What MAY be in your share this week:
A head of romaine, spinach, premier kale, basil, gunsho, radishes, summer squash OR broccoli, turnips
Dear Katchkie Farm CSA Members,
We are beyond thrilled that the 2015 CSA season has finally arrived! Months of hard work and anticipation have lead up to this moment, and we hope our efforts have paid off. Now comes the fun part of the year when we spend two days a week bopping around NYC in a truck full of the best organic produce in town, headed straight for YOU!
To help you make the most of your soon-to-be full fridges, we wanted to give you some quick tips for a scrumptious season:
- Use your tender leafy greens first
- Buy a salad spinner! It's a cheap, handy tool to make sure your greens taste clean and crisp, not crunchy with [certified organic] dirt. It helps to simplify the prep process, which is the key incentive to eating more nutrient-rich salad.
- When in doubt, eat it raw. Add it in a salad, dip it in some dressing or hummus, or chop it up and eat it plain. Just keep things simple and enjoy the flavor of the farm.
- Make some pesto in a pinch. You can combine almost anything green with olive oil, garlic, and nuts or cheese in a food processor to make a rich spread or sauce on the fly.
- Don't forget to use your freezer!
- Remember: a bit of weekly menu planning goes a long way
Lastly, please take a moment to browse our website. Our newly designed site is an abundant resource. You can find storage and preparation how-to guides for nearly every vegetable we grow, as well as a dynamic recipe library that we'll be updating all season long. Please scroll down to the bottom of this newsletter to see recommended recipes for this week.
Make sure you're following us on Instagram to find out what to expect this week in your share, as well as fun farm updates.
Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns by writing your CSA Coordinator, Suzannah, at suzannah.schneider@katchkiefarm.com
We hope to see you out in the wild of the city this Wednesday and Thursday as we make our deliveries. Here's to a vibrant season!
Field Notes from Farmer Bob and Kristy:
"We thought we weren't going to have a spring this year. It seemed we'd gone directly from winter to summer, with scorching hot temperatures, drought-like conditions and bugs galore threatening to invade the crops we'd so carefully tried to protect.
This growing season has been an IRRIGATION MARATHON. The little 26 horse power irrigation pump has been running daily, it pushes 150 gallons a minute out on the field and the wind has not helped, blowing the stream of water off its intended targets. It's been so dry we've irrigated fields just to be able to plow them: dry soil breaks apart, destroying the clumpy structures we are trying to maintain. Still, crops look pretty good.
However, the flea beetles did come out in force, attacking the brassica crops. You may see some of their effect on the leaves (tiny holes). We have done our best to control them.
Finally, spring has renewed our faith by appearing with her unpredictable nature. Temperatures have dropped back down at night and in the mornings. We've gotten some rain, the first of the season and it looks like more to come is in the forecast. The sun is hot in the afternoons but with a cool breeze to keep the temperatures from rising to unbearable highs.
Last week we began removing the remay covers in the fields, as it was pulled off lush green leaves came billowing out. We've finished painting the pack room ensuring a completely new, bright, and cool packing experience.
Get ready, the leafy greens that took off in the heat and now fill our fields will continue to fill your bags. This season's bounty will surely satisfy."
 Links We Love
Will NYC restaurants soon be required to compost?
Neil Young is creating an anti-Monsanto concept album
Schools swap plastic trays for compostable plates
As always, please contact your CSA Coordinator, Suzannah, with any comments, questions, thoughts, or recipes at suzannah.schneider@katchkiefarm.com
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