Week 10
Most of the time we try to have what we call a no alarm Sunday. We don't get up much later than normal but it is just nice to feel like there is a bit of flexibility and it is nice not to listen to the alarm go off four or five times while I have coffee and tidy up - someone likes to snooze. This morning we had an alarm of a different sort. I casually glanced out the kitchen window after I made coffee and noticed Blackberry in the corn field. Not the invasive weed, but the neighbor's large black cow, who was looking at me from from the edge of the field while chewing. I yelled to Kelly who was still in bed. "There is a cow in the corn", I shouted. "Shut up" he responded in annoyed disbelief thinking I was just trying to wake him up. "No seriously, there are two cows in the corn, no there are three cows in the corn" I said as I approached the window and my view widened. He was dressed before I even finished the sentence. I called the neighbors and Kelly convinced the cows to hit the road. The damage could have been much worse. I would estimate it at about four nice steaks and few packages of ground beef. They also sampled the zucchini and melons but they seemed to favor the corn. I don't typically feel like we live in the country but this morning I did.
We do have some corn from a different field that is ready to harvest and you will have it in your boxes this week along with some other summer treats.
Lettuce
Zucchini - All you can eat…help yourself.
Cherry Tomatoes
Slicing Tomato - This one is a little iffy but I am hopeful. You might have bell peppers instead.
Corn - This is a small planting. The planting at our house, even after this morning's incident, will hopefully produce a heftier harvest a little later in the season.
Green Beans - Thanks to a farm share member I had the best green beans the other night. I am not sure I made it exactly how she does but it was delicious. Chop up some tomato and garlic and put them in a bowl with some olive oil and salt. Stir the mixture and let it sit while you prep the green beans. Remove the stems of the green beans and slice them into three pieces. Blanch until they reach the point at which you like to eat your green beans. Drain and toss into the tomato mixture. Add a little chopped basil and or parsley. I liked how the slicing tomato gave off a lot of juice but cherry tomatoes would make for a prettier presentation.
Poblanos - Cauliflower for those of you who received poblanos last week
Garlic
Papalo - Add On Veggie Only
Papalo
Two years ago this week Kelly and I got married in our back yard by our friend Chad with his wife and kiddo sharing a front row seat with our friends Josh and Mellissa, from Newuakam Valley Farm, serving as our witnesses. It was low key and we all sat around our dining room table for tacos and chile rellenos afterward. Melissa brought one of the best salsa I had ever had. It was made with plums from their farm and seasoned with papalo. I had not only never had papalo, I had never heard of it. Apparently it is eaten daily in Bolivia and is native to South America. It can be found growing wild in Mexico and in Texas and Arizona. It has a distinct taste. Despite my love of the plum salsa I am a little unsure about it at the moment. Our plums are almost ready and I will give it another go when we make tacos for our anniversary. What should you do with it? In Puebla it is eaten on a sandwich called a cemita and according to the internet often found in vases in restaurants so that customers can add it to their food. I would suggest using it the way you use cilantro in salsa but use far less. It can also be used in guacamole.
Sunday, July 31, 2016
Week 9
When I picked zucchini this morning for a co-op order I noticed that it is about time to call it quits on the first round of cukes and zukes. The plants are starting to look a little tired and the plants are producing some funny shaped fruits. We also pulled down all the peas last week and got a lot of the trellising removed. Although we are still planting things we have turned a corner. The stand looked beautiful this weekend with some tomatoes, peppers and lots of flowers on it but the fields are giving us a glimpse into the future…summer is fading in some ways.
As far as your boxes go, we have a lot of summer ahead of us so don't let me get you down!
Carrots
Lettuce - Lovelock, it is a nice Batavian style mild lettuce with a good crunch.
Cherry Tomatoes
Japanese Cucumbers - When we first started growing these we didn't know how pick them. We just came up with our own opinion and went with it. Then, Hiroko, a customer originally from Japan, set us straight. For a while we continued to pick them our own way, always picking a few slimmer ones for her. Then this year we started picking them smaller and then we started to waffle back and forth which is kind of where we are now. In Japan and Korea they are picked more slender than the ones in your box today. The problem is they are fairly perishable and the slender ones go soft even quicker than the larger ones do. I think they taste great at the size we started picking them or we wouldn't have decided on that size but I feel like it is a little bit like when your neighbor gives you that giant zucchini and you think to yourself - don't you know better. Someone knows better than we do and we can't decide if we should give in or just do it our own way. They do taste great skinnier but they go soft in a New York minute.
