Week 20

Drum roll please...

Where does the season go?

A customer mentioned they were making a cabbage soup out of the Joy of Cooking.  We talked a little about it and I decided I would make it this past week.  She told me it was in the 75th anniversary edition, but I looked in my two older editions (yeah, I have a little cookbook problem, but there are worst vices) just for the fun of it as well.  They had a different version.  I love comparing different editions.  It is fun to see how the way we eat/what we want to eat has changed over the years.  We enjoyed it and it wouldn't surprise me if some of you still had the cabbage we gave you a few weeks ago so I will post the recipe at the end.

While making the chicken stock for the cabbage soup on Friday night something clicked in my brain and I realized that there was another soup recipe I meant to make this summer.  It is a Thai soup with pork stuffed cucumbers cooked in chicken broth.  Since we are pretty much done with cucumbers I went into a small panic, raced over to the farm and grabbed several cucumbers off of some essentially dead plants that I think were hit with a light frost.  They feel firm and the one I tasted was fine so I am going for it tonight.

One of the worst things about being too stubborn to buy produce is that I get a little crazed this time of year, trying to cook things "one last time" or in the case of the cucumber soup "one first time", before the autumn chill takes all the summer goodness away.  Not that I don't enjoy winter veggies.  I love them, but the thought of summer veggies not being available much longer makes them that much more desirable.

Today I did the Olympia market for part of the day so Kelly could get the garlic field ready for planting.  A customer told me that he likes to grill whole delicatas over a charcoal fire and then scoop out the seeds and puree it.  He compared it to babaganouj.  He didn't mention garlic, tahini or lemon but I think it might be delicious.  Now, I have a dish for my winter list!  There is always good food to be had and while I mourn the loss of summer it is fun to think about cooking new stuff as well.

I hope that you all had a chance to make all your summer favorites and also try a new thing or two.  I know that it can be hard to try new things when you are busy, but I also think it is a lot of fun and usually worth the stress.  Here we go, your last box.

Carrots
Leeks
Rutabagas or Turnips
Purple Potatoes
Head Lettuce 
Winter Squash - Spaghetti or Butternut, your choice
Garlic
Parsley - Large Only
Shallots - Large Only

Cabbage Soup, adapted slightly - Saute 2 small chopped leeks, 2 diced small onions, 2 tablespoons garlic in a soup pot until tender.  Add 6 cups mild broth, 2 sliced carrots, 1 teaspoon caraway seed, 2 small diced potatoes and bring to a boil.  Simmer until the potatoes are almost cooked.  Add 4 cups shredded green cabbage and simmer until cabbage is cooked.  Season with salt and pepper.  Stir in 1/4 cup chopped parsley and top with crumbled blue cheese.

Week 19

For many of you this is your last week.  We hope you enjoyed the veggies you received and shared some nice meals with friends or family.

A few years ago I was at a wedding.  The DJ asked everyone to grab their partners and head to the dance floor.  The music started, people began dancing and then the DJ had couples sit down by how long they had been married in assorted rounds.  By the end there were three couples on the dance floor, all who had been married for over 50 years.  She then asked them for their advice on staying married for so long.  One woman said "some years are better than others."  This is a broad statement that could be applied to many things, but I liked the use of the word years.   Of course some days are better than others, but to look at a marriage in terms of years reminds you that you really need to keep the big picture in mind.  It is a long term commitment and there is no sense in getting down about a tough stretch or giving up too easily.  The farm is also a long term commitment.  It requires effort and attention and at times it is disappointing, but the good things greatly outweigh the difficult things.   I love thinking about the sentiment that some years are better than others when we are in the dog days of summer.  Yes, I hate cucumber beetles and yes, they ruined a lot of cucumbers and in the moment it was heartbreaking, but honestly in the grand scale of things they mean so little.  It is much more important to focus on the successes and be grateful for what we do have which is a ton of veggies and some awesome folks who buy them!  Thank you for your commitment to eating good food and for being willing to come to the farm to get it.  Your appreciation, stories of what you cooked and friendly faces end our Mondays and Wednesdays on a positive note.  We couldn't do this without such great customers and we are thankful for all of you.

These boxes feel decidedly fall like.

