We're hoping to visit the farm again between now and the end of our summer share, which goes through October!