Potatoes - Satina, gold skin, gold flesh
Walla Walla Onion- love these sliced and grilled on a burger or a sandwich
Cauliflower or Poblano Pepper - We were not sure if we would get heads of cauliflower this week for everybody so we are going to save ourselves some stress and split it into two weeks. Some of you will get cauli this week and some next. The week you don't have cauliflower you will have poblano peppers. They aren't a bit like cauliflower but they are yummy.
Salad Mix - Large Only
Pursalane - Add on Veggie Only
Here is an easy traditional way to use your not so traditionally picked cucumber. Sunonono Salad is great served nice an cold and garnished with sesame seeds.
What to do with your poblano peppers other than make chile rellenos.
The pobalnos we have eaten have been on the spicy end of the poblano spice range.
Rick Bayless has a great potato salad recipe with a poblano mayonnaise. What the blogger doesn't mention is that your olive oil should be mild or use veggie oil and that it is best eaten before you refrigerate it. The blogger likes it with bacon which I am sure is awesome. I love it with grilled salmon and a salad. If you don't want to make your own mayo you could just jazz up some regular mayo with some roasted poblanos.
Ian, who some of you see on Wednesday, mentioned that he and his partner made a poblano cream sauce. Sounds good - I think you could make really rich with just heavy cream or a little lighter with a mix of stock and cream or even stock and milk if you thickened it a bit. I need to experiment.
Roasted pobalnos are great on both chicken and steak tacos or in a breakfast burrito. They add a little smokiness, a little heat and a lot of flavor
Add on Veggie - Pursalne
Yes, we are giving you a weed but not just any weed. It is high in Omega-3 fatty acids and many people extol it as a super food. I am kind of sick of that word and I mainly like it because I think it tastes good. Of course things that taste good and are good for you are hard to beat. It grows almost anywhere which is probably why I found recipes and traditional food lore about it from countries all around the world.
You have two kinds of pursalne. One is a cultivated variety that I ordered seed for and planted in tidy rows. It is the lighter of the two, has bigger leaves and grows more upright making it easier to harvest. I am not sure it tastes better. I kind of think the leaves of the weed taste better but the stems of the cultivated variety taste better. I thought it would be fun to give you both. What I like about pursalane is that it has a great texture and a lemony flavor.
Up until today I always ate it raw and almost always as a little snack as I was walking around the field or weeding something. Lots of weeds are edible but pursalane is the only one I bother with. I knew that it was used in Mexican cooking (called Verdolagos) and have wanted to try a pork dish I came across in a magazine a long time ago. The flavor reminds me a little of nopales, the cactus eaten in Mexico and often served with tomatoes. I quickly grilled some whole - just a a little oil and a minute on a hot grill. I then chopped it up, minus the bottom stem, with some grilled onions, tomatoes and garlic and a drizzle of olive oil. I think it could make a great salad or a great salsa this way with a little hot pepper added. I also made the pork dish I had once read about with from a recipe I got from Rick Bayless. You can find a very similar version here that is adapted just slightly from the original recipe. Bayless also suggests making it with out the pork. We really enjoyed it.
I haven't made either of the salad recipes below but they are both very easy and both similar to the salad I made with tomatoes and onions.
Pursalane Salad with Parsley
Pursalane Salad with Cucumber
I realize that I send this post out very close to when you actually receive the unusual item and if you prefer to plan in advance or don't like to make do and improvise in recipes this is probably inconvenient. I thought it might be helpful if I tell you that the next two add on vegetables you will receive will both be herbs. One is papalo, a mexican herb and the other is shiso, an herb used in Japan.
Happy Eating.
When I picked zucchini this morning for a co-op order I noticed that it is about time to call it quits on the first round of cukes and zukes. The plants are starting to look a little tired and the plants are producing some funny shaped fruits. We also pulled down all the peas last week and got a lot of the trellising removed. Although we are still planting things we have turned a corner. The stand looked beautiful this weekend with some tomatoes, peppers and lots of flowers on it but the fields are giving us a glimpse into the future…summer is fading in some ways.
As far as your boxes go, we have a lot of summer ahead of us so don't let me get you down!
