October is here, which means cooler weather, Halloween candy and sadly, the end of the CSA (community supported agriculture) season. Thank you for joining me over the past 16 weeks as I’ve washed, chopped, cooked and eaten my way through my farm share.

In my last batch of the season, I picked up some broccoli and whipped up this easy and delicious side dish, which is a great recipe staple.

Easy Roasted Broccoli Recipe

Ingredients:

  • 1 head of broccoli, cut into 2″ florets and stems (optional)
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • Kosher salt
  • Crushed red pepper

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. In a large bowl, toss broccoli florets with the oil using your hands to thoroughly coat the broccoli. Spread florets and cut stems, if using, on a baking sheet and sprinkle liberally with salt and red pepper to taste. Roast for 15-20 minutes, or until the edges of the florets and stems are browned and crispy. Serving suggestion: Squeeze fresh lemon juice over the broccoli while still hot.

Now, let’s take a look at our Week 16 haul from our farm share:

Week 16 Haul

  • Wax beans
  • Squash
  • Broccoli
  • Tomatoes
  • Onions
  • Bell peppers
  • Radishes
  • Braising greens
  • Lettuce
  • Arugula
  • Chiles
  • Cilantro
  • Basil

What I Made (Italics represent CSA vegetables used)

Need some menu ideas? Check out the meals I made with this week’s haul of vegetable from our farm share for weeknight or weekend dinner inspiration.

Porterhouse Steak and Caprese Salad: When porterhouse steaks go on sale, we stock our freezer, which is how we ended up making this simple, but kind of fancy, Friday night meal of steak and a caprese salad. We used some of the basil and one of the tomatoes we got this week.

Sunday Night Chicken Curry: After a long week, on Sunday I was ready to spend a quiet day at home cooking a big pot of chicken curry that used up the onion, tomato, chile, cilantro, braising and radish greens, and potatoes.

Weeknight Speedy Italian: Chicken sausage; sautéed bell peppers and onions with basil; arugula salad with lemon and kosher salt; roasted broccoli; Italian bread

Weeknight Asian-Inspired Pork Dish: Pork stir fry; sesame wax beans with bell peppers; jasmine rice

Weeknight Fridge Clean-out: Grilled chicken topped with sauteed mushrooms; avocado and radish salad over lettuce; Italian bread

READ MORE: 5 Healthy Italian Garden Vegetable Side Dishes