I dream about being the type of cook who wanders through a farmers market, gets inspired by whatever’s in season, and runs home to make something simple and delicious without consulting a single recipe.
The reality is that I am extremely recipe-bound. I shop with a detailed list, rarely impulse-buy, and usually have meals planned weeks, sometimes months, out between recipe development and content planning. And I get full-on decision paralysis at the farmers market when I try to freestyle a menu.
So, in an effort to bring a little more spontaneity into my cooking and eat more locally, I signed up for a CSA this year with Harvest Tide Organics. I chose them because the pickup location is within walking distance and they let you customize your box, which felt like the right amount of structure for someone who wants to be more spontaneous but still needs guardrails.
Each week, I’ll share what came in my CSA box, what I made with it, and what actually worked. Hopefully it’s helpful for anyone else who loves the idea of a CSA but immediately panics when handed three bunches of greens and no plan.
For week one, my box included: ARUGULA – RADISHES – CHIVES – GARLIC CHIVES – BOK CHOY – SALAD GREENS + SPICY MESCLUN
ARUGULA
Arugula used to be my favorite green. I love that peppery bite, but I think I overdid it for a few years and needed a break. This bunch reminded me why I loved it in the first place: it was easily the most fiery, in the best way, arugula I’ve ever had. I could have eaten it by the handful like potato chips.
What I made:
Molly Baz’s Steak Salad With Harissa Potatoes and Crunchy Radishes
Loved this. It’s very much steak and potatoes, but lighter and brighter. The arugula and radishes kept it fresh, and the harissa dressing brought the perfect amount of heat. We are big fans of steak salad here because it’s one of the few salads that actually leaves us satisfied.
Other ideas:
- Lemony Farro Salad with Grapes, Pistachios & Pickled Red Onions
- Ina Garten’s Roast Chicken With Bread and Arugula Salad
- Ina Garten’s Filet of Beef Carpaccio
- Prosciutto and Arugula Pizza
No-recipe route: Use it anywhere you want a peppery bite to balance something rich: pile it onto pizza after baking, tuck it into sandwiches, toss it with warm potatoes or grains, use it as a salad base, or stir it into pasta, soup, or scrambled eggs right at the end so it just wilts.
To preserve: Blitz into pesto and freeze.
RADISHES
I want to be one of those people who can casually eat a whole bunch of radishes with salted butter and bread. I do love the combination (my husband not so much) but that usually gets me through two radishes. The real surprise with radishes is roasting them: it concentrates their flavor and mellows their bite.
What I made:
Molly Baz’s Steak Salad With Harissa Potatoes and Crunchy Radishes
The radishes were so good here because they cut through the richness of the steak and potatoes. They brought crunch, freshness, and just enough bite, which is exactly what a steak salad needs. For the remaining radishes, I went classic: butter, salt, and bread.
Other ideas:
- Ina Garten’s Chicken with Radishes
- Eric Kim’s Parchment-Steamed Fish With Buttered Radishes
- Julia Turshen’s Roasted Radishes with Kalamata Dressing
No-recipe route: Slice thin and add to salads, grain bowls, tacos, sandwiches, toast, or anything rich that needs crunch and bite. Or roast with olive oil and salt until tender, then finish with butter, lemon, or vinegar.
To preserve: Quick pickle them to use in future salads, tacos, sandwiches, and grain bowls.
CHIVES
Of everything in my CSA box, the chives were the least intimidating. They’re my go-to herb for adding mild onion flavor and a little green pop to nearly everything. The blossoms, though, were new to me. I knew they were beautiful as a garnish, but I had a lot and needed a plan.
What I made:
Devin Finigan’s Crab Dumplings in Tidal Broth from A Kitchen on Goose Cove, page 65
I used the chives in these heavenly dumplings packed with crab, corn, jalapeño, and chive. The leftovers were added to dishes throughout the week whenever something needed a little oniony lift.
Chive Blossom Vinegar
For the blossoms, I kept things simple and made infused vinegar, which is as easy as combining the two and letting them sit. The vinegar turns pink and takes on a gentle oniony flavor that will be great in salad dressings, potato salad, or anywhere you’d use a splash of vinegar.
Other ideas:
- Ina Garten’s Chive Risotto Cakes
- Erin French’s Fried Chive Blossoms
- Chive Blossom Compound Butter
No-recipe route: Snip chives over eggs, potatoes, soups, salads, sandwiches, roasted vegetables, grain bowls, dips, or anything creamy that needs freshness. Stir them into softened butter, cream cheese, sour cream, mayo, yogurt, or vinaigrette. Use the blossoms as a garnish, break them into smaller florets for salads, or scatter them over toast, deviled eggs, potato salad, or roasted vegetables.
