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Wood Duck Farm
May 15th, 2011
This week we received a little less than 1/2 inch of rain, but it was welcome indeed. It is always impressive how plants respond to the blessing of a gentle rain. Some say that the lightening fixates the nitrogen, a natural component in our atmosphere and a big component of plant food. The nitrogen is then "captured" in rain, nourishing the plants and soil as it falls along the way.
SUMMER CSA REGISTRATION BEGINS: Several of you have inquired as to when we will begin taking registrations for the summer program which is due to begin around the middle of June. With our "updated website," we're now officially taking registration now at www.woodduckfarm.com $50 full share rebates are being offered as well, read more details below.
FARM OPEN HOUSE SATURDAY MAY 28th: We mentioned it briefly in our last update, but now it is official. This event is open to everyone interested in seeing the farm, so consider bringing a friend or two. It will be family friendly, so bring the kidos. (No pets please.) The Open House will be held at our "ol' schoolhouse" and begin around 4 pm. We'll have a walking tour of the farm from about 4:30-5:15 and a canning demo will follow. Around 6 or so we'll have a pot luck dinner that should wrap up around 7 or so. Canning? In seasons past several of you have voiced your interest in what to do with your extra produce. While some of you are very knowledgeable about canning etc, I thought it might be a good idea to obtain some guidance on the subject and provide it our Open House. Scheduling conflicts prevented some of our very own farm member "canning extraordinaires" from demonstrating, so we sought out Charmaine LeBlanc for assistance. We know Charmaine from the Urban Harvest Farmer's Market, where she is a very active volunteer. Charmaine hosts cooking classes at the Leisure Learning Center of Houston. Charmaine's demo will focus on simple canning techniques, such as turning those extra cucumbers into pickles. We'll send out more reminders, but please send us an email (RSVP) if you're planning on coming.
WEBSITE UPDATE: Thanks to Joyce and Matt, our devoted hosts at the Upper Kirby Location, as they have revised the "back stage" to our website order taking/registration section. You will find our registration a little different, as you will be asked to provide a username, password etc, but this way you will not be required to fill out the same registration info every time we have a new program or event. While we have done a test run or two, the possibility of an troublesome oversight may develop, so please let us know if you find something that requires attention.
CSA FULL SHARE REBATES: To initiate our summer CSA program, we are offering rebates to the first 20 people that sign up for a full share. It is almost like receiving ten weeks for the price of eight as we'll refund you an immediate $50 to your credit card purchase. So the first 20 subscribers will pay $330 for a full share price, immediately receive a $50 rebate, making their total purchase price be $280. Interested in saving $50, then sign up now at Summer 2011 CSA Sign Up and send me an email pronto to csa@woodduckfarm.com that you've done so. I'll promptly send you the $50 back to your credit card. Not interested in paying with a credit card? We can take checks or cash too. Just send me an email requesting such. This offer is for full share purchases only and does not apply to partial shares, alternating week shares, or our meat subscription service. Why not offer discounts to other share sizes? With fixed costs, such as labor, fuel and packaging, it costs us about the same amount to deliver a partial share etc as it does a full share. Consequently, we don't have much margin from which to offer a discount. We hope you understand. Consider splitting a full share with a friend.
RECIPES: We are always looking for tried and tested recipes that our farm members can use with the farm bounty they receive each week. Here is an recipe/email that I recently received sharing some thoughts about our kale and potatoes. Thanks Melissa
While picking up my share today, I ran into a couple of CSA members at Coffee Oasis who were wondering what to do with their kale. I tried this recipe last week, and it was delicious (and used kale, potatoes AND onions! Woo)! Thought I'd share...
Kale & Potato Tarragon Salad
(from the cookbook "From Asparagus to Zucchini")
2 lbs small potatoes, scrubbed
7 TBLS olive oil, divided
1 medium onion, diced
1 bunch kale, stems removed, leaves chopped
1 clove garlic
2 TBLS white vinegar
2 TBLS lemon juice
1/4-1/2 tsp dried tarragon, divided (or use fresh)
salt & pepper
Steam or boil potatoes until tender. Drain, cut into large bite-size pieces, place in large bowl, and cover to keep warm. Meanwhile, heat 1 TBLS olive oil in a wide skillet over medium heat. Add onions, sauté til translucent. Add kale and garlic, cook til tender (5 mins -- cover to speed it up). Combine vinegar, lemon juice, 1/4 tsp tarragon, 6 TBLS olive oil, and salt and pepper. Add kale mixture to potatoes and pour dressing over everything. (It's important to toss the dressing while the mixture is hot, to soak in the flavors.) Add more salt, pepper or tarragon if needed. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Enjoy!
-Melissa
EMAILS/CORRESPONDENCE TO US: We would appreciate it if you would consider including your pick up location in your text when you email us. Why? Some folks don't include their last name, or have a different name from their married name, on their emails. Thus, we organize our lists by pick up location, so when you email us, we'll know where to look. This will make our job a little easier.
All the Best, Van Weldon Cell 713 876 8645 www.woodduckfarm.com email csa@woodduckfarm.com PS If you have moved or not interested in receiving our updates, please click the "unsubscribe" link above to "option out" of any future emails.
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