Fresh Peach and Pecan Waffles

Chunks of ripe peaches and chopped pecans flavor these whole grain waffles. Peach and Pecan waffles are perfect for a summer breakfast or brunch.

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Celebrate the summer season with my favorite fruit--peaches!

As I type this, the peaches on my daughter's tree are plentiful but not yet ripe. However I often work a year ahead, so I'm going to share a recipe from my son's birthday/graduation trip to see Space Things. Last year we passed thru Georgia en route to/from the Space Coast of Florida. I picked up peaches and pecans on the way down, and then more on the way home. We love peaches.

Next I heard about The Peach Truck and bought a case of Georgia peaches in a local hardware store parking lot. [Note--I was at work on the day the truck was due and a friend picked up my case for me.. Full disclosure.] The peaches weren't yet ripe, so I bided my time before I could make my Peach Salsa.

Chicken Meatballs with Garlic Scape Pesto

Ground chicken and garlic scape pesto makes a flavorful meatball. Serve this tasty Spring treat over pasta, in a meatball sub, as an appetizer or on a pizza!

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Garlic scapes are one of the weirder items in the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm share box. They are a strange green hook that packs a mild garlic flavor into a curlicue shape, shown below. I think they're one of the best savory ways to kick off a new growing season and I hope to share the love with you.

When I get garlic scapes in the farm share they are usually accompanied by loads of greens. Spinach, salad mix, cooking greens . . . all of these are more fragile than the hardy garlic scape. While I need to perform Vegetable Triage to ensure none of the delicate greens go to waste, I can toss a bag of garlic scapes into the crisper and remember it in a week without any problems. Once I've gathered all of the season's scapes, I make a massive batch of Garlic Scape Pesto. You can find my Garlic Scape & Pistachio Pesto recipe here. I freeze this pesto in small amounts to use throughout the year, whenever I want to add a flavor boost to pizza, or muffins, or even meatballs.

Help! I just got my CSA farm share. Now what do I do with it?

Practical advice for folks eating from a farm share including the three questions of Vegetable Triage and what to do when you bring your farm share into your kitchen.

A typical early Spring farm share--plenty of greens, peas, radishes, onions and garlic.

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Take a deep breath. I'm here to help.

It seemed like such a great idea, back in the cold dark days of winter, to sign up for a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm share. A weekly box of fresh local vegetables and fruits? I'm in! Now reality is setting in. You've got a fridge filled with unfamiliar produce and the clock is ticking down to the next farm share day.
Before you're tempted to chuck it in the trash (gulp!) or swirl it down the disposal (noooo!) or toss it on the top of the compost heap (BTDT!) please read on.

Every day, some Thing in life can be overwhelming, but you get thru it by breaking The Thing down into smaller chunks. This applies to grief, term papers, and parenting as well. In terms of your farm share, this means you need physical, or at least mental, Vegetable Triage when the produce first arrives at your house.

The Three Questions of Vegetable Triage:

1. What can live outside my refrigerator?
2. What can I prep so I'm more likely to use it?
3. What do I need to use up first?