Green BEAN Delivery - Fresh, organic produce delivered to your doorstep

I am pretty sure all of you know about CSA's (Community Supported Agriculture) and how awesome they are! We have tried it and loved it. However (isn't there always a "however"?), we found that with just the two of us it was inevitable that we would have waste. I hate that. Growing up in a family of nine, it was pretty much a cardinal sin to waste food. To this day that sticks with me. So we stopped the CSA.

I think I first learned of Green BEAN through a Groupon, maybe? "Networked with the best organic produce growers & local artisans, Green B.E.A.N. Delivery provides home delivery of organic produce & natural groceries to Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky, Dayton and Columbus." Once I tried it I was hooked! This is a service that is much like a CSA, except that I get to choose what will be in my box…and they deliver it right to my front porch! How great is that??? Bob and I have been Green BEAN customers for quite a while now and we love it. I signed us up for the small produce bin, which is $35. There are other sizes but this one seems to be a good amount for us to work with. They deliver every two weeks, and I can suspend delivery, if say I'm going on vacation.

The week before delivery I get an email with the details of what will be in the produce box. If I want to make any changes I have ample opportunity to customize the box for the two of us. Then on delivery day I put my empty green box on the front porch and magically the Green BEAN fairy puts the full box in place and the empty one is gone! (Okay, so I know that there really is no "Green BEAN fairy".) Just sayin'.

So when I was contacted to try Green BEAN and blog about it, well heck yes I wanna tell the world how awesome this is!!!! Yes, they did comp me a produce box in way of thanks. I will tell you though, that the opinions are totally my own and I can say I've been a long time customer so I'll give you the real skinny.

Here is the box I received:

Isn't it pretty? I just love all of the gorgeous colors of the summer boxes! So as you can see, I got lettuce, corn on the cob, spinach, Brussels sprouts, mint, raspberries, blueberries, Yukon gold potatoes, nectarines, and donut white peaches. Food, glorious food!!! (Who knows that reference?)

I set out to show you some of the dishes I might with this produce. 

First I made Rasa Malaysia's Thai Chili Chicken, using the mint leaves.

http://rasamalaysia.com/thai-chili-chicken/. This dish is super easy and oh-so-good!!! Bob and I gobbled it up and then were bummed there were no leftovers. This was so amazing!

Next on my list was the corn.

First I cut the corn off the cob. I dare you to not nibble as you do this. Oh my, there is nothing in the world like really fresh corn!

I added chopped garlic, salt, & pepper and sautéed this in a couple of teaspoons olive oil. When the corn started to caramelize, I added a tablespoon of butter and scooped up all of the yummy brown bits. I took it off the heat and added chopped fresh marjoram. This is the resulting yumminess! Is that a word? Well it is now!

Moving on I roasted the Brussels sprouts.

Truly this is the only way to eat Brussels sprouts. I cleaned them, tossed them with olive oil and put them in a single layer and roasted til they were brown. I wanted a nice color but I don't let them get mushy. Mushy is not good!

Isn't this a lovely dinner plate? I thought so. I put some of the mint in my ice water for a totally refreshing glass of minted ice water. Bob had grilled chicken and Halloumi cheese (which is to die for) for our protein. I had also roasted a bunch of gorgeous heirloom grape tomatoes. They were an incredible compliment to the Brussels sprouts! Who knew?

On to dessert!!! The berries were fantastic!

Believe it or not, I had some scrumptious lemon curd in the fridge that I'd made a few days before. I know, who has lemon curd just hanging around? A first for me. Instantly I knew that these berries were screaming for that curd. Really!!! And I was oh so right! And then to put earrings on the elephant (one of Bob's favorite phrases) I added salted caramel shortbread cookies. Enter a little taste of heaven.

I have to admit that the nectarines never really got ripe before they bit the dust. However, one call to Green BEAN to let them know, and I was immediately credited the amount of the fruit. No questions asked. Their customer service is beyond belief. I love these people!

The donut peaches ripened beautifully.

This luscious dessert is sugar free vanilla syrup macerated peaches with Jeni's pear Riesling sorbet, Starbuck's caramel sauce, and Trader Joe's coconut crisp cookies garnished with fresh mint. Okay, so I went a little overboard. LOL! Sometimes I just go over the edge. Yes, it was way too many flavors colliding in one dish, but Bob and I managed to choke it down. If only we were given such a horrible task every night!

So there you have it. A taste of most of the ingredients in my Green BEAN box.

I can't say how much we have enjoyed our Green BEAN membership. We've learned that there are veggies we like that we hadn't tried before. I mean, I'm eating beets & Brussels sprouts! What is this sorcery???

The folks at Green BEAN are offering you a great deal. If you'd like to try the service, use the code 15DIUml  and they will take $15 off of your first order! I know, right??? 

Here is the link to set up your account: http://www.greenbeandelivery.com/cincinnati/index.php/how-it-works/step-by-step/. You can try it and cancel at any time if you're not happy with it. But if you're like me, you are going to love it!!!

The code is 15DIUml, and it is good for a week from today. I really hope you'll give it a go!!!