Colchester Farm CSA Week #16

My CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) share program has started for the year.Check out Week #1, Week #2, Week #3, Week #4, Week #5, Week #6, Week #7, Week #8, Week #9, Week #10, Week #11, Week #12, Week #13, Week #14, and Week #15.

Our season runs for 26 weeks from June – December. We’re halfway through the season now! Some CSA members purchased a fall share, which means the pick-up starts this week and runs through the end of the season in early December.

Here’s what I chose this week: head lettuce, red Russian kale, arugula, potatoes, and delicata squash.

Delicata squash! I love these, so delicious. Can’t wait to make them. I like to roast them with a little bit of garlic and butter – yum!

As part of my CSA cost analysis challenge, I’m visiting two local Kent County stores each week after my pick-up to compare prices of similar items. Here’s this week’s comparison:

Another incomplete order week! I couldn’t find delicata squash at either store. No surprises here – delicata squash has a shorter shelf life than other winter squashes (I think delicata is technically a summer squash, but it grows now, so…).

The kale in each store was also a different variety than I received from Colchester, so I’m not sure if the prices are accurate. Also, the arugula I found at each store was prepackaged in a bag, and at Store #1, it was mixed with spinach.

A CSA has the opportunity to grow varieties of items, and to grow items that don’t have a long shelf life (so they’d be less appealing to a larger grocery store). So, you get a great introduction to items you might not find elsewhere. I love that aspect of being a CSA member!

More on the CSA

My CSA pick-up works this way: every Tuesday from 4-6 p.m., 1-2 people from Colchester (farm manager Theresa, or one of the apprentices) will set-up tables and produce with signs that indicate how much you can take of each item. Based on the share you purchased, you can take either 5 (small), 8 (medium), or 14 (large) different items.