New home

I've been quiet the past few weeks because my attention has been focused on setting up our new apartment. We had internet from day one (priorities) but I haven't had much to say, since unpacking and arranging is only so interesting. But that project is pretty much finished now, and I'm starting to get back into what I consider to be normal life: cooking, eating donuts, making yarny things.

On the cooking front, we signed up for a CSA. We're in our second week and I'm enjoying it so far, although we've gotten chard, kale, and more chard in the first two boxes. I thought those were winter vegetables? It's slightly unfortunate in that most of the things I like to make with those vegetables - casseroles and soups - really don't go well with summertime in an apartment without air conditioning.

Other than the above-mentioned leafy things, we've also gotten lettuce, spinach, garlic scapes, baby fennel, green onions, mushrooms, fresh garlic bulbs, rosemary, and a couple kinds of cheese. The first week I made sautéed greens with cannellini beans, garlic scape pesto, ginger-scallion noodles with shrimp, and a salad with baby fennel, oranges, spinach, feta, and a shallot vinaigrette, inspired by combining these two recipes. To my surprise, since I thought that I didn't like fennel in any form, the salad was my favorite.

This week's box is in the photo above. Last night's dinner was mushroom and greens gratin (okay, but way too wintery) and I'm thinking of using the scapes in some edamame hummus and/or some compound butter.

On the yarny things front, today I'm planning my first visit to the local yarn store, and on the donut front, tomorrow is donut day and there's a bakery a few blocks over that I've got my eye on.