What’s In The Box? February 19-25

Cozy Italian Supper
In the tradition of our own Nonna Pat’s long-standing Sunday suppers, this week’s box includes fixings for a meal to share with your nearest and dearest: Creamy risotto topped with Grana-style cheese and locally-foraged wild mushrooms, plus organic Skagit River Ranch sausage, Kalamata olive bread and a moist lemon olive oil-infused cake. Side dish-worthy produce including Lacinato kale, sweet fennel and blood oranges, and an expressive Montepulciano wine, polish off this robust Italian meal.

Here’s what you’ll find in your box this week:

Arborio Rice

This round-grain rice comes from the Po River Valley region of Italy and is named for the town of Arborio located in the heart of the region. When cooked in rich chicken stock and a splash of white wine, it becomes creamy and starchy and is a great accompaniment to any flavor combination, especially with sautéed wild mushrooms.

Dried Porcini Mushrooms

These beautiful fungi have been foraged from the mossy forests of the Pacific Northwest by expert mushroom hunter Jeremy Faber of Foraged & Found Edibles—see this week’s recipes for instructions on how to reconstitute these local delicacies.

Skagit River Ranch Italian Sausage

The pampered pigs raised on the Skagit River Ranch in Sedro-Woolley roam outdoors in certified-organic pastureland to root, dig, and cavort as only happy pigs can, thriving on a diet of flax seed, corn and wheat. Spiced with savory herbs, this delectable sausage is a hearty accompaniment to this week’s meal.

Housemade Chicken Stock

Made from roasted Bella Luna chickens, this flavorful stock is simmered slowly for hours with carrots, onions and celery and seasoned with a dash of sea salt and black pepper.

Kalamata Olive Bread

Baked for us at a small bakery in Snohomish and studded with briny Kalamata olives, this rustic loaf is airy, light and crisp.

La Quercia Montepulciano d’Abruzzo

This 100-percent organic wine hails from the prolific grape growing region of Abruzzo, Italy. Crafted by winemaker Antonio Lamona, the Montepulciano is fermented in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks, producing an expressive, balanced wine that pairs well with earthy mushrooms and other Italian fare.

Farm Fresh Eggs

As they spend their day dodging raindrops during the wet drippy weather of late, our heritage breed laying hens enjoy the tasty green popweed we pull from the garden, in turn supplying us with eggs in beautiful shades of brown, blue and green with bright yellow yolks.

Grana-Style Cheese

This hard Grana-style cheese is crafted from part-skim cow’s milk to allow for longer aging of 24 months or more. Ideal for grating over risotto, the drum-shaped cheese is turned and rubbed with olive oil during aging to create a smooth, golden rind.

Olive Oil Cake Mix

Crafted along with our lemon-infused olive oil (see this week’s recipes for details), this cake is a family favorite and makes frequent appearances on Nonna Pat’s Sunday supper table. Moist with a wonderful texture thanks to the inclusion of cornmeal, it is wonderful served for dessert or even breakfast alongside your morning cup of joe.

Lemon-Infused Olive Oil

High-quality extra virgin olive oil flavored with sweet-tart lemons.

Seasonal Organic Fruits & Vegetables

This week’s produce selection includes Meyer lemons, blood oranges and red d’Anjou pears, plus Cipollini onions, Lacinato kale, fennel, cauliflower, black radishes, and Acorn squash from Local Roots Farm.

Seasonal Organic Greens

Peppery arugula—also known as ‘rocket greens’!

Fresh Garden Herbs

Fresh thyme, Italian parsley, garlic and shallots from the walled garden and greenhouse at Bella Luna Farms.