June12 or 15 CSA

Share contents:  1 pound of spinach, 1 head napa cabbage, 1 bunch purple carrots, 1 bunch red scallions, 1 bunch dill, 1 head of red romaine, 1 pound small cucumbers, 1 bunch of garlic, 2 pounds red new potatoes.

Yeehaw!! New potatoes!  It was a muddy task to get these lovelies out of the ground but well worth it.  They taste soooo good.  Be sure to refrigerate them until use and use them within a week.  They do not keep very well at this stage.  Dill will keep best wrapped in a piece of fabric or paper towel in the refrigerator.

There are, in your box this week, many ingredients for a batch of kimchi.  The napa cabbage, carrots, garlic, scallions, dill.  The napa and dill also make great slaw.  Napa is delicious cooked slowly in a covered pot with a parmesan rind for flavoring.

The cucumbers are “pickling” cucumbers but are great for fresh eating as well.

Green Garlic Soup, from Alice Waters Chez Panisse Vegetables

1 bunch of green garlic

1 pound of new potatoes

2 medium onions (or 1 bunch of scallions, greens and all)

1/4 pound unsalted butter

2 quarts chicken stock (can substitute vegetable stock)

Trim away the root end of the garlic and peel away tough outer skin.  Cut the garlic into thin half rounds.  Cut the potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes.  Chop the onions into small dice.   Melt the butter in a heavy bottomed pot, add the onion, and cook slowly until translucent and tender.  Salt, and add the garlic and potatoes.  Cook these together for 5 minutes, then pour in the stock and bring to a boil.  Lower the heat to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are tender.  Check the seasoning.  This soup can be served rustic and chunky, or pureed – either way is delicious.

The rains of the weekend were kind to us.  They fell gently and only 3 &1/4 inches total.  We are pumping standing water out of the fields and hoping to stave off diseases this way.  The tomatoes have grown about a foot in the last week.  The first planting of green beans have begun to bloom.  June.

 

 

June 5 or 8 CSA

fledgling Carolina wren  (it did fly away and join its family)

This weeks’ share contents:

1 &1/2 pounds summer squash, 1 bunch of kale, 1 head green butterhead lettuce, 1 head romaine lettuce, 1 head of bok choy, 1 bunch of yellow onions, 1 bunch of garlic scapes.

The cucumbers are blooming getting bigger.  The many different onions we grow are starting to bulb up.  You’ll be seeing these things in the next few weeks.  I hope you all have a great week!  We are hoping that the rains of the next few days are gentle and that the creeks stay in their banks.

KALE AND WHITE BEAN SALAD, from the Minimalist Baker

GARLIC CROUTONS optional

  • 2 cups white or wheat bread, cubed. (day old is best)
  • 1/4 cup olive oil (or other neutral oil, such as avocado)
  • 1/4 tsp each garlic powder, sea salt + black pepper

BEANS

  • 1 15-ounce can white or butter beans (rinsed and drained)
  • 1/2 lemon, juiced (1/2 lemon yields ~1 Tbsp or 15 ml)
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • 1 Tbsp fresh parsley (chopped // plus more for topping)

SALAD

  • 10 ounces kale (chopped // large stems removed)
  • 1 lemon, juiced (1 lemon yields ~2 Tbsp or 30 ml)
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 Tbsp maple syrup (optional)
  • 1 pinch each sea salt + black pepper
  • 1 clove garlic (minced)

DRESSING

  • 1/3 cup tahini
  • 1 clove garlic (minced) or 2 or 3 garlic scapes thinly sliced
  • 1 1/2 lemons, juiced (1 1/2 lemons yield ~3-4 Tbsp or 45-60 ml)
  • 1-2 Tbsp dijon mustard
  • 1 pinch each sea salt + black pepper
  • Hot water (to thin)

Instructions

    1. If making croutons (optional), preheat oven to 325 degrees F (162 C).
    2. Add bread cubes to a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together oil, garlic powder, sea salt and pepper, and pour over bread. Toss to combine. Season once more with a bit more garlic powder, salt and pepper. Toss once more.
    3. Spread on a bare baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Flip/stir at the 10-minute mark to ensure even baking. Set aside.
    4. In the meantime, add drained beans to a small mixing bowl and add lemon juice, olive oil, sea salt, and fresh parsley. Toss to combine. Set aside.
    5. Add kale to a large mixing bowl with lemon juice, olive oil, maple syrup, salt, pepper and minced garlic. Use your hands to massage the kale and break down its texture a bit, and to season the salad.
    6. To prepare dressing, add tahini, garlic, lemon juice, dijon mustard, sea salt, and pepper to a small mixing bowl. Whisk to combine, then add hot water to thin until pourable. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. Set aside.
Lastly, add beans, croutons, and 3/4 of the dressing to the kale and toss to combine. Serve with any additional dressing and garnish with parmesan cheese (optional). Best when fresh. If serving later, store dressing and croutons separately.

May 29

Czech Red Wheat starting to head up!

May 29 or June 1 CSA

Share contents:  2 pints of strawberries, 1 bunch of red scallions, 1 bunch green garlic, 1 bunch carrots, 2 heads of lettuce, 1 bunch of kale, 1/2 pound Chinese broccoli.

The strawberries are waning but we have some for you this week!  As it heats up out here the squash is starting to ripen and cucumbers are blooming.  There are a few tomatoes starting to show on the plants and the corn is germinating.  Yeehaw!  Now, though I can’t believe I’m saying it, we could use a little rain.

Broccoli Salad

  1. 1/2 pound of Chinese broccoli cut into bite sized pieces (use stem and leaves too), blanched and cooled.
  2. 4 red scallions sliced in thin circles.
  3. 1/4 cup dried cranberries or cherries or currants.
  4. 1/4 cup sunflower seeds.
  5. 1/2 cup bacon broken into small pieces (optional).
  6. 2 tablespoons cider vinegar or lemon juice.
  7. 1 teaspoon sugar or honey.
  8. 1/2 cup mayonnaise, sour cream or plain yogurt (or a combination of the 3).

    Instructions

    1. Whisk together cider vinegar, sugar, mayonnaise, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Set aside.

    2. In a large bowl, combine broccoli, onion, cranberries, sunflower seeds, and bacon bits. Pour the prepared dressing over and mix well.

    3. Refrigerate for an hour before serving.

Useful Information Related to the CSA

 

We would like for you to bring a bag every week to transfer your share into and leave the empty wax box with us.  Any pint containers or buckets that vegetables are packed in can be re-used if you bring them back to us in good shape.

We do not pack special boxes for individuals.  If there are things in your box that you don’t like or can’t eat you can exchange them for something in the “exchange box”.

If you miss a pick-up, we bring your box back to the farm and put it in our cooler.  You need to make arrangements to come get it or have it brought to the next market.  It will be the same veggies, not a new box packed for you.

If you know you are going to miss a week you have a couple of options:

  1. Let me know by email NO LATER THAN 6am Tuesday for Wednesday pick-ups or 6am Friday for Saturday pick-ups to tell me you don’t want a box that week.  You can have credit for up to 2 missed boxes that has to be spent in $24 increments by the end of 2019.
  2. OR, you can give your box to a friend.  Be sure they bring a bag with them and that they know our farm name and your name when they come to pick up.