Carrots
Lettuce - Lovelock, it is a nice Batavian style mild lettuce with a good crunch.
Cherry Tomatoes
Japanese Cucumbers - When we first started growing these we didn't know how pick them. We just came up with our own opinion and went with it. Then, Hiroko, a customer originally from Japan, set us straight. For a while we continued to pick them our own way, always picking a few slimmer ones for her. Then this year we started picking them smaller and then we started to waffle back and forth which is kind of where we are now. In Japan and Korea they are picked more slender than the ones in your box today. The problem is they are fairly perishable and the slender ones go soft even quicker than the larger ones do. I think they taste great at the size we started picking them or we wouldn't have decided on that size but I feel like it is a little bit like when your neighbor gives you that giant zucchini and you think to yourself - don't you know better. Someone knows better than we do and we can't decide if we should give in or just do it our own way. They do taste great skinnier but they go soft in a New York minute.
Potatoes - Satina, gold skin, gold flesh
Walla Walla Onion- love these sliced and grilled on a burger or a sandwich
Cauliflower or Poblano Pepper - We were not sure if we would get heads of cauliflower this week for everybody so we are going to save ourselves some stress and split it into two weeks. Some of you will get cauli this week and some next. The week you don't have cauliflower you will have poblano peppers. They aren't a bit like cauliflower but they are yummy.
Salad Mix - Large Only
Pursalane - Add on Veggie Only
Here is an easy traditional way to use your not so traditionally picked cucumber. Sunonono Salad is great served nice an cold and garnished with sesame seeds.
What to do with your poblano peppers other than make chile rellenos.
The pobalnos we have eaten have been on the spicy end of the poblano spice range.
Rick Bayless has a great potato salad recipe with a poblano mayonnaise. What the blogger doesn't mention is that your olive oil should be mild or use veggie oil and that it is best eaten before you refrigerate it. The blogger likes it with bacon which I am sure is awesome. I love it with grilled salmon and a salad. If you don't want to make your own mayo you could just jazz up some regular mayo with some roasted poblanos.
Ian, who some of you see on Wednesday, mentioned that he and his partner made a poblano cream sauce. Sounds good - I think you could make really rich with just heavy cream or a little lighter with a mix of stock and cream or even stock and milk if you thickened it a bit. I need to experiment.
Roasted pobalnos are great on both chicken and steak tacos or in a breakfast burrito. They add a little smokiness, a little heat and a lot of flavor
Add on Veggie - Pursalne
Yes, we are giving you a weed but not just any weed. It is high in Omega-3 fatty acids and many people extol it as a super food. I am kind of sick of that word and I mainly like it because I think it tastes good. Of course things that taste good and are good for you are hard to beat. It grows almost anywhere which is probably why I found recipes and traditional food lore about it from countries all around the world.
You have two kinds of pursalne. One is a cultivated variety that I ordered seed for and planted in tidy rows. It is the lighter of the two, has bigger leaves and grows more upright making it easier to harvest. I am not sure it tastes better. I kind of think the leaves of the weed taste better but the stems of the cultivated variety taste better. I thought it would be fun to give you both. What I like about pursalane is that it has a great texture and a lemony flavor.
Up until today I always ate it raw and almost always as a little snack as I was walking around the field or weeding something. Lots of weeds are edible but pursalane is the only one I bother with. I knew that it was used in Mexican cooking (called Verdolagos) and have wanted to try a pork dish I came across in a magazine a long time ago. The flavor reminds me a little of nopales, the cactus eaten in Mexico and often served with tomatoes. I quickly grilled some whole - just a a little oil and a minute on a hot grill. I then chopped it up, minus the bottom stem, with some grilled onions, tomatoes and garlic and a drizzle of olive oil. I think it could make a great salad or a great salsa this way with a little hot pepper added. I also made the pork dish I had once read about with from a recipe I got from Rick Bayless. You can find a very similar version here that is adapted just slightly from the original recipe. Bayless also suggests making it with out the pork. We really enjoyed it.
I haven't made either of the salad recipes below but they are both very easy and both similar to the salad I made with tomatoes and onions.
