Right now you can get an 8 lb. box of Peaches or 12 lb. box of Tomatoes delivered with your CSA box.

Order one week at a time, or subscribe for the season. Go to the Web Store section of your TFF account to sign up.

CSA Rates 2014

Boxes are charged on Monday for the week's deliveries at:

$16 Small
$27 Medium
$36 Large

For a payment of $300, get a 3% bonus. Your account balance will be $309.

For a payment of$850, get a 5% bonus. Your account will be posted as $892.00

For a payment of $1,400, get a 7% bonus. Your payment will be posted as $1,498.

Pledge of Authenticity

Terra Firma is a real farm. We grow 99% of the produce that goes into our boxes on our 220 acres of certified organic land in Winters. If we do buy produce from other farms, it's almost always from a neighboring farm and we give them full credit in the box list.
The owners of Terra Firma are involved in every aspect of making your boxes a reality: walking the fields, planting the crops, selecting and checking what goes in the boxes and finally delivering them to you. We eat the crops from our fields every day, just like you do. Thanks for supporting our efforts and enjoying the food we grow.
Paul, Pablito, & Hector

Payments, Billing, and Changes

Schedule vacations, change box sizes, make payments or sign up for autopay by logging in to your subscriber account at terrafirmafarm.com

News From Terra Firma Farm

Community Supported Agriculture

A strange thing happened in the Sacramento Valley yesterday. I'm not speaking specifically about the light rain that fell several times between sunrise and sunset. While it's not very common, it's not unheard of. Actually, it's happened so many times this summer that it almost seems normal.*

I am referring specifically to the sun. Or more correctly, the lack thereof. Yesterday, August 5th, 2014, the sun never came out in Winters, California. I've been here for over 20 years now, and I can't remember a day in mid-summer when it was cloudy all day.

Not just cloudy. These were dark grey, almost black clouds. Usually if there are clouds here, they still let quite a bit of the sun through so it still gets hot but it's also humid. Yesterday the thermometer never even hit 80.

In the valley, the sun is fairly oppressive. During the dry season it is with us almost constantly from sunrise to sunset, pounding its powerful energy down on us. It sucks energy from humans while pushing many plants into photosynthetic overdrive.

Yesterday we got a rare reprieve from its intensity. Most days, we start harvesting tomatoes at 6 a.m. On Tuesday, it was too dark to see the fruit on the plants. We had to shuffle folks around to other tasks until 7.

This morning, like yesterday morning, we woke to a light drizzle. But the sun was already poking through the clouds at 7, and this afternoon will be hot and humid until the sun burns the clouds and moisture away. But it was worth it. Just for that one day.

* -- Despite it having rained several times in the last two weeks, the total rainfall over the last two weeks is still just a tiny fraction of an inch. This is barely enough to wet the ground, much less provide any useable water for our crops. And nowhere near enough to make any impact in the overall deficit of precipitation during the continuing drought.

Thanks,

Pablito

This week's boxes

August is a fruity month at Terra Firma. We still have peaches and nectarines, although the season is going to wrap up early this year. But we also have a bumper crop of Figs this year: they are in your boxes today and it looks like harvest will continue through mid-month.

Seedless Grapes will also be a regular item in your boxes.

Then of course there are Melons and Watermelons. We have made a conscious effort to avoid overloading your boxes with melons this year, but they are a delicious and critical part of our August boxes.

This will be the final week for Sweet Corn. We were really happy
with the corn this year, both in terms of quality and quantity and we hope you were as well.

Featured Item: Shishito Peppers

Shishito Peppers -- also called Padrons -- have taken the culinary world by storm in the last few years due to their popularity as as "tapa" dish first on Spanish menus and now at all kinds of restaurants. We grew them two years ago and put them in your boxes once or twice. Last year we had a crop failure but this year we have plenty, and they are in all your boxes today.

Shishitos are basically tasteless when raw. But when skilled-roasted whole with olive oil and salt, they take on a unique flavor. Almost like chipotle chiles, but without the intense heat. Serve them in a small bowl as a finger food and watch them disappear.

But roasted shishitos are also a great ingredient in other dishes. Just remove the stem and add whole, or chop into pieces. I have been adding them to tomato salads, throwing them on pizza, and even in salsa. The biggest problem with using them this way is trying not to eat them all first.

Note: While shishitos are not always spicy, some are. They are usually the larger ones (2 inches or bigger). If you are super sensitive to spicy food, you may want to let someone else in your household enjoy them.

To Prepare: Heat 2 T. olive oil in a skillet and sprinkle salt into the hot oil. Place whole peppers, with the stems, in a single layer in the pan. Fry them on medium high until the skins begin to blister and brown, then flip them with a tongs. When both sides are blistered and the pepper gets wrinkly, it is done. Smaller peppers will cook more quickly, so it's best to remove them from the pan one at a time as they cook.

Recipe: Shishito-Tomato-Cucumber Salad

Mince 2 cloves of garlic and fresh ginger to make 2 T. Marinate in 2 T. rice wine vinegar for 15 minutes.

Cut 2 medium sized tomatoes into quarters, then cut the quarters into thick slices. Toss in a bowl with salt.

Fry 1/4 lb. of shishito peppers in 2 T. olive oil and salt until blistered on both sides. Use a tongs to flip the peppers.

Thinly slice 1 Painted Serpent cucumber on an angle to make 2 C.. Toss the cucumbers with the garlic and ginger, and 1 T. soy sauce. Let them marinate for 10 minutes.

When the peppers are cool, remove the stems and cut the bigger ones in half (leave the small ones whole).

Toss the peppers and the tomatoes with the cucumbers. Add olive oil, salt, and black pepper to taste. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds