Hi! This week has been nice. We've gotten a lot done on the farm and the weather has felt great. Unfortunately, that same cool/wet weather sometimes halts the ripening process of tomatoes. We haven't noticed any problems yet, and you'll be getting 'maters again this week, thankfully. We hope you enjoyed your first taste of our tomatoes (and okra, for some of you). The potato saga will be ongoing, but we dug another three bushels, so I think we've harvested around 40 bushels (or almost a ton, literally). We've begun to sort out keepers and culls from the potatoes we've already harvested, and we put in some shelves into our cooler room to store everything at a nice 55-60 degrees. I think that makes our potato harvest a solid 40 bushels (or a ton, literally). Woah! Otherwise, we've been mowing/prepping ground, cultivating the summer plantings with the tractor, bunching and hanging garlic, harvesting/marketing, and starting fall seeds in the greenhouse. Since it feels like fall already, we are tempted to just plant some fall crops now, just in case it doesn't get really warm again. But in all likelihood, we're going to have a couple more months of at least summer-ish weather. Enjoy it while you can!
This Week’s CSA Share
Garlic: Our garlic is now cured, and should store fine without its stem in a dark place out of the fridge (like a cabinet). Separate into individual cloves and discard the papery skins before each use.
Onions: We’ll be giving out our bulb onions, which can be stored like garlic.
Potatoes: Either white, red, or Yukon gold potatoes. These should be used within the next couple of weeks and won’t store long-term. Avoid letting light hit the potatoes, which will then develop a green tint and be bad to eat. I recommend keeping them in a paper bag in the fridge or in your cabinet.
Cucumbers: You'll either receive dark green Marketmoore cukes or the Indian "Poona Kheera" cukes. A note about the latter: these short fruits are unique because they will be anywhere from small and almost white to fat and brown like a russett potato. They're crisp and delicious at any stage, skin and all. Use in salads, as crunchy snacks, in cool soups, in pickles, etc.
Green Beans: A lot of y'all have told us how much you love these beans. We love them, too. The fact that they're stringless doesn't hurt either. Use raw, pickle them, or steam them for an easy side dish.
Summer Squash: We have a few types...Sunburst Patty Pan, Zephyr, Benning's Green Tint, Yellow Crookneck, and Black Beauty Zucchini! Get creative with recipes, but when in doubt, stir fry it!
Okra: This southern crop is delicious and underappreciated by many. A favorite way to cook it is to slice pods in half, toss with salt and spices and oil, and roast in the oven. Try boiling, pickling, stirfrying, etc.
Tomatoes: Yay! We’re growing many varieties of both heirlooms and hybrids: Pink Beauty, New Girl, Green Zebra, Cherokee Purple, Garden Peach, Nebraska Heirloom, Italian Heirloom, Amish Paste, San Marzano, Trucker’s Favorite, etc.
Swiss Chard OR Lambs Quarters: Chard is a beautiful green that is related to the beet but doesn't have a "beety" flavor. Delicious when sauteed with garlic and oil, or along with whatever else you're cooking. Apologies for it getting a few bug holes in it. We call it "lacy". Lambs Quarters is a wild edible spinach substitute. It is packed with nutrition, can be eaten raw or cooked, and tastes like spinach! The stems will be too tough to eat, but a quick and easy way to separate the leaves is to run your fingers down the stem as some people do for Kale.
You will receive one of the following herbs this week:
Basil: The classic summer herb! Goes great with tomatoes. Blend up with garlic, nuts, and oil to make pesto. To maintain freshness for longer, store at room temperature in a jar with an inch of water in the bottom.
Sage: I don't know if we'll have it available but if we do, it pairs great with potatoes and dries very well if you don't get to it.
This Week’s CSA Share
Garlic: Our garlic is now cured, and should store fine without its stem in a dark place out of the fridge (like a cabinet). Separate into individual cloves and discard the papery skins before each use.
Onions: We’ll be giving out our bulb onions, which can be stored like garlic.
Potatoes: Either white, red, or Yukon gold potatoes. These should be used within the next couple of weeks and won’t store long-term. Avoid letting light hit the potatoes, which will then develop a green tint and be bad to eat. I recommend keeping them in a paper bag in the fridge or in your cabinet.
Cucumbers: You'll either receive dark green Marketmoore cukes or the Indian "Poona Kheera" cukes. A note about the latter: these short fruits are unique because they will be anywhere from small and almost white to fat and brown like a russett potato. They're crisp and delicious at any stage, skin and all. Use in salads, as crunchy snacks, in cool soups, in pickles, etc.
Green Beans: A lot of y'all have told us how much you love these beans. We love them, too. The fact that they're stringless doesn't hurt either. Use raw, pickle them, or steam them for an easy side dish.
Summer Squash: We have a few types...Sunburst Patty Pan, Zephyr, Benning's Green Tint, Yellow Crookneck, and Black Beauty Zucchini! Get creative with recipes, but when in doubt, stir fry it!
Okra: This southern crop is delicious and underappreciated by many. A favorite way to cook it is to slice pods in half, toss with salt and spices and oil, and roast in the oven. Try boiling, pickling, stirfrying, etc.
Tomatoes: Yay! We’re growing many varieties of both heirlooms and hybrids: Pink Beauty, New Girl, Green Zebra, Cherokee Purple, Garden Peach, Nebraska Heirloom, Italian Heirloom, Amish Paste, San Marzano, Trucker’s Favorite, etc.
Swiss Chard OR Lambs Quarters: Chard is a beautiful green that is related to the beet but doesn't have a "beety" flavor. Delicious when sauteed with garlic and oil, or along with whatever else you're cooking. Apologies for it getting a few bug holes in it. We call it "lacy". Lambs Quarters is a wild edible spinach substitute. It is packed with nutrition, can be eaten raw or cooked, and tastes like spinach! The stems will be too tough to eat, but a quick and easy way to separate the leaves is to run your fingers down the stem as some people do for Kale.
You will receive one of the following herbs this week:
Basil: The classic summer herb! Goes great with tomatoes. Blend up with garlic, nuts, and oil to make pesto. To maintain freshness for longer, store at room temperature in a jar with an inch of water in the bottom.
Sage: I don't know if we'll have it available but if we do, it pairs great with potatoes and dries very well if you don't get to it.
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