In our home kitchen, I’m queen of the sides. I don’t trust myself to properly cook proteins, so I usually volunteer to figure out what to pair with it. The only problem is that I rely too heavily on frozen vegetables and the same old go-tos from the produce section of the grocery store.
When I heard that Hungry Harvest, a “rescued” fruit and veggie home delivery service, was expanding to the Triangle, I knew it would give me a chance to switch up my usual routine of heating up the frozen peas and corn. Plus, a friend from DC who subscribes to Hungry Harvest had already emailed us when she saw they were coming to our area and highly recommend we sign up…good thing we already had a delivery on the way! (Keep reading to see how you could win one!)Hungry Harvest has a valiant mission, too: By rescuing fresh and delicious produce whose only crime is being a little off-size, off-color, a little ugly or a little overproduced, every delivery saves at least 10 pounds of food from going to waste while supporting hunger-solving produce in SNAP markets and donations. They are based out of Baltimore, Maryland and even landed a deal on the popular investment pitching show Shark Tank in 2015.
After two weeks of deliveries, I’m hooked. It reminds me of when my husband and I would pick up our CSA boxes during the summer and I’d eagerly go through the bag and challenge myself to cook with whatever was included in the latest bounty. When I’m shopping in the grocery store, I shy away from things I don’t know how to cook, but when it arrives in a box and I have to make use of it, it helps pull me out of my cooking comfort zone. And in each Hungry Harvest box, there is a lot of variety.For example, this was my first time cooking artichokes (which I steamed and paired with a homemade balsamic garlic aioli) and delicata squash (which I roasted and paired with local pasta maker Melina’s pumpkin gnocchi and drizzled with homemade brown butter sauce). Thank goodness for Google and helpful home cooking videos!There are plenty of familiar items included the boxes as well. With each delivery, we immediately cut up and enjoyed the the sweetest opal apples we’ve ever had, bright oranges and grapefruit. I know the premise is that the food in the boxes might be discolored or ugly, but most of it is simply beautiful!With three small avocados in the box, I made my favorite side dish: simple, creamy guacamole with minced garlic, chopped onion, lime, salt and cumin. I also roasted and flash broiled the golden potatoes for home fries, and sautéed the bright green brussel sprouts.We found the “Mini Harvest” box to be more than enough for a week’s supply for two people, even with a child. In fact, I still have several items to cook from my two-week supply, including sweet potatoes, cauliflower, zucchini, lettuce and onions. For vegetarians, the larger boxes would probably be a good option.
The prices 20-40% less than what you pay at grocery stores. If I continue with my subscription (which I plan to do), it will cost me $16 a box, and as you can see, that includes a head of fresh lettuce, cauliflower, bag of potatoes, and two of the following: artichokes, onions, grapefruits, zucchini apples and grapefruit. We’ve teamed up with Hungry Harvest to give THREE lucky readers the chance to WIN a free “Mini Harvest” box and try the new produce delivery service for yourself! Earn up to four entries via Rafflecopter below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Note: This is a sponsored post that contains information Bites of Bull City wrote and chooses to share because we believe it is of interest and relevant to our audience.
Carolina K says
I have tried cooking with fresh artichoke once before in college and would really like to revisit
Dave says
I have never tried to cook a delicate squash and would love to try. The way you cooked it up looks delicious!
Jessie says
I want to taste Delicata Squash. Can you write a post on its recipe?
Blair says
I’ve never cooked with plantains and would love to!
Sara says
Kobucha squash would be fun to try out!
Karman Kent says
Yum, I want to try this!
Vanessa says
Sunchokes are something I’ve never cooked before.
Linda says
I’ve never cooked artichokes before! Love eating them though!
Lyndsay says
I’m excited about trying this especially since I hate grocery shopping! What a great idea to reduce food waste as well
Brooke Lupton says
I have always been afraid to cook artichoke, seems like so much work! If I heard that the results were worth it I would definitely do it, though!
kelly says
I’ve never done artichokes before!