9.27.17 Wisconsin Grown | Part 21

I must say that despite having lived in Wisconsin for over 12 years (and in the midwest, for that matter, for my entire life), I continue to be surprised by the weather. Like when I’m expecting cool, crisp fall, only to find myself practically melting from an unseasonal heat wave. You think I’d learn by now.

In an attempt to be efficient, we had removed all of our house’s AC units a couple of weeks ago and put them into storage. We figured it was fall after all and there was no way it’d get hot enough for AC, but it turns our we were very wrong. This past weekend, we found ourselves busting our AC units back out again. So much for efficiency.

But it seems that at least now we have a respite from the heat, and that the fall weather I’ve been anticipating is on the horizon. As an added bonus, the heat wave helped ripen all manner of summery fruits and veggies, which have found their way into our CSA box this week. It’s a funny thing coming across tomatoes, raspberries, and cantaloupe in the same week as winter squash, but in a way, it also seems perfectly fitting. Here’s what we’ll be cooking this week:

So many more Tomatoes this week (I hope they never end). Now that it’s cool enough to turn the oven back on, I’m thinking this Tomato and Smoked Cheddar Galette is in order. And also, since we’ve got Onions this week, I’m pretty sure we can’t go wrong with a big batch of Pico de Gallo.  

This week’s Green Beans are going to make great lunches as The First Mess’s String Beans and Rice with Spicy Roasted Almond Salsa.

I’m always happy to get more Shishito Peppers; this week’s bounty is slated for Bon Appetit’s Grilled Rib Eye with Shishito Pepper Salsa (I seem to have salsa on the brain this week).

Lettuce has made a comeback, so our salad needs are set this week, whether we decide to go super simple with a basic balsamic vinaigrette, or a little more fancy, like this Tomato and Grilled Corn Salad with Basil Vinaigrette.  

Winter squash has arrived this week, and I couldn’t be more excited! And as soon as I came across Dishing Up The Dirt’s Maple Cayenne Roasted Acorn Squash recipe, I knew exactly what we'd be cooking with our Acorn Squash.

Delicata Squash  happens to be my favorite of all winter squashes, and luckily, with plenty of Bell Peppers this week to boot, we’re going to be eating plenty of it in these Chile Roasted Squash and Sweet Pepper Quesadillas. Probably topped with copious amounts of the aforementioned pico de gallo.

Eggplant and Bell Peppers, along with plenty of Parsley also mean that this week we’re probably going to have to make up a big batch of this Roasted Summer Vegetable Panzanella.

This week’s CSA box included a seriously giant Cantaloupe, and to be honest, we’ve already eaten almost half of it straight up because it’s that good. If we’re feeling fancy, we may just turn the rest into this Fresh Melon Bruschetta for snacking or breakfasting on this week.

This week’s Raspberries almost didn’t make it into the picture. Raspberries in general don’t last long in our house, but when we do have them on hand, I love mixing them into my morning yogurt and granola.