Spinach
Carrots
Kabocha Squash - your choice - green, grey or orange
Parsnips
Cipollini Onions
Lettuce - Large Only

Week 18

I was just downtown visiting Kelly at the Oly market, giving him a break and saying hi to the other vendors.  We will be there on Sundays until the end of October if you need some veggies after the CSA is done and we will be at the farm stand on Wednesdays and Saturdays until the end of November.  Yes, it is true, we are nearing the end of the farm share.  For those of you who did not skip a week, next week will be your last week.  Those who did skip a week will have two more pick-ups after tomorrow.  Time goes by pretty quick, doesn't it?

We are headed to a fund raiser tonight for the Chehalis market, another sign that our season is winding down.  I had visions of dressing up, but time is ticking away so I think I will probably just settle for wearing some pants that don't have double knees.  Kelly doesn't have pants that don't have double knees (funny, right?) so he will just be wearing a cleaner version of what you always see him in!  Looking forward to seeing friends and relaxing.  Fall is a good thing.

Your boxes are typical of what we have on the farm in the fall with the exception of the cucumber.  

Looking forward to some nice hearty meals this week.  Enjoy your veggies.

Carrot
Celery
Daikon/Watermelon Radish - Most years that we try to grow these they are hideous, but this year they are so nice that Kelly jokingly asked me who grew them when he saw the crate I harvested for Saturday.  If you get a daikon you might be a little intimidated (holy cow, that is one large radish) but take a moment to google some recipes and get creative.  There is a Cantonese dish with slow cooked beef and daikon seasoned with star anise.  It has been on my mental list of dishes to try to make for a long time...maybe you can beat me to it.
Broccoli - probably not a huge quantity but everyone will have some.
Cucumber - Last taste of summer - almost done for the season.
Garlic
Acorn - We grow a variety called Honey Bear that is sweet and creamy.  If you have bad memories of stringy acorn smothered with butter and brown sugar you will be pleasantly surprised.
Beets - Small Only
Turnips - Large Only
Lettuce Mix - Large Only

Week 17

I try to resist cooking fall/winter food this time of year because I know that we have a long winter and many squash dishes ahead of us.  However, the weather last week convinced me that I needed to light a fire and put a pot of soup on the stove.  We had delicata soup and grilled sandwiches with sharp cheddar, apple and caramelized onion.  Delicata isn't my usual go to squash for soup,  but we wanted to give them a test run before we sold them so it seemed like a natural choice.  I roasted the squash and then pureed the soup with the skin on.  Maybe not the best choice without a more powerful blender, but nothing a mesh strainer couldn't fix!  It really hit the spot and the delicata tastes great. You will get an assortment of squash in your boxes over the next few weeks.  They will be fine for months as long as they are stored in a dry spot.

Lettuce
Carrots
Sweet Corn (hopefully)
Delicata - The skin on these is edible.  This is, in my opinion, the most versatile squash we grow.  We use it in curries, burritos, on pizza and and sliced into rings and roasted or cubed in a roasted veggie mix.  It is also a great squash for stuffing.  The seeds are small and awesome toasted.
Sweet Onions
Spinach - Small Only
Potatoes - Large Only
Beets - Large Only - Small shares will get beets next week.
Chard - Large Only

Week 16 

My in-laws arrived last night from Helena, Montana.  Helena and Montana in general have been plagued with wild fires and smokey skies for all of late summer.  The rain or snow is needed there, as well as here, but the looming rain put a little extra skip in our step last week.  We hauled in a good portion of the winter squash.  It can tolerate some rain, but we always like to get the varieties with corky stems out of the field while they are dry.  We worry about the soft stems absorbing moisture and the squash getting dirty.  A little mud isn't a big deal but wiping ten thousand pounds of squash can take a while.  Unfortunately, we ran out of time and the spaghetti squash and butternuts will have to come out later this week.

We use to haul all our squash out in hand carried crates.  A couple years a go we started loading them into watermelon boxes, a real back saver.  We use a tractor to drive the boxes through the field tossing and catching the squash to fill the bins.  Then we use a tractor to load boxes in to vehicles, drive to our barn and also unload with a tractor.  The squash will cure there until we sort and sell it.  We do still crate and carry some squash but the forks and the watermelon boxes have been a game changer.

