My CSA

Excitement, excitement, SistR and I got this weeks box from Chubeza. Oh joy and bliss. It is like having Christmas every week (yes Christmas – I grew up celebrating it as a seasonal/family thing, not a religious thing, so when I think of antici . . .

. . . pation, that is what I think of)

I scooted home on my trusty scooter – cautiously, as I do like to stay alive, and because driving home I face directly into the setting sun and even though I know the importance of eyes and I have great sunglasses (two pairs) –– the majority of people think that squinting is good enough.

Rushing upstairs I dumped my helmet and gloves, grabbed a couple of bags from my recycle pile and trotted upstairs. Instead of the usual giggles and laughter on the other side of the door from SistR's nearly 5 year old daughter Jesamine, there was silence and when the door finally opened, there was J, with her arm in a wraparound cast, looking a bit bleary eyed and fragile. Turned out she had been bouncing off walls and when she mistook a chair for an immovable object, she took a header and broke her elbow. Ouch! This new and unfortunate development meant that the Viewing of the CSA was delayed while J got some extra special spoiling, a story on demand (about a cat that broke its arm and had to go to the hospital to see the doctor… wonder where she got that idea?) and a very gently session of nosey-nosey-eskimosey (which isn't necessarily PC but then again, we also do eary eary eskimeary so, I am not sure how I should approach the PC'ness of this children's rhyme).

When SistR (that's her watching the road) and I finally got around to unpacking, we did so surrounded by a broken armed child, a cat doll, also with broken arm, and 4 very interested cats who thought it was great fun that the adults were sitting on the floor playing with a cardboard box.

What Did We Get This Week?

• A baby cabbage
• A head of lettuce, iceberg I think –the heat here makes iceberg more like tapwater that hasn't yet run cold, so it resembles a loose bunch of soft lettuce leaves like bibb
• Carrots
• Potatoes
• Green onions that are almost as skinny as chives
• Leeks that are the thickness of a Sharpie marker
• A big bunch of basil Butternut squash
• Zucchini
• Summer squash
• Asparagus beans
• Tomatoes
• Eggplants
• Red okra

All three of us thought the okra was amazing. They are the exact colour of really red rhubarb (with that hint of green in the background, looking like curved talons reaching graspingly out of the bag. But what to do with them?

I searched the web but couldn't find anywhere that specifically told of the differences between normal green okra and the red kind. My usual okra treatment is dry fried whole with a sprinkling of Maldon salt, or some plain yellow currypowder and the salt. I love the texture and flavour and don't like to overwhelm it.

Is there a difference in the taste/texture/slime factor?

I will probably have them for dinner tomorrow night, so if anybody has any suggestions I will gratefully accept them.