Here’s one way to get healthy, seasonal produce this summer.
GrowNYC’s Fresh Food Box program returns for the summer season this week, with a bag of farm-fresh vegetables and fruits available at 19 locations throughout Brooklyn, Queens and Manhattan for $12.
Now in its third season, the public program offers communities the quality and variety found in a Community Supported Agriculture share, but with the flexibility of ordering week-to-week. Each bag contains seven to nine seasonal fruits and vegetables from small and mid-sized farms located primarily in New York State, as well as healthy recipes and tips on storage and preparation.
To buy a bag, visit a Fresh Food Box site during distribution hours, order and pay (cash, credit/debit, EBT and Health Bucks accepted), then pick up the following week. For more info, visit grownyc.org/foodbox.
Find a site near you
QUEENS
Adventureland Child Care
32-04 31st Ave., Long Island City
Fridays from 3:30-6:30 p.m. from July 24-Nov. 20
Jacob Riis Neighborhood Settlement
1025 41st Ave., Long Island City
Wednesdays from 3:30-6:30 p.m. July 8 through Nov. 25
BRONX
Claremont Neighborhood Center
489 E. 169th St.
Wednesdays from 3:30-6:30 p.m. July 8 through Nov. 25
Bronxworks
1130 Grand Concourse
Wednesdays from 3:30-6:30 p.m. July 8 through Nov. 25
BROOKLYN
St. Mark’s Head Start and UPK
2017 Beverley Rd., Prospect Park South
Tuesdays from 1:30-4:30 p.m. now through Nov. 24
Bishop Sexton Head Start
933 Herkimer St., Bedford-Stuyvesant
Wednesdays from 1:30-4:30 p.m. July 8 through Nov. 25
ACE Head Start
1419 Broadway, Bushwick
Wednesdays from 1-4 p.m. July 8 through Nov. 25
Inner Force Tots Learning Center
1181 East New York Ave., Brownsville
Fridays from 3-6 p.m. from July 10-Nov. 20
Halsey Community Garden
462 Halsey St., Bedford-Stuyvesant
Saturdays from 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. from July 11-Nov. 21
MANHATTAN
Stanley Isaacs Neighborhood Center
415 E. 93rd St.
Tuesdays from 3:30-6:30 p.m. now through Nov. 24
East Harlem Bilingual Head Start
440-46 E. 116th St.
Wednesdays from 1-4 p.m. July 8 through Nov. 25
Nicholas Cardell Day Care Center
84 Vermilyea Ave.
Wednesdays from 2:30-6 p.m. July 8 through Nov. 25
Hudson Guild Children’s Center
459 W. 26th St.
Tuesdays from 2:30-6 p.m. July 8 through Nov. 25
Fresh Food Box recipe
Corn salad
Recipe by Nicole Tucker, Fresh Food Box program coordinator
“I love this salad because it’s not only easy and delicious, it’s incredibly flexible,” says Tucker. “You can pretty much put anything in it, and it will be good. Use this recipe as a guideline, not a set of laws.”
2 ears corn
1/2 pint cherry tomatoes
2 stalks of celery
4 sweet snacking peppers
1/2 cup fresh herbs (such as cilantro, parsley and basil)
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar or white wine vinegar
Salt and pepper
Wash and shred the herbs with a knife.
Combine the herbs, olive oil, vinegar, some salt and some pepper in the bottom of a large bowl.
Shuck the corn and cut the raw kernels from the cob by standing the shucked corn on one end in a shallow bowl and, using a large sharp knife, slice downward.
Wash and halve or quarter the cherry tomatoes.
Wash and dice the celery and snacking peppers.
Add all raw vegetables to the large bowl and mix.
Serve alone, as a side or on a bed of lettuce greens.