To preserve: Make chive blossom vinegar, chive butter, or chive oil.
GARLIC CHIVES
Garlic chives have a garlicky, oniony flavor and unlike regular chives, which I mostly think of as a finishing herb, garlic chives can take a little heat and be used by the handful.
What I made:
Maggie Zhu’s Pork and Garlic Chive Stir Fry
This was simple, fast, and a great use for a full bunch of garlic chives. I used pork belly instead of pork loin because I had some in the freezer. The garlic chives bring so much flavor that you don’t need to overcomplicate it, which is exactly the kind of CSA recipe I need: fast, flavorful, and designed to use a full bunch of something instead of two polite tablespoons.
Other ideas:
- The Woks of Life’s Spiced Tofu Stir-Fry with Garlic Chives
- Sue Li’s Pork and Garlic-Chive Potstickers
- Hana Asbrink’s Shrimp Stir-Fry With Garlic Chives and Chiles
No-recipe route: Cut them into 1- to 2-inch pieces and stir-fry with pork, chicken, shrimp, tofu, mushrooms, or eggs. Fold them into scrambled eggs or an omelet, toss them into fried rice or noodles, or stir them into dumpling filling when you want built-in garlic and onion flavor.
To preserve: Chop and freeze them in a thin layer on a sheet pan, then transfer to a bag for future stir-fries, soups, fried rice, and eggs. You can also blend them into a garlicky chive oil, pesto-ish sauce, or compound butter.
BOK CHOY
We make bok choy pretty regularly because it’s one of those quick sides that goes with nearly any protein. It cooks fast, works with bold flavors, and gives you the best of both worlds: tender greens and crisp stems.
What I made:
Ari Kolender’s Caramelized Bok Choy with Fish Sauce from How to Cook the Finest Things in the Sea, page 133
This was such a good reminder that the right fish sauce is truly a game changer. It took simple bok choy and turned it into a mouthwatering, umami-packed side dish. The caramelization gave it sweetness, the fish sauce brought the salty funk, and the whole thing felt way more exciting than the amount of effort required.
Other ideas:
- Ina Garten’s Ramen Chicken Noodle Soup
- Stir-Fried Bok Choy or Sturdy Greens
- Bok choy recipes from Bon Appetit.
No-recipe route: Halve baby bok choy lengthwise, sear it cut-side down until browned, then splash in soy sauce, fish sauce, or a little broth and let it steam until tender. For larger bok choy, cook the chopped stems first, then add the greens at the end. It’s great with ginger, garlic, sesame oil, chile crisp, miso butter, fish sauce, lime, or rice vinegar.
To preserve: Bok choy is best used fresh, but if you need to buy time, wrap it in a paper towel and store it in a bag in the fridge.
SALAD GREENS + SPICY MESCLUN
I was nervous I wouldn’t use all the greens before they went bad, so I made a point to use them every chance I got: side salads with dinner, clean-out-the-fridge salads for lunch, and a few handfuls added to whatever needed something fresh. I used almost all of them before the spicy mesclun gave up on me.
What I made:
Clean-out-the-fridge lunch salads
Nothing fancy, but this felt like the most practical CSA win: having good greens around made lunch one less thing to think about. I used whatever I had on hand: leftover chicken, hard-boiled eggs, cheese, nuts, herbs, pickled things, crunchy vegetables, and a vinaigrette.
Other ideas: For tender salad greens, I like keeping things simple: lemon vinaigrette, Dijon vinaigrette, buttermilk dressing, or a punchy shallot dressing. Spicy mesclun is especially good with something creamy or rich to balance the bite, like goat cheese, avocado, or jammy eggs.
No-recipe route: Start with greens, add something filling, something creamy or rich, something crunchy, and something acidic.
To preserve: Salad green ice cream. JK. Just eat them. The best preservation strategy is storage and urgency: wash and dry them well, store with a paper towel in a container or bag, and make them the default side salad until they’re gone.
What I learned from week one
Week one did not cure my recipe-bound tendencies. But I used almost everything, nothing rotted, and the garlic chives stir-fry is already in the permanent rotation. I’ll take it.
Stay tuned for week 2!
I can’t wait to see what you do as the CSA season progresses!
I’m excited!