Bountiful Basket

Today I wanted to blog about the Bountiful Basket food co-op (in case there is someone reading that hasn't heard about it before).

Basically, you pay $15 to get a laundry basket full of fresh fruits and vegetables.  They are in several areas, so you can see if they have one near you.  Their website answers all questions about how it works, check it out here:  Bountiful Baskets

I started buying the Bountiful Baskets in January, and it has been awesome!  You never know what is going to be in the basket so it forces me to try new recipes and be a little more creative in the kitchen.  I know my boys have had more vegetables in their diet than ever before.  Also their bread offerings are amazing, $12 for 5 loaves...it has no additives (just a little organic honey).

This past week I got this:  fennel, romaine lettuce, 3 spaghetti squash, blueberries, strawberries, 6 lbs. grapes, 3 yellow bell peppers, 7 green peppers, 9 plums, 6 bananas, 6 tomatoes, and 7 green peppers.

I feel pretty good about the challenge this week...I realize I am getting the fruits and veggies I need pretty regularly thanks to big salads.  The challenge now is making sure my boys eat what they need.  I can definitely see how green smoothies would help.

The new produce I tried this week was fennel bulb and fennel stalk and fennel fronds.  I had never had it before.  It definitely has an unique licorice flavor that spices things up.  I was grilling a big pan of mixed veggies so I added the fennel bulb pieces and it smelled like pizza hut on our grill...it was weird...but good!

Anyone else discover something new?