Share wk 7 
Week Seven 

 

 

Hello Members! 

 

Who is ready for a break in this weather?  It would be one thing if a person could go to the beach all day everyday and sit in the water, but who has time for that?  It's Tuesday as I write this, and I just left the crew harvesting in the field.  We're trying to get as much of it in as we can this afternoon in an attempt to be out of the 97 degree heat as early as possible in the morning.  This explains the somewhat wilty beet greens some of you might be getting in your boxes - apologies about that but when harvesting in this heat it's hard to avoid.  Did I mention last week that you can eat beet greens?  These are a farmer favorite - beet greens are actually my favorite green to cook.  Beets are very closely related to chard, as well as spinach (they are all in the Chenopodiaceae family) and therefore beet greens are similar to both these things when cooked.  

 

The big event this week was (and still is) the garlic harvest.  We were able to get it all out yesterday with the help of a few daring shareholder volunteers, but it was hot, sticky, dirty work!  Now the curing process begins.  This involves sorting it into bulbs we will plant for seed and bulbs we will give out in shares or sell at market, and hanging it in a dry location with plenty of air circulation.  We lack a really good space to do this at Wellspring, but our volunteer carpenter friend Tim (see previous newsletter about the cooler) is back again helping us modify the greenhouse a bit to turn it into a viable option.  And all week long we have a group of high school aged people with a program called Reach Out, Reach In who have helped us hang almost every single bulb!  I'll put some pictures in next week's newsletter.  

 

In other news, the tomatoes in the green house are finally ripening!  We put our field tomatoes in a bit late and while the plants themselves look awesome, they are just a bit behind where I'd like for them to be at this point in the season.  I've been hoping that the greenhouse production would be enough to keep everyone in at least a few tomatoes a week until the field tomatoes really kick it in gear, and I think we're going to see that happening in the next week or two.   The first eggplants are in the box this week (just a tease, really as there should be a higher quantity to come) and I think they are really beautiful.  We are growing both the Asian style and the Italian Globe style, but only the more prolific Asian type are producing right now. 

 

It's now Wednesday as I'm finishing this newsletter and I just erased the paragraph I had written yesterday asking all of you to do your own personal rain dance for the veggies.  However, last night we got almost a half inch of rain, which we desperately needed.  Things were looking really, really sad and wilted.  The veggies, crew and I would all take another 1/2 inch asap, in case anyone out there is taking notes! 

 

Well, that's enough complaining! :) Onto the box...

What's In The Box And Where Does It Go? 

 

CROP                                 FRIDGE?                          NOTES

 

Red Lettuce                        Yes                                    

Green Lettuce                     Yes       

Arugula                               Yes                                   Spicy!

Beets/Baby Beets               Yes     

Carrots                               Yes 

Scallions                            Yes 

Cucumbers                         Yes

Zucchini/Summer Squash    Yes 

Basil                                  NO                      Nearly a 1/4 lb!

Sage                                  Yes                               Culinary 

Red Russian Kale               Yes 

Napa Cabbage                    Yes 

Eggplant                             Yes 

 

 

2 heads of lettuce - The last of the lettuce until fall! Can you believe that? It's barely surviving in this heat, especially without any moisture.  We almost lost this succession too, but we got it just in time.  I think another day and it would all have bolted.  I hope it's still sweet and not bitter - sometimes lettuce gets bitter in the heat but these varieties are meant to hold up even in hot weather!  

1 bunch of arugula - Also the last of this crop until fall.  Just a small bunch, and this is spicy stuff because arugula reacts to the heat outside by turning up the spice level.  If you don't love that peppery bite, I'd recommend wilting it, or slicing it in thin ribbons and adding it to a salad.  (Which is how most of us have been eating around here lately because it's too hot to cook!) 

1 head napa cabbage (aka Chinese Cabbage) - I like to grow a smaller variety of napa, because I know it can be a bit unfamiliar.  (And the big ones don't fit in the box!)  Did you know that napa cabbage is the most common ingredient in egg rolls?  It's also a main ingredient in the traditional fermented Korean Kimchi http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kimchi, which is something I really like to make.  Recipe below...

