Edition 48

October 2, 2009

• Local Box Contents
• News & Updates
• Recipe Corner
• Greenling Tidbits

• Limited - Kiwis, short supply until November
• Coming Soon - Pumpkin Tortillas, from Paqui Tortillas (Local)
• Ending Season -Grapes & berries, coming back in spring
• New -Cheese Spreads, from Blanco Valley Cheese
• Coming Soon - Fresh Cranberries, from Local & non-local sources
• Short Supply - Chickens, from Dewberry Farms (Local)
• New - Fall Beef cuts, roasts & chili meats from Bastrop & Betsy Ross

Greenling Fresh, Prepared Meal Weekly Selection

Until now if you wanted prepared meals, especially delivered, you either order from a restaurant or you get it frozen. And good luck finding local ingredients. Greenling saves the day again! Every week we'll have select FRESH, prepared meal options for you that feature some local ingredients. They will get delivered to us daily and arrive at your doorstep fresh and ready to eat. The dishes will change weekly so if you have a standing order it will change each time. This week's selection:

Whole Wheat Bulgur Salad w/ Spinach, Currants, Parsley, & Almonds

Farfalle Pasta w/ Spinach-Walnut Pesto, Cherry Tomatoes & Kalamata Olives

Website Tip - Want to search for a product? Just click on 'All Products' in categories and hit Ctrl (Command on mac) + F. That's Ctrl-F. Then type away.

New Yelp Review

"I have been super impressed with this company from my first delivery. I love everything that they stand for and their commitment to supporting local vendors and farmers. I have received 3 deliveries from them thus far (all Local Produce Boxes) and the produce has been wonderful! Okra (who knew there was purple okra!), Meyer Lemons, enormous portobello mushrooms, fragrant basil, bell peppers, squash, zucchini, etc. the list goes on and on. I even added some local dog biscuits to an order for my four legged companion.

I love that you can completely customize each and every delivery and also set your own delivery schedule. It's really a dream come true to be able to take less shopping trips to the store and instead have everything delivered to you. Did I mention that they also have farm fresh eggs, local roasted coffee, chocolates and other tempting items as well? Its a win-win situation.

I also used their Chat Now feature on their website to talk to a Customer Service representative and that was super easy and I love that they have that feature for us geeks who are chained to their computer and too lazy to pick up the phone or send an email. :)

Great produce, great service, and a great idea! Give them a try - you won't be sorry that you did."

Khanh N.

Thanks Khanh! See all of our completely unsolicited reviews on Yelp here.

Slow Money - The Second Best Way to Support Local Farms

We all know the best way - buy local food! Well, the second best way is to help Slow Money raise capital to invest in local farms. Last night I attended the Slow Food Slow Session, where Shades of Green shared their experiences raising some of the best chicken in chickenland (look for these gourmet, certified organic, birds on the Greenling site soon). She also shared her frustration with financing her operation - without big returns or lots of assets, she can't get good terms and must contend with mountains of debt. That's what Slow Money wants to change. And this Tuesday they'll be attempting a 'crowdsourcing' fund-raiser. Their goal is to get 200,000 people to donate $5 and raise $1,000,000 for local food systems. The concept is similar to micro-loans where repayment is fully expected, just not huge additional interest or capital gains expectations. Let's help them get there. Donate here.

Also I'm very excited to be a part of a team creating Slow Money Austin, a non-profit that will raise capital to invest in farmers & food producers here in Central Texas. We are collaborating with the Slow Money Alliance to bring national funds to Austin & have events planned to raise local funds. Please join the facebook group and/or keep reading the newsletters to learn how you can get involved.

This Week's Box Contents & Local Items

We are deep in seasonal transition now and the box will be more variable over the next few weeks as some crops head out of season and some start to come in. Corn is gone & peppers are winding down. Local apples will be available for order this week, but not enough yet for the Local Box. Crisp green beans & watercress are here & some leafy greens & citrus are on their way in the coming weeks.

Right now farmers are planting carrots, lots of greens, fennel, sweet potatoes, and a few other treats that will arrive in 60-90 days depending on weather.

Here's what's available from local farms on our website this week (the best selection of local produce in the state - guaranteed):

In Local Boxes ($34.99) this week (October 5-9):

• Eggplant - Animal Farm
• Summer Squash - Naegelin
• Beefsteak Tomatoes or Grape Tomatoes - McCall Creek
• Green Beans - Pedernales Valley
• Red Potatoes - Naegelin/J&B Farm
• Cucumbers - Animal Farm
• Citrus or Persimmons - G&S Groves
• Bibb Lettuce - Bluebonnet
• Pears - Lightsey Farms
• Basil or Herb - Pure Luck
• Red Radish - My Father's Farm
• Asst Peppers - Lundgren Farm
• Yellow Onion - Naegelin Farm

Last Week's (Sept 28-Oct 2) Local Box Video

In Farmstead & Local Produce Boxes ($49.99) this week (October 5-9):

