So I picked up my first Bountiful Basket yesterday. 7 am was an early call time, but I made it! Everyone was very nice and I made sure I had my paperwork in order.
This week's basket included cucumbers, yellow squash, spaghetti squash, cauliflower, broccoli, water chestnuts, blackberries, bananas, pears and (gulp!) brussel sprouts. I found a home for the brussel sprouts before the end of the day. I like the taste of them, I will eat them, I will not prepare them or cut into them. It's a gross story that involves critters and it's happened more than once.
So back to the happiness of the basket!
It's like entering an Iron Chef Competition. I don't get to choose what I get, but I have to make something edible with it. This is a win in my book. I hate meal planning. I hate shopping for the unplanned meals. This way I have a starting point and then I can pick up other items I may need.
Here's what this week looks like thanks to the basket. Remember I am new, so I am pretty much going through the whole thing in about 2 days.
Cucumber and Yellow Squash Salad:
This make a giant bowl, almost enough to feed an entire team.
2 bigger cucumbers
2 decent yellow squash
Italian dressing
Shredded Parmesan cheese
Thinly slice the cucumbers and squash, mix in bowl, add italian dressing, stir, serve topped with parmesan cheese. I made this early in the day and let it sit in the fridge soaking in the dressing. I think it would be fine served right away also.
Yup, that simple. I saw some other recipes with onions and peppers and other stuff, but I was out of that. This is tasty. Healthy snack, great side for dinner, and super easy.
Spaghetti Squash Spaghetti
Serves about 4-6
1 Spaghetti Squash
1lb Lean ground beef
1 Jar of spaghetti sauce (yeah, yeah, yeah, I know, it's cheating!)
Cut squash in half and take the seeds out. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes. If it's still not soft enough, flip it over for another 5-7. Let it cool for a few minutes and gut it. I did this in the afternoon when I had time and put the innards in bowl and put it in the fridge.
Pour the spaghetti sauce in a pot and doctor it however you see fit. I add a little sugar and red wine to jarred sauces. Start warming that up as you brown the beef. When beef is all nice and squeaky, drain and add to the sauce. Stir occasionally until hot.
I nuked the spaghetti squash noodles a little bit to get the chill out of them, but not enough to make them all mushy. 40 seconds at high, stir, another 40 seconds.
Dish up and enjoy! I was a little worried about that part. DH hadn't even heard of spaghetti squash before and he recently discovered yellow squash. He really liked it though. He thought the slight crunch was interesting and said it wasn't that much different than pasta.
Tuesday I'm going to tackle some Kung Pao Chicken since I have fresh water chestnuts. I am going to steam the brocoli and cauliflower to go with it and probably put it over white rice. If I think about it and remember I will post something. If not, well, there's a reason I put the link there!
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