Pursalane Salad with Parsley
Pursalane Salad with Cucumber
I realize that I send this post out very close to when you actually receive the unusual item and if you prefer to plan in advance or don't like to make do and improvise in recipes this is probably inconvenient. I thought it might be helpful if I tell you that the next two add on vegetables you will receive will both be herbs. One is papalo, a mexican herb and the other is shiso, an herb used in Japan.
Happy Eating.
Sunday, July 24, 2016
Week 8
What a beautiful day! While you can't get ahead when watering you can at least go into the heat spell feeling like you are not behind and we spent the last couple days making sure everything, particularly the fall brassicas (cabbage, cauliflower, kale, broccoli) that were transplanted on Thursday were well watered. The heat will be stressful for some plants but much less so if they go into it healthy. You are all getting cherry tomatoes but before pump your fists in the air with excitement let me say that what we pick will be divided between everyone if it is only five tomatoes per person (I hope not, that would be sad) then you can enjoy them on the way home and look forward to next week. They didn't pick as well as I thought they would on Friday (about five tomatoes per person if pick-up had been that day) but I am hoping, desperately, for a better yield tomorrow. Even without a bounty of tomatoes you have a nice summer box. We have had a lot of nice meals in the past week. It is the season of good eating. Hope you have a chance to enjoy the warm evenings and some good food.
Carrots - Purple Haze, great raw or roasted
Zucchini- We marinated some slices in a lot of garlic, lime juice, olive oil, salt and cumin and grilled them along with some onions and green pepper. We then chopped it all up with some cherry tomatoes and tossed it in a bowl with some steamed potatoes and the left over marinade. We used it in some veggie burritos and it was so good.
Green Beans
Onions - The Italian Tropea are ahead of the Walla Walla Sweets this year, as they are suppose to be, but often aren't. They are on the mild end of the onion spectrum and are great grilled or in salads.
Cherry Tomatoes
Bell Pepper - purple(tastes like green) or green
Broccoli - We roasted some of this the other night and it was extra tasty. I sliced slender pieces with just a bit of floret and a long stem, tossed them in oil with some salt and roasted at 400 degrees.
Herb - most likely a choice of mint, basil or parsley
Kale - Large Only - From a new planting and pretty tender - good raw or cooked.
Winter Squash Leaves/Tips - Veggie Add On Only
Squash Leaves -
There are a lot of things in the garden that other cultures eat that many people don't even consider when gathering food from a garden. I saw a blog post several years ago about Hmong farmers market vendors in Seattle selling squash leaves. That post was my inspiration for including these in your box. You can find the recipe here at the original post written by a Thai chef, Pranee, who is based in Seattle and teaches cooking classes in the Seattle area and occasionally in Olympia. The recipe given is great. It is fast and easy - greens, coconut milk, water and salt. The broth is very salty. I thought it was too salty on its own but enjoyed the saltiness of the leaves. You should trim off the bottom part of your stem but save the lower leaf. The upper stem, the little squash buds and the all the leaves are edible as is. Some of the lower stems on mine where fine and some where really tough and stringy so to be on the safe side I am just telling you to get rid of the lower stem. I could tell as I was harvesting them that some where more tender but I couldn't figure out why.
After doing a bit more research I discovered that winter squash leaves are popular in African dishes and are often used interchangeably with collards, sweet potato leaves or cabbage (hmm, do you still have one in your fridge?). I started looking at recipes from Malwai but then found several others from other countries. They all contained similar ingredients: greens, onions and tomatoes. Many also included ground peanuts or a bit of raw peanut butter (I got the impression that was cheating a bit but contributes a similar flavor and is easier). It appears the squash leaves used in most African dishes are larger, full sized leaves that are peeled. I assume that the flavor is the same and your tips would do the trick. Heifer International has an easy recipe on their website. I didn't follow the recipe exactly because I only had a handful of leaves left so I made a mini version. I liked it a lot and think it would be great with rice or you could do a little research and serve it with the traditional corn mush it is often eaten with in Malwai.
Finally, it appears there is an Scillian dish that uses the leaves/tips of a zucchini/gourd looking thing called a cucuzza. I didn't try preparing the squash leaves in this way but if you want to check it out you can google tenerumi. You can find a recipe from Saveur magazine here.
Squash leaves can be scratchy. I didn't find them to be bothersome after being harvested and washed but you all have seen my hands! I suspect yours might be a little more sensitive.
Happy Cooking.
