We get our CSA veggie boxes every other week, but I haven’t been keeping up with the regular updates. So here are some iPhone pics of some yummy things I’ve been making lately with our local bounty.

Grilling night – I marinaded a pork tenderloin in some barbecue sauce we got from a local guy at the farmer’s market, and we put extra sauce over the top. I put purple peppers, onions and purple potatoes in a foil wrap for the grill. We ran out of grilltop space, so I roasted the mixed squash in the oven. CSA ingredients: peppers, onions, potatoes, squash. I think the purple potatoes are especially fun.

This was simple and tasty – pasta salad with whole wheat rotini, heirloom tomatoes, cheese and pesto. I also finally got something to work out with the bread machine I’m experimenting with, so the edible bread was a big victory. CSA ingredients: tomatoes, basil.

Pickled okra – No picture for this. I feel like there are only so many things you can do with okra. Like beets, they seem to have limited possibilities, so several weeks of them tend to stretch my creativity. But I adapted this recipe to what I had on hand with tasty results. CSA ingredients: okra, hot peppers.

Greek pitas – We love gyros, and I found an easy homemade substitute. I just season ground beef with cumin, garlic and oregano for a similar flavor. We put it in a pita with tomatoes, cucumbers and onions and added feta. On the side, I made hummus with kalamata olives to go with pita chips, and I sauteed green beans. CSA ingredients: tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, green beans.

Greek nachos – To use up some of the leftovers from the pitas, I made up “nachos” for a fun appetizer for another meal. I laid out pita chips and covered them with feta and kalamata olives. After they were slightly baked, I topped them with some pickled banana peppers. Yum! Hannah really liked these. CSA ingredient: banana peppers.

Salsa – I don’t have a picture for this either, but one week we had huge portion of tomatoes. This was a little difficult initially because Brett does not like tomatoes. Then my friend Meghan suggested salsa – duh! I can’t believe I missed the obvious with my fridge full of tomatoes, peppers and onions. I made a huge batch, and after we’d eaten it fresh for several meals, I cooked the rest and bagged it for the freezer. This was my first attempt at freezing homemade salsa, so I hope it turns out well.

Chicken tacos with verde salsa – I made my favorite shredded chicken in the slow cooker. For the roasted verde salsa, I borrowed this recipe from Tyler Florence. Hannah is literally inches away from me for most of my kitchen adventures, and I give her as many projects as possible. I found that husking tomatillos is an awesome job for a 2-year-old. It was very easy but gave her quite a sense of accomplishment. We assembled the tacos on corn tortillas with sour cream, chicken, cheese and verde salsa. This is one of Brett’s new favorites. CSA ingredients: tomatillos, onions.

We have a neighbor who has a small “farm” in his backyard and also manages a larger farm outside of town. They were experiencing a plethora of figs, so this generous neighbor came over with a basket. This was a totally new ingredient for me! And, I’m not gonna lie, my only experience eating figs so far in my life was Fig Newtons which probably doesn’t really count. With the help of Google, I found a website called Israeli Kitchen with a recipe for Fresh Fig Cobbler. I made a half batch, and it was gone quickly. It would probably be amazing with ice cream, but we didn’t have any on hand.

So there are a few of the recipes and meals I’ve been making with some of our local ingredients. One of the biggest fans of “veggie day” in our house is Hannah. She goes with me to pick up the box and can’t wait to see what we get each time. I told her today is another veggie pick-up day and asked her what she thought might be in the box. She answered excitedly, “Squash and peppers and squash and purple peppers and red peppers and spicy peppers…”

What have you made lately with your local produce?