Wednesday, August 29, 2012

August 29 CSA

This week's box:  2 bell peppers, 1/2 lb. okra, 1 pint edamame, 1 1/2 lbs. summer squash, 2lbs. golden delicious apples.  Regular shares also have: 2 pints cherry tomatoes, 1 1/2 lbs. cucumbers.

Also, please get your onions, garlic, shallots, and hot pepppers at the market stand.

To prepare the edamame, wash it and then steam for 5 minutes; toss with salt if you like and pop the beans out of the pod with your teeth.

We like to eat okra lots of different ways.  If you want it to be less slimy, cut it into 1/2 inch wide pieces and soak in salt water for 10 minutes before cooking.  It is an excellent thickener for soups and gumbo.  It is delicious sauteed with onions and sweet peppers and served with rice or quinoa. 

In the coming weeks of the CSA (there are 6 left after today),  you'll get winter squash, sweet potatoes, leeks, celeriac, more edamame, lettuce.
We are working on getting the winter squash harvested.  We'll have butternut, long island cheese pumpkins, and buttercup.
The sweet potato harvest will probably begin next week with the O'Henry variety which is white.  We will also have purple, orange, and japanese (purple skin with white flesh).

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

August 22 CSA

The weather is cooling down...we'll see if it's a permanent change toward fall or a short reprieve from this hot summer.  The days are getting shorter and our daily start time is pushed up to 7 am.  Also noticeable is the slowed rate at which crops are growing and ripening.

Your box this week contains:  1 red cabbage, 1 bell pepper, 1 lb. summer squash, 1 lb. mixed beans (yellow wax and green snap), 2 lbs. red skin potatoes, 1 pint cherry tomatoes.  regular shares have an additional pound each of beans and summer squash as well as 2 lbs. of tomatoes.
PLEASE PICK UP THE ONIONS, GARLIC, SHALLOTS YOU NEED FROM THE MARKET STAND.
Also, we have LOTS of hot peppers and would love for any of you who want them to get those at the market stand too.  If you want a large amount, let me know and we'll put that together for next week.  I'm just not sure who likes them and who doesn't so we didn't put them in the boxes.  There are jalapenos, serranos, and poblanos.  You do not need to pay for the peppers or the onions etc..

ASIAN CABBAGE SLAW (from Farmer John's cookbook)

2 cups shredded cabbage
1/2 cup minced red onion
1/2 red bell pepper
2 T minced fresh mint
2 T minced fresh cilantro
2 T rice vinegar
2 T peanut oil
1 T rice wine (mirin or sake)
2 tsp. honey
1 tsp. toasted sesame oil
salt and pepper
1. Combine the cabbage, onion, pepper, mint, cilantro in a large bowl.  Toss well.
2. Mix vinegar, peanut oil, rice wine, honey, sesame oil in a small bowl until well combined.  Pour over the cabbage mixture and toss.  Season with s and p to taste.
3. Refrigerate for 1 hour before serving.

Other vegetables are great in this slaw too such as cucumber and carrot.

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

August 15 CSA

This week's box has:  1 bunch leeks, 1 lb. sweet peppers, 2 lbs. heirloom paste tomatoes, 2 lbs. red and blue potatoes, 3/4 lb green beans, 1 lb. japanese eggplant, 1 pint cherry tomatoes.  Regular shares also get:  1 lb. yellow wax beans, 2 lbs. summer squash, 2 lbs. more paste tomatoes.

We thought we would just let you pick your own garlic and onions at market from the table.  You can get what you need each week and then store them as you wish.  The sweet and long red onions need to be kept in the refrigerator.  The round red and yellow onions as well as garlic and shallots do not need refrigeration.  They are best stored in dark, dry, cool location.

Jimmy Nardello sweet Italian Frying Peppers.
All the peppers in your box are sweet.  The long thin ones are an italian heirloom frying pepper, delicious in all applications.  The paste tomatoes are great for sauce and also delicious fresh in sandwiches , salsa, and salads.  The japanese eggplant have tender skin and do not need peeling.  They are excellent sauteed with onion and garlic and salt and pepper.  They're also good roasted and ground up and added to dips or veggie patties; delicious cut in half, marinated and grilled; delicious cut into coins and breaded and fried.

