Bountiful boxes

I’m just old enough to remember when the milkman would drop bottles of milk off at the front door. The small bottles would clank together as he set them down and I would run to the door, wanting to see him climb back into his white truck. How exciting that milk had arrived!

Wow. Looong time ago.

This morning, my husband opened the front door and brought in a box. Fruit and vegetables had arrived! It was our bi-monthly box from Farm Fresh to You, an organic grower that we’re trying.

Inside today’s box are persimmons, pears, lettuce and kale. One large leek. Small red potatoes. A bunch of peppery radishes. Fuzzy kiwi. The bounty is lush and beautiful. We have a discussion: Do you like persimmons? Hmmm, not so much. The kale is great though. Haven’t cooked leeks in awhile. We examine and assess.

I had the option of going online before delivery, checking the week’s options and making deletions and adjustments. Instead, I prefer the Christmas-like excitement of opening the box and discovering what is in season. Part of the attraction to these delivery services, for me, is the challenge: What will I do with those persimmons? (A recipe in the box suggests persimmon crisps – slice them thin, sprinkle with cinnamon, bake til crispy.)

The leek will instigate an online treasure hunt for recipes, taking me outside my usual repertoire. I overdosed on kale in the last couple of years so hadn’t bought any recently. Seeing it here is welcomed and I find I’m ready to have it again. This time I will fry some onions and bacon together, then add the kale (first draining off the bacon fat) and sauté together thoroughly until the kale wilts and softens.

Twenty years ago, when I first moved to Sacramento, we belonged to a vegetable delivery co-op. My kids were little then but they still remember the excitement of those boxes and pulling out sun-dried tomatoes, small melons and green beans. Apples went into their lunch boxes and they were curious about trying fried eggplant. It instilled in them a sense of discovering new foods. I didn’t care if they didn’t like something – as long as they tried it first. Caught up in exploration, they gave things a try.

Ever since, we’ve belonged to various co-ops, sometimes organic, sometimes not. Over the years, the options have expanded. Now, with the organic trend and people talking about “Farm to Fork,” there are lots of co-ops.

I’m happy with the quantity and quality of what I’m seeing with Farm Fresh to You. For just the two of us, the cost isn’t an issue. For less than the cost of a dinner out, we have a healthy amount of fruits and veggies for a week or more. I will still supplement with other items from the grocery store or farmers’ markets – cucumber and red bell pepper for a salad, carrots and onions for a leek soup – but the box has inspired several more healthy meals than I would have otherwise cooked.

Still, I’m curious about the other services and how they stack up so I’m likely to switch from Farm Fresh to You, not because I’m unhappy -- far from it -- but for the sake of exploration.

Isn’t that part of the Foodie movement? Seek, explore, discover, taste?