Share Notes May 16, 2024
CSA Share Notes
Your vegetable line up:
- Carrots— Regular and Mini shares (more coming soon!) They’re small now, but in another 2 weeks, especially if the weather dries out a little, we ‘re hopeful we’ll have beautiful carrots to send to everyone!
- Beets— Large shares only this week (more coming soon!) I’m going to nudge you in the direction of this wonderful beet spread recipe that we’ve made and loved for years now. Please try it and tell me if your family loves it too!
- Watermelon Radish— Large shares. We’re so excited for y’all to experience these radishes! They’re light greenish white on the outside and hot pink in the center. They’re usually nice and spicy as far as radishes go, so take it slow. We eat with our eyes first, so we love thin slices on a salad to add beauty.
- Head Lettuce — Mini shares received a petite red romaine. Large and regular shares received 1 red head and 1 green head, of all assorted varieties- some got romaine, some got butter lettuce, some got a summer crisp. We just took the best of what we’ve got. It’s hating all this rain!
- Leeks — 2 for the Large shares, 1 for the regular and mini shares. You’ll clean these well, as dirt can get down into the leaf folds, but they’ll be delicious in any soups or sautes you make this week. We have a HEAVENLY recipe for a Scape, Chard, and Leek Quiche that we served for a farm-to-table event and it definitely impressed. Give it a whirl! It even includes our family’s hand-made pie crust recipe. If you follow it to a T, it turns out a great crust.
- Garlic Scapes — Probably the last of this crop!
- Dandelion Greens — This is a European bitter green in the chicory family and it is excellent for a healthy liver! It’s wonderful as a pesto, or sauteed and served mixes into a pasta. You can find great Italian recipes, where it’s translated to Cicoria (aka- chicory!) so run a recipe search using that term to get some authentic Italian pasta dishes using dandelion greens. The flavor is strong. A little goes a long way. Enjoy!
- Kale — Lacinato kale for the Regular shares, and Curly kale for the Large shares. These crops can be used interchangeably in any recipe that calls for kale. The weather is warming up, it’s time for a good potluck potato salad, and this one using kale is a winner.
- Collard — A bunch of super tender fresh collards for the Mini shares.
- Chard — Regular shares. Closely related to spinach. This week we sauteed a ton of scapes, and then braised it with the chard in chicken stock till super tender and it was wonderful.
- Arugula — A bag for the Large and Mini shares. A little sweetness like apple, or dried fruit cuts through the peppery bite of the arugula. Excellent with some parmesan or goat cheese.
Veggie Storage tips:
Consult the e-book we sent you for a comprehensive veggie storage guide! All leafy greens will keep longest stored in the fridge sealed up in produce bags. Root crops should be severed from their tops to keep the roots from getting rubbery, and the greens stored separately, sealed up to stay fresh. Everything will need a gentle washing before cooking, but you can 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. Tag us in Stories, send us a note, or post comments of how you’ve used your CSA share!
Your farmers, Jess & Justin