Squash Hauling

Pie Pumpkins

Lettuce
Radishes
Spinach - large this week, small next week
Potatoes - small this week, large next week
Choy
Carrots
Cherry Tomatoes
Sheep Nose Peppers - Large Only
Salad Mix - Large Only

Week 15

I don't know about you but the rain left me feeling refreshed.  It wasn't much, but it was enough to wash the dust and ash off the vegetables and shine things up a bit.  The cool, wet morning felt relaxing even though there was no less to do today than yesterday.  Change is nice.

The farm amplifies our connection to the seasons.  In Chinese medicine there are five elements and five corresponding seasons.  Four of the seasons correlate with the ones you are familiar with and the fifth is where we are now - late summer.  It starts in the second half of August around the time when you suddenly notice the cooler mornings, the shorter days and the change in light.  On the farm the bounty and abundance are still there, but the leaves are starting to yellow and many of the plants begin slow down, fade and prepare to call it a season.  Summer begins to release its grip on us, we can take a breath and feel grounded again.  There is still much to be done and September is still very busy and yet the tension lessens, the desire to share meals with friends returns and we do our best to be grateful for the warm sunny days that remain.

Lettuce 
Kale - Lacinato
Sweet Onions
Tomato
Poblanos
Cabbage
Zucchini
Cauliflower - Large Only
Sweet Pepper - Small Only

Week 14

I hope you all have a swimming hole, a BBQ and a long weekend to enjoy this run of hot weather.

Wax Beans
Eggplant - Assorted - If you have a preference on the slender Asian variety versus the larger Italian style let me know when you get your box.
Herb Choice - Basil, Thai Basil, Parsley or Rosemary - may not have full selection for the entire pick-up.
Broccoli
Garlic
Arugula
Tomato
Cucumber
Lettuce - Large Only
Mixed Bell Peppers - Large Only  These will be peppers that are in between their immature purple phase and their mature red state.

I don't eat a lot of eggplant which is sad because I love it, but good because I have a mild allergic reaction to it.  A customer mentioned that she makes a stir fried eggplant and Thai basil recipe with chiles and a little fish sauce and it sounded good to me and I have been thinking about making it for my once a year eggplant dinner.  I love a similar dish that I make with chicken.  I was just planning on winging it, but if the combo sounds good to you and you don't want to wing it, here is a recipe with good reviews.  In general if you want to do some sort of stir fry I would recommend the long slender eggplant.  The rounder Italian style eggplant is great for roasting, grilling and making big round slices.

Eggplant Stir Fry

Week 13

Another melon season is almost over with and once again I missed my opportunity to attempt a square watermelon.  I don't have an interest in attempting to replicate tennis ball size strawberries or the square watermelons of Japan's luxury fruit scene to sell but one of these years I will find time to mess with some watermelons for the fun of it.  They just look so unusual, even if they taste the same.

In your boxes today is a melon that is probably our favorite (so hard to choose).  Melons in general hold a soft spot for us because one the fondest memories of our courtship is the two us sampling all of the melons that the farm Kelly worked on in Maine grew.  It was maybe my first experience of the gluttony(in a positive sense, if that is possible) of being on a farm affords.  Cutting into melon after melon, passing up the occasional mediocre one and eating well beyond the "I can't eat another bite of melon" moment.  Kelly gave me the nickname of Sweetie #6 that summer.  Sweetie #6 was a butterscotch melon that you can no longer get seed for, but Serenade, which is in your box today, is similar and the only butterscotch melon I have been able to find.

There is a melon article from Saveur magazine that I cut out and read to Kelly when I first saw it because I knew that he would relate to it as much as I did.  It is still hanging around our house seven years later.  If you love melons you might enjoy reading it.  I am including one of my favorite sections below and it speaks a little bit to what I mean when I use the word gluttony in terms of sampling produce and the joy that can come with it.

A couple approach. The husband, a fondler and caresser, picks up a smooth, yellow-skinned Charentais melon, inhales its fragrance. "These smell fantastic," he says. He turns to his wife. "Let's get a couple of them."  

The wife pinches the clasp of her purse with both hands. "No," she says, "we couldn't eat that much. Remember, we'll be away on Saturday."

I'm thinking to myself, the two of you couldn't eat a pair of these little melons in three days? I eat one by myself in about three minutes, standing in a muddy field with my pocketknife in my hand, cutting off slices and tossing the chewed rinds in every direction. And 20 minutes later I eat another one.