What a beautiful day! While you can't get ahead when watering you can at least go into the heat spell feeling like you are not behind and we spent the last couple days making sure everything, particularly the fall brassicas (cabbage, cauliflower, kale, broccoli) that were transplanted on Thursday were well watered. The heat will be stressful for some plants but much less so if they go into it healthy. You are all getting cherry tomatoes but before pump your fists in the air with excitement let me say that what we pick will be divided between everyone if it is only five tomatoes per person (I hope not, that would be sad) then you can enjoy them on the way home and look forward to next week. They didn't pick as well as I thought they would on Friday (about five tomatoes per person if pick-up had been that day) but I am hoping, desperately, for a better yield tomorrow. Even without a bounty of tomatoes you have a nice summer box. We have had a lot of nice meals in the past week. It is the season of good eating. Hope you have a chance to enjoy the warm evenings and some good food.
Carrots - Purple Haze, great raw or roasted
Zucchini- We marinated some slices in a lot of garlic, lime juice, olive oil, salt and cumin and grilled them along with some onions and green pepper. We then chopped it all up with some cherry tomatoes and tossed it in a bowl with some steamed potatoes and the left over marinade. We used it in some veggie burritos and it was so good.
Green Beans
Onions - The Italian Tropea are ahead of the Walla Walla Sweets this year, as they are suppose to be, but often aren't. They are on the mild end of the onion spectrum and are great grilled or in salads.
Cherry Tomatoes
Bell Pepper - purple(tastes like green) or green
Broccoli - We roasted some of this the other night and it was extra tasty. I sliced slender pieces with just a bit of floret and a long stem, tossed them in oil with some salt and roasted at 400 degrees.
Herb - most likely a choice of mint, basil or parsley
Kale - Large Only - From a new planting and pretty tender - good raw or cooked.
Winter Squash Leaves/Tips - Veggie Add On Only
Squash Leaves -
There are a lot of things in the garden that other cultures eat that many people don't even consider when gathering food from a garden. I saw a blog post several years ago about Hmong farmers market vendors in Seattle selling squash leaves. That post was my inspiration for including these in your box. You can find the recipe here at the original post written by a Thai chef, Pranee, who is based in Seattle and teaches cooking classes in the Seattle area and occasionally in Olympia. The recipe given is great. It is fast and easy - greens, coconut milk, water and salt. The broth is very salty. I thought it was too salty on its own but enjoyed the saltiness of the leaves. You should trim off the bottom part of your stem but save the lower leaf. The upper stem, the little squash buds and the all the leaves are edible as is. Some of the lower stems on mine where fine and some where really tough and stringy so to be on the safe side I am just telling you to get rid of the lower stem. I could tell as I was harvesting them that some where more tender but I couldn't figure out why.
After doing a bit more research I discovered that winter squash leaves are popular in African dishes and are often used interchangeably with collards, sweet potato leaves or cabbage (hmm, do you still have one in your fridge?). I started looking at recipes from Malwai but then found several others from other countries. They all contained similar ingredients: greens, onions and tomatoes. Many also included ground peanuts or a bit of raw peanut butter (I got the impression that was cheating a bit but contributes a similar flavor and is easier). It appears the squash leaves used in most African dishes are larger, full sized leaves that are peeled. I assume that the flavor is the same and your tips would do the trick. Heifer International has an easy recipe on their website. I didn't follow the recipe exactly because I only had a handful of leaves left so I made a mini version. I liked it a lot and think it would be great with rice or you could do a little research and serve it with the traditional corn mush it is often eaten with in Malwai.
Finally, it appears there is an Scillian dish that uses the leaves/tips of a zucchini/gourd looking thing called a cucuzza. I didn't try preparing the squash leaves in this way but if you want to check it out you can google tenerumi. You can find a recipe from Saveur magazine here.
Squash leaves can be scratchy. I didn't find them to be bothersome after being harvested and washed but you all have seen my hands! I suspect yours might be a little more sensitive.
Happy Cooking.
