I sent The Girl Who Thinks She’s a Bird to fetch the free produce from the market this past week. When she walked through the front door with her loot she announced, “There were only 3 boxes.”
She looked defeated.
Here we are, living in high maintenance suburbia, without a want in the world, and my daughter was totally bummed because she was down a box of free produce. She was totally boo hooing about not being able to rummage through the bruised and discarded fruit to look for more vitamin C fortified gems than she could eat.
It struck me as a little odd.
“It seems like every week we are getting less and less good stuff.” She quipped. So I quickly reminded her that something was better than nothing, and that maybe this week was just an off week. Maybe the store had sold most of the fruit, and that was a GOOD thing.
Here is what we were able to salvage
- 1 dehydrator full of strawberries + 2 more pounds {out of view}
- 4 bundles of spinach {do you have any ideas?}
- 3 heads of lettuce {Caesar salad}
- 2 red peppers {I used them for strawberry salsa}
- 2 apples
- 1 Roma tomato
So even though the “chicken scraps” were slim this time around, the hens made out like bandits. They were able to feast on watermelon, greens, grapes, berries and corn.
Life is good. Not matter how you slice it.
To see what else I’ve brought home over the past few months? Check out the stories below.
Food Face Plate $12.21 ~ Amazon
If you are having a hard time trying to get you kids to ea their veggies, try the Food Face plate. My neighbor has one and her kids love it!
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Leanna says
You could cook that spinach and freeze it for when you need it for spinach dip. 🙂
Jennifer says
I’m always up for lettuce wraps w/ the heads of lettuce
Kate says
Let me know if you want my recipe for puff pastry tartlets stuffed with onion, spinach and cheese! Frozen spinach actually works best in this recipe and people think you are Martha Stewart when you show up with a tray of these babies. 😉
Mavis says
Kate- yes! Please send it over. 🙂
CathyB says
I don’t really keep up with my blog anymore, but here are all the spinach recipes that I had there:
http://www.tofindjoyinthejourney.blogspot.com/search/label/spinach%20recipes
I personally am making the Malaysian noodles recipe tonight to use up some spinach that is just starting to get old.
Mavis says
Thanks! 🙂
Rachel says
Spinach…I make spinach salads with sliced strawberries, almonds, and a raspberry vinaigrette and sometimes add chicken. I also make a chicken alfredo pizza…I make a pizza crust, add alfredo sauce, mozzarella cheese, chicken, bacon bits and then top it with spinach. Yummmmyyy
Katie says
Spinach smoothies! I have these a few times a week and my kids LOVE them. All I put in is a bannana, 2 cups crushed ice, 4 ouces milk, 1 TBS Agave, and lots of Spinach. My husband thinks it tastes like grass, but the rest of us love it!
Stephanie says
I agree with spinach smoothies…I make my smoothie as I would normally, almond milk, fruit, etc and then add lots of spinach. SO good for you.
Lissa says
Spinach: artichoke spinach dip for veggies/chips is always good. Or my favorite salad: Spinach w/ dried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, and black olives in raspberry vinagriette w/ feta cheese. Also good topped with some grilled/baked salmon.
I had a very light week in my produce boxes too! Probably the lightest ever, which I was bummed about. I think it’s probably like coupon deals, there’s ebb and flow. Which is good all in all so that we don’t burn out. I did NO grocery shopping this week either!
Reclaimed Week 11:
6 ears corn
2 tomatoes
1.5lbs strawberries
3 head green lettuce
1 leek
1/2 watermelon (! been craving this!)
one bunch radishes
Randi says
Just purchased a dehydrator! Because of you
katie p says
Saute spinach with garlic chips. I like to slice the garlic, not mince, and heat it up with the olive oil, strain and cook spinach in the garlic’d olive oil. It is so good.
My second favorite spinach centered dish is: orzo, cherry tomatoes, spinach and feta. Pour the orzo and water over a colander with the tomato and spinach in it to wilt it, strain. Mix together with a little lemon juice, lemon zest, salt and pepper and top with the cheese. Mmmmm mmmm.
Jan says
I love this blog! We recently moved so my husband could earn his teaching credentials and its killing me not to have my giant garden. We grew about 1,000 pounds of produce each year. I saw your little dehydrator. If your going to grow 2,000 pounds, you may want to invest in an Excaliber Dehydrator. I got one as a Christmas gift from my hubby about three years ago, it was the best present he ever gave me, lol. It made dehydrating large amounts of anything go much faster. Especially when my kitchen and dining room were full of freshly harvested vegetables and no one else could walk through the rooms!
Mavis says
Thanks for the suggestion. I’ve been thinking about a second one so I’ll take a look at the Excalibur. 🙂
Ellee says
Now that it’s probably too late, it’s really easy to blanch & freeze greens (including spinach). It’s what I’ve been doing with the tougher beet & turnip greens that I’ve been harvesting lately when we have more fresh than we can eat (2 or 3 bags in the freezer now). 🙂
Mavis says
Thanks Ellee, I have never tried to freeze green, but I should. 🙂
nancy says
New to your site, and was wondering- where/how/when do you get your produce for free? Dumpsters, end of day, produce staff connection or???
Thanks!
Heather says
I have 20 reclaimed cantalopes. I have dehydrated some to try it out.
NOW WHAT???? There are only so many smoothies we can drink before they go bad. I am up for any ideas. I know it isw on odd fruit to get so many of… not from the garden.
HELP!
Mavis says
Oh.My.Word. I have no idea what you are suppose to do with 20 cantaloupes… Yikes! That’s crazy!