Lettuce
Carrots
Zucchini
Serenade Melon
Piel de Sapo Melon - Large Only 
Cherry Tomato
Cucumber - Large Only These are last round of the Japanese style cucumber we grow.  We have battled the cucumber beetle all summer and they are winning!  You will notice some bug damage, but the bigger problem is that they are spreading bacterial wilt and the plants are dying.
Sweet Onions
Collards - Large Only

Week 12

Yesterday after market, Aaron from Humble Stump Farm and Maya and Phelan from Little Big Farm stopped by for a beer in the orchard.  They are both part of the smaller is better trend in small farming and I always enjoy hearing their perspective.  As we walked around our fields, a little weedy, a little poorly managed, I contemplated the trend.  The idea is to stay small.  In order to do this you farm very intensively with little cover cropping and often filling a bed with a new planting as soon as you finish harvesting a bed.  There is also more of a focus on crops that are the most profitable and therefor that type of farm tends to be less diverse.   Very small farms often have permanent beds and less of a need for tractors and all the implements that go with them.  All systems have their advantages and disadvantages.  With an impending move (to who knows where) Kelly and I have been having a lot of discussions about what we want our farm to be and how we want to manage it.  We like diversity, we like tractors and we like cover cropping but that doesn't mean we can't take some new ideas and mix them in.  We are still very small (7 acres) in terms of most farms and at our size I feel like we should be able to create a little bit of a hybrid farm in a way that makes sense.  There are some things that are not practical to adopt at our size, but it is important to remember that there can be more than one way of doing thing something and just because something is working okay doesn't mean you shouldn't try to improve on it.

On the other side of the spectrum is large scale organic agriculture.  We receive a publication put out by the Organic Trade Association, which does many things including lobbying the state and federal government with an organic agenda.  Of course not all organic farmers think alike and sometimes they push policies that people don't agree with.  They don't only represent large scale organic agriculture, but naturally many of their members are larger corporations.  There were some interesting statistics in the recent issue about the rise of organic agriculture.  For example, in 2016 there were 17,525 certified organic producers, a 13 percent increase over the previous year (we were a farm that certified for the first time in 2016) and organic vegetables made up 14 percent of all vegetable sales.  As the organic industry grows and organic food becomes more readily available, smaller producers like us will have to find ways to distinguish ourselves.  Hopefully we can do that with both quality and freshness.

Anyway, when I am not looking at Petfinder for a friend for Tucker I like to think about this kind of stuff!

Alright, back to the food.

Carrots
Colored Bell Peppers - should be some beauties to pick tomorrow.
Broccoli
Cucumber
Slicing Tomato
Melon
Potatoes - Pinto - We are growing two striking potatoes this year.  One is Masquerade which is purple and white and the other is the one you are getting today called Pinto which is red and gold.  We tried them both and my favorite is the Pinto.

Week 11

We pulled all of the Walla Walla onions that had fallen over before the rain.   Having them dry and cozy in the barn gave us some peace of mind and allowed us to fully enjoy the rain.  There is an overhang off the living room that is roofed in metal and I love sitting out back and listening to the rain fall on the metal roof.  I enjoy it in winter as well, but it is extra nice to do it in mid August.  A little break in the heat was great, but I am happy that it warms up again a little later in the week.  Summer is so brief, I am not ready to give up on it yet!

You have a hallmark of summer in your box today - corn.  We made some delicious tacos from Rick Bayless's cookbook and I am including the recipe below since there are many of the ingredients in your box today.

Melons are starting to trickle in - should have something fun for your boxes next week.

Red Leaf Lettuce
Cucumber
Corn - The corn will be picked the morning of your pick up day.  It will keep in the fridge but corn is best eaten as soon as possible.
Cherry Tomatoes
Zucchini
Poblano Peppers - While these are on the lesser end of the spicy scale as far as chile peppers go, they do still have a bit of heat to them, particularly if you are using them in a dish where the pepper is the lead role such as chile rellenos.
Swiss Chard
Carrot - Large Only

Mexican Style Zucchini Tacos

Week 10

Things are humming along.  Last week the onions started to fall, the eggplant began to pick, the melons were in need of sampling and some clean up took place in the pea field.  Feeling a momentary sense of control.  Boxes seem fun this week.  I think the food is always tasty, but sometimes imaging it in the box makes me extra happy - I like a good mix of colors.