Sunday, July 17, 2016
Week 7
On Friday evening we got a text from some friends in Portland asking if we were in the mood for some company on Saturday. They offered to come a different weekend if that was better. Honestly, it wasn't a great weekend. Our house was riding a fine line between not so tidy and embarrassingly messy, well, okay, no it wasn't, it was embarrassingly messy. I wasn't really sure when we would fine time in less than 24 hours to clean it but sometimes company is good motivation and I love a deadline. I work myself into a frenzy, spin in circles, get a little irrational and some how in spite of myself, still manage to get stuff done when there is a deadline. That is also a little how I am feeling about the fun vegetable. I have had a couple failures, frantically ordered some random seed and am hoping for the best but here we are at week 7 and you folks need some veggies! It feels a little scattered but I have faith it will work out. It still feels fun to me to be growing new stuff but I have to admit I am feeling a bit of pressure. Next week we should have your first installment. I do hope we get some heat…the lima beans aren't real impressed with what mother nature has dealt them and neither are a couple other heat loving crops.
One thing that is enjoying the cooler weather is the snap peas. The ones in your boxes are out of the third planting. The first two plantings typically do pretty well but the third one sometimes barely produces enough to cover the labor of putting up and taking down the trellis. I am thrilled we are getting some good harvests off it. People often ask how the weather is affecting the crops. Most of the time something is happy regardless of whether the temperature is above or below average. At the moment the peas are happy and the melons are probably going to be later this year than last year. Regardless of the weather we should have some cherry tomatoes for you next week along with beans and maybe some fresh onions. There will be a few pints of cherry tomatoes on the trade table this week.
Carrots
Beets - A farm share member asked about beets last week and I thought you know it is time for beets again. We haven't eaten any in a while and I am looking forward to having some tomorrow evening. If the cooking time deters you I would recommend cooking them a night or two before you need them. After dinner give them a quick peel and throw them in the fridge. Once cooked they also freeze nicely.
Head Lettuce
Japanese Cucumber
Caribe Potatoes - After not having this variety of potato for a few years I am excited to have it back. The past couple years we haven't been able to get it and in its place we have grown a potato with a blue skin and a gold flesh called Peter Wilcox. PW is a nice potato but my heart still belongs to Caribe which has a bright purple skin and a white flesh. It tastes as good, is early and is gorgeous. Plus the farm Kelly worked on in Maine grew it when we were there and it has some nostalgia for me. We roasted some on Saturday when our friends came over and I tossed them for the last couple minutes of cooking with garlic, parsley and scallions. I should probably move on but I just can't get enough of that combination.
Snap Peas - later gator - last round.
Cabbage - Last week we decided to for go the cabbage to the large shares in favor of cauliflower. This week we have cabbage for everyone.
Parsley - Large Only
On Friday evening we got a text from some friends in Portland asking if we were in the mood for some company on Saturday. They offered to come a different weekend if that was better. Honestly, it wasn't a great weekend. Our house was riding a fine line between not so tidy and embarrassingly messy, well, okay, no it wasn't, it was embarrassingly messy. I wasn't really sure when we would fine time in less than 24 hours to clean it but sometimes company is good motivation and I love a deadline. I work myself into a frenzy, spin in circles, get a little irrational and some how in spite of myself, still manage to get stuff done when there is a deadline. That is also a little how I am feeling about the fun vegetable. I have had a couple failures, frantically ordered some random seed and am hoping for the best but here we are at week 7 and you folks need some veggies! It feels a little scattered but I have faith it will work out. It still feels fun to me to be growing new stuff but I have to admit I am feeling a bit of pressure. Next week we should have your first installment. I do hope we get some heat…the lima beans aren't real impressed with what mother nature has dealt them and neither are a couple other heat loving crops.
One thing that is enjoying the cooler weather is the snap peas. The ones in your boxes are out of the third planting. The first two plantings typically do pretty well but the third one sometimes barely produces enough to cover the labor of putting up and taking down the trellis. I am thrilled we are getting some good harvests off it. People often ask how the weather is affecting the crops. Most of the time something is happy regardless of whether the temperature is above or below average. At the moment the peas are happy and the melons are probably going to be later this year than last year. Regardless of the weather we should have some cherry tomatoes for you next week along with beans and maybe some fresh onions. There will be a few pints of cherry tomatoes on the trade table this week.
Carrots
Beets - A farm share member asked about beets last week and I thought you know it is time for beets again. We haven't eaten any in a while and I am looking forward to having some tomorrow evening. If the cooking time deters you I would recommend cooking them a night or two before you need them. After dinner give them a quick peel and throw them in the fridge. Once cooked they also freeze nicely.
