Greetings!   

Well I am quite glad to see this week coming.  Not so much from a product point of view, but rather I'm hoping it will be a little more calm.  If anyone was following us on our facebook page, last week was a little nuts.  We had a busy week 7, then Taste of Tremont which is exhausting (and I cook for literally 24 hours straight), and then Week 8 was hectic with a broken down truck, which took all night to get back to Cleveland.  So we are crossing our fingers and hoping for the best this week. 

But in light of the truck issues last week, one positive does come out of it.  If anyone has spent as much time with tow truck drivers as I have, you know that they tend to have some good stories and you can get some good ideas.  So I took advantage of my night with Brian to pick his brain about life on the road as a truck driver and get some ideas for my next rig (yes, I have big truck envy again).  As a result, we have a new sausage this week.  I bet you never saw that coming.  

Brian and I were tooling around on my truck at about midnight at the Lodi Travel Center of America.  The trucks just kept rolling in as the drivers were ending their day and looking for a place to park.  Brian indicated that when he drove semi, he hated parking overnight.  He'd sleep during the day and drive all night to end at the truck stop in time for breakfast, which was cheaper and usually better.  That night at the TA, the dinner special was the "Big AZZ Steak."  It looked gross.  

So we talked shop about trucker things - fuel economy, miles on the road, payload capacity, diesel exhaust fluid.  You know, small talk.  Oh, and we talked breakfast.  My question was of course, links or patties.  Brian was a links guy, maple links to be exact.  So this week we have a trucker special available at the back of the truck in an effort to help pay for my tow, new clutch, and plenty of other parts. 

New Breakfast Maple Links made with real maple syrup - $8 per lb per 1 lb package or 2 for $15*

Trucker's Breakfast Combo - 1/2 lb City Roast Coffee, Maple Links, 1 dozen eggs, 1 mini-loaf bread -  $17

*these breakfast links are made with real Ohio maple syrup from the same producer, Aden Keim, as our regular bottled syrup.  Traditionally, maple links are made with artificial maple because real maple is expensive and tends to burn.  We made these as thicker breakfast links so they don't burn as easy.  Be careful not to scorch them.  Cook them slowly.  

Produce Report

These cool nights and the amount of moisture we have had this summer has been very destructive to the crops.  There are several issues, including the fact that there are gaps between plantings as farmers couldn't work the fields as wet as they were in May and June.  Now, with the 50 degree nights and temperatures 15 degrees cooler than usual, a lot of vegetables aren't ripening.  

These next two weeks we had intended to provide blackberries.  Our two blackberry growers are seeing about 35% yield this week so we are going to have to roll with the punches and see how many blackberries we get and when they arrive.  We will attempt to make sure all routes get them at some point.  For the routes not getting blackberries, you should expect blueberries.

Apricots are a similar story.  Last week they came on quick and that was it. No new apricots are ripening so we have plums for those who didn't get apricots yet.  (Last week's apricot and peach rotation). 

Peaches - we received more in to fill the large bags who are owed them from week 7.  They will arrive in Strongsville, Westlake, North Olmsted, Mayfield, and Beachwood this week.  

Charloe is back

We are excited to get another shipment of the Charloe bloomy-rind cheese from Canal Junction Creamery.  My driver is on the road today to get it and bring it back for your enjoyment.  The large bags will receive it this week but there is plenty to go around for those who want to buy some extra.  It will be $6 per package and will be available at the back of the truck. 

As for other cheeses, we are also receiving shipments this week from Mayfield Road Creamery (gouda, havarti, beer cheese, and brie) and Blue Jacket Creamery (cheese curds and aged cheddar).

New Lemon Ginger Yogurt

Snowville has a new yogurt out this week.  It is a very rich, "dessert" yogurt.  It is 8% butterfat and actually has a cream topping on it.  The yogurt is considered a "cup set."  This means that the warm yogurt is put into a cup then the temperature us held at 100 degrees in an incubator to allow the cultures to work on the yogurt.  It is then packaged and chilled down.  This yogurt is very thick and does have a thick layer of cream on the top. When you open the container, simply stir it down into the yogurt for a delicious dessert yogurt that will go great with your peaches or any other summer fruit.  Packages will be available at the back of the truck or online for $6 per container.  

Threshing Day Event

Don't forget to save your spot for one of our best events of the year.  This Saturday from 10 AM to 4 PM is Threshing Day -  a live reaping, threshing, and grain demonstration paired with a delicious Amish lunch and an afternoon of educational workshops and kids activities. 

Learn more and please RSVP online at this link:   http://events.constantcontact.com/register/event?llr=6bx9cgdab&oeidk=a07e75m1ev59c109bc2 

We also worked with Chef Nicole to add more space to the Raw Vegan Dinner at the Transformer Station, for Tuesday August 6th.  We have 5 seats left.  Please RSVP here at this link:  

http://events.constantcontact.com/register/event?llr=6bx9cgdab&oeidk=a07e7t3js7uf47556a2

So here is this week's entire list: 

Summer Week 9: 

Small Share

1 package green onion bratwurst

1 eggplant

1 candy onion

1 bunch red russian kale

Aprpox 1.5 lb tomatoes

1 pint blackberries or blueberries

1/2 dozen ears sweet corn

1 quarter peck peaches 

Large Share

Small package plus:

1 package Andouille Sausage (slightly spicy spanish style smoked sausage)

2 ct cucumbers

1 bag purple filet beans

1 bunch basil

1 pint cherry tomatoes

1 piece Charloe Cheese 

 Vegetarian Substitutions (in place of sausage)

1 cantaloupe

1 handful hot peppers

1 bag purple filet beans

1 pint cherry tomatoes

Vegan Substitutions (same as Vegetarian)

Small except sausage,

Vegetarian additions