Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is

Six months ago I was convinced that Rhode Island was the greatest place to live. Every day was sunny and warm, the nights were jam-packed with groups of beautiful, tanned people carousing, and with more than half a dozen farmers’ markets to choose from, I never went a day without a juicy tomato or an aromatic bunch of basil.

These days, Rhode Island is miserable. Have you been outside this week? Windy and cold and the sky just decided to open up and pour buckets of freezing rain. Did anything interesting happen last Saturday? I was in bed by midnight still wearing whatever could pass for a wintertime party dress. And finally, much as I try to eat local, seasonal food, there are only so many winter squash, frozen blueberries, and stored potatoes this lady can stomach.

Longing for the days of summer, there is one way for us to jump start into the warmer months. Over the next few weeks, dozens of Rhode Island farms are beginning their annual CSA signups, giving you the opportunity to make a claim on all of the fresh and delicious local fruits and veggies making their debut with the sunshine. You won’t reap the benefits of this investment until June, but it’s a hell of a lot more effective than throwing on your bikini and sitting in front of your heater for hours. (And let me just say, I strongly advise against this activity. It’s energy inefficient and will make you realized how much weight you’ve gained this winter.)

What is a CSA anyway? More after the jump, along with some info on options.

I’m sure a lot of you know about this, as many of my friends have already been CSA participants, and some of my friends are the farmers themselves. CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture, and it resembles a contract between a consumer and a farmer. The consumer invests a certain amount of money to buy a “share” of a farm, giving the farmer much-needed cash for the growing season. The investment gives the farm financial security for the months to come, so that rather than waiting for the zucchini to ripen to make a sale, they are guaranteed that the seed they just planted has already created a profit. You, the CSA participant, the “share” holder, the investor, reap the benefits of the harvest once it comes in, with weekly deliveries of the best fruits and veggies from the farm.

The tricky thing about the CSA is that for most, you can’t choose what’s delivered. Many farms offer guidelines of what you can expect to receive: usually arugula, spinach, and other greens in June, tomatoes, cucumbers, and carrots in August. If you’re an adventurous eater and an avid cook, CSAs give you a great opportunity to be creative with food. I’d never heard of garlic scapes before last summer, but now I can give you plenty of recipe ideas. Plus, you’ll never be without ‘mainstream’ vegetables like tomatoes and peppers during August and September.

So, a brief rundown of CSA options for PVD residents. (Farm Fresh Rhode Island, which, if you don’t know, is the authority on all things delicious in our state, has lots of information about CSAs on their website.)

Scratch Farm CSA

Besides the regular run of veggies and herbs, Scratch Farm is teaming up with a few other farms in Cranston, and Louella Hill at Narragansett Creamery, for eggs, cheese, and flowers. Lots of options for this CSA, including half-shares for singles or doubles.

Wishing Stone Farm

With pickups on Tuesdays near Wickenden St., Wishing Stone does things a little differently. Your share is more like a debit card. The investment that you make at the beginning of the season can be used to buy a variety of goods including eggs, breads, and fruits and veggies. I’d say this CSA is a really great idea for picky eaters who want to peruse and choose their weekly options.

Simmons Farm

This CSA is good for meat-lovers who care about where their cow came from. Besides happy beef and pork, Simmons will give you cheese, eggs, veggies, fruit and herbs, with convenient pickup every Friday at the Providence Downtown Farmers’ Market.

(Ledge Ends Farm and Zephyr Farm also bring their CSA pickups to Providence.)

There is also talk of Farm Fresh RI managed CSA pickups at Armory Park farmers’ market on Thursday and Providence Downtown on Friday, more info to come here…

RI farmers tend to be a quirky bunch, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a group of people more committed to your health and the the health of, well, everyone else on earth. They work hard, make a lot less money than they should, and tend to be ignored by certain overpriced grocery store that puts the ‘local’ label on stuff grown in Maine.

If you’ve got the dough, or maybe just a few like-minded roommates, pony up for a CSA. You probably need to eat more veggies, anyway.

Coming soon from Amuse My Bouche (I promise!) =

What to do before you get your tax return: lunches around town for under $5

What to do after you get your tax return: fancy, fancy meals that won’t break you

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