FairShare CSA CoalitionCSA cooking, canning & food preservation
Techniques and ideas for extending the local food season and making the most of your CSA vegetable share!
Our goal is to make sure that all CSA members can use each week’s entire share. This year, our Food Preservation and CSA Cooking workshops will help CSA members, dedicated farmers’ market shoppers, and avid backyard gardeners make the most of the abundance of seasonal produce!
Cost: Dehydrating and Cooking workshops are $15. The Canning workshops are $25. Attend all three CSA Cooking workshops for $40, or the dehydrating and both canning workshops for $60.
Don’t forgot the From Asparagus to Zuchhini Cookbook available for purchase at each workshop (for the discounted price of $15)!
Reserve your space for the workshops by emailing info@csacoalition.org or calling (608) 226-0300, and mailing a check, payable to CSA Coalition, to 303 S. Paterson St. #1B, Madison, WI 53703.
"Confetti of Beauty Heart Radishes and Carrots" by chef Tami Lax of L'Etoile Restaurant. (Recipe is in our From Asparagus to Zucchini cookbook.)
Cooking it All
CSA Menu Planning & Cooking Techniques
In this series, professional cooks, Deb Shapiro and Barbara Wright, will use a sample CSA share to provide weekly menu plans, recipes, tips, and techniques for healthy eating of a vegetable-rich diet. This workshop will help you make the most of the abundance of seasonal, local vegetables and herbs.
Spring Box:
- Sunday, June 24, 4:30-6:30 p.m., Willy St. Co-op East, 1221 Williamson St., Madison, WI
- Thursday, June 28, 6-8 p.m, Willy St. Co-op West, 6825 University Ave., Middleton, WI
Summer Box:
- Sunday, Aug. 5, 4:30-6:30 p.m., Willy St. Co-op East, 1221 Williamson St., Madison, WI
- Thursday, Aug. 16, 6-8 p.m., Willy St. Co-op West, 6825 University Ave., Middleton, WI
Fall Box:
- Sunday, Sept. 23, 4:30-6:30 p.m., Willy St. Co-op East, 1221 Williamson St., Madison, WI
- Thursday, Sept. 27, 6-8 p.m., Willy St. Co-op West, 6825 University Ave., Middleton, WI
Food Preservation
Dehydrating Fruits, Veggies, & Herbs
Drying is the oldest and least expensive method of preserving food. Dried foods use little storage space, are light and easy to carry, and last a long time. In this workshop, we’ll discuss preparation of fruits, vegetables and herbs for drying, several methods of drying these foods, storage, and then potential uses and recipes for dried goods.
In addition to hearing about drying foods, you will see a demonstration of using a dehydrator, receive informational handouts, sample several refreshments made with dried fruits, vegetables, and herbs, and take some recipes and dried herbs home.
Sunday, July 15, 2012
4:30 – 6:30 p.m.
Willy St. Co-op East, 1221 Williamson St., Madison
Thursday, July 19, 2012
6 – 8 p.m.
Willy St. Co-op West, 6825 University Avenue, Middleton
Each summer, just when the tomatoes are coming on strong, the Coalition offers a course to help everyone feel comfortable preserving the harvest.
Water Bath Canning – High acid foods
Before we had refrigerators and freezers, canning was one method of preserving food. It was necessary to save part of each season’s harvest to survive the coming winter. Canning local farm food when in abundance allows us to enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables later in the year, thus extending the value of your CSA shares.
In this workshop, we will focus on water-bath canning for high-acid foods, covering which produce items are best for canning, the various cookware needed, produce preparation, and food safety. You will participate in a canning demonstration, sample refreshments, and receive handouts and recipes for salsas, pickling vegetables, and jams.
Sunday, Aug. 12, 2012
4 – 7 p.m.
Lakeview Lutheran Church, 4001 Mandrake Road, Madison
Pressure Canning – Low acid foods
Are you interested in canning some of the summer’s abundance of produce, or are you a seasoned canner, and would like to also use a pressure canner? Canning produce, meats, soups, and stock are wonderful ways to preserve seasonal produce or make quick meals for the future. Canning local farm food when in abundance allows us to enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables later in the year, thus extending the value of your backyard gardens, CSA shares, or farmers’ market purchases.
Tried-and-true tips and techniques for operating a pressure canner safely are important. In this workshop, we will focus on using the pressure canning technique for preserving foods. We will discuss which foods are best for a pressure canner, the various cookware needed, produce preparation, and food safety. You will participate in a canning demonstration, sample refreshments, and receive handouts, and recipes for stocks, soups, and a variety of vegetables including corn, potatoes, carrots, and beans.
Sunday, Aug. 26, 2012
4 – 7:30 p.m.
Lakeview Lutheran Church, 4001 Mandrake Road, Madison
Meet our Instructors
Polly Reott – Master Food Preserver & Owner, Polly Jane’s Pickles & Jams
Barbara WrightBarbara Wright has owned the award-winning Dardanelles Restaurant, a popular Mediterranean neighborhood restaurant in Madison, Wis., for almost 14 years. She is a firm believer in eating a healthy diet of locally grown foods cooked with the exotic flavors of far-away lands. She has worked in many different areas of the food world. She loves to teach people cooking skills and has participated in cooking competitions. She is a past president of the Madison Originals, an independent restaurant group with 40 very diverse eateries. A proud member of both the Buy Fresh Buy Local Group and Dane County Buy Local, she works to increase access to farm-fresh foods and help grow the local foods economy to keep the small farmers on the land. She is a black belt in Judo and a former self defense teacher. She has two grown children and lives in Madison, Wisc.