Head Lettuce
Japanese Cucumber
Caribe Potatoes - After not having this variety of potato for a few years I am excited to have it back. The past couple years we haven't been able to get it and in its place we have grown a potato with a blue skin and a gold flesh called Peter Wilcox. PW is a nice potato but my heart still belongs to Caribe which has a bright purple skin and a white flesh. It tastes as good, is early and is gorgeous. Plus the farm Kelly worked on in Maine grew it when we were there and it has some nostalgia for me. We roasted some on Saturday when our friends came over and I tossed them for the last couple minutes of cooking with garlic, parsley and scallions. I should probably move on but I just can't get enough of that combination.
Snap Peas - later gator - last round.
Cabbage - Last week we decided to for go the cabbage to the large shares in favor of cauliflower. This week we have cabbage for everyone.
Parsley - Large Only
Sunday, July 10, 2016
Week 6
We reached a couple milestones in the season this week. We pulled most of our garlic and I picked my first cherry tomato of the season. Just as it seems like it takes forever to get the first ripe tomato, it also seems like forever before we are actually picking pints of cherry tomatoes. We push to have a lot of things early and strive to be the first among our fellow farmers to have certain vegetables (carrots, cukes, cabbages, peppers). We do it mainly because we like to have a nice selection but this year it has been to our advantage at farmers market where I think we have gained some customers by having vegetables that other farms don't have yet. However when it comes to tomatoes we never succeed, mainly because we don't prioritize the space in our greenhouse to starting them early. I settle for eating my single sungold and admiring the Facebook pages of other farms who are picking a few pints. Hopefully with our new greenhouse we will be able to change that for next year. I want to be the first with everything (insert evil laugh here)!
Radish - It is hard to believe that this is the first box where everyone gets radishes since they are usually such a spring staple. The season got off to a warm start but the weather lately has been very radish friendly. We don't usually grow summer radishes but thought we would try a little experiment this summer and seed them a few times - so far, so good.
Romaine Lettuce - These have a little sizing up to do - some of you will have two smaller ones.
Zucchini Medley
Garlic
Scallions - Scallions aren't around long and they look so nice right now that you are getting them two weeks in a row. That will do it for the season. I have a scallion dumpling recipe and I am in danger of missing scallion season and not trying it nor have we had scallion pancakes year this year. I better get cooking. Bunched onions should only be a couple weeks out.
Carrots
Broccoli - Small Only
Cabbage - Large Only - Most of these are big. I wish they were smaller, most people like smaller cabbages. It might be a good time to try making stuffed cabbage rolls. They work great with the big leaves and are delicious. Or maybe a small batch of kraut, or maybe now would be a good time to get a pet bunny…just joking.
Summer Turnips - Large Only
Snap Peas or Beans - Large Only, Choose One
We reached a couple milestones in the season this week. We pulled most of our garlic and I picked my first cherry tomato of the season. Just as it seems like it takes forever to get the first ripe tomato, it also seems like forever before we are actually picking pints of cherry tomatoes. We push to have a lot of things early and strive to be the first among our fellow farmers to have certain vegetables (carrots, cukes, cabbages, peppers). We do it mainly because we like to have a nice selection but this year it has been to our advantage at farmers market where I think we have gained some customers by having vegetables that other farms don't have yet. However when it comes to tomatoes we never succeed, mainly because we don't prioritize the space in our greenhouse to starting them early. I settle for eating my single sungold and admiring the Facebook pages of other farms who are picking a few pints. Hopefully with our new greenhouse we will be able to change that for next year. I want to be the first with everything (insert evil laugh here)!
Radish - It is hard to believe that this is the first box where everyone gets radishes since they are usually such a spring staple. The season got off to a warm start but the weather lately has been very radish friendly. We don't usually grow summer radishes but thought we would try a little experiment this summer and seed them a few times - so far, so good.
Romaine Lettuce - These have a little sizing up to do - some of you will have two smaller ones.
Zucchini Medley
Garlic
Scallions - Scallions aren't around long and they look so nice right now that you are getting them two weeks in a row. That will do it for the season. I have a scallion dumpling recipe and I am in danger of missing scallion season and not trying it nor have we had scallion pancakes year this year. I better get cooking. Bunched onions should only be a couple weeks out.
