Share Notes Dec 16 & 18, 2021
CSA Share Notes:
Fall Season is nearing it’s end! This week we have some of the most delicious roots ready for you and boy are we thrilled. Carrots, beets, kohlrabi, even a little broccoli. What a great share. And we’ve got one more delicious week in store for you after Christmas.
Still on the fence about signing up for winter CSA? There’s a little bit of room left. Reach out to us if you have any questions about the coming season. Sign up here.
Here’s this week’s vegetable line up:
- Beets—a few for everyone! Mostly dark red and chioggia (bullseye type), and a few people received some golden beets, but we didn’t have very many of those ready. The tops are edible too! Use them just like you would Swiss Chard.
- Carrots—For the Large and Regular shares. Sweet, colorful, crunchy.
- Chard— Large and Regular shares received a bunch of lovely, colorful chard. Use this in a fresh, massaged chard salad with bits of mango, apple, or dried fruit, or roast it until crispy, or sautee it with lots of garlic. We have a Swiss Chard and Butternut Squash Lasanga we really enjoy.
- Radish—Watermelon radishes for the large shares. These are so, so pretty with their hot-pink centers. Enjoy on a fresh salad, or for snacking.
- Kohlrabi— Large shares received these root crops that have a taste and texture similar to broccoli stems but sweeter and more flavorful. It’s great cut matchstick style and put in a slaw or sliced in a salad, or fantastic in a cream soup.
- Winter Squash — Only for the Mini, acorn squash. Our winter squash crop wasn’t very strong this year. They really battled a lot of pests, so we didn’t end up with a very large yield.
- Sweet Potatoes— These tasty tubers come from our friend 5 miles up the road, Tony Philips. He’s a wonderful area grower. Enjoy!
- Turnips— Purple top for the Regular, and Scarlet Queen for the Large and Mini. These are both fantastic turnips. I enjoy them simply cooked in butter, but there are loads of options with turnips. Try cooking a bit of onion and garlic in some bacon fat, butter, or olive oil, then add the chopped up roots and cook till softened, and then toss in the sliced up greens at the end to cook for a final minute or three until as soft as you like. Salt, pepper, and if you like, vinegar or tabasco, and you’ve got a hearty side dish. They also roast beautifully, especially in a winter root blend with carrots, winter squash, sweet potatoes, kohlrabi, etc., add in a few with some rosemary or thyme sprigs.
- Broccoli — Large shares received the very first harvest of broccoli. It’s a small first harvest, but more is on the way!
- Arugula— Regular and Mini shares received this tasty green. I love a salad of half arugula, half Swiss chard.
- Spring Mix—a small bag for everyone. Peppery, colorful, loads of different textures, we love this salad mix. You can braise or sauté it too or use in a soup
Veggie Storage tips:
Almost everything you received today will keep longest stored in the fridge sealed up in produce bags. Remove all the roots from their tops, and store the greens separately, and this will keep the roots from getting rubbery. The leaves suck nutrients and moisture from the roots if they’re kept intact. Keep sweet potatoes and winter squash at room temp. Everything will need a thorough 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
