Grasshoppers Pickup Number 28

This week's basket contained:

• 1 bunch green onions
• 1 head lettuce
• 1 bunch radishes
• 1 bunch cilantro
• 2 small summer squash
• 2 broccoli tops
• 1 head garlic
• 1 pt. strawberries
• 1 salmon filet

The salmon filet was a surprise. Apparently it was raised in Kentucky. Who knew? I knew we produced prawns and catfish.

So, with the bulk of the produce, I have made salad (with the addition of cherry tomatoes and a cucumber) and salsa (with the addition of crushed tomatoes and jalapenos.

I had steamed the summer squash and one of the broccoli tops as a side to a salmon dinner. I should probably just chop up the other broccoli top and add it to my salad.

This time I put the strawberries into the fridge. I understand that the best flavor is to be had by leaving them out at room temperature. I've tried this, but since I'm not that huge a fan of fruits and berries, I ran into mold problems. I will enjoy these berries either with plain yogurt or sliced with cereal and milk.

Net-Fux

I do have a major gripe with Netflix. I also have a couple of good things to say about them. First, some background.

I don't have cable TV. I have lots of DVDs, but it's a lame financial model to purchase the DVD of every movie that you think you might like. I do have a Kindle Fire and I subscribe to Amazon Prime. Amazon lets me stream a fairly good selection of movies and TV shows for free--included with my Prime subscription. There are some gaps--particularly movies that are not "mainstream" and black-and-white movies.

I decided to check out Netflix streaming. The fee of $8 a month seemed reasonable, assuming that the selection was good. I did not discover a way to preview the titles in their streaming catalog so I just bit for the 30-day free trial.

Watching a movie on Netflix streaming is a very pleasant experience. Amazon is good, but Netflix is really good. In general, the Netflix streaming just worked the way you'd want it to. Resuming a movie was seamless.

Another thing I'll say in Netflix's favor is that their recommendation of movies is actually pretty good. I know I've been frustrated by Amazon's book recommendations continuously hyping Harry Potter to me. I'm like, Thanks, I'm sure it's a quality series, but I'm just not interested! Amazon never did get the hint.

Okay, now for the slams... and they are devastating.

Netflix's streaming selection is really pretty lame. If you're only interested in well-known, mainstream movies, Netflix might suit you fine. If you're interested in quirky cult classics or even classic black-and-white titles, Netflix Streaming has little to offer.

And you know, it's not even such a problem that Netflix Streaming has a weak catalog. The bigger problem is that if they don't have what you're looking for, they suggest a pile of unrelated crap that they expect you to weed through.

Case in point: I search for "Out of the Past"--in quotes. I'm looking for a specific film noir movie. Turns out (I think) that Netflix doesn't have it available for streaming. But they don't give me a simple "Not Found" message. No, they give me 340 pages of unrelated crap including (hello) Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolfman. Do they think I'm an idiot? Do they think I'm going to pore through 340 pages of junk when I provided them with an exact title and it was not returned on the first page of search results?

Perhaps if I were willing to use their DVD-by-Mail service, the title selection would be more reasonable. Given that their streaming selection is so lame and given that their search algorithm is crap and (in my case) given that I already subscribe to Amazon Prime, I think there is little chance that I'll be sending them $8 a month for the privilege of accessing their services. I still have 3 weeks on my trial so I may yet change my mind. Yeah, right.

Grasshoppers Pickup Number 27

This week's basket contained:

• Rainbow chard
• Scapes
• Celery
• Dill weed
• Shell beans
• 2 buffalo steaks
• 1 pt. strawberries

The chard will be a side dish that includes butter, olive oil, garlic, red onion, lemon juice, and Parmesan cheese. I've made this before and it is very yummy.

Scapes? I was told by the CSA lady that they're basically garlic greens. I plan on making a pesto with them. Apparently they also serve well in a stir fry.

The celery is loaded with leaves. I think I'll wrap it up in paper towels and preserve it for next weekend. There are all manner of one-pot recipes that could benefit from fresh celery. For the short term, I'm still eating lamb curry leftovers and there will be a few salmon dinners coming up.

Dill weed... yikes! I can put some on salmon since I'm having that regularly of late. I could make a dip with cream cheese but hey... I'm already making scape pesto. I'll just try to keep it fresh for a couple of weeks so it can grace a number of salmon meals.

