Jul 25

Summer #8 CSA Newsletter Week July 22-27, 2024 “B" week

Marlee harvesting in the mini broccoli patch under a split sky.

VEG SHARES

(Photo of the "Default" FULL Share below. See listings to see which share size has what, how much, along with info, guides, recipes.)

FULL VEG SHARE:

LETTUCE MIX (¼ lb) - Store in a plastic bag in your fridge. Often considered a “1st Priority Vegetable” with a shorter shelf life than the other vegetables in your share, however if you put a paper or cloth towel in the bag to absorb moisture, our freshly harvested lettuce will often lasts more than a week! Guide & Recipes

Kale (1 bunch) RED RUSSIAN - Store in a plastic bag (a Debbie Meyer Green bag if you have one) keep it in the fridge. Use within a week. This crop technically falls into the category of “1st Priority veggies” If you can’t use them in the next few days, freeze them you can use the stalks too! OR DINOSAUR - (Also known as Lacinto or Toscano.) Dino kale has an earthy, nutty flavor. It doesn't have the same strong bitterness as other varieties of kale, though it is still there. The sweetness helps offset that and makes it more approachable.This green can be used just like any other kale. Every part of the leaf is edible, though really thick ribs take longer to cook, so they're often discarded. The kale can be cooked whole, cut into thin strips, or chopped, depending on your recipe and use. Store in a plastic bag (a Debbie Meyer Green bag if you have one) keep it in the fridge. Use within a week. This crop technically falls into the category of “1st Priority veggies” to be used in the next week. If you can’t use it in the next few days, consider freezing it. Guide & Recipes

SALAD (Hakurei) TURNIPS (1 bunch) - These popular white golf-ball or smaller size roots are juicy, sweet and less starchy than an average turnip, with a texture that deserves to be eaten raw or barely cooked. Hakurei turnips have the tender, almost creamy texture of a spring radish, but without the sharp heat of a radish, their more mellow turnip flavor shines through.They are crisp and tender. Use them in salads, sandwiches, stir frys, sautes, scrambled eggs or sauces. Remove the edible tops (use in salads or lightly sauteed) and store them separately in a plastic bag in the fridge (or the root will get soft). Best used within 3-4 weeks but will keep a long time! Guide & Recipes

MINI BROCCOLI (½ lb) - More tender with a milder flavor than standard head broccoli, all of the parts of the mini broccoli, also called baby broccoli, in your bag is edible. It can be steamed, sautéed, roasted, stir-fried, or even puréed into a sauce. And while it makes a good side dish when cooked, broccoli can easily be used raw in salads and crudités. Store in your fridge in a plastic bag for a week, although spears will go limp (still edible!) the longer you keep them. You can often revive them by soaking in very cold water for 10 to 20 minutes. Guide & Recipes

GREEN BEANS (1/2 lb) - Also called Snap Beans. Store these in the fridge and use within a week or maybe a little longer. Try trimming the ends off and then steam them for 6 minutes, dunk in an ice water bath, and serve with butter, salt and pepper. Guide & Recipes

KOHLRABI - (2) - Store in a plastic bag for up to a month. 6 Ideas for Use: 1. Slice in rounds or sticks for veggie platters, 2. Eat plain with a light sprinkling of salt, 3. Grate into salads or slaws, 4. Steam slices 5 to 10 minutes and drizzle with oil, lemon juice, and dill weed, 5. Slice or cube and add to stir fry or to a hearty soup/stew, 6. Grate and saute in butter with herbs or curry.

BEETS with TOPS (1 bunch) - Remove tops from roots and store separately in the crisper drawer of your fridge in plastic bags. Use the tops within a week, (don't waste your beet greens and stems! They taste delicious and can be quickly and easily pan-fried - see recipes below!) but the roots are hardy keepers and will last for months! Guide & Recipes

CUCUMBERS (3) - Store in the crisper drawer of your fridge in a plastic bag and use within a week. Remember these are organic - no need to peel!

GARLIC (1 fresh, not “cured” bulb) - Keep your garlic in a cool, drafty place, ideally out of direct sunlight. A porch, kitchen or garage are all possibilities. You can eat your fresh-pulled garlic whenever you want, but if you’d like to store it for longer than a week or so wait until the stalk is dried down and, you’ll have a “cured” garlic bulb that you can store as normal garlic.

HALF VEG SHARE: (see Full VEG Shares above⬆ for info on each item)

KALE (1 bunch) RED RUSSIAN or DINOSAUR

MINI BROCCOLI (½ lb)

GREEN BEANS (1/2 lb)

BEETS with TOPS (1 bunch)

KOHLRABI - (2)

CUCUMBERS (3)

GARLIC (1 bulb)

2 OPTIONAL ITEMS this week:

Kohlrabi (2)
Garlic Scapes (1 bunch)

Other items available in DESIGN MY SHARE:

RADISHES with greens (1 bunch) - Separate radish from leaves for storing! Keep the greens in a loosely wrapped plastic bag in the crisper bin of your refrigerator and eat them ASAP. (Add them to scrambled eggs). Store the red roots in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for a week or so. Eat raw with a sprinkle of salt, slice into salads or on sandwiches for added crunch, pickle or roast with carrots. Or pickle them with this recipe (you’ll have to cut the recipe in half.) Or try them roasted on a sheet pan with potatoes and carrots. (They taste almost like potatoes).

