Share Notes 6-6-19

Share Notes 6-6-19

CSA Share Notes:

The spring garden is hanging in there! We’ve got a few more items for you this week than we had last week, but the shares are still smaller than we planned without the big beautiful heads of broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower, with no arugula, spring mix, turnips, radishes, or beets. It’s so tragic to watch your hard work drown in the field or get smothered in a soupy row of water-lovin’ weeds. In a season like this, we have to get even more creative and work even harder just to eek out a much smaller yield.  Justin said the other day it feels demoralizing. Yuck. We at least take some small comfort that farmers all across the US are struggling this year -it’s not just us- and we’re all in this together.

But we have you with us!  And we’re so grateful for your financial commitment and those of you who have sent notes of encouragement. You guys come on the journey with us throughout the season, getting an up close look at the challenges of agriculture in this particular region, at this particular time. You feel the ebbs and flows of the season and understand far better than the average consumer what it takes to get healthy local food to your kitchen table. And I hope that means you cherish it! I know we do. In years like this, we are even more grateful to the farmers that sell by our side at the farmers market, and to the ranchers that raise the local meat we feed our own family.

All of this to say two things: 1. trust that we want to stuff your boxes till they are busting, we really do, but this season we can’t.  and 2. Thank you so much for being a member of our farm and coming along for the ride with us. We can’t do what we do without you.  If you’d like to come along for the next season, you can sign up here.

Now on to your vegetable line-up!

  • Lettuce—a curly romaine (so cool!) and a butter crunch to both the regular shares and the large, and an extra green frills lettuce to the large shares.
  • Carrots—This picking is from our rainbow mix, so there are some white, yellow, orange, and red in the mix.  The pale yellow carrots did the best through the wet soil, so you may see mostly yellow in your bunch. These itty bitty carrots pack a lot of intense carrot flavor. I suggest either grilling or oven roasting them whole and finishing with a balsamic glaze.
  • Blueberries—Just like the peaches, these are from our friends at Winona Orchards While they don’t use organic practices, their fruit quality and flavor is simply amazing. The most effective way to remove chemical residues from produce is to submerge for a couple of minutes in a bowl of cold water with a tablespoon of dissolved baking soda, then rinse well.
  • Blackberries—for the Large shares only. These came from the plants of Jessica’s mom and dad, who live on the farm, too (Yes, we’re multi-generational living out here! It’s the best.) These are grown organically, so just rinse them off and pop one in your mouth.
  • Winterbor Kale—Regular shares received winterbor kale, and about a half-dozen of you received Lacinato kale.  Both are excellent for cooking in a soup or turning into kale chips. The Lacinato is highly prized by chefs, so to the few who got it, enjoy! We’ve got several kale ideas in our kitchen blog for you.
  • Red Russian Kale—Large shares all received this crop. This variety became a delicious massaged kale salad this week, hand rubbed with kosher salt and olive oil until it was silky and soft, then we topped it with a couple of diced up ripe peaches and it was heavenly.
  • Onions— keep them in dry, well circulated air until you use them up (don’t keep them sealed up, or under the cupboard, they wanna breathe)
  • New potatoes—Also fresh and uncured.  We boiled ours this week and topped with a delicious herbed tahini sauce: garlic, tahini, lemon juice, oregano, lots of basil and parsley, and a bit of salt, all blended into a scrumptious sauce.
  • Fennel—Regular shares only. This crop really prefers dry, cool conditions, and it wasn’t able to thrive so they’re teeny tiny.  I suggest using the bulbs in a yummy potato soup and use the frilly fronds with fish for some awesome flavor.

Veggie Storage tips:

Sever roots from their tops to keep them from getting rubbery. All your greens and roots will want to be stored cold in the fridge sealed up in a bag.  Your onions and potatoes will be happiest at room temperature. Store the fennel sealed up in a bag till your ready to use it. If you use up the bulb, place the frond stems in a glass of water on the county to drink up water and stay crisp till you’re ready to use them. Blueberries and blackberries should get scarfed up soon, and they don’t have a long shelf life. Store them in the fridge too. Everything will need a gentle washing before cooking, but leave the dirt on until you’re ready to use them to prevent spoilage.

We’d love to hear stories and recipes of your culinary adventures this week. Send us a note or post a comment of how you’ve used your CSA share.

Your farmers,

Jess & Justin

 

Regular Share

Regular Share from left to right: Curly romaine, butter crunch lettuce, Winterbor kale, yellow onions, carrots, fennel bulbs, new potatoes, and blueberries.

Large Share

Large share from top left to right: Curly romaine, butter crunch and green summer crisp lettuce, Red Russian kale, yellow onions, blueberries, blackberries, carrots and new potatoes.