September 7th, 2013 Pocatello Bountiful Basket

It's been forever since I've had the time to take a picture and post, and part of it is because we use up the stuff so quickly before I can get a picture of everything! Either way, here's this week's basket:

This week, I traded my mango for two yellow squash, because another basketeer had squash coming out the wazoo at her home and I have a freezer full of mangoes from an add-on earlier this summer. I do love yellow squash, so it was a good trade for me!

Romaine lettuce

Broccoli

Cauliflower

Tomatoes

Cucumbers

Yellow squash

Bartlett pears

Honeydew melon

Pluots

Bananas

[Mangoes]

Storage

Refrigerator

Romaine (washed and dried, in whole leaves, in a container with paper towels to absorb excess moisture)

Cauliflower

Broccoli (lightly misted with water, in a breathable bag/container)

Cucumbers

Yellow squash

Counter

Tomatoes

Pears (until ripe)

Melon (until ripe; 2-4 days)

Pluots (until ripe)

Bananas

Mangoes (until ripe; click here for how to tell if it is ripe, and for instructions on how to cut a mango. This is how I do it!)

May 4th Inkom Bountiful Basket

I wish there were earlier sites in Pocatello! I had a commitment this morning at 9:00 am, so this is from the Inkom site, where I was able to pick up at 8:45 this morning. Here's the haul (minus a couple of bananas, which we ate just as soon as we got in the car!)

Romaine lettuce

Green peppers

Onions

Cabbage

Artichoke

Yellow squash

Bananas

Watermelon

Pineapple

Grapefruit

Cantaloupe

Storage

Refrigerator
Grapefruit (if not using within 1 week)
Pineapple (if not using within 2 days)
Lettuce (washed, dried, and wrapped in paper towels before bagging)
Peppers
Squash (wrapped in plastic, unwashed)

Cabbage (wrapped in plastic)
Artichoke (in a bag)

Counter
Onions

Watermelon (until cut - then place in fridge)
Bananas (place in a paper bag with an apple to help ripen green bananas; can store in the refrigerator/freeze after ripening)

Cantaloupe (until ripe; leave seeds intact if refrigerating cut cantaloupe)

Follow me on Pinterest for ideas on using these fruits and veggies for the next couple of weeks!

February 23rd Pocatello Bountiful Basket

This week, our truck was late again (by 2 hours this time), but there was no playing in the snow for us, afterwards.  It was so windy we could barely keep our eyes open outside!  We got some really yummy items in our basket this week:

New potatoes (Gold variety)

Broccoli

Eggplant

Red leaf lettuce

Carrots (rainbow variety; one is purple!)

Leeks (the large green onion-looking things)

Pineapple

Oranges

Apples

Grapefruit

Bananas

I think the only thing I'm really going to have to stretch my brain for this week is the leeks.  I've never used them before, but I keep reading about other participants planning to make potato and leek soup this week.  I'll have to check out a few recipes and post them here.

Storage

Refrigerator

Apples

Oranges

Grapefruit

Broccoli (lightly misted, lightly wrapped in paper towels or breathable plastic bags)

Pineapple (if not using within 2 days)

Lettuce

Carrots

Oranges (if not using within 3-4 days)

Grapefruit (if not using within 1 week)

Counter

Potatoes

Bananas (place in a paper bag with an apple to help ripen green bananas; can store in the refrigerator/freeze after ripening)

Follow me on Pinterest for ideas on using these fruits and veggies for the next couple of weeks!

February 9th Pocatello, Idaho basket

This week's basket was 45 minutes late, due to snow, but that just gave us some time to bundle up and prepare to play in the snow when we came home! Here's what we got in our basket this week:

English cucumbers

Cauliflower

Sweet potatoes

Spinach

Tomatoes

Spaghetti squash

Braeburn apples

Mandarin Oranges

Bananas

Asian pears

It's usually a bit smaller during the winter, but the prices are a bit higher for produce. Either way, I'm still paying less than I would if I bought all this in a grocery store.

Storage

Refrigerator

Apples

Cucumbers (in plastic)

Cauliflower (up to 2 weeks)

Spinach (seal in plastic bag wrapped in damp paper towel for up to 4 days; avoid washing unless planning to use in 1-2 days)

Tomatoes (if ripe; may affect flavor, so can also store at room temperature)

Oranges

Asian Pears (may store on counter for up to 1 week; fridge for 3 months)

Cabbage (wrapped tightly in plastic for 1-2 weeks)

Counter

Bananas
Spaghetti squash (cool, dry place; moisture from the fridge will cause it to deteriorate more quickly)
Sweet potatoes (cool, dry, dark place)

Avocados

Well, my avocados are ripe!  Yesterday, I made this delicious grilled cheese sandwich, which I had pinned on Pinterest forever ago and finally had all the ingredients for:

Grilled Cheese for Grown-ups

I did a couple of substitutions, because I had just some plain ol' wheat bread I needed to use up, and I used provolone instead of the jack cheese.  I made one for my husband with pepperjack, and he loved it, despite being a little leery of eating a sandwich with so much green in it.

Here are a couple of other ideas, to use of the remaining 1 1/2 of my avocado that's left:

Apple and Avocado salad

Simple Chicken sandwich

Avocado Pasta (Vegan)

Avocado Egg Salad

"Super BLT"

Tortilla Roll-ups

Avocado Pie (it's supposed to taste like key lime...)

Avocado dessert

Avocado-Mango Salsa

Basic Turkey/Bacon/Avocado sandwich

And, of course, a list of avocado dishes would be incomplete without a 7-layer dip:

Seven Layer Tex Mex Dip

And guacamole:

Allrecipes.com top-rated Guacamole recipe

Celery

Many of the baskets in our area got 2 bunches of celery.  Usually, most of my celery sits in my fridge so long that it wilts, and I end up reviving it, only to use a little more before it finally turns yellow and brown and I throw the rest out.  So I need some recipes that use a LOT of celery if I want to make the most of it!

Here we go:

Homemade Celery Salt (from the leaves)

Cream of Celery Soup with Bacon


Vegetable stock

Celery-only Salad

I'll for sure be doing some peanut butter and celery, and I read somewhere that you can strip the leaves off, wash them well, and simply freeze them for use in soups later.  I may need to try my Nana's Waldorf Salad, and maybe Chicken Salad if the weather heats up at all in the next couple of weeks!  

Ideas

Cucumber & Lime smoothie (I'm considering adding some yogurt to it, too!)

Roasted Pears with Caramel Sauce

Apple and Avocado salad

Collard Greens

Pasta with Collard Greens

Vegetarian collard greens

Sweet Potato Chips