1 bunch scallions

1 bunch beets (or baby beets!) - So, due to the lack of water the beets are not sizing up as well as we would have liked.  But I wanted to make sure that the A week half shares got a shot at them, so some of the bunches are made up of many small beets.  I find that these are really fun to roast up, and of course they taste the same as regular sized beets. 

1 bunch carrots 

1 bunch sage - I love sage, and like marjoram I think it is an underutilized herb.  I love it with chicken, or any meat really.  When it's winter squash time I'll include a recipe for Butternut Squash Ravioli with Sage Brown Butter Sauce.  But for now, something else below. 

eggplant - OK so now we are into the summer veggies.  Recipe to follow! 

cucumbers 

zucchini 

red russian kale - Remember this type of kale from two weeks ago?  I had wanted to wait a week to be able to give it out to the "B" group, but the plants had something else in mind! 

bag of basil

 

Recipes!! 

 

Olive Oil Roasted Eggplant with Lemon 

 

(This is a quick and easy way to use just one or two eggplants.)

 

Ingredients

 

1 large or two small eggplant

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or lightly grease.

 

Slice the eggplant in half lengthwise, then cut each half into quarters lengthwise. Cut each of those in half to make two shorter quarters. Place the eggplant onto the baking sheet with the skin side down. Brush each piece with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

 

Roast in the preheated oven until softened and golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with lemon juice. Serve hot.

 

This Beet Puree is from a CSA member...

 

"My favorite beet recipe is to roast them in the oven wrapped in foil and then I strip the skin off.  I cut the beets, add olive oil and balsamic vinegar in a blender or food processor and blend until I have a smooth dip for pita chips."

 

 

Crispy Fried Sage Leaves

This is so good with white beans, or any other beans, as well as an accompaniment to veggies. 

1 bunch fresh sage
1/4 cup olive oil
Coarse salt

 

Pinch off leaves from sage. Heat oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat until hot.

 

Fry 6-8 sage leaves at a time until crisp, 2-3 seconds. Transfer with a fork to paper towels and sprinkle generously with coarse salt.

MAKES ABOUT 30 FRIED LEAVES

 

 

Chinese Cabbage Salad From Asparagus to Zucchini 

 

5 cups chopped Chinese cabbage

1 1/3 cups chow mein noodles (the crunchy ones) 

1 cup crushed peanuts (or sunflower seeds)

1/4 cup sesame seeds 

2 TBS rice vinegar

4 TBS sesame oil 

3 TBS soy sauce

1 TBS honey

1/2-1 tsp dry mustard

 

Combine cabbage, chow mein noodles, peanuts and sesame seeds.  Mix remaining ingredients. Toss with cabbage, using just enough dressing to suit your taste.  Makes 6-8 servings. 

 

this is a great post about making the perfect eggroll: http://steamykitchen.com/13029-my-mothers-famous-chinese-egg-rolls-2.html

and here's a website for Napa recipes: http://www.sheknows.com/food-and-recipes/articles/809695/8-things-to-do-with-napa-cabbage

 

 Thanks again for reading all the way to the bottom! :) 

Farmer Alissa

 

What's What - Photo ID of Veggies in the Box

 

Arugula wk 7 

Arugula

 

basil wk 7 
Basil

 

beets wk 7 
Beets

 

carrots wk 7 
Carrots

 

 

cucumbers wk 7 
Cucumbers

 

 

eggplant wk 7 
Eggplant

 

 

green lettuce wk 7 
Green Lettuce

 

 

napa cabbage wk 7 
Napa Cabbage

 

 

red lettuce wk 7 
Red Lettuce

 

 

red russian kale wk 7 
Red Russian Kale

 

 

sage wk 7 
Sage

 

 

scallions wk 7 
Scallions

 

zucchini wk 7 summer squash wk 6  
Zucchini      or     Summer Squash

galic just picked 7-18-11