I assume the shell beans will be a side dish. They look like snow peas but the shells are kinda tough..

Buffalo meat is notoriously lean. Cooks are advised to score steaks slightly at intervals to avoid having the meat curl when cooked.

I will probably eat the strawberries with plain yogurt--great as a snack or dessert.

Grasshoppers Pickup Number 26

This week's basket contained:

• 2 heads Romaine lettuce
• 8 small tomatoes
• 1 pint strawberries
• 1 bunch mint
• 1 bunch garlic chives
• 2 cucumbers
• 7 small potatoes
• 2 lamb shanks

The strawberries were eaten with plain yogurt. Very delicious as a dessert or breakfast.

The mint went into Mint Juleps. That was the idea, eh? Still got a few sprigs left.

I used some garlic chives on baked salmon. Maybe the rest will go that route, too.

I steamed the potatoes as a side to a salmon + veggie dinner.

The lamb shanks are calling me to make some kind of curry. Maybe this coming weekend.

Everything else is just screaming SALAD! I only sliced up one of the two cucumbers into the salad mix. I intend to use the second cucumber as follows: sliced cucumber, sugar, vinegar. A very delicious salad I remember from my childhood.

The Thunder At Which I Am Not

Thunder Over Louisville 2012 is/was tonight. I is/was not there.

I'm actually not that big a fan of fireworks spectaculars. Stretching my imagination, if I had a "special someone", attending Thunder could be a wonderful experience.

The afternoon air show... now there's something I could get my teeth into. A few years back I did go to see the air show. On my bird watcher's list I was able to check off: B-1 bomber, F-22 fighter, and (Holy Kawonga!) B-2 bomber.

Had I been so inclined, there was a perfect setup for me to view the fireworks display. My company's new offices are basically right on the river, fractions of a mile away from the Second Street Bridge, which is is the focal point of Thunder Over Louisville. The owners decided to have a party--mostly for employees but also for a few "fun" clients. They also went all out to entertain the kiddos. I'm talking about one of those inflatable castle thingies that kids can jump around in. (My dad would have done that for me. NOT. End editorial.)

Anyway, since I'm not a huge fan of firework displays, and since I don't have kids, and since I don't like to get drunk with friends and try to drive home, I elected to stay home.

It's the safe thing to do... on so many levels.

Grasshoppers Pickups Number 25

This week's basket contained:

• 1 pt. strawberries
• 1 bunch Swiss Chard
• 1 head lettuce
• 3 stalks baby green garlic
• 1 bunch cilantro
• Bone-in pork chops

I've been enjoying the strawberries with plain yogurt as a dessert. Nice!

The lettuce... yeah... salad.

I don't know what to do with chard! Maybe it goes into salad or maybe I cook it as a side. Research.

As for the baby garlic, I have a fave recipe for "Leeks In Olive Oil" that could accommodate this baby garlic (which looks like young leeks). That would make a faboo side.

The cilantro may be an excuse to go Mexican. Salsa, enchiladas... you name it.

As for the meat... I am so behind schedule with the meat. Who knows. BBQ pork chops? Protein supplement to a bean dish? It's in the freezer for now.

Grasshoppers Pickup Number 24

This week's basket contained:

• 1 bunch kale
• 1 head Bibb lettuce
• 3 tomatoes
• 1 bunch ramps
• 1 bunch thyme
• 1 lb. asparagus
• 2.25 lb. whole chicken, cut up
• 1.75 lb. chicken wings

The asparagus has already gone into making quiche. It's quite delicious and it will make 5 meals for me (including one meal of excess filling as the entree).

The kale, as usual, will be cooked with a couple of (non-CSA) turnips and some pork ribs and be served over cornbread. Can't be bad. The lettuce and tomatoes will be salad.

Ramps are apparently along the lines of wild onions with garlicky overtones. I don't really know since I've never had them before. I'm sure they could go into a stir-fry, but since I also need to find a use for the thyme, maybe I'll simmer a cut of beef with the ramps and thyme.

The cut-up chicken could go into any of a bazillion recipes. Gumbo or curry sounds nice.

The chicken wings would be fun to cook as uber-spicy Buffalo wings.