• Fresh Mozzarella - Brazos Valley Cheese
• Fresh Black Pepper Penne Pasta - Pasta & Co
• Ciabatta Bread - Texas French Bread
• Sugar Cookies - Sweetish Hill

Gluten-free Farmstead Box

• Fresh Mozzarella - Brazos Valley Cheese
• Pizza Crust - Wildwood Bakery
• Cookies - Wildwood Bakery

Order Here

Produce from Local Farms

• Arugula, Baby - Animal Farm
• Herb, Asst - Pure Luck
• Herbs, Basil, Live - Bella Verdi
• Lentil Sprouts - Groovy Greens
• Sunflower Sprouts - Groovy Greens
• Anaheim - Arnold Organics/Lundgren
• Lettuce, Baby - Animal Farm
• Lettuce, Bibb - Bella Verdi
• Purple Hull Peas - Animal Farm/Lightsey
• Meyer Lemons - G&S Groves
• Okra - Bradshaw Farms
• Gala Apple - Apple Country
• Pea Shoots - Bluebonnet
• Watercress - Bluebonnet
• Persimmons
• Red and Green Bell Peppers - My Father's Farm/Walnut Creek

Produce from Local Farms

• Limes - G&S Grove
• Microgreens, Arugula - Bella Verdi
• Microgreens, Broccoli - Bella Verdi
• Mushroom, Crimini - Kitchen Pride
• Mushroom, Portobello - Kitchen Pride
• Mushroom, Shiitake - Kitchen Pride
• Mushroom, White - Kitchen Pride
• Onion, Yellow - Naegelin
• Potatoes, Red - Naegelin
• Shallots - Lundgren Farm
• Jalapeno - Lundgren
• Serrano - Lundgren
• Eggplant - McCall Creek
• Slicing Cucumbers - Naegelin
• LARGE Watermelon - Lightsey
• Texas Hard Pears - Lightsey

Thanks to Everyone Who Contributed & Attended the Best of Austin Bash

And thanks one last time for voting us Best Local Food Company (See Best of Austin list here). The party had a veritable smorgasbord of amazing local food and many people brought their own creations. It was incredible that with almost 200 attendees throughout the night that we had food left over, but we wouldn't have had this without all of your recipes, too. A few people won some great gift baskets in the raffle and we raised hundreds of dollars for Urban Roots. We'll feature winning recipes in the coming weeks and will plan our next Soiree for the first or second week of November. Have a venue you'd like us to use? Just contact us.

See pictures from the event here

We're Giving Away Free Local Food for a Year!

Tell the most people about us between now and November and win Free Local Boxes for a Year! It's the easiest free food we've ever offered. And to celebrate 3 years of being the 'Best Local Food Company' in the Austin Chronicle tell just 3 people about us and win a month of local food!

See Details on how to do it here

Download the flyer to give people with YOUR coupon code here (read details page to see what your coupon code is)

Green Corn Project Annual Fund-raiser

Cook Globally, Grow Locally Autumn Celebration and Fundraiser:

On Sunday, October 25th, join us at Boggy Creek Farm for this fun day, which is their main source of funding for all their programs. Each year it is a food feast!

Click here for tickets and details.

Enjoy a great line-up of Musicians, Chef Demonstrations, and Restaurants. Bid on silent auction goods and services from top Austin businesses, including hotel stays, gala entertainment, gourmet dinners, and much more.

Slow Food Austin Annual Fund-raiser

Another great Fall event! This one is on Wednesday, October 21st. The great people at Slow Food have put together a Raw-Milk Local Cheese & Local Brew tasting party. Enjoy an evening of unique flavors, meet some of their producers, and mingle with other Austinites who share a passion for Slow Food. Bid on silent auction items in the beautiful, certified Organic, Barr Mansion. Click here for more details & click here for tickets.

Recipe Corner

Classic Baked Penne Casserole

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces of Penne pasta, cooked and drained
• 1/2 pound Bastrop Cattle Co ground beef, cooked and drained (add some spices while cooking if desired)
• 1 26-ounce jar of Mom's Pasta sauce (or about 3 cups of your homemade sauce)
• 2 c. BRazos Valley Cheese Mozzarella cheese, shredded (you can also add a little parmesan cheese if you have it on hand)
• Parsley, dried or fresh and chopped
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, mix together cooked pasta, beef, sauce and 1 c. of the shredded cheese.

Place pasta mixture into baking dish and cover with lid or aluminum foil. Bake for 30-35 minutes.

Take dish out of the oven and remove cover, top with remaining 1 c. of shredded cheese and sprinkle with parsley. Bake for another 8-10 minutes.

Makes 4-6 servings. This recipe can be double easily and cooked in a 10x13 baking pan.

For More Recipes Check Out The Eating Out of the Local Box Blog. Also make sure to become a fan of Greenling on Facebook to get weekly recipes from Woman With A Whisk & The Best of Thymes food bloggers.