Carrots
Broccoli - Small Only
Cabbage - Large Only - Most of these are big. I wish they were smaller, most people like smaller cabbages. It might be a good time to try making stuffed cabbage rolls. They work great with the big leaves and are delicious. Or maybe a small batch of kraut, or maybe now would be a good time to get a pet bunny…just joking.
Summer Turnips - Large Only
Snap Peas or Beans - Large Only, Choose One
Sunday, July 3, 2016
Week 5
I was about to write that new potatoes are the vegetable I look forward to the most but as I was about to start typing I wondered how many times I have said that about other vegetables. I am always enamored with whatever I haven't eaten in months. I am the same with flowers. Daffodils are my favorite, followed by lilacs and so forth. However, I think that new potatoes still get me more excited than anything else in the garden. I even contemplated buying some from another farm a couple weeks ago. I dug some last week and then we ate them three nights in a row. One night we had some as an appetizer and then I prepared them a different way with dinner. I know, I am crazy about potatoes. In New England new potatoes, peas and salmon are all traditional July 4th foods. When the Northeast had wild salmon runs and most people had a garden all three timed well with the 4th. These days it is not as common of a meal but when Kelly and I lived in Maine many folks would search out new potatoes and peas at the farmer's market for the 4th of July. New potatoes are great steamed and tossed with some butter or olive oil and some fresh herbs. My favorite way to prepare them is to cut them in half, steam them until tender and then pan fry them so the cut side gets nice and crispy. I usually just season them with salt and pepper but last week I tossed a bunch of chopped parsley and minced garlic in the pan for the last 30 seconds and then placed the potatoes crispy side up on the plate and topped with with parsley and garlic mixture. Most new potatoes in the store are not really new potatoes. They are just small potatoes(often red) or a thin skinned variety. A true new potato can be any color it is just a potato that hasn't fully matured. As a result it is often smaller, has a barely there skin and tends to be waxier and hold its shape better when cooked. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do.
Carrots
Lettuce
Cucumber - Last week the small shares had a traditional slicing cucumber and the large shares had a slicing cucumber and a Japanese cucumber. This week you will all have a Japanese style cucumber. They have a thinner skin, a smaller seed cavity and a crisper flesh.
Scallions
New Potatoes
Snap Pea - These won't be around much longer.
Broccoli - Large Only
Rainbow Chard - Large Only
Hope you all are having a wonderful weekend.
I was about to write that new potatoes are the vegetable I look forward to the most but as I was about to start typing I wondered how many times I have said that about other vegetables. I am always enamored with whatever I haven't eaten in months. I am the same with flowers. Daffodils are my favorite, followed by lilacs and so forth. However, I think that new potatoes still get me more excited than anything else in the garden. I even contemplated buying some from another farm a couple weeks ago. I dug some last week and then we ate them three nights in a row. One night we had some as an appetizer and then I prepared them a different way with dinner. I know, I am crazy about potatoes. In New England new potatoes, peas and salmon are all traditional July 4th foods. When the Northeast had wild salmon runs and most people had a garden all three timed well with the 4th. These days it is not as common of a meal but when Kelly and I lived in Maine many folks would search out new potatoes and peas at the farmer's market for the 4th of July. New potatoes are great steamed and tossed with some butter or olive oil and some fresh herbs. My favorite way to prepare them is to cut them in half, steam them until tender and then pan fry them so the cut side gets nice and crispy. I usually just season them with salt and pepper but last week I tossed a bunch of chopped parsley and minced garlic in the pan for the last 30 seconds and then placed the potatoes crispy side up on the plate and topped with with parsley and garlic mixture. Most new potatoes in the store are not really new potatoes. They are just small potatoes(often red) or a thin skinned variety. A true new potato can be any color it is just a potato that hasn't fully matured. As a result it is often smaller, has a barely there skin and tends to be waxier and hold its shape better when cooked. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do.
Carrots
Lettuce
Cucumber - Last week the small shares had a traditional slicing cucumber and the large shares had a slicing cucumber and a Japanese cucumber. This week you will all have a Japanese style cucumber. They have a thinner skin, a smaller seed cavity and a crisper flesh.
Scallions
New Potatoes
Snap Pea - These won't be around much longer.
Broccoli - Large Only
Rainbow Chard - Large Only
Hope you all are having a wonderful weekend.
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