Summer CSA #1
Hello members old and new!
As usual, it’s been some interesting weather we’ve been having! Never has the weather been such a critical part of my life. We’ve been farming for 4 years now and it doesn’t seem that there has been an ideal spring-summer and I have begun to wonder if that really exist? Needless to say, today, I was wondering if I should just take a boat out back to get some harvesting done… Yeah it’s pretty wet and we spent the better part of the day soaked but since it was too wet to get anything else done harvesting worked out and we were able to get this CSA started!
Some details:
Pick-up times:
Wednesday at the farm is 12-9
Naturally Healthy in Niagara Falls is between 2-5:30
Saturday at the farm 9-9 (the earlier the better though!)
Just another reminder that we love to see our members pick up their baskets ASAP because we want you to have the freshest produce and refrigerating the soonest possible guarantees that!
All produce is what we call “Farm Washed”, items have been rinsed and sometimes even triple rinsed but it’s good to give them a nice soak or rinse at home also.
You will find your produce in a grey bin with your name on it-please bring a bag to bring your stuff home in. If you can’t pick up your basket please ask someone else to do so we can’t really switch back and forth between Wed and Sat pick-ups or make special arrangements- we usually end up forgetting and are left scrambling when you show up! If you know you will not be coming ahead of time an email is always appreciated.
Another thing I would like to point out is that produce may sometimes have marks or little holes- it's nothing to worry about! Our stuff is grown in real conditions without any pesticides- it happens! Just remember if a bug doesn't want to eat something neither should you! People have gotten so used to the perfect looking foods in the grocery store and have unintentionally learned to expect that and I was one of them! As I have become more conscious of how food is grown I am able to respect it for what it is naturally. I would much rather cut off a less than perfect spot or pick of a little bug than consume chemicals and all the rest that I can’t see! I'm no medical expert but it just seems like common sense that Real Food grown in Real Conditions has got to be really good for you! By all means don’t let me scare you, we grow beautiful produce and a lot of time is spent on presentation but I just wanted to bring it up.
Every week I will do my best to get you a newsletter which will be posted up on the website under the newsletter tab. If you are interested you may scroll down and skim through the spring newsletters and read up on some of the vegetables you see there which I may have already talked about. I don’t want to repeat myself too much
And last, you may find some odd items and wonder what this is? I promise you that everything in your basket is not only edible but healthy and delicious! It’s an adventure- a time to experiment with new ingredients and develop new tastes which does happen over time. Research the items you receive and try some new recipes you will be surprised by all the incredible recipes you will find! Or, if your busy- the classic butter and salt is delish on almost every vegetable! If you are too busy and can’t keep up freeze it or share with a friend. If you try a really good recipe I would love to have you send me a copy!
In this weeks basket you will find:
1 bag of Kale Mix
1 bag of lettuce mix (different recipe every week depending on what is available!)
1 bunch of Hakurei Turnips root and leaves are edible.
1 bunch of green garlic –use all tender parts like a leek.
1 bag of either Endive, Swiss Chard or cabbage leaf mix of Spigarello (leaf broccoli) and Groninger Blue cabbage leaf
1 Herb bag containing Sorrel, Parsley and Chive blossoms
Here are a few pictures:
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| Kale ready to be washed up |
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| Why are some leaves so purple? These are from the colder months growth and become greener as it heats up and will return to purple as it cools down. Not all varieties turn purple. |
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| Here are the greens found in the cabbage bag they are all similar tasting to Kale. On the left is the Grininger Blue leaf, in the middle the broccoli looking stalk is Spigarello and the small purple one is a Kale broccoli cross called Purple peacock Broccoli. Everything in this bag is edible -stalks and all! |
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| A kale dish I made with a Sorrel cream sauce sprinkled with Chive blossoms flowers. Whole Flowers can be cooked in a stir fry or you can pinch them apart for a salad. I came across some recipes of deep fried Chive blossoms which look so good! I later purred this dish added some mayo and cottage cheese and turned into a vegetable dip! Sorrel which a very lemony green which is cooked when large or eaten in salads when small is supposed to make an excellent soup which I haven't tried yet. What i did notice about this new green is that on heat it basically melts and disintegrates into sauce. I just gave you a little bit to experiment with. |
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| Swiss Chard, Endive and cabbage leafs bag. I made a quick endive salad last night where i wilted it until it was no longer bitter added butter cooked a little longer than topped it with feta cheese, pumpkin seeds and cranberries. |
Endive or any other green...
http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/potato-crust-quiche ( I prefer this potato crust to the one in the previous recipe)
http://blog.mylittlecityfoodgarden.com/2010/08/09/cooking-with-chive-blossoms/
Thanks...
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