Freezing Frenzy

So, I am now working two jobs, editor by day and English instructor by night.

Which leaves few evenings home to cook. And I hate buying lunch, though I love going out to eat.

Anyway, I bravely ordered myself a CSA box from the South Central Farmers' Cooperative.

Which contained:

That would be: 4 zucchini, 2 yellow squash, some kind of round summer squash, a pint of cherry tomatoes, 3 other tomatoes, 4 green peppers, a million chili peppers (note: the yellow ones are hot as hell), 2 cucumbers, 1 bunch Tuscan kale, 1 bunch regular kale, Chinese long beans, 1 bunch basil, 1 bunch cilantro, a passel of okra, a watermelon. For $20. I know. Amazing.


Anyway, I picked this box up on Saturday. And on Sunday, for lunch, we had a salad with the cherry tomatoes and the cucumbers, and some spinach we already had.

And then I made:
Self's Vegetable Lasagna, sort of. I couldn't find whole wheat lasagna noodles so I used whole wheat orecchiette and made a casserole. It was delicious, and I used one of each squash, as well as two peppers and some basil. Bill, a squash hater, loved it. And I packed up the remainder into four for-a-later-date portions, two for the freezer, two for the fridge.
     And then, for lunches/freezing, 101 Cookbook's Buttermilk Summer Squash Soup. I unloaded one more of each squash, as well as a chili pepper. I ended up with seven servings (4 of which I froze, 3 in the fridge for lunch this week), one of which I ate today (delicious!), alongside another spinach/tomato/cucumber salad.
     And then, I made a loaf of zucchini bread. And that was the end of the squash. And thanks to Bill's hearty appetite, the bread has barely survived the first twenty-four hours.  
    And then tonight, I made a stirfry with a pork chop, some long beans, two green peppers, a chili pepper, cilantro, and some other stuff I already had (broccoli, carrots, garlic, ginger). One leftover serving, in the fridge for lunch tomorrow.
     And then! I made this Spicy Kale and Chickpea Stew from Gourmet. One serving in the fridge, five in the freezer (I halved it). Used up both kinds of kale and the remaining green peppers. And of course, I added a chili pepper.

That leaves me with some more cucumber, a million chili peppers (which I figure I'll be throwing into everything from here to eternity, including perhaps the freezer), a watermelon (which I'll cut up for my lunches this week), some cilantro and basil (I'm thinking a pesto, or maybe an herbaceous hummus), and some long beans I'll be eating later in the week. And OK, I unloaded the okra at work, because I'm afraid of its slime.

I have 11 meals in the freezer, and enough in the fridge to get Bill and I through the week! If everything coming out of the freezer tastes as good as it did when it went in, I'll be a happy, happy girl.

Produce galore!

Eek. I went on an insane produce-buying spree on Tuesday at the farmers market and Wednesday at Sprouts, neglecting to recall that I have multiple social events over meal-times over the next few days.

I have:
Roma tomatoes
Grape tomatoes
Radishes
Cilantro
Arugula
4 ears of corn
Many, many bing cherries
2 avocadoes
FIVE mother-effing green peppers. What oh what was I thinking?
1 yellow pepper
A bazillion cucumbers
Green beans
Onions
2 white peaches
Apples
Bananas
Two zucchini
Some chilis
Half a bag of baby carrots
Tangelos
Lemons
Limes
Green onions

So much bounty!

I have some plans for the eating. But oh, lord, I must be diligent because there is truly nothing I hate more than food waste. I actually can't think of the last time I threw something out because it had gone bad or spoiled, so diligent am I about using stuff up. But this will be a challenge.

So, today I made a salad with cherries, a peach, a lemon, quinoa, and some arugula. Post to come.

Tonight, Bill and I are going to a friend's for Japanese food and I will make a Japanese cucumber salad (with a mixture of Japanese and Persian cucumbers-- incidentally, that's a baby blend I haven't seen that I think would be gorgeous).

Tomorrow, I will go to a baby shower where I don't know the host and thus won't bring anything. Also the mama doesn't like cherries (wtf?) and that is the food item I most need to foist off on other people. Because I bought four pounds. Whoops.

I also have plans to make some stuffed green peppers, because I also have some ground turkey (which was not in the recall) to use up. I've never made stuffed peppers and Bill doesn't think he likes them, but with five green peppers, it seems like the best option. That will use some carrot and tomatoes, too.

Some of the corn, tomato, green onions, chili peppers, and cilantro, one avocado, and all of the radishes will be turned into a quinoa salad.

And I will make zucchini bread soon.

That leaves: corn, arugula, green onions, chili peppers, cilantro, green beans, bell peppers, onions, and cherries that need to be assembled into meals. The remaining fruit I can snack on, and same goes for the remaining tomatoes. Suggestions?