FENNEL (1 bunch) - Remove the stem and fronds from the white bulb. Store the white bulb in the fridge crisper in a plastic bag. Use within 2 weeks. The fronds have a licorice taste, and can be chopped and frozen for later use in seasoning. The stem is also edible. Chop it up finely for cooking, or flash freeze it. Guide & Recipes
GARLIC SCAPES - (1 bunch) These are the curlicue curiosities in your box. Store them in a plastic bag in your crisper. They’ll last about 2-3 weeks. You can trim off the bottom inch of the scape (if it’s woody) as well as the flowering tip (although that is also edible if you want to try it). Steam, saute, or grill them whole or chopped in pieces, similar to green beans, with some olive oil and salt/pepper. Or finely chop as a garlic substitute. Can also be sliced and included in fresh dishes - like you’d use green onions. Can also pickle or chop and freeze them in a Mason jar or Ziplock bag. Then you can use them all summer/winter as needed.
SWISS CHARD (1 bunch) - Put it in a bag to store in the fridge. Use within a week. This crop technically falls into the category of “First Priority Vegetables” or ones with a short shelf life - use it within the week for maximum efficiency. To revive limp chard, cut a sliver off the bottom of the stems and soak in very cold water for a few minutes. Guide & Recipes
RHUBARB - (1 lb) - These tart green & magenta stalks this hardy perennial vegetable is generally thought of as a fruits. It’s mouth puckering goodness is often sweetened with a little sugar or honey and is used in dishes like crisps, compotes, and pies (from which it gets its second name, "pie plant"). Rhubarb also lends a fruitiness to savory dishes and pairs very nicely with pork and poultry. To use: wash and trim off any dry ends. Some peel the skin but there’s no need to do this and besides it holds lots of color and flavor. Store in loose plastic in the crisper drawer of the fridge, where it will keep for about a week or a little more. To freeze, cut the rhubarb stalks into 1-inch chunks and seal in an airtight bag and it will keep for up to a year
PARSLEY (1 bunch) - Snip the bottom of the stems off and store on the counter in a glass of water. Or if you plan to use it in the next day or so, you can store the bunch in a plastic bag in the fridge.
CHIVES (1 bunch) - Chives, with long, pencil-like, thin edible leaves with hollow centers and also edible purple flowers, belong to the allium family, making them relatives of onions, leeks, scallions, and garlic. They are typically chopped and are most often used as a garnish but are good on just about anything. Their flavor pairs well with any savory dish. and the bright green color adds visual appeal as well. Note: if added to a dish too early, they will wilt easily. Chives will keep a few weeks in the fridge in a plastic bag although quality will be better if used within a week.

SORREL (1 bunch) - Kind of a salad green & kind of a herb and in the same family as rhubarb, sorrel’s astringent citrusy flavor adds a little kick to your meal. And its rich in potassium, vitamins Q, B1, and C. A rule of thumb for using - anywhere you’d add a squeeze or two of lemon, sorrel would be good! When heat is added, sorrel breaks down nicely making it a great thickener for sauces and soups. It’s strong flavor pairs well with fatty meats & fish like salmon, creamy dishes, and cheeses. Great cut into thin strips and mixed with other salad greens to eat fresh. Other ideas include using it in soups, sauces, pesto, salads & dressings, potato toppings, hummus, quiches, omelets, crepe fillings, pizza, pasta dishes. 7 More Recipe Ideas Sorrel will last 1-2 weeks in a plastic bag in your fridge. If you wish to rinse or wash, wait until just before using to prolong shelf life.

BASIL - I’ve found the best way to store basil is to pretend they are cut flowers. Cut the bottoms of the stems off and put in a glass of water on your counter or table. (They make a pretty centerpiece until you are ready to use them!) Basil is great in pesto - - which can be frozen.

ALL PURPOSE BOLTED FLOUR (2 lb) - Best applications include but are not limited to cakes, crackers, pizza dough, and breads. PROTEIN CONTENT= 10.5%. (from Meadowlark Organics)

MES SHARES

Week 4 of the rotation so MES = an OFF week

EGG SHARE

WEEKLY = 1 Dozen

BIWEEKLY = 1 Dozen

RECIPES & Other Useful Kitchen Info:

Click links for a printable pdf.

⬆⬆⬆ works with Dinosaur Kale also.

News from Your Farm . . .

Both the pole beans and yellow wax beans are really flowering now.

The trellised pole bean wall is so beautiful covered with the delicate flowers.

We pulled all the garlic on Sunday.

Some of the harvest is shown below in the bed of our Kubota side x side.

We haven't sorted or weighed it yet to have a real sense of how our harvest went this year but it seems to be a really good one and definitely better than last year with the drought. So yay!!!

Earlier in the season we pulled the scapes off our hardneck garlic plants as you know because they've been available in your share ever since. We remove them not only because they are a desired seasonal vegetable for our meals but because taking them results in bigger bulbs come garlic harvest.

The scape is actually a part of the plant's reproduction process.

If left on the plant, it straightens out, and the pointy part at the top opens into a flower which ends up being a whole bunch of teeny tiny garlic bulbils.