Thursday, August 9, 2012

August 8 CSA

All share boxes have:  3 lb. tomatillos, 3 lb. red tomatoes, 2 jalapenos, 2 lb nicola potatoes, 1 bell pepper, 3 onions, 2 garlics, 1 celery, 1 pint cherry tomatoes.   Regular share boxes also have:  1/2 lb. sweet jimmy nardello peppers, 2 italian eggplant, 1/2 lb. basil.

There is a recipe in the blog from a few weeks ago for tomatillo salsa for those of you who just started getting the peak share.  The nicola potatoes are excellent for potato salad, soup, or homefries as they have a waxy texture and hold their form well when cooked.  The bell pepper will ripen all the way to red if kept out on the counter for a day or two.  The jimmy nardello peppers are the long thin peppers that look like they should be hot though they are very sweet.  These are one of my favorite vegetables of the year and I like them best just sauteed with some onion and eaten as a side or on top of anything.  The celery has the same problem as before due to so much rain.  The leaves can be used in soup or stock but aren't very good fresh.  The stalks that have blemishes should be cooked too because they'll be tough but the hearts can be used for potato salad or anything fresh.  This is probably the last week that you'll get alot of tomatoes.  We really like to make a roasted tomato sauce.  I'll put a recipe for that below.

Junebug
 Mom's Roasted Tomatoes
(recipe compliments of Aaron's mother)

Large roasting pan
In bottom of pan place 1 large slivered onion tossed with 1 Tblspn olive oil, salt and pepper.
Halve tomatoes and place cut side up on the onion.
Throw 4 cloves chopped garlic on top.  Drizzle with 2 Tblspn ollive oil, salt and pepper.
Roast at 425 degrees for 1 1/2 hrs. until all juice evaporates.
Use in soups, sauces, on pizza.
This freezes well for later use.
Strawflowers drying for wreaths
Next week the boxes will have leeks, hopefully beans, and maybe summer squash from a new planting.  We are in a bit of a lull right now because we've lost some things to the rain and heat and because we were unable to get new crops planted on schedule because of the fields being too wet.  Please bear with us, new crops will begin to appear in your boxes soon!

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

August 1! CSA

Here we are in August!

We have all the potatoes harvested and stored; the new litter of barn cats has been discovered, the onion field is disced in and sown in a cover crop of buckwheat, and we are planting fall crops!  ( turnips, daikon radish, beets, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower)

Boxes this week:  3 lbs. tomatoes, 1 canteloupe melon, 1 lb. fairytale eggplant, 1 bunch thai basil, 1 head of green cabbage, 1 pint of mixed cherry tomatoes, garlic, onions.  Regular shares also get:  2 lbs. purple peruvian fingerling potatoes, 1 celery, 2 lbs. of sauce tomatoes.

The tomatoes are hanging in there but probably only for another week or two.  The melons are pretty good but not as sweet as they could be were it not raining so much.  If you get a totally bad one, please let us know next week and you can get another one.  The thai basil is an excellent additon to stirfries and curries and also makes a pleasant pesto.  The purple fingerlings are an almost wild potato that will be best roasted whole tosssed in some olive oil and salt n pepper.
Look at all the potatoes!
 Roasted Eggplant and Tomato with Nuts
from Farmer John's cookbook

1/4 cup chopped pine nuts, almonds, or walnuts
1 lb. eggplant
1/2 lb tomatoes, diced
1/4 cup apple or white grape juice
3 Tblspn balsamic vinegar
3 Tblspn chopped parsley
2 Tblspn prepared grainy mustard
2 Tblspn lemon or lime juice
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper

1. heat oven to 375 degrees
2. toast the nuts in a dry heavy skillet over high heat until they become fragrant.  about 1 minute.  transfer immediately to a cool dish.
3. brush a baking sheet with oil.  cut the eggplant in half and arrange on the sheet.  Pile the diced tomatoes arounf the eggplant.  roast until the eggplant is soft, about 30 minutes.
4. Mix the remaining ingredients for the dressing.  add the olive oil last by pouring in a thin stream, whisking constantly, until the dressing is thick and doesn't separate.
5. Remove veggies from oven and spoon 2/3 of dressing over the cut surfaces.  let the veggies cool.
6.  when the veggies have reached room temp., transfer to individual plates and drizzle remaining dressing over them.  sprinkle toasted nuts over top, season with salt and pepper.  serve at room temp.
this is delicious with chevre sprinkled on top.
Aaron and Addiebelle inspecting the tomatoes