Enjoy the rainbow.

Carrots
Cauliflower
Green/Wax Beans
Sun Jewel Korean Style Melon - If you have done the CSA before then you have had this melon.  It has kicked off melon season every year since the beginning when it was one of only two melons we grew.  This year we have at least a dozen different varieties.  We are experiencing a little mole issue in the melon field, but there should still be plenty in future boxes.
Purple Potatoes - The purple potato we grew last year was great tasting, but the yield was horrible so we are trying a different variety this year.  It was developed by Dr. Lim in Korea.  On his website he says that it can fight obesity, chronic constipation and hyperlipidemia.  He developed it as a fresh(as in raw) eating potato.  Wild, right?  I have never heard of such a thing.
Slicing Tomatoes
Kohlrabi - If the Kohlrabi isn't quite ready there will be an herb choice instead.
Eggplant - Large Only

Week 9

Apparently we are the kind of friends who show up at your party just as you are about to finally have a chance to relax after all the people have left!  Our friends decided to have a weekend party at their farm that started on Friday evening and ended with breakfast on Sunday.  Lots of people swung by to hang out for a bit and many people camped by the creek.  At least that is what I heard...we arrived a little late.  I felt sheepish showing up midmorning on Sunday, but after we finished putting everything away after market on Saturday evening, we just didn't have it in us to drive down to Boisfort.   We decided to get up extra early this morning to harvest, deliver and head south.  In usual fashion, it took a little longer than we thought it would!  Our friend Galilee, who some of you know from when she lived and farmed on Libby Road, was very gracious and welcoming and let us scavenge the breakfast left overs.  Her place, which serves to both feed her family and is a small working farm that specializes in melons, is incredible.  It has a creek running through it with a brightly painted row boat, rope swings, several foot bridges and little alcove sitting areas.  It is such a beautiful combination of whimsy and perfectly straight weed free rows of veggies.  I find inspiration in so many people's gardens.  I think some people feel a little self conscious showing us their vegetable gardens, but really they shouldn't.  I love all gardens and admire people who dedicate time to growing their own food.  Anyway,  I was glad we managed to squeeze in a visit, even a late one.

Galilee's melons look good and so do ours.  It isn't really time to test one just yet, but I doubt we will be able to resist much longer.  Besides, the weather this week looks like it might put the melons on fast forward.  Hopefully nothing on the farm fast forwards to death!

All the garlic got pulled and hung last week.  It is always a relief to have that done.  Last fall we invested in a lifter bar for the tractor to assist in digging parsnips.  It came in handy for the garlic as well.  Usually we spend quite a bit of time hand forking it.  It isn't much more than a welded steel rectangle with angled blade on the bottom.  It attaches to the three point hitch on the back of the tractor.   It is a simple tool that caused a giggle fit the first time we used it on parsnips because it made the job so easy!

Hope you all stay cool this week.

Lettuce
Carrots
Purple Bell Pepper
Cherry Tomatoes
Japanese Cucumber
Collards or Kale - There will be a choice until we run out of one or the other.  This is the first picking off a new planting.  These guys have lived a sheltered life under row cover and will be very tender.  They will wilt in an instant so get them in the fridge quick!  
Garlic
Cauliflower - Large Only

A CSA member shared this great hot weather recipe with me.  It calls for swiss chard but I think it would be excellent with the collards.

Peanut Chicken Wraps

Week 8

When the farm is weedy it is a lot like having a messy house for me.  As long as we aren't loosing crops to weed pressure and the weeds aren't going to seed it doesn't really matter, just like the pile of clothes next to the bed doesn't really matter.   However, the messy garden and the messy house both make me feel unorganized and a little anxious.  This weekend Kelly is freeing up some brain space for me!  He mowed and disked a bunch of fields that we were done harvesting out of and were just filled with waist high pig weed and lambs quarters.  It just feels better.  It doesn't make a lot of sense, but I feel like I can think better when things are tidy.

Which brings me to your boxes last week.  We forgot the cucumber in all of Wednesday's small share boxes so you will have a cucumber this week.  My apologies.

