by April Paffrath
New England is a bounty of food goodness. On Friday I shared some of that tastiness with the readers of the awesome website BostonMamas.com
In that guest post, I wrote about the benefits of local eating and why that’s a bit easier for your life. Basically, local foods are fresher and you can have greater control over the growing practices that you like (sustainable, organic, heritage, whatever) than you can at a supermarket. Local, fresh foods that are packed with flavor make an easier dinner because you have to do so very little to them to make them amazing.
That’s the great secret I’ve learned from my family’s CSA adventure. Simple food is simply good. Ramp it up a bit for a special occasion, but in general you’re less stressed at dinner when you’re starting with great ingredients. You can do crazy preparations because they’re fun, not because you need them to mask bland or bitter veggies. (And seriously? I love me some crazy preparation. I also love a quick dinner that needs almost no work at all because it’s fresh from the fields and singing with flavor.)
Do I get everything locally? No. But I look local first. If I can find it locally, I know I’m getting a fresher ingredient and I’m supporting a part of our regional community that I want to see become even more robust.
Below is the list of local CSAs that I shared with BostonMamas readers. The Boston area is lucky enough to have vegetable, meat, fish and grain CSAs—pretty amazing, really. There are plenty of amazing CSAs available in the area (this is just a sampling). Check them out, read their websites, give them a call and ask questions about their growing practice and regular CSA quantities and you can find the one that suits you best. I listed the prices based on what is currently one their websites. Some are already in the midst of signing up new members.Later today this week, I’ll post a recipe for amazing and creamy gratin potatoes. You’ll make it all winter long, so check back. Mmm, I’m hungry for it already. Your holidays will never be the same.
Siena Farms, Sudbury, MA
Pay $750 for the weekly box share and pick up at Sofra (Farmer Chris’ wife is chef Ana Sortun of Oleana and Sofra), or $500 for the market share, which is a discount of 50% at the Copley farmers’ market or at their Sudbury farm stand.
I happily renewed my “membership” for next year’s box share. The food is amazing and almost unbelievable. It comes to you pristine and glowing and full of flavor. They offer varieties that are grown for their amazing taste. It’s no surprise that the city’s best restaurants also get their produce from Siena Farms—places like No. 9 Park, O Ya, Beacon Hill Bistro, Craigie on Main, and more. When you prepare the produce from Siena Farms, it tastes amazing, even if you only treat it with a bit of olive oil and salt. Their mesclun is peppery and wonderful—a real highlight!
Chestnut Farms, Hardwick, MA
Pick up this meat CSA once a month in several locations, year round (Arlington, Natick, Northhampton, and about 5 more). Prices depend on how much you’re getting each month. It starts at $80 and 10lbs a month ($8/lb). It costs less per pound if you get more. A bonus is that CSA shareholders are eligible to sign up for one of their coveted natural turkeys. They raise cows, pigs, sheep, chickens, and turkeys. The pasture animals (like cows and sheep) are pasture-fed as long as the New England weather lets them, and they get hay with occasional grain over the winter.
Pay $640 for the summer season CSA. They have add-on shares like eggs, flowers, and fruit. You can pick up your weekly share in Brighton, Cambridge, and Jamaica Plain, as well as a handful of other towns. You can also get it delivered at extra cost through MetroPedal Power. Shareholders get special pick-your-own privileges.Steve Parker is a fixture at the Union Square farmers’ market. Pay $325 for the small share or $500 for the large share. Pick-ups are in Davis Square, Somerville, and Porter and Central Squares, Cambridge.
Lands Sake is an education farm. (It’s also a fantastic pick-your-own farm with strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and more. What’s so nice about that is that it’s organic, and it’s hard to find u-pick organic fruits.) We love to visit the farm because it’s a little bit hippy and super calm. They had some trouble with their CSA last year due in part to weather, but it’s a long-running farm that cares about treating the land and the food right.
Stillman Farm, New Braintree, MA
Six Farms CSA at Silverbrook Farm
Silverbrook teamed up with 5 other farms to offer a CSA. Some farms specialize in certain products or add in something special to the whole partnership. You also get Hannabells from Shy Brothers Cheese, since they’re one of the six farms. Mmm. Pick-up locations around Boston, Cambridge, Cape Cod, Rhode Island, and more. In Cambridge, they’ll deliver your share through MetroPedal Power, included in the CSA price.
Cape Ann Fresh Catch, Gloucester, MA
They have a bunch of different sign-up options, including all shrimp and a shrimp-fish combo. Pay $125-$400 for a 10-week share from anything from 5lb of shrimp to 40lb of fish. Pickups are all over the area, Cambridge, Jamaica Plain, Acton, Ipswich, and many more.
Drumlin Farm is a Mass Audubon Sanctuary. They also have a popular CSA, as well as a winter share that comes from their root cellar. Pay $575 or $525 if you work the farm for 8 hours. Pick up at the farm, Central or Porter in Cambridge, or in Jamaica Plain, Dorchester, and Quincy
Picadilly Farm, Winchester, NH
This certified organic farm has pick up in Arlington, Bedford, and Belmont. The form isn’t online yet for 2010, but 2009 shares were $525.