CSA Newsletter Week 6

4:04 PM Mandy 0 Comments

June 29 and 30, July 3

Pickins may look a bit slimmer this week, but they're still just as fresh and nutritious. Enjoy them while we have them!

Don't forget the garlic party, coming up next weekend (July 9th-11th)! We encourage you to drive out and pitch in at least a couple of hours-- we could really use some extra hands on deck. RSVP echocsa@gmail.com if you're planning to come out.

In your box this week:

• Parsley.
• Mint. Pairs nicely with tart summer fruits-- currants, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries. Fluff some couscous and mix in currants (fresh or dried), fresh chopped mint, and pine nuts.
  
• Basil.
• Garlic scapes.
• Kale. How about kale and potato hashbrowns topped with jerk sauce?
  
• Chard. Make a delicious quiche with chard, scapes, mushrooms, and chevre. Younger leaves have a more pliable texture and can be used for stuffing with rice or pasta and veg. If sauteeing chard, watch it closely because it tends to turn gritty when cooked too long.
  
• Beet. Cooled, roasted beets mixed with hazelnuts and pieces of avocado and grapefruit, tossed with yogurt, mint and honey, or tossed with leaf lettuce and a balsamic vinaigrette--mm.
  
• Turnip. Turnip fries! (May have to save a couple weeks worth of roots to do this...)
  
• Shallot.
• Peas, broccoli, and bok choy will be added to boxes as they become available.

CSA Newsletter Week 5

9:49 AM Mandy 0 Comments

June 22, 23 and 26

Rain, rain go away! This week we are quite ready for the summer sun to shine. Stagnating muddy conditions on the farm are just no good for any of our vegetables. Nor are flash floods-- yikes!

Reminder on the annual garlic harvest and party (just about 2 weeks away): we'll be pulling and hanging garlic on July 10th and 11th. We can also use help getting things started on Friday, July 9th. Camping is available. We'll potluck, cook, and have fun Friday night, Saturday night, and Sunday for brunch. RSVP echocsa@gmail.com if you plan to come out.

In your box this week:

• Basil. Here's a wacky idea: make a stack of savory waffles, adding chopped basil to your mix. Serve aside eggs and other breakfast-type dishes. Need a new waffle recipe? I've featured my favorite below.
  
• Parsley. Throw a handful of fresh, chopped parsley into whatever vegetable dish you make near the end of cooking it. It adds a refreshing zing.
  
• Kale. Add just a leaf or two of kale to a fruit smoothie, and give a nice boost to the nutritional content. (The flavor of kale mixes especially nicely with sharp, tangy kiwi and apple juice, or with blueberry and apple juice.)
  
• Lettuce.
  
• Garlic scapes. In Korean cuisine, these are traditionally pickled in tamari.
  
• Turnip. Boil and mash with potatoes to give an earthy flavor to a familiar dish. Chop and cook them in hearty soups or stews. I plan on saving up some turnips from my boxes and making a shoestring turnip kraut-- mm, fermented veg.
  
• Peas. Make a delicious salad tossing your sweet snap peas with steamed and cooled quinoa, toasted pumpkin seeds, fresh diced scapes, chopped parsley and a simple balsamic-olive oil vinaigrette.
  
• Beets. Don't forget to use the greens on your beets! Try putting some, chopped fine, atop a homemade pizza.
  
• Napa cabbage. Speaking of ferments-- napa and turnips are both good candidates for a spicy kimchi. They could also go together in a coleslaw.

CSA Newsletter Week 4

3:46 PM Mandy 0 Comments

June 15, 16 and 19

Love those fresh herbs! As days get longer and we near the summer solstice, plants are concentrating more and more of their energy in vegetative growth-- producing strong leaves, stems, and shoots. After the solstice, plants put relatively more energy into blossom, fruit, and seed production. Culinary and medicinal herbs harvested for their leaves are usually at peak potency leading up to the solstice. In ancient lore, mid-summer's day was the day slated for harvest of (leaf) herbs to be dried/preserved or made into medicines.

The annual garlic harvest approaches! The dates for the celebratory work-party and potluckin' shin-dig are July 10th and 11th this year. Mark your calendar. We pick and hang garlic while the sun shines and enjoy food and fellowship in the evenings. Camping is allowed. Musicality and merry-making are encouraged. It's always a wholesome friends-and-family affair, and we hope you'll feel comfortable joining in. Please RSVP echocsa@gmail.com.

In your box this week:

• Parsley.
  
• Kale.
• Salad Mix.
• Basil.
• Mint.
• Scapes.
• Bok choy.
• Turnip.
• Fennel.
• Beet.
• Peas.
• Napa cabbage.
• Head lettuce.

Let us know if you are ever short an item in your box. We will usually have extra of that or something similar at the market, and it's easy enough to just make it right on the spot.

CSA Newsletter Week 3

4:02 PM Mandy 0 Comments

June 8, 9 and 12

This week's bounty includes several new items to try, and new flavors to savor. We'd love for you to share your own recipes with us, perhaps in the comments area here on the blog, or on the new facebook page. :)

Let the curly garlic scapes in your boxes gently alert you that our Annual Garlic Harvest Party approaches: this year, July 10th and 11th. Please join us out at the farm. We always combine garlic picking and hanging with the enjoyment of great food, music, and fellowship. And we usually get a good head start on the garlic harvest! (Directions will follow in a separate blog post.)

In your box this week:

• Fennel. Leaves and stalks can be used for flavoring. The bulb is crisp and has a licorice-y flavor that fades a bit when cooked. Store plant whole if you plan to use within a couple of days; otherwise, remove stalks to keep bulb from rotting.
  
• Beets. Toss thin slices with some olive oil and fresh mint and then throw into a salad with some toasted nuts. Beets are yummy juiced with ginger, apple, and lemon. And they're nice paired with one of a variety of herbs-- mint, parsley, basil, fennel, to name a few.
  
• Head lettuce.
• Salad mix. Look at those pretty greens and purples!
  
• Bok choy. Create your own braising mix by tossing bok choy with kale and some of the greens from your beets and turnips.
• Peas.
• Garlic scape. The seed pod of the garlic plant, which curls as it grows tall and then slowly uncurls. They are most succulent when still curled, with an asparagus-like texture and a mild garlic flavor. Harvesting the scape helps the plant to concentrate growth energy in the bulb. Scapes can be diced and added to salad dressings, soups, sauces, stir-fries, scrambled eggs... Scapes store well for weeks in the fridge, but used fresh is always best!
  
• Napa cabbage.
• Kale. I love kale cut (across the leaf) into long, skinny strips, water sauteed, squeezed, and then drizzled with tahini and topped with raisins. Find a raw kale salad recipe below.
  
• Basil. Does not store well in the refrigerator. If you plan to use it within a day or two, keep in a dark place at room temperature, in an unsealed plastic bag. For longer-term storage, basil can be frozen. Chopping and freezing (with a little water) in ice cube trays as "basil ice cubes" works well. Or, you can make a pesto and freeze that.
  
• Turnips. Delicious braised in butter. They pair great with peas-- blackeyes stewed with turnip roots and greens are hard to beat.
  

Heat the fennel seeds and oil in a skillet over low heat until oil is fragrant, about 5 minutes. Cool, then strain seeds out of oil. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Put beets into a baking dish with 1/4 C water, cover tightly with a lid or aluminum foil, and bake until a knife slips in easily. Cool slightly, then peel. Cut into quarters, or if very small, in half. Toss pieces with reserved fennel oil, season with the salt, and top with the scapes.