We did some other good stuff for our brains this week.  We went to Portland for a wedding Friday afternoon.  We spent about as much time in the car as at the ceremony but it was relaxing, fun and oddly I was in bed a little earlier on Friday night than on a usual work day.

Anyway, we should be pretty sharp this week!  No mistakes.  Feel free to insert a snarky overconfidence quote here!  Ha.

I have been meaning to mention that f there is something you want that you don't see on the table you should always feel free to ask. Typically greens and herbs just turn to mush so quickly in the afternoon I don't bother putting them out.  However, we often have some in the walk-in.

Carrots
Potatoes - Anushka, yellow skin and yellow flesh.
Zucchini/Summer Squash
Garlic
Bunched Onions - either a sweet red Italian torpedo onion or some smaller pearl size onions.
Garlic - Inchelium Red, a soft neck variety re-discovered on the Colville Reservation in Inchelium Washington.
Arugula - maybe
Snow Peas - last peas of the season
Salad Mix - Large Only
Japanese Cucumber - Large Only

Have a great week. 

Week 7

I think we all tend to cook food we know how to make when we are busy.  For one, it is easy and besides there is something comforting about familiar food.  However, there are finally a lot of vegetables around and while it can be difficult to find time to cook new stuff, I feel obligated to try some new things.  Loving to cook and eat is one of the things that led me to farming.  It is still a motivator and a source of satisfaction.  Alternatively, not taking time to cook new food can start to feel frustrating.  Last week I managed to try something new and get in a rut.  A little over a week ago I had a salad with raw beets in it.  To be honest, I was a little skeptical because I am not crazy about raw beets.  However, the salad was great and when I found out it was from a cookbook I own (Jerusalem), I decided to make it myself the next night when we were having company for dinner.  I made it again last night for a potluck/house warming party we went to.  The same dish, three times in a week.  The recipe is really flexible and I just used it as a guide.  I will include a link below if you are looking for something different to do with your beets.  It is almost as easy as making a dish you prepare regularly from memory.  

Lettuce

Carrots

Cauliflower - These will not be the biggest heads of cauliflower you receive from us (those come in the fall) but they are delicious.  

Beets

Green Beans

Cherry Tomato or Raspberry - your choice until we run out of one or the other

Cucumber

Green Bells - Large Only

Root Vegetable Slaw

I adapted this recipe to what I had available to me and you should feel free to do the same.  I skipped the celery root both times because it is not in season.  I used turnips one time and kohlrabi the other.  I used all the herbs the first night but only had parsley handy last night.  One night I topped it with Labneh, one night I didn't.  Each time it came out great.  Many of you have Chioggia beets in your box.  These are particularly beautiful raw with their candy cane stripes.  As a bonus they don't bleed and are easy to deal with when raw or cooked.  They are a little milder than the dark red beets.  

Week 6

The wettest spring ever is a distant memory.  I am happy to put it behind us, but we are still feeling its repercussions.  Kelly is the mastermind of what goes where when it comes to the farm.  He can look at a field and remember what was planted in it every year that we have farmed.  I, if I am holding up my end of the bargain, tell him what needs to be seeded and transplanted and he figures out where it is going.  This spring there was ground too wet to work or not enough time to get everything worked during the very brief dry spells.   That forced us to just plant stuff where there were beds made.  It felt a little less planned out and it still feels a bit scattered.  On top of that I haven't been doing the best job of communicating.  On July 4th I mentioned we were suppose to seed rutabagas on the 5th...not real helpful!  But don't worry, the rutabagas got seeded.  Kelly jokes that we spend hours and hours on a production plan and writing down how we want things to be done and then at the end of June we toss it all aside and just work.  There is some truth to that, but for the most part we do a pretty good job remembering stuff without looking at spread sheets.  There are of course exceptions - like the rutabagas.  This week marked the end of our last big seeding for transplants.  We will continue to seed salad and lettuce weekly, but most of the transplanted crops have been seeded.  Our big fall carrot planting date is this week and a large fall beet planting is the following week.  Garlic harvest is just around the corner.  Our days are becoming more dominated by harvest, often only leaving a couple hours in the afternoon for weeding and seeding.  It feels like summer in terms of the patterns on the farm and your boxes will reflect that more and more.

Head Lettuce
Carrot
New Potatoes - I suspect I tell you every year what I like to do with new potatoes but it never gets old for me so here we go.  Regardless of their size (we grade them so while not everyone gets the same size the ones you get are of similar size to each other) I slice them in half and steam them until barely tender.  I pull them out of the steamer to dry while I heat a cast iron pan or some sort of pan that they won't stick to and add olive oil to generously (an understatement) cover the bottom.  I then pan fry them cut side down without touching them until I can see the edges are turning color.   Once they are all nicely browned I place them on a plate crispy side up.  I then toss a bunch of garlic in the pan, adding more oil if necessary stir for 20 seconds, add a hand full of chopped parley, stir just to mix them together and then spoon the mix over the crispy potatoes.  We are having these tonight with some roast chicken and broccoli.  True new potatoes are also excellent steamed and tossed with butter and herbs.
Zucchini - We had some of these grilled on a charcoal grill last night.  Delicious.
Cabbage
Herb Choice
Snap Peas - Large Only

Week 5

I hope you all have a chance to relax a little on Independence Day and enjoy a nice summer meal.  We usually try to put potatoes in the 4th of July box, but they aren't quite ready.  Hopefully next week. I can't wait.

We started picking field cukes this week.  The ones in the hoop house(what you have been getting) have slowed down quite a bit, but it is still pretty amazing how many cukes can come from such a small area.  During our best week we harvested 370 pounds out of a small 20 by 30 space.  This week it will probably dip down to about 75 pounds, but the timing couldn't be better.   The field cukes never look as perfect as the trellised hoop house cukes, but in general I think they are tastier.  We still have one cucumber variety to make its CSA debut, Tasty Jade, a Japanese style cucumber, which to some is the tastiest of them all.  If there are any available for picking tomorrow I will try to cut some samples for side by side comparison.  The truth is that there are many factors that contribute to a cucumbers flavor.  We could have a side by side comparison tomorrow and again every few weeks and you might have different preference each time.  It is a good reminder for me not to get to stuck on a particular variety.

Have a great week.

Carrots
Head Lettuce - Mixed varieties.  If you have a preference when you pick up you box let us know.
Cucumber - 
Bunched Turnip - Small Only
Snap Pea
Garlic
Broccoli -
Snow Pea - Large Only 
Collards or Chard - Large Only

The pictures below are from the hoop house at our house that we refer to as the Ho Ho, short for House House.  Giving things stupid names makes it easier for us to refer to them and it also gives me great pleasure!  However, what really gets me excited is that we are starting to pick cherry tomatoes.  There aren't many but you will find a few pints at the farm stand when you pick up your box - unless someone has already snagged them.

Week 4

We got up and out of the house early this morning to harvest broccoli and lettuce for you all in addition to our wholesale orders.  I love the sunshine and the heat but not all the vegetables enjoy it as much as I do.  The cool nights help reduce the heat stress and the spell of hot weather is brief.   I suspect most things will be fine, but we didn't want to take a chance on the broccoli.  It has been in short supply for the last couple weeks.  For the CSA and markets we harvest most things on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  That means that between Friday and Monday the veggies have an extra day to grow.  We try to take that into account on Friday.  For example, we pick zucchinis a little smaller than we would on Monday or Wednesday.  When there is a hot spell over the weekend we sometimes make an exception and do some Sunday harvest so we don't loose vegetables.  In the case of the broccoli it has the potential to start bolting.    If you didn't realize it, the broccoli head is nothing more than a large cluster of flower buds.  If left too long the head begins to spread and the little green beads form yellow flowers.

On the plus side the warm weather crops like field cukes and tomatoes should get a nice little push.

Lettuce - Little Gem Romaines - Wednesday may get red little gems which grow a little larger a but I think there enough green ones for everyone.  They are cute, crunchy and easy to eat.
Broccoli
Strawberries - last call
Red Scallions
Snap Peas
Zucchini - Small Only
Turnips- Large Only
Spinach - Large Only

Have a great week.

Week 3

The first day of summer is this week or as I like to think of it, the day that signifies grass pollen season is more than half way over.  We can't wait.  Hopefully it will be one of those beautiful days that reminds us all why we like the Pacific Northwest.  Like most other days around here, I am sure it will start and end with a hat and sweater.  As much as I love the heat, I enjoy the cool mornings and they are helpful during harvest.  It gives us a chance to get all your vegetables into the washroom before they start to dehydrate.

We moved start time for the crew up a half hour this week in anticipation of summer and warmer daytime temps.  Kelly and I both have our summer game faces on.  One of the crew commented that I seemed so serious the other day.  I want the crew to feel the rhythm of the farm the way I do: the increased sense of urgency as the days become sunnier, moving through succession plantings, seeing the rapid growth of the plants, watching the weeds get closer to making seed.  For me it has become a familiar pattern, but for them I think the most noticeable thing on the farm is our more focused expression and our increased expectations.  It is the time of year when harvest time starts to compete with time spent weeding and seeding.  Maintaining the right balance and planning properly becomes more important.   We become so focused on efficiency and not wasting time that we sometimes forget that we enjoy our jobs.  When we reach that point I find the best thing to do is to stop at the Chevron, take a deep breath and buy a popsicle!

Hope you all find a nice way to celebrate the longest day of the year.

Lettuce - Hopefully a variety called Lovelock for all of you.   Lovelock is a Batavian type with a great crisp texture and mild flavor.  If you secretly love iceberg but know you should be eating a red leaf this lettuce is for you.
Carrots - Carrots tended to run the gamut last week - super mini to decent size.  We are into the next planting and hopefully they will be a little more evenly sized.
Strawberries 
Cucumber
Snap Peas
Green Cabbage - Small Only
Bok Choy - Large Only
Zucchini - Large Only

Week 2

I got in the harvest rig this morning to harvest lettuce and collards for the co-op and the song Every Rose Has Its Thorn by Poison was playing.  When I got back in the truck to drive to the washroom Bon Jovi's Wanted Dead or Alive was on.  Throw back Sunday for me - straight back to to middle school.  Not sure which one of our crew members tuned the dial to that station or who in their right mind thinks Every Rose has its Thorn should still be on the radio but it put a smile on my face and a little extra pep in my step.   Hopefully that extra energy can be carried over for tomorrow.   Looks like peas, carrots and strawberries are ready to go!

Head Lettuce 
Carrots
Snap Peas - You can eat the whole pod.
Scallions
Strawberries
Radishes
Garlic Scapes - Large Only 
Cucumber - Large Only

Week 1

What a difference a year makes.  In my first post of last year, I commented that I felt as if the farm share should have started earlier.  We had been bunching carrots for a few weeks and we had just started to pick zukes and cukes.  I wrote that Kel and I had a hard time narrowing down what to put in your boxes.  Well, this year is a different story.  We sat at the kitchen table this morning staring at a list that said lettuce, chard and turnips and we sat in silence for a moment or two.  In the end we came up with a good list.  Some years the variety just comes a little slower than other years. The snap peas and carrots you may have been hoping for will just taste that much better next week!

As always, I spent a good chunk of my free time this winter looking through cookbooks.  Kelly and I briefly stuck with a plan to each make a new recipe every week.  I would recommend checking out A Modern Way to Cook and a Modern Way to Eat by Anna Jones if you need a little veggie inspiration.  The recipes tend to be pretty straight forward and most are quick.  I am including a link to one of her recipes below.

If you are unsure what something is/what to do with something please ask.  We will do our best to give you ideas and often another farm share member will chime in as well.

Head Lettuce 

Swiss Chard - Anna Jones has lots of chard recipes.  Chard is veggie that I don't love on it's own but I have come to enjoy it when it is prepared right and we tossed it into a lot of things this spring when I grew tired of winter kale.  The recipe for chard and black eyed peas is full of flavor.

Green Garlic -  The entire thing can be eaten.  It will be milder than cured garlic.  It should be kept in a bag in your fridge until you are ready to eat it.

Salad Turnips - Erin, the produce manager at the West side Co-op, loves, loves, loves this soup.  Although I haven't made it, her enthusiasm makes me believe that it has to be delicious.  It is also, easy and uses both the greens and the turnips.  It is an Alice Water's recipe.

Beets - We roasted some of these the other night and had them with a dollop of sour cream mixed with a little yogurt, lemon, lemon zest, green garlic and salt.  

Herb Choice - Basil (limited), Cilantro, Dill

Cabbage - Large Only

Salad Mix - Large Only

Next Week Sneak Peak
Carrots
Scallions
Snap Peas