CSA Adventures, Box 5

In this week's box:

• 2 rutabagas (1-3/4 lbs.)
  
• 2 celery roots (2 lbs.)
  
• 5 potatoes (1-1/5 lbs.)
  
• 4 oranges (2-1/2 lbs.)
  
• 1 bunch carrots (1 lb.)
  
• 1 bunch kale (1/2 lb.)
  
• 2 leeks
• washed spinach (1/2 lb.)
  

Friday evening, at the box drop-off site, another subscriber was raving about a simple recipe for rutabaga, butternut squash (we had some left from last week), leek, and carrot soup that appeared in the Full Belly newsletter last year, so we tried it. You just chop everything roughly (she insisted that you don't even have to peel the rutabagas or carrots), simmer in broth, and purée with a wand blender. Unfortunately, the only broth we had on hand was some Trader Joe's soy-ginger broth, which made the dish too sweet. We saved that with a splash of Austrian roasted pumpkinseed oil, which has a strong, nutty flavor that balanced the slightly cloying soup. (I'll post about that oil later in the week.)

The next night, the other rutabaga, a celery root, and some of the potatoes went into a shepherd's pie. We also ate the spinach, lightly sautéed and tossed with Mornay sauce.