Share Notes 7/9 & 7/11, 2020

Share Notes 7/9 & 7/11, 2020

CSA Share Notes:

Welcome to another abundant week! I was reflecting today with Justin and we can’t think of a summer harvest in our 9 years of farming where we filled the CSA boxes as full as we filled them today. We’ve hit the mother lode. While this is not the norm, let’s be grateful for it today and remember it in months to come if we come upon harsher growing conditions. ENJOY it while you’ve got it! We are. Canning, dehydrating, pickling, and eating, eating, eating.

Here’s this week’s vegetable line up:

  • Squash—Large and Mini shares received Zephyr squash this week and Regular shares received our classic yellow squash.
  • Zucchini—2 different varieties of beautiful heirloom zucchini made their way into the boxes this week.
  • Sungolds— Quarts to the large shares, and pints to the regular and mini. With all the rain (4 inches!!), some are beginning to split. keep an eye out for them.
  • Slicer tomatoes— Each share received a few lovely red slicer tomatoes. Again, with all the rain, some are split. If yours have any damage, eat them them up quickly. They will not keep. If you have some that are under ripe,  set them on the counter shoulders down (that’s upside down) at room temperature to finish ripening. Putting them shoulders down protects them from bruising under their own weight.
  • Valencia tomatoes—These lovely orange tomatoes made it into every box. They’re sweeter and softer textured than our red slicers. Enjoy.
  • Eggplant—This is the week of the eggplant!  Check out our green curry recipe for using yours up.  Cherry tomatoes would work in this dish, as would potatoes, peppers, squash and zucchini, and add in a few big handfuls of basil. This recipe could really help you work through your box!
    • Large and Regular shares received all three types: Italian Eggplant, Japanese Eggplant, and Fairy Tale Eggplant. The mini shares received the Japanese and the Fairy Tale.
    • Italian are perfect for a veggie lasagna.
    • The lovely Fairy Tale eggplant are my favorite for use in a Thai curry. The slender purple Japanese eggplant are super versatile and easy to work with.  All three varieties are interchangeable so don’t be afraid to swap into your favorite recipes.
    • Eggplant performs best with really high heat and a bit of char on it to bring out the sugars, so roast, grill, or griddle it.
  • Basil—everyone received a big bunch of Genovese basil. Have you made any pesto yet?? We’re sending you plenty! Remember, basil does not want to be below 50 degrees. Storing it in the fridge will ruin your basil! Quickly get it out of your box, trim the stems, and get it into a glass of water.
  • Onions—red and yellow for the Large and Regular shares.
  • Cucumbers—Enough for everyone this time. These are baby pickling cucumbers and are great eaten fresh or pickled.
  • Hot peppers—long, lime green cayenne peppers for the regular and large shares. Jalapenos for the mini.
  • Italian sweet peppers—Large shares only. These look a lot like the cayennes, so make sure you keep them separate and don’t get them confused or you’ll be in for a spicy surprise! (we packed them on opposite sides of your box to help) These are long, slender, thin-walled peppers in a nice limey-yellow or pale green, lime green cayenne peppers for the regular and large shares. They’re great in a greek salad.

Veggie Storage tips:

The eggplant, cucumbers, peppers, squash and zucchini will keep longest stored in the fridge sealed up in produce bags.  The tomatoes, onions, and basil all prefer to stay at room temperature.  Basil should never be kept below 50 degrees or it will turn black. Keep it in a glass of water on your counter and change out the water and trim the stems as needed to keep it fresh. If you’re not able to use it all up, hang it upside down to dry in a dark cabinet. Everything will need a gentle washing before cooking, but leave the dirt on until you’re ready to use them to prevent spoilage.

Your farmers, Jess & Justin

Regular Share

Regular Share top row, left to right: Japanese eggplant, cayenne peppers above purple and green bell peppers, 3 slicer tomatoes, 1 valencia tomato, Italian eggplant, Fairytale eggplant above sungolds, and basil. (bottom row): cucumbers, zephyr and yellow squash, zucchinis, yellow and red onion.

Large Share

Large Share top row, left to right: cucumbers, red and yellow onions above cayenne peppers, 2 Italian sweet peppers, purple and green bell pepper, fairytale eggplant, and  basil. 2nd row- Japanese eggplant, sungolds, Italian eggplants, Valencia tomato, 4 slicer tomatoes. Bottom row: zucchini, yellow squash, and zephyr squash.

 Mini Share

Mini share, described by columns, from left to right: Japanese eggplants, green and purple bell peppers and jalapenos above cucumber, yellow squash, and zucchini, Valencia tomato above 2 slicer tomatoes, Fairy tale